Home » Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep And Ram Are Planning ‘The Most Epic Comeback In Automotive History’

Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep And Ram Are Planning ‘The Most Epic Comeback In Automotive History’

Tmd Rocky Iii
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It’s always an internal debate with these Morning Dump headlines if I’m going to say Stellantis or Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram because, frankly, the Stellantis brand isn’t strong. You don’t go to a Stellantis dealer, you go to a Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealer (or a Ram Fiat Alfa dealer, or whatever combo you like). The company is planning what it calls an “epic comeback” and that’s not going to be because Alfa or Fiat sales improve. It’s all about the four core brands.

Are we here for this? I’m here for this. After a long period of questioning Stellantis’ decision-making, it’s nice to see the automaker at least try to turn it around. How will the company do it? That’s the question, especially as it contends with low-performing brands. Across town at GM, the company is hoping to maintain its momentum, and one key to that is dropping what it says are low-performing employees.

Vidframe Min Top
Vidframe Min Bottom

Buyers have been concerned about vehicle affordability and, as the annual dealer conference wraps up in New Orleans, it seems like dealers are also worried about this. And, finally, Kia dealers will get a new recall to deal with this year. They’re used to it by now.

‘2024 Was Just Not Where Any Of Us Needed To Be’ Admits Stellantis Sales Chief

Dodge Hornet 11 18 1
Source: Dodge

The fall of Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares, not pictured, was predictable, at least to anyone paying attention. This was a message that people didn’t want to hear at the beginning of 2024, with Stellantis celebrating a run of record profits during the pandemic.

This was a success built on lucky timing as much as anything else and one it seemed unlikely to maintain. As I wrote at the time:

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I’m not saying or hoping that Stellantis will fail to deliver on its new products. As a car enthusiast, I want them all to be awesome cars and trucks that we can all enjoy. I’m just pointing out what I think is obvious, which is that the company is making a huge bet on its product delivering in a big way over the next 12 months and, outside of RAM, I’m not convinced there are a ton of huge winners.

Looking back, this is basically what happened. The company starved itself of products in an attempt to squeeze out profits from customers and then, when inventory started rising for everyone else, it realized that the products it was building for its most important market were not the products people wanted. Couple that with all the fights the company was picking and, inevitably, this wasn’t going to work.

Tavares is gone and there’s a new energy at the company. A lot of new energy. One of the decisions Tavares made was to shift sales exec Jeff Kommor to a commercial sales role from the top sales job. Once Tavares was gone the company quickly reversed that decision, and so Kommor was out at the National Auto Dealers Association (NADA) show in New Orleans trying to get dealers pumped by telling them they should be ready for “the most epic comeback in automotive history.”

Big talk. What does that mean?

From Automotive News:

“Keep an eye on us all year long,” Kommor told Automotive News after the meeting. “You’re going to see incremental improvements, you’re going see momentum, you’re going to see sales gains. The dealers got our back, we got their back, and I feel like we’re starting to gain their trust and optimism back. 2024 was just not where any of us needed to be.”

Stellantis plans to ignite its comeback in a number of ways, Kommor said, including increasing spending on regional Tier 2 marketing to 2019 levels.

“We’re exploring powertrain opportunities, getting ourselves back into segments that we had exited, putting our product in competitive positions, improving our quality,” Kommor said. “And then also helping the deals with advertising to make sure we’re supported in the marketplace at Tier 1 and Tier 2 to drive the message that we need, which are tools that we didn’t have over the last couple of years.”

I gotta say, I’m having a little trouble squaring “epic comeback” and “incremental improvements” so let’s break down the individual points here beyond the rah-rah locker room talk of momentum and trust.

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That bit about “Tier 2” marketing is important. If you don’t speak marketing, it’s something like this for auto dealers (the automotive industry is more obsessed with tiers than Paul Hollywood):

  • Tier 1: Big national marketing, Super Bowl ads, et cetera.
  • Tier 2: Regional groups, like your Quad State AMC-Lamborghini Dealers or what have you.
  • Tier 3: Local dealer ads.

Putting money into regional dealer groups is a great way to generate leads for sales (hint, please buy ads on The Autopian). Also, dealers were complaining last year about the lack of support in both incentive spend and advertising spend. Making dealers happy seems to be a large part of the company’s strategy.

