Fiarysler, or Chriat?

CNNMoney.com has an article about yet another forced marriage:

Chrysler LLC is in the midst of intense negotiations, discussions that now seem troubled, to form a partnership with Italy's Fiat. Chrysler has been scrambling to meet the U.S. government's mandate that, in part, requires it to sell more low emission vehicles. To do this quickly Chrysler needs a partner.
Fiat seems like a good fit for Chrysler for several reasons. The first, and probably biggest, reason is simply that Fiat is willing to enter into this relationship. Beyond that, Fiat has expertise in producing good small, fuel-efficient cars, an area in which Chrysler LLC is, at best, weak.
Finally, Fiat has shown that it knows how to take a cash infusion and use it for a turnaround. In 2005, General Motors paid Fiat $2 billion to get out of a partnership with the then-struggling automaker. Just a few years, and some hot products, later, Fiat looks like a golden boy. The question now is, even if Chrysler can make this deal happen before the deadline, can FIat's help come soon enough? According to a product plan submitted to the Treasury Department, Chrysler plans call for a subcompact hatchback from Fiat to enter the market late next year.
Chrysler could redesign the 500 a little and rebadge it as a Chrysler, but that probably wouldn't make a lot of sense. "I don't think they want to, because everybody loves that damned thing," said James Bell, publisher of Intellichoice.com. It also would also mean a lot of work to make this car was anything other than a Fiat. The design is supposed to remind you of the cars you might have seen driving around Rome in the 1960s. Slapping a Chrysler badge on it just wouldn't make sense.
Chrysler's plan also calls for a plug-in electric mini car from Fiat to come out shortly before the gasoline-powered one. That could be a 500, or 500-based vehicle, as well.
While the Fiat may look cute, though, it's much smaller than most cars Americans are used to. It's about six inches shorter than a Mini Cooper. The 500 feels bigger once you're inside it, though, said Matt Stone, executive editor of Motor Trend magazine. You don't sit as low to the ground and there's more glass to see out of than in the Mini. "I think people would totally dig it," he said. "It's terminally cute."

They would have to do something about the name (much too slow-moving and herbivorous for American tastes), but the Panda could fill the bill for a small hatchback Chrysler has said it hopes to introduce in late 2010. It could also make it here, believe it or not, as a Jeep.
The four-wheel-drive version of the Panda could fill the bill as a Jeep-branded subcompact that Chrysler hopes to introduce in 2011. If so, it will be the smallest Jeep ever, almost three feet shorter than today's Jeep Compass crossover. Unlike the Compass, which sells as strictly an on-road Jeep-like vehicle, Fiat touts the Panda 4x4 as the real off-road deal. This one probably won't be tackling serious boulder-strewn trails, though.

Translated literally, the name means "big dot", but Americans would find this car to be rather on the small side. it's about the size of a Honda Fit or Chevrolet Aveo. It's available as a small hatchback car, a body style that's popular in Europe, but not as popular in the US. Chrysler does have a slot in its product line for a small hatchback car, though, something smaller than the the Dodge Caliber. The Grande Punto isn't really Fiat's best, but it's better than what Chrysler currently offers small car buyers, said Matt Stone, executive editor of Motor Trend. "It would be an obvious quick-and-dirty choice," he said. Add a trunk, something car companies frequently do to sell a car in the hatch-phobic American market, and the Grande Punto also fill in as a compact sedan. That's something Chrysler hopes to have in late 2011.

About the size of a Pontiac Vibe small wagon, the slick-looking Bravo could also be basis of a compact wagon or even a sedan for the American market. "They'll have to do a quick patch job and put a trunk on it," said James Bell, publisher of Intellichoice.com. They might not need to that, though, thinks Matt Stone, executive editor of Motor Trend. Younger buyers have caught onto the idea that hatchbacks and wagons make for efficient use of space in a small car. The Bravo is a stylish car and it's fairly new on the market, said Stone. "I'd take that over a Dodge Cailber in a second," he said.

A Fiat-Chrysler deal wouldn't be to Chrysler's benefit alone, of course. Fiat's getting something here, too. Specifically, Chrysler is opening the door for Fiat to enter the American car market with brands other than the ultra-high-end Ferrari and Maserati. In particular, Fiat sees an opportunity to finally re-introduce its Alfa Romeo luxury brand here. If it does, Americans should be pleasantly surprised to see a line of sharp-looking cars that won't readily be confused with anything else on the road.
Matt Stone, executive editor of Motor Trend magazine, called the Alfa Romeo 159 "very stylish, inside and out". It also drives much, much better than any product Chrysler now offers. It's probably won't come here until after it's redesigned or at least updated, though, he said. A car like the 159 could also form the basis of mid-size sedan for Chrysler to replace the less-than-competitive Chrysler Sebring.