range Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 (edited) LINK Cerberus Capital Management has reached agreement to buy the Chrysler Group in what would be a landmark acquisition of a major automaker by a private-equity firm, according to people close to the sale process. Edited May 13, 2007 by range Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Oliver Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Let's see how long after the deal is finalized for Cerberus to chop it up and sell the pieces off. Also, I wonder if this is why Cerberus dropped out of the Delphi deal.... They did not pull out of the deal. Cerberus is still very much involved in talks with Delphi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebritt Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Will China buy Chrysler from them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Hmmm. Well, at least, with their stake in GMAC, they can do something about financing, as DB (might as well get used to calling it that) won't be parting with any aspect of Chrysler's financial services unit--now thoroughly assimilated into DB's. Oh, yeah, and this more or less makes Chrysler 'domestic' again. Until Cerberus dismantles the company, of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Oliver Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Will Wolfgang allow that? Lots of unanswered questions. I honestly did not think Chrysler would be sold. http://www.thegmsource.com/index.php?categ...2_articleid=442 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 (edited) DB management said that they would not sell to anyone that would not continue their 'recovery' plan. However, I cannot believe that DB's management is in anyway going to scruple over such things. I consider DB to have the least scrupulous management team of any auto maker operating outside of Korea (after all, they haven't had a CEO sent to jail). It's my belief that German companies are not well scrutinized by either their shareholders or the media, and that in such a dark environment all kinds of fungus grows and prospers (note the assorted scandals at VW as well). BMW has been fairly clean, and why? IMO, in no small part because they are family controlled, and like Ford, the family is very much associated with the business. Anyway, don't expect that DB management as a whole gives a fig about the future of Chrysler, and as far as Bernhard goes--he was at the top of Chrysler group (COO) shortly before they got into this mess, so I have some serious reservations about his ability to truly turn around the company. He and Zetsche already got one shot at a turnaround and they delivered far more sizzle than steak. Unless Bernhard does something totally different from what he did the last time around, he's just buying Chrysler a few more fat years before they start starving again. Edited May 14, 2007 by RichardJensen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANTAUS Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Since it's a private equity firm, they can go ahead and strip Chrysler from it's liabilities and assets. Meaning, they can dump the UAW if they wanted to (and most of us would love). And the next positive aspect is, they dont' need to report earnings/losses...therefore, all these "analysts" that drive the stock down, can go screw themselves Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 DB is keeping a 20% stake in the new company, and they are retaining $37B worth of liabilities on their books (yowza)..... And they are selling part of the financing division, so at least there's something positive there. Still, contrast the look on Zetsche's face with his statement that this was 'the hardest decision he's ever had to make'. http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?A...389/1148/AUTO01 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Some interesting names and blasts from the past in the Cerberus organization. Dan Quayle?? Cerberus Chairman John W. Snow said the deal was a sign of faith in Chrysler, an iconic American brand and third-largest U.S. carmaker behind General Motors Corp. (GM) and Ford Motor Co. (F) Snow, the former U.S. treasury secretary, was named chairman of the firm last October. Former Vice President Dan Quayle is also an adviser. David W. Thursfield, who used to run Ford in Europe, is a senior member of the operations team in Cerberus' automotive and industrial practice. And Wolfgang Bernhard, former Chrysler chief operating officer, is a newcomer to Cerberus. Also thought this was an interesting aspect to consider: Last year, GM sold a majority stake in its General Motors Acceptance Corp. financing arm to a consortium of investors led by Cerberus for about $14 billion. Analysts had said buying a big stake in Chrysler would let Cerberus combine GMAC operations with Chrysler Financial. From: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,271999,00.html (I like how they misspelled Cerberus in the headline. ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 DB is keeping a 20% stake in the new company, and they are retaining $37B worth of liabilities on their books (yowza)..... And they are selling part of the financing division, so at least there's something positive there. Still, contrast the look on Zetsche's face with his statement that this was 'the hardest decision he's ever had to make'. http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?A...389/1148/AUTO01 that 37 BILLION sure makes Fords loss last year seem like pennies.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 (edited) Hmmm. Well, at least, with their stake in GMAC, they can do something about financing, as DB (might as well get used to calling it that) won't be parting with any aspect of Chrysler's financial services unit--now thoroughly assimilated into DB's. Actually, just Daimler (no Benz in the name). Chrysler is now Chrysler Corporation LLC. Due to the new corporate structure, the name of DaimlerChrysler AG is to be changed to Daimler AG. A decision on this is to be taken by the shareholders at an Extraordinary Shareholders' Meeting probably in fall 2007. Edited May 14, 2007 by Intrepidatious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCK Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 DB is keeping a 20% stake in the new company, and they are retaining $37B worth of liabilities on their books (yowza)..... And they are selling part of the financing division, so at least there's something positive there. Still, contrast the look on Zetsche's face with his statement that this was 'the hardest decision he's ever had to make'. http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?A...389/1148/AUTO01 That Cerberus guy just looks evil...................I have little hope in Chrysler now, and that is very sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCK Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 that 37 BILLION sure makes Fords loss last year seem like pennies.... No, it makes Ford's loss seem like 12.7 Billion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 No, it makes Ford's loss seem like 12.7 Billion. not when you take into account the %'s for severances/ buyouts...I thought ford had problems....THIS makes that pale in comparison...although neither is good at least Ford accomplished something positive.