The Chrysler Axe is set to swing soon

[RJB]

Well according to Autoblog these vehicles are going away very shortly, the next round may include the Commander. I personally love the Magnum wagon, especially in SRT form. I think the Pacifica is a great vehicle, why didn't they market it as a crossover or give it the subtle makeover it needs? I guess we will never find out.

http://www.autoblog.com/2007/10/31/chrysle...ifica-pt-cruis/

[toesuf94]

I am amazed it took them this long, though I am suprised that the PT is getting axed before the Calibur. And the Commander is only selling well due to them giving them away. We have one and chalk it up to the biggest mistake of our automotive lives. It has great features, but is put together so poorly it should be condemed. Seriously. And the mileage cannot be helping the CAFE for Chrysler.

The PT was a great little car with a great following. I wonder if this is the effect of dramatic styling being unable to be refreshed or to evolve, and will the same thing happen to the HHR? The Mustang? The Camaro? Are all of these Heritage designs doomed to repeat the fate of the PT when the newness and novelty wear off?

I doubt anyone will miss any of the other axed models.

[regfootball]

i do like the magnum, except it needs a complete interior redo. not talking the 08 refresh either.

[Oracle of Delphi]

Swing that ax, swing baby swing!

[Drew Dowdell]

I'm surprised the PT is going simply because it was selling well.

[Intrepidation]

The left the PT to rot really, I'm not surprised, but they should redesign it. Same with the Pacifica, since it was the first big Crossover. The Magnum is admittedly going to be a low volume vehicle...it is a wagon after all. it's ashame that it would go.

While I applaud them for taking action, The Compass and Aspen should be the first to go. you'd have to be retarded not to see that they are flops.

[6t5frlane]

Ditto What Dodge fan said

[Jazzhead]

I assume most of these decisions relate to capacity at the affected factories. The Mexican factory that builds the PT Cruiser is, I believe, the home for the new Chrysler crossover. The Pacifica is built in a Canadian minivan plant, which will presumably increase production of the new minivans. The Magnum is built at the Brampton 300 plant, which will soon be used to build the Challenger.

Meanwhile, the Commander hangs on because it utilizes excess capacity at the Detroit Grand Cherokee plant. Same goes for the Toledo-built Compass and the Delaware- built Aspen.

Too bad about the Pacifica and Magnum, though. We've had a Pacifica since 2004, and it's been an excellent, practical and trouble-free vehicle for us. The Magnum is unique, and I still turn my head when I see one go by.

[Intrepidation]

The Pacifica has the best Chrysler interior. Even now it's better than a lot of what competitors are shoveling out. The design is a bit dated but the quality of what it's built with is top rate.

he Magnum will be a niche seller because its a wagon. But since it sells slow and doesn't require extra tooling I see no need to axe it. there are people, myself included, that love the Magnum.

[regfootball]

i don't think the magnum should be axed. Why can't they just cut production since the tooling is done?

[Intrepidation]

i don't think the magnum should be axed. Why can't they just cut production since the tooling is done?

Threat could work, make it a very low volume car so there's not high inventory, plus collector value goes up. Drop the base engine, maybe even the 3.5L. Slap a manual in it as an option and instant collector.

[CMG]

The Compass/Caliber aren't my favorites, they needed major redos to be successful anways. Why not just start with a clean slate...

The Magnums are nice, but we already bought one. LOL Chopping the Magnum won't affect us, all the Magnum guys want to see it axed so their values will go up, so they THINK.

:AH-HA_wink:

I don't see it....

The Durango looks need to be addressed. Same goes for the Dakota. I would rather see the Durango axed than the Aspen.

Some FRESH stuff would be nice. Chrysler usually doesn't disappoint in bring something weird and unusual out every decade or so, hopefully they'll bring out something interesting.

[Drew Dowdell]

consolidate to the 300c Estate Wagon that is sold overseas.

[CanadianJeepYJ]

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article...1/71031072/1014

The PT survived....

In addition to the PT Cruiser convertible, Chrysler will announce tomorrow that it will shed the Pacifica wagon, the Crossfire coupe and the Dodge Magnum wagon over the 2008 model year. The aging Pacifica and Crossfire share no common underpinnings with other Chrysler vehicles and need expensive updates, while the slow-selling Magnum will be replaced by the Dodge Journey crossover when it launches next year.

Edited November 1, 2007 by CanadianJeepYJ

[Camino LS6]

I will miss the Magnum - the rest can go hang.

[Dragon]

kinda surprised by the axing of the magnum, though I haven't seen many of the new one's oot and aboot so maybe they just aren't selling? figured the Pacifica was pretty dead last year when DCX put the next gen on hold indefinitely

[pow]

Since the Merc relationship is over, any word on whether or not the Sprinter will survive? It's an awesome van.

[Northstar]

If there's no more Magnum, that market would be free for a G8 wagon to take over.

[K.C.]

There's going to be one year for the redesigned 2008 Magnum? Thats peculiar.

[Ravenfreak13]

I wouldn't be shocked if the PT was the 1st gen VW Bug of the 2000's.

[BrewSwillis]

Why is this such big news?? They are really creating alot of drama over this.

Of course vehicles are going away that don't share a platform anymore. The Pacifica was built on it's own minivan derived platform that is no longer in use. It will simply move to the Journey's platform. The PT Cruiser will either combine with the Pacifica replacement and be a size between the two, or it will get a replacement based on the Cailber/Patriot/Compass platform after they axe the Compass. The Crossfire may have continued if they stayed with Daimler, but that won't happen now.

They must plan on selling alot of Challengers to get rid of a vehicle that's on a current platform, or they probably just didn't include the Magnum when they redesigned the LX's. They might even build another higher end Chrysler on the LX replacement platform, called New Yorker or something, which wouldn't leave any room for the Magnum in production.

It's all about production capacity, and maxing out each plant and platform. I'm surprised that they aren't building the Journey in Sterling Heights. I don't think the Sebring and Avenger are selling like expected.....but then again, why would they build something in the US when they can make it in Mexico for a fraction of the cost.

[smk4565]

Wagons don't sell, especially American ones, and they aren't image boosters, no surprise to the the Magnum die. I am surprised they aren't dumping the Aspen and Durango too, maybe after they launch the hybrid versions and see people still don't want them, they'll give up on them later down the line.

Crossfire and PT Convertible hardly sell, makes sense to dump them. The PT is mainly a rental car now, I could see that going in a year or 2.

I think Chrysler is in trouble, the Dodge Journey I don't see as being a hit, and the Sebring/Avenger aren't doing much. They have Jeep and the 300C and minivans, hard to survive on that.