Powertrain opportunities? That’s hybrids and probably V8s coming back. Segments that they’ve abandoned? Probably mid-sized trucks and entry-level crossover products for Jeep. Quality is… yeah, every brand can do better.

Again, I’m here for it, although it’s going to take the company a while to make it work. Sam reviewed the new Wagoneer S and it seems ok, but not great, and it probably needs to be great. I do appreciate that Stellantis is focusing on what it can fix immediately (keeping dealers happy, resolving issues with the UAW), what it can fix in the medium term (powertrains), and what it needs long-term (better product).

What’s not being said here quite as strongly, I think, is that the non-core brands (Fiat, Alfa Romeo, and Maserati) are probably going to be last in line for product improvements.

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Let’s give the Badassadors some backup, boys!

GM Is Starting To Axe Salaried Employees Who Are ‘Underperforming’

Source: GM

GM instituted a new five-point evaluation criteria last year, up from the original three-point evaluation criteria. The company said at the time that it wanted managers to rate 5% of employees as significantly exceeding expectations, 10% as exceeding expectations, 70% as achieving, 10% as under-achieving, and 5% as doing so poorly they’re going to be “exited from the company”

It’s been about a year and, according to the Detroit Free Press, it’s happening now. Is this a good way to do things or are the company’s managers arbitrarily picking 5%?

GM’s emphasis on more stringent performance evaluation and imposing consequences for poor performance reflects what many companies have been doing in recent years to improve productivity and cut costs, said Marick Masters, a labor expert and business professor at Wayne State University in Detroit, who has been closely watching corporate America’s personnel practices.

Masters said the risk of such a program could have mixed effects, but “the devil is in the details.” It depends on how fair the workforce deems GM’s procedures to be and how fair management is perceived to be in implementing the procedures along with what kinds of opportunities employees are given to improve peformance before being cut.

Hmm, let’s check in on Reddit to see how people alleging to be cut employees are taking it:

This is all so sad, considering they said those in the bottom 5% would have some inkling about being in the bottom 5% by mid years. More dishonesty. How can anyone improve or even want to work at this company in this environment? There is always a threat looming. What an awful place to work. I don’t think they care, it is making all of us sick and riddled with anxiety. I figure, if it happens to me, it is meant to be. It’s happened to me before, even at GM, at a few jobs (layoff), never performance based but nonetheless. Each time it’s happened to me, while stressful, my blood pressure goes down, and I am healthier. I’ve always found something that helps boost my career with a new industry and new role and has broadened my horizons. The problem is the market and how long it takes, I didn’t always recover my salary. God will put me where I am supposed to be if it happens to me again. Praying for peace and calm, and greener pastures for those who are hit with this. Praying for peace and calm for those that aren’t.

Obviously, there’s no way to know if the folks on Reddit are actually GM employees and, of course, those cut will not have a positive view of it. Still, mandating that 5% of people have to be below the line is a blunt way of removing salaried employees.

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Dealers Also Care About Vehicle Affordability

There are plenty of measures for vehicle affordability, like the above affordability index from Cox/Moody’s. In general, prices are coming down from pandemic highs, so cars do seem more affordable viewed this way. Is “not as terrible as it was” really a good measure of affordability? Conversely, car payments are super high now due in part to interest rates.

It’s a big issue, and dealers are also concerned about this according to a new survey by Automotive News:

More than half of survey respondents — 53 percent — selected vehicle affordability as one of the factors they’re most worried about in 2025. Their two other top concerns are lower new-vehicle profit margins, at 37 percent, and recession and economic uncertainty, at 29 percent.

Higher interest rates — the most-selected concern of dealership management who participated in the 2024 survey — remain a concern for 22 percent of respondents.

Much of the concern is over rates though, in general, dealers feel more optimistic about 2025 in part due to the conclusion of the election.

Kia Recalling Cars Over Manual Seats That Might Disable Airbags

The interior of the 2023 Kia Niro EV
Photo credit: Kia

At a hair over 80,000 vehicles, this new Niro EV recall isn’t the biggest out there at the moment. It is newsworthy, however, for how the vehicle might accidentally disable its own airbags.