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 That Cerberus guy just looks evil........... You mean generally well regarded former Treasury secretary John W. Snow? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 not when you take into account the %'s for severances/ buyouts...I thought ford had problems....THIS makes that pale in comparison...although neither is good at least Ford accomplished something positive.... There is nothing inherently bad about liabilities. They are offset by assets, and where assets exceed liabilities, you have capital. The interesting information would be how much shareholder capital the Chrysler Corp. has on paper, seeing that it has been relieved of $37B worth of liabilities. If shareholder capital is substantially less than $37B, it suggests that Chrysler Group was essentially insolvent as part of DCX. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Actually, just Daimler (no Benz in the name). Chrysler is now Chrysler Corporation LLC. Yeah? Well I'm still gonna call it DB, 'cause using a single letter as an abbreviation is silly, and Daimler takes to long to type. So there :P How do you like them apples? :P :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 There is nothing inherently bad about liabilities. They are offset by assets, and where assets exceed liabilities, you have capital. The interesting information would be how much shareholder capital the Chrysler Corp. has on paper, seeing that it has been relieved of $37B worth of liabilities. If shareholder capital is substantially less than $37B, it suggests that Chrysler Group was essentially insolvent as part of DCX. Where did you see that they were relieved of the $37B in liabilities? The gist I got from the Fox News article was that all the pension and health care obligations will be ported over to Chrysler Corporation LLC with the sale. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
68Cougar Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Yeah? Well I'm still gonna call it DB, 'cause using a single letter as an abbreviation is silly, and Daimler takes to long to type. So there :P How do you like them apples? :P :P You mean like 'F' for Ford's stock symbol . I'm really surprise to see Daimler not add the Benz back to their name. That's what their stockholders have been wanting since the "merger". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardJensen Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Where did you see that they were relieved of the $37B in liabilities? The gist I got from the Fox News article was that all the pension and health care obligations will be ported over to Chrysler Corporation LLC with the sale. Weird. They edited the Detroit News article. Previous version didn't mention the $650M DB expects to shell out in the meantime. Either that or I was totally out of my gourd this morning: Anyone care to start a poll on what was the most likely cause of my earlier gaffe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TStag Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 Cerberus are an interesting company with investments in Alamo and National as well as GMAC. I wonder if they will look to buy another car maker or even swap shares in Chrysler for shares in GM? It will also be interesting to see what Daimler do next. They have hinted that they would only be interested in a ti up/ merger with another Premium car maker. I can't see any other car maker in Germany needing a deal. Maybe they will make Ford an offer they can't refuse for PAG? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TStag Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 They can have PAG, minus Volvo. Let their "superior" German arrogance try to turn Jag around. They will fail as well. I'm sure Daimler would do that deal, just to get Land Rover, which is now more profitable than even Volvo! If Daimler got PAG, it would give them a brand to fit below Mercedes (Volvo), a brand to fit next to Mercedes (Jaguar) and a brand to give them presence in the SUV market, Land Rover. Theoretically they could all share components. Daimler said today that they want to focus on Premium cars. Realitically PAG may be the only Premium car maker they could get. If they put in a big enough bid I do wonder if Ford would sell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcsario Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 (edited) The only reason they kept a stake in Chrysler was to preserve the volume pricing they had on batteries, tires and so on. If I were Ford, now that Mercedes is free, I would be calling them already to get them into a partnership for powerplants, platforms, and premium component sharing. The stuff neither Mercedes nor Jag can do with Ford/Chrysler, but need to in order to spread out costs and be more profitable. Edited May 14, 2007 by pcsario Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2005Explorer Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 (edited) Actually, just Daimler (no Benz in the name). Chrysler is now Chrysler Corporation LLC. Actually I heard that is will be called Chrysler Holdings LLC, not that it makes much difference. So now one has to ask...for a corporate logo is the pentastar going to come back??? I think that would be kind of cool. Edited May 14, 2007 by 2005Explorer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcsario Posted May 14, 2007 Share Posted May 14, 2007 (edited) I'm sure Daimler would do that deal, just to get Land Rover, which is now more profitable than even Volvo! If Daimler got PAG, it would give them a brand to fit below Mercedes (Volvo), a brand to fit next to Mercedes (Jaguar) and a brand to give them presence in the SUV market, Land Rover. Theoretically they could all share components. Daimler said today that they want to focus on Premium cars. Realitically PAG may be the only Premium car maker they could get. If they put in a big enough bid I do wonder if Ford would sell. Daimler isn't exactly swimming in cash. Mercedes had to sell assets and interests they had in other businesses in order to obtain capital while they were with Chrysler. They're a smaller company today than they were when the merger took place. Edited May 14, 2007 by pcsario Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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