Sure, that is the word. It is PC of course. And really what are they supposed to say? We are shutting all the damn plants down and shooting all the ####s that work there?
One thing is for sure. Major changes are blowing in the wind at Chrysler. And whether you work for Dodge or are involved with Doge Racing things are probably going to effect you. But no one can tell you how much right now. Nobody knows.
Nope the game just has to play itself out and as it is played indicators will begin to show and we will all read the tea leaves together. So if you get tired of the Dale Earnhardt Jr. soap opera this summer, more than likely you will have the Dodge soap to fall back on.
CHARLOTTE -- DaimlerChrysler's decision to sell majority ownership in Chrysler to the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management is not expected to affect Dodge Motorsports' participation in the Nextel Cup series. DaimlerChrysler officials announced on Monday that Cerberus will pay $7.4 billion for 80 percent stake in the manufacturer of Dodge, Chrysler and Jeep vehicles. All the Dodge teams are locked up contractually through at least 2009.
With private-equity investors reported to be hungry for the prize, DaimlerChrysler could net up to 9 billion euros for the sale of its US division Chrysler, a German newspaper said Saturday. Welt am Sonntag, releasing news to appear in its Sunday edition, quoted sources close to the negotiations as saying the sale could yield 'between 6 billion and 9 billion dollars,' well ahead of earlier estimates. The Goldman Sachs investment bank had earlier forecast bids would top out at around 6 billion euros. Private-equity firm Cerberus Capital Management lodged a bid for Chrysler on Friday, the newspaper said. Cerberus was reported to see the key value in Chrysler's financial services division.
Mike Skinner started on the pole and stayed out front virtually all day at Martinsville Speedway on Saturday, leading all but seven of 253 laps to win his third consecutive NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race. Coming off victories at California and Atlanta, Skinner set a series record by leading 246 laps and won for the 22nd time in his career. He became only the second driver in the series to win twice on the small, tight oval at Martinsville. "This was about as good as it gets right here," he said in Victory Lane.
Skinner beat Todd Bodine to the finish by 0.527 seconds after the 15th caution of the race brought about a two-lap dash to the finish in overtime. In all, the race went 253 laps, and 85 of them were run under a yellow flag because of numerous accidents. Each restart, however, only reinforced that Skinner's Toyota was the truck to beat. Series champion Bodine ran second in another Toyota, but never really challenged for the lead. "His truck was just incredibly strong the whole race," Bodine said. Skinner grew weary of the cautions, but appreciative of Bodine's style.
Mike Skinner had just secured the victory when his crew chief, Jeff Hensley, boomed over the radio: "We're going for No. 4 at Kansas." No rest for the dominating.
The win is Skinner's 22nd of his career. Ironically, Bodine was the last series driver to win three in a row, in the final three races of 2005. "That was cool, wasn't it? The thing just hauled butt all day," said Skinner, who leads the series standings by 94 points over Bodine. "I remember a couple years ago these Toyotas wouldn't run on short race tracks."
The only time Skinner didn't lead was during pit stops early. Even when Bodine used pit strategy to get better track position, he moved into second but couldn't close on Skinner.
DaimlerChrysler AG is expected to narrow the list of bidders for Chrysler to one or two finalists very soon, possibly in the next few days ahead of the April 4 annual shareholders meeting, Detroit Free Press newspaper said, citing people familiar with the talks. Once that happens, due diligence and negotiations that would perhaps last for months will follow to hammer out details and the sale price, it added. It said what is all but certain at this point is DaimlerChrysler (nyse: DCX - news - people ) will sell all or part of the Auburn-Hills-based US operations as Daimler's stock price has shot up more than 25 pct since Feb 14.
Auto Unions Plan United Front On Plans for Chrysler's Future
By Gina Chon
As potential buyers prepare to submit bids for the Chrysler Group, the unions of the United Auto Workers and the Canadian Auto Workers agreed Thursday to work together to present a united front.
In the final hours before potential buyers must submit bids to DaimlerChrysler (DCX) for its ailing Chrysler Group unit, private equity group Cerberus Capital Management has decided to go it alone, instead of bidding together with Canadian auto supplier Magna International (MGA), sources close to Cerberus and Magna say. Sources say the two sides couldn't come to terms on how they would structure a deal, and that Magna Chairman Frank Stronach wanted more control over a transaction than Cerberus would permit.
Meanwhile, Magna, which has a front seat at the bidding table, is interested in a minority stake in Chrysler and is teaming up with a private equity player. KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst Brett Hoselton said earlier this week that Magna has picked a private equity partner, and a source close to Magna says the company is linked with New York-based Ripplewood Holdings. Many industry watchers have questioned whether a bid from Magna makes sense. While the company has experience running car plants, it has not engineered complete models and taken them to market.
Three things have merged resulting in this blog. First, my insomnia (no I haven't slept yet), second, the Craftsman Truck series is in action again this weekend (remember I am a Dodge Racing fan when it comes to the trucks) and third one of my earlier blogs on the situation with Chrysler flared to life again yesterday. So here is an update on Chrysler from last week's news reports.
Union leaders on both sides of the Atlantic are vowing to fight a sale of DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group to a private-equity buyer, throwing a potential hurdle in front of a deal.
By Richard Milne in Munich and John Reed in London
Wolfgang Bernhard, the restructuring expert who helped to turn around Chrysler five years ago, has signed an advisory contract with Cerberus Capital Management, signficantly strengthening the private equity group's hand in the bidding for the US carmaker. Mr Bernhard, who was chief operating officer at Chrysler, signed the contract for a full-time role recently, according to several people familiar with the situation. The advisory mandate further helps the chances of Cerberus, already one of the favourites to buy Chrysler from DaimlerChrysler, its German parent.
Daimler has received preliminary expressions of interest from several other private equity funds since announcing that "all options" were open for its loss-making US unit in mid-February. General Motors has studied the possibility of co-operation with Chrysler and Magna International, the Canadian auto parts and assembly company, has expressed interest in the potential sale. Cerberus is increasingly active in the automotive sector. It last year led a group buying 51 per cent of GMAC, GM's financing arm and is also part o####roup seeking to buy Delphi, the bankrupt parts supplier. With potential investors like Cerberus and the Blackstone Group becoming increasingly interested in Chrysler, some bankers involved in the process believe a sale to private equity is likelier than to a competitor.
DETROIT — Prospective bidders already have begun jockeying for position as German auto giant DaimlerChrysler prepares to spin off or sell the struggling Chrysler Group. Rumors began flying on both sides of the Atlantic — and the Pacific — almost immediately after CEO Dieter Zetsche on Thursday confirmed the company was exploring "all options" regarding Chrysler. Several media reports in Europe said Zetsche met in December with General Motors Chairman Rick Wagoner and discussed a wide range of scenarios, including the possibility of joint vehicle development. But the likelihood that GM will actually buy Chrysler seemed dim, considering how much product overlap exists between the two companies, GM's own brand-management issues and how much excess baggage Chrysler would bring to the party, from underused assembly plants to the same kinds of "legacy" health care and pension costs that still plague GM.
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