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Here’s how NHTSA describes the problem:

The floor wiring assembly located underneath the front passenger seat contains wires which control certain vehicle restraint systems. Repeated sliding adjustment of the manual front passenger seat may damage one or more of the wires in the floor wiring assembly due to variation in its routing. This may result in 1) the nondeployment of airbag(s) and/or seatbelt pretensioner(s), or 2) the inability to suppress the passenger frontal airbag for a child or small occupant, or 3) inadvertent deployment of the passenger side airbag (SAB).

The nondeployment of the airbag(s) and/or seatbelt pretensioner(s) in a crash sufficient to warrant a deployment, the inability to suppress the passenger frontal airbag for a child or small occupant, or the inadvertent deployment of the passenger side airbag increases the risk of injury.

Yikes, that’s bad.

What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD

The Bills are out of contention, so let’s try to cheer everyone who isn’t a KC fan up with some Eddie Murphy. Did you know that his girl likes to “Party All The Time”? It’s true. I like that the premise of this music video is “Yes, Eddie Murphy is really singing this song. We wrote his name on tape and everything.”

The Big Question

What do you consider the biggest sports comeback of all time? What about the biggest automotive comeback?

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Top Photo Credit: MGM/UA Entertainment Co.

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Canopysaurus
Canopysaurus
2 days ago

Eddie Murphy has 10 children. We know what his girl really liked to do all the time.

In reviewing Stellantis’ entire lineup, I discovered, to my dismay, that there is not a single car, truck or SUV they sell that I desire or would consider buying right now. That is so sad coming from a guy who’s owned three Dodges and four Jeeps. .

Dumb Shadetree
Dumb Shadetree
2 days ago
Reply to  Canopysaurus

It’s possible that you do not desire their vehicles because you have owned three Dodges and four Jeeps. Those repair bills stay with you.

My wife wants to buy an electric car at some point. I mentioned the electric Chevy Equinox, and she said she can’t go back. Having made the switch from a Chevy to a Toyota, she now won’t consider another Chevy – to the point where she’s willing to compromise on the “EV” part of wanting to buy an EV, and is considering a Prius Prime or a Crown instead.

Bob the Hobo
Bob the Hobo
2 days ago
Reply to  Dumb Shadetree

Suggest the Honda Prologue next.

Canopysaurus
Canopysaurus
2 days ago
Reply to  Dumb Shadetree

At I reflect, all of those vehicles were 1986 or earlier and all of the Jeeps were pre-Chrysler. Two of the cars were late 60s and the newest an ‘82. That one did have a transmission self destruct, but it was replaced under warranty and I didn’t have any other problems with car as long as I owned it. Maybe I was just lucky.

Dan Bee
Dan Bee
2 days ago
Reply to  Canopysaurus

Which Jeeps?

Canopysaurus
Canopysaurus
2 days ago
Reply to  Dan Bee

Willys MB, 74’ CJ5, 82’ CJ8, and 86’ Comanche.

Dan Bee
Dan Bee
2 days ago
Reply to  Canopysaurus

Most excellent.

MrLM002
MrLM002
2 days ago
Reply to  Canopysaurus

What would be really practical for me rn would be the original Jeep Wranger Magneto concept (a BEV motor swapped Wrangler that kept the manual transmission).

It doesn’t matter if it would only do 35 miles of range, I’d put front and rear lockers in it and drive it everywhere I need to go with range to spare.

Where I am now and the places I’m looking at moving to in the future are small enough that 35 miles of range is more than plenty.

Instead of producing their production ready concept they blew how much money on the next two versions of the concept that use so many custom parts there was no way in hell they’d ever reach production.

Parsko
Parsko
2 days ago

Your first turd made me think that on November 8th, Stellantis decided to try to invoke the same strategy as MAGA. Let’s just ride the same wave, which, if we are being honest, is the same wave.

Your 2nd turd made me wonder if 5% of 163,000 is enough to fill the empty spots in the fields. I’m glad to see GM doing their part to help refill the dwindling labor supply.

/s

TXJeepGuy
TXJeepGuy
2 days ago

Well so much for that Stellantis meeting not being for members of the press…

TheHairyNug
TheHairyNug
2 days ago

…improving our quality…

lmao sure

Cheats McCheats
Cheats McCheats
2 days ago

Earnhardt passing 17 cars in 5 laps for his last win is a pretty epic comeback in its own right. And it’s also an automotive comeback. 2 for 1 special here.

