CHRYSLER.CA and
DODGE.ca are website of
the Chrysler Corporation
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Chrysler
Canada Inc. is Chrysler's Canadian division.
Incorporated in 1925, the Chrysler Corporation of Canada gained complete
control of a Maxwell-Chalmers plant that had been used to manufacture some
Chrysler models in the previous year.
Initially called Chrysler Canada, Ltd, the
name of the company changed to DaimlerChrysler Canada Inc following the
merger of the two parent companies. In August 2007, the company was renamed
Chrysler Canada Incorporated when Cerberus Capital Management purchased
80.1% of its parent company Chrysler LLC.
Chrysler Canada has three vehicle assembly plants in operation in
Canada, and built 535,878 cars and trucks in 2002. In 2007 the company sold
232,688 vehicles in the Canadian market. Currently in terms of sales,
Chrysler Canada is number two in volume slightly edging out Ford Motor
company not including their Premier Automotive Group holding just over 14%
of the market.
Due to Windsor being the location of Chrysler's main Canadian headquarters
and plants, and the City of Oshawa housing General Motors Canadian
headquarters and three plants, their is a friendly rivalry as Automotive
Capital of Canada.
Currently in Canada, Chrysler Canada Inc. sells three brands, namely
Dodge, Jeep and Chrysler.
Dodge is positioned as the mainstream car,
truck and van line while Jeep is the off-road brand. Chrysler is the
company's current luxury/entry-luxury brand. One thing about the Canadian
lineup versus the American product offerings is that, while all of the same
models are available, sometimes they are sold under different brands. For
example, during the first part of the 2000's, Dodge was positioned not as a
car brand but as a truck brand that also sold minivans and SUV's. With
Plymouth phased out, all car lines ended up going to Chrysler. As such the
Canadian marketplace included cars such as the Chrysler Neon, Chrysler
Intrepid and so forth that were offered as Dodges only in the US
marketplace. As of 2003 this decision has been reversed and the lineups are
the same in both countries.
Chrysler
The current entry luxury/luxury lineup of Chrysler Canada. Models in the
lineup range from $20000 and peak around $60000 for a fully loaded 300C
SRT-8. The lineup consists of cars, SUV's, Crossover's and Minivans. Canada
is currently one of only a few markets where the Chrysler brand has
maintained a luxury position in the market. In fact in 2005 and 2006 the
Chrysler brand was the number one selling luxury brand in Canada. The
Chrysler 300C is currently the best
selling luxury model in Canada.
Chrysler 300/300C -
Luxury Sedan
Chrysler Aspen - Luxury Full-Size SUV
Chrysler Crossfire - Luxury Coupe and Roadster
Chrysler Pacifica - Luxury Crossover
Chrysler PT Cruiser - Compact Hatchback
Chrysler Sebring - Midsize Sedan
Chrysler Town and Country - Luxury Minivan
Dodge
Dodge is the entry level mainstream brand of Chrysler Canada. The lineup
contains everything from compact hatchback's all the way to exotic sports
cars. The price range goes from $15000 to around $103000. Dodge for the last
two decades has been advertised not only as the mainstream value brand but
also the performance brand as well as the man's brand. Names like the
Charger, Avenger and Nitro were used to cement this idea, as well as
availability of the Viper sports car. These models are soon to be joined by
the Dodge Challenger another sports car based on the LX platform currently
under the Magnum, Charger and 300/300C, as well as the soon to be introduced
Dodge Journey which shares it platform though it is significantly changed
with the Avenger, Caliber, Compass, Patriot and Sebring. Soon to follow will
be multiple subcompact vehicles, making the Dodge lineup a full line brand.
Also the Dodge brand has two of the top ten best selling light truck
vehicles currently sold in Canada. Those are the Dodge Caravan(2nd) and the
Dodge Ram(3rd).
Dodge Avenger - Midsize Sedan
Dodge Caliber - Compact Hatchback/SUV
Dodge Charger - Full-Size Sedan
Dodge Dakota - Midsize Pickup
Dodge Durango - Full-Size SUV
Dodge Grand Caravan - Minivan
Dodge Magnum - Full-Size Wagon
Dodge Nitro - Compact SUV
Dodge Ram - Full-Sive Pickup
Dodge Sprinter - Full-Size Van
Dodge Viper - Sports Car
Jeep
Jeep is currently the offroad specifically SUV brand of Chrysler Canada. Up
until 2007 all models were truck based SUV's and the lineup was limited to
four full models. With the introduction of the Compass and Patriot, the
brand has reached out to new buyers looking for an SUV's capabilities, with
better fuel economy. The Patriot is also currently the cheapest SUV in
Canada currently on the market.
Jeep Commander - Midsize SUV
Jeep Compass - Compact SUV
Jeep Grand Cherokee - Midsize SUV
Jeep Liberty - Compact SUV
Jeep Patriot - Compact SUV
Jeep Wrangler - Compact SUV
Photo:
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