In a new column for BusinessWeek famous ex- Chrysler chief Lee Iacocca declares “Daimler screwed Chrysler royally” during the nine years it owned the American automaker.
Iacocca describes the sale of the Chrysler Group to Cerberus Capital Management as a “desperation sale.” He questions whether the investment group is best suited to run the company.
“The biggest fear that people have about private equity firms like Cerberus is that their basic goal is to strip and flip,” writes Iacocca. In other words, slash jobs, benefits, and products to resell the company for a large profit.
But Iacocca biggest complaints focus on Daimler’s actions that led it to this sale. “Chrysler’s merger with Daimler-Benz nine years ago was a disaster from the start. [...] Chrysler was the lowest-cost producer and the most profitable car company in the world. [...] it took Daimler less than a decade to drive Chrysler off a cliff.”
[Lee Iacocca: "Daimler Screwed Chrysler", BusinessWeek]