Anoos
Anoos
2 days ago

That GM plan is pretty similar to the way Enron operated. It’s great for long-term stability, and doesn’t ever lead to people resorting to shady deals to hide losses or inflate profits to keep their jobs.

I will bet that ‘under-performing’ will often mean employees that have been there too long and have built up benefits that GM won’t need to offer a new hire.

NC Miata NA
NC Miata NA
2 days ago

Biggest sports comeback?

Utter the phrase “28-3” to anyone from the state of Georgia and time how fast they start drinking.

Anoos
Anoos
2 days ago
Reply to  NC Miata NA

That was way back before Brady somehow developed the sharp facial features of a Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robot. He looks like a low-polygon video game character.

ElmerTheAmish
ElmerTheAmish
2 days ago
Reply to  NC Miata NA

I don’t know that it was one of the biggest comebacks, but rather one of the biggest collapses. Potato – Potato, I guess.

Chronometric
Chronometric
2 days ago
Reply to  NC Miata NA

As a longtime Falcons follower I was never comfortable watching that SuperBowl.
The Falcons are such incredibly creative losers.

Fuzzyweis
Fuzzyweis
2 days ago

No offense to Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep/etc but isn’t this like their 5th comeback in so many decades? K-cars/minivans in the 80s, Ram trucks in the 90s, Daimler “merger” in the 2000s, FCA in the 2010s, Post-Tavares in the 2020s. Not sure how much bounce is left in the ball.

TXJeepGuy
TXJeepGuy
2 days ago
Reply to  Fuzzyweis

They are the comeback company.

Andy Individual
Andy Individual
2 days ago
Reply to  TXJeepGuy

Always coming from behind.

Chronometric
Chronometric
2 days ago

Is that a bad thing?

My Other Car is a Tetanus Shot
My Other Car is a Tetanus Shot
2 days ago
Reply to  Fuzzyweis

The Daimler merger and subsequent history was a ‘comeback’ as much as struggling back to your feet after repeatedly getting kicked in the nuts by your partner while they steal your wallet can be considered a comeback. I’d use the term ‘lucky to survive the abuse’.

The FCA era was mediocre outside of Ram, Jeep, and Hellcats, but at least not actively destructive to the company as a whole.

The rest of your post is bang-on.

Fuzzyweis
Fuzzyweis
2 days ago

True FCA did really improve quality of materials after Daimler, but yeah definitely no major hits.

EXL500
EXL500
2 days ago
Reply to  Fuzzyweis

You need to add the Forward Look in the 1950s and the Engel redesigns of the 1960s after Exner was fired.

Xpumpx
Xpumpx
1 day ago
Reply to  Fuzzyweis

Cab forward cars and cloud cars were everywhere

Fuzzyweis
Fuzzyweis
1 day ago
Reply to  Xpumpx

Ah yes the Cirrus/Stratus/Breeze, I had a Neon with the same 2.0 as the base model clouds, at the car show asked how performance compared and he answered “it’s about 500lbs heavier, so like if you had 2 fat chicks in the back.”…”Not that you’d have 2 fat chicks in the back”. Hey man, you don’t know me, you don’t know my life! 😀

Ash78
Ash78
2 days ago

Biggest (recent) automotive comebacks to me are two:

  1. Mazda — although still semi-niche, they seem to be content just basically nailing it across the board. Zero “dud products” in the lineup, as long as you don’t consider the cannibalization of CX-5/50 or 9/90.
  2. Subaru — yeah, they’ve been doing pretty well for a long time, but it wasn’t that long ago you’d rarely see them outside of snowy climates and/or states ending in “-mont”, “-rado”, or “-egon” (sic). Now it feels like Subaru is quietly everywhere, across all demographics.
Cloud Shouter
Cloud Shouter
2 days ago

Biggest comeback was Dodge Trucks. The D/W series was selling less than the Dakota. Lutz has them bring out the big rig look and BAM! Sales through the roof!

Anoos
Anoos
2 days ago

Announcing that you have the power and ability to be awesome is acknowledging that you made an active decision to suck in the first place.

