End of Chrysler imminent in Australia

The end of the line for the Chrysler brand in Australia appears to be imminent.

While it’s yet to be officially announced, the Australian subsidiary of parent company Stellantis has issued a new showroom design (known as a corporate identity or CI in the trade) for its dealers with the Chrysler logo noticeably absent.

Dealer sources contacted by carsales believe the brand is done and dusted in Australia and the new CI is evidence of that.

Stellantis Australia has been approached for comment.

Once a manufacturer in Australia, the historic American brand is down to disposing of its last few Chrysler 300 sedans.

Dealers say they expect supply of the ageing Chrysler 300 to be exhausted by the end of 2021 at the latest.

Right-hand drive manufacture of the 300 ended in the US earlier this year. It had been sustained by a deal to supply SRT V8 models to the NSW highway patrol.

Chrysler had been tipped to get the chop when the PSA and FCA groups merged to form Stellantis earlier this year.

Instead, Stellantis boss Carlos Tavares has vowed to maintain all 14 brands and described Chrysler as a “pillar” of the group.

At a recent Stellantis EV Day, an unnamed Chrysler crossover made a brief appearance. A further development of the Airflow concept that first appeared at CES 2020, it is the first evidence of Stellantis’ revitalisation plan for Chrysler.

In Australia, judging by the new dealership CI, there is no future at least for the mid-term.

Chrysler will join fellow group brand Dodge on the sidelines here. While best known for its V8 muscle cars, Dodge relied on the Journey wagon here and finished up in 2016.

Chrysler was once ranked number three in sales in Australia behind Holden and Ford, when it was a manufacturer producing cars such as the Valiant and its coupe spin-off, the Charger, from a factory in South Australia.

Its best sales year was 1969 when 66,948 Chrysler-badged cars were sold here.

The Chrysler brand went into hiatus locally in 1980 when Mitsubishi bought out Chrysler Australia and rebranded its vehicles Mitsubishi.

Chrysler returned to Australia as an importer in the 1990s, first with the Jeep brand and later with cars such as the Neon, Grand Voyager, PT Cruiser, Crossfire, Sebring and 300C.