Iacocca: “Daimler screwed Chrysler royally”

We know you’re probably sick of DamilerChrysler news but this is the fun gossip stuff here. Ex-CEO, Lee Iacocca, of Chrysler is speaking out against Daimler’s deal to sell Chrysler to Cerberus saying that “Daimler screwed Chrysler royally”. In what he calls a desperation sale, Iacocca says the merger with Daimler was a disaster from the start pointing out that it took Daimler less than decade to drive the once iconic company to the dumps.

One of the biggest fears of Chrysler being owned by a private equity firm is their goal of buying a dying company and restructuring it by cutting jobs, benefits and cost; then selling them for a bigger profit.

Iacocca believes that the key to Chrysler’s revival is the freedom of leadership, which current CEO, LaSorda, lacked at Daimler. So as long as LaSorda keeps his new bosses at Cerberus happy, he should be able to run the company as he sees fit.

“LaSorda is a smart guy, and the workers respect him. As a former factory boss and the son and grandson of labor leaders, LaSorda understands the nuts and bolts of the car business. His strengths combined with Cerberus’ capital could be the formula for success,” Iacocca writes.

Chrysler’s future depends mainly on the kind of hands-on leadership Cerberus will allow.

Source: BusinessWeek