ElmerTheAmish
ElmerTheAmish
2 days ago
Reply to  Anoos

I could make the argument that it’s not always an active decision to suck. Sometimes it’s just not being able to step back and see that what you’re doing is just not going to work (see: Pontiac Aztek).

However, there is the Carlos Tavares (not pictured) of it all, so I won’t make that argument today.

Anoos
Anoos
2 days ago
Reply to  ElmerTheAmish

The Aztek was a single model, and it wasn’t going to take down GM while they were selling Escalades as fast as they could make them.

This is multiple car brands ground down to stumps with nothing in the pipeline that will even come close to bailing them out. They’re coming out with a very expensive EV right when government incentives are in danger and… I don’t know what else they have coming.

I’m a pretty middle-of-the-road car shopper these days, the kind of person who would buy an appliance mid-sized SUV (unless a suitable hatchback or small wagon is available). I don’t know of anything they offer or plan to offer that has me remotely interested.

ElmerTheAmish
ElmerTheAmish
2 days ago
Reply to  Anoos

The Aztek was indicative of larger GM problems. Namely that they were in a spot where they made up the metrics they wanted to hit, and never looked for any other possibility. The Aztek was a great idea, poorly executed, and with no customer support because their market research was inadequate.

As for the rest, I can’t argue. I’m with Matt, however, in that I hope Stellantis can turn around the battleship quickly. I believe that, at a minimum, people that regularly read this site have a higher standard in their automotive choices than the general public. (My wife reminds me of this often, that I’m looking at the (automotive) world completely differently than she is; however she’s likely a better representation of the general public.)

It’s when the general public won’t buy your cars (Stellantis and Nissan, currently) when the shit is starting to hit the fan. That’s likely why Tavares is out the door. Fingers crossed they can go up from here.

Anoos
Anoos
2 days ago
Reply to  ElmerTheAmish

I’m curious where they go from here. If they want to keep selling cars, they’re going to have buy some in and re-badge them to fill gaping holes in their lineup.

The Hornet is barely present in its own segment.

Lotsofchops
Lotsofchops
2 days ago
Reply to  Anoos

They have a convenient, and possibly guilty, scapegoat in Tavares. They’re saying without saying “hey that previous guy we had? He fuckin sucked! We’re a changed man, baby.”

Nsane In The MembraNe
Nsane In The MembraNe
2 days ago

Isn’t what GM is doing a variation of the GE model, where you get rid of a certain quantity of employees every year? I worked at a company that did a version of it once and it was dreadful. They kept everyone on one year contracts and let 25% ish go every year. Very few people made it more than 2-3 years before they inevitably got the soft axe (“not renewed”, which happened to me) and it became a big dramatic spectacle during the renewal period. I remember our miserable boss was walking through the hallways conspicuously congratulating people on their new contracts and not even making eye contact with others.

It seems like a great way crater morale to me, but I’m not some soulless capitalist bean counter whose job it is to make line go up, so I don’t know. Maybe there’s a bunch of research that says it works. But as someone who’s been on both ends of that conversation before it’s not a fun one to have, and good people inevitably get caught up in the shuffle. I vividly remember running into people from that horrible job a few years later in big meetings and having a nice internal chuckle when I realized I outranked them.

Crimedog
Crimedog
2 days ago

It makes for an incredibly toxic work culture. I won’t say any names, but their initials are “C1”, and they stratify groups of people that may not even work together, but are all, say, software developers. Then they stack rank them against each other.
Stack rank.
So, if, during the year, you met your deliverables (didn’t matter, everyone did that; just doing that would send you to the bottom), wrote an algorithm to divide by zero, and saved a million dollars, you would be below the person that wrote a separate zero-division algo, saved a million, but also dove through a black hole.
It stifled collaboration and it made the place awful.

Having my role eliminated was the greatest day of my life.

Pupmeow
Pupmeow
2 days ago

I worked at a company like this for 7 years. They cut weight every year and I somehow survived 4 major restructurings (i.e., massive layoffs). Quitting a job like that feels so good it almost makes you feel like it was worth the pain. Like taking off high heels at the end of the day. (Yes I know this site is mostly men, so just believe me when I say it’s an incredible feeling.)

Nsane In The MembraNe
Nsane In The MembraNe
2 days ago
Reply to  Pupmeow

I walked a mile in heels in college for an event to raise awareness of sexual assault on campus. I think it was called “walk a mile in her shoes”. Suffice to say, I get it.

