Chrysler's Non-US Assets Still on the Safe Side

Although the company has filed for bankruptcy in the United States, Chrysler insists the assets it owns outside its domestic market are still on the safe side, with no major changes to be announced for the time being. The announcement was made at a conference in Dubai by Thomas Hausch, Chrysler's vice president of international sales, who emphasized that the bankruptcy filing only affects the American operations and not the rest of the world.

"Our organization outside the U.S. stays intact. It doesn't go through a Chapter 11 or anything comparable," he was quoted as saying by Autonews. "We have no plans to change any distributor contracts or do any major network changes."

The recently-formed alliance with Italian manufacturer Fiat would not lead to major changes outside the United States, Hausch said, but, on the other hand, it will help the American company expand its operations in new and unexplored regions.

"The Fiat alliance might allow us to make additions in some of the white spots," he said. The Italian automaker already took over 20 percent of Chrysler, with rumors indicating that Fiat could seek an even bigger stake in the coming years.

As a result of the bankruptcy filing, Chrysler will idle production in the United States, Canada and Mexico for 30 or 60 days but Hausch assured that all cars will be delivered in the coming months.

"If this process takes 30 to 60 days, there is no shortage of spare parts we have to worry about," he explained. "There is at least 2 to 3 months (of stock in the pipeline), but then we also have the ability to ship between countries."