Chrysler Riding High with Billions in Profits

While DaimlerChrysler has stated that the Crossfire's level of parts sharing will never be duplicated again, it has

The new 300 has become the halo vehicle that Chrysler has always needed. (Photo: DaimlerChrysler Canada)

nevertheless made a unique halo car for the Chrysler brand and initially thought to be necessary in helping the brand be accepted as a premium player.

Hindsight makes it pretty obvious that with or without the Crossfire, Chrysler would have had a runaway success with its new 300. It has become the halo vehicle it always needed, and there's no better placement for a halo vehicle to be positioned than square in the middle of an automaker's lineup.

Growing Laterally into New Market Segments

Due to the success of the 300 and the high volume of sales featuring the automaker's powerful and profitable HEMI V8, Chrysler is considering using its newfound wealth, reputation for bold innovation and the 425-horsepower 6.1-litre HEMI V8 that motivates

Chrysler is considering using its newfound wealth to increase its prominence in the market even further. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press)

the brand's most powerful 300C, the SRT8, to increase its prominence in the market even further.

It is quite likely that Chrysler will add a second sports car to its portfolio, or potentially eliminate the Crossfire altogether in order to make way for something entirely new. It's hardly news that Crossfire sales have been slow, something that Chrysler had expected when it launched the attractive sports car - it was mostly designed for halo purposes after all. Now with the 300 doing more for halo purposes than the Crossfire ever could, there's an opening for something even more enticing, and even more "Chrysler" at the top end of the domestic brand.