Report: No more Dodge vehicles for UK buyers

Filed under: Car Buying, Europe, Dodge, UK

The Dodge "Freedom" ad still stands out in our minds as an example of excellent automotive advertising. The spot shows British troops patrolling on U.S. soil when a cavalry of American troops are led out of the woods. Helming the charge is a no-nonsense George Washington behind the wheel of a Dodge Challenger. The British troops flee and the U.S. marches on towards its eventual freedom from the Queen's empire. Fast forward a few hundred years and our friends across the pond are not buying Dodge vehicles the way the automaker would prefer, and company insiders have told Autocar that the brand will no longer sell cars in the United Kingdom.

Recently, Dodge pulled the plug on the Nitro and Caliber due to dismal sales. Now we hear it has also waxed the Journey from price lists - the last Dodge model for sale over there. According to Autocar, Fiat plans to utilize the existing dealer network to launch Chrysler-badged Lancias throughout the UK and Europe.

It's typically sad news to hear an automaker forced to pull out of a specific region or area, but in this case, it seems like Chrysler and Fiat are making smart choices. If the two work together to sell the right vehicles where people want to buy them, then this American-Italian marriage is getting off on the right foot.

[Source: Autocar]

Report: No more Dodge vehicles for UK buyers originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 14:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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