Report: 2014 Chrysler 200 Production to be Cut, Redesigned Version Arriving in Early 2015

Report: 2014 Chrysler 200 Production to be Cut, Redesigned Version Arriving in Early 2015

Despite its recent sales pace, Chrysler Group will cut production of the 2014 Chrysler 200 sedan in half to make room for the redesigned 2015 model. This redesigned Chrysler 200 is set to make its debut in January, presumably at the 2014 North American International Auto Show. According to internal documents obtained by Automotive News, Chrysler plans to reduce the production of 2014 Chrysler 200 sedan units in half, which is slated to begin in July of this year. Normally, production would run from the middle of this year and well into next, but in order to get ready for the redesigned 200, Chrysler is cutting production of the current 200 short.

No word yet if the Dodge Avenger, which shares its underpinnings with the Chrysler 200, will also see its production cut in half for the same reason. Chrysler Group CEO Sergio Marchionne has already said that the next-generation Chrysler 200 will be pushed back until January of 2014. In order to get ready for the new Chrysler 200, the Sterling Heights production facility is in the middle of a $ 1 billion expansion. This includes an additional one million more square-feet for a body shop and another 425,000 square-feet for a paint shop.  Chrysler expects construction to conclude later this year.

Like the Chrysler 200, Marchionne has also decided to reduce the production of 2013 Jeep Grand Cherokee models in order to begin building the all-new 2014 model. Also like the Grand Cherokee, the 200 continues to do well for Chrysler Group, with sales rising 44 percent in 2012 to 125,476 units. The 2012 Chrysler 200 was the automaker’s best-selling car and the fifth-best selling model across the entire Chrysler Group lineup. Through the first two months of 2013, Chrysler 200 sales were up 21 percent, with 20,292 units sold and on March 1, there was a 68-day supply available.

For the next generation, the 2015 Chrysler 200 will be based off of a platform used by sibling brand Fiat, and include the same nine-speed automatic transmission that will debut in the 2014 Jeep Cherokee next week in New York. The 2015 Chrysler 200 is expected to officially bow at the 2014 North American International Auto next January.

Source: Automotive News