LaSorda: China deal won't hurt N. America

Chrysler boss Tom LaSorda: No impact on jobs here Photo credit: BRENDAN SMILOWSKI/NEWSCOM

Bradford Wernle | | Automotive News / January 8, 2007 - 1:00 am DETROIT -- Will Chrysler's small-car partnership with Chery Automobile Co. of China mean lost jobs for American or Canadian autoworkers?

No, says Tom LaSorda, Chrysler group CEO.

"This will have no impact because we're not even involved in the B segment today," LaSorda said on Chrysler's media blog.

The B segment is an industry term for cars the size of the Chevrolet Aveo, Toyota Yaris, Honda Fit and Nissan Versa. At the end of December, Chrysler said it had hired Chery to assemble the cars for sale in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe and other markets.

Chrysler officials have not said when the new small cars will arrive in North America. The deal still needs to be approved by the DaimlerChrysler AG supervisory board and the Chinese government.

The cars, which will be built in China, will carry one of the Chrysler group's three brands.

The smart money is on Dodge. Dodge is Chrysler's value brand, and the company showed a concept called the Dodge Hornet at the 2006 Geneva auto show.

LaSorda explained the company's decision not to build in the United States, Canada or Mexico -- also called the NAFTA region: "We're talking about B segment, which is a very small compact car. And if you look at the U.S. market or even in NAFTA, all the B-segment vehicles are being imported from the Asia region. We cannot really compete, nor can anyone making it in this region."

LaSorda is not quite right. The Versa is made in Mexico, while the Aveo, Yaris and Fit are imported from Asia.