Last edited 2 days ago by Nsane In The MembraNe
TOSSABL
TOSSABL
2 days ago

In HS, my bus driver told me she would only stop at my drive way if I wore high heels like the girl at the stop I was having to walk to.
I hit Goodwill & did it—and have had quite a bit of respect for those who do it every day ever since. They REALLY suck on gravel!

SNL-LOL Jr
SNL-LOL Jr
2 days ago
Reply to  Pupmeow

I get PTSD just by *looking* at high heels.
The structural engineer in me cannot comprehend how the various… mechanisms… in one’s feet can accommodate this abomination of a load-bearing support.
Women are 100x tougher than men.

Last edited 2 days ago by SNL-LOL Jr
Pupmeow
Pupmeow
2 days ago
Reply to  SNL-LOL Jr

As someone who almost failed her Statics class in college, I … also don’t understand. 🙂

(don’t worry, I did not end up becoming an engineer)

EXL500
EXL500
2 days ago
Reply to  Pupmeow

Between my promotion to management in 1995 to my voluntary retirement in 2014, I survived 52 rounds of layoffs at Bell Atlantic/Verizon.

I was always convinced I was next, but apparently I was very good at what I did (which isn’t always a guarantee of not being laid off).

Pupmeow
Pupmeow
2 days ago
Reply to  EXL500

WOW. That’s absolutely wild. Congrats on your survival to retirement.

EXL500
EXL500
2 days ago
Reply to  Pupmeow

It was indeed. Thanks.

Scruffinater
Scruffinater
2 days ago
Reply to  EXL500

So they averaged layoffs more than twice a year!? That sounds like worse job security than being at a startup company…

EXL500
EXL500
2 days ago
Reply to  Scruffinater

Yes. It was awful, but it was a lucrative position. My bosses usually broke the rules and told me in confidence I was safe. And it was rarely surprising who was let go until the later ones.

John in Ohio
John in Ohio
2 days ago

This also sounds like any large tech company. Microsoft seems to have this every year around christmas time. Last job I’ve had used to do a handful of cuts from Thanksgiving into Q1. I managed to live through them all. It’s all gross and I don’t think it really helps a company either.

Mr. Fusion
Mr. Fusion
2 days ago

Incredible that in 2025, with decades of contrary evidence gathered, companies are still retaining the putrescent corpse of Jack Welch in an advisory role.

Ash78
Ash78
2 days ago

Kommor: “We’ll turn around”

Media: “Oh? Oh?”

Kommor: “Der Kommor Czar’s in town!”

Media: “How long have you been sitting on that?”

Luscious Jackson
Luscious Jackson
2 days ago
Reply to  Ash78

Keep this going Ash78!

Yzguy
Yzguy
2 days ago
Reply to  Ash78

Alles klar, Herr Kommor Czar?

Data
Data
2 days ago
Reply to  Ash78

Rock me Amadeus.

My Other Car is a Tetanus Shot
My Other Car is a Tetanus Shot
2 days ago

Biggest auto comeback?

Chrysler Corporation of the mid-to-late 1990s, the fruits of the AMC purchase of 1987.

In 1990, Chrysler is selling Iacocca-era also-ran K-boxes. Dodge Dynastys, Plymouth Sundances, Dodge Rams that are nearly identical to their 1970s forebears, weird cast-off AMCs, Jeeps that date from the Nixon administration.

Flash forward to 1996.

The LH cars were competitive modern sedans with good dynamics and not another K-car derivative. Closer to Honda/Toyota than ever.
The Dodge Ram with the ‘big rig’ styling that turned it from a non-element into a competitor.
The NS minivans re-established Chrysler’s minivan dominance.
Jeep was selling premium Grand Cherokees to upscale audiences for bucks.
The Neon proved that Detroit small-car was not synonymous with ‘sadness’.

Sadly the old Chrysler bugaboo came to haunt: reliability. The tears of untold shredded Ultradrives/41TEs/42LEs, seized 2.7L V6s, and 2.0L head gaskets kneecapped the comeback.

Sports comeback? Miracle on Ice of the 1980 Olympics. The US beats the heavily favoured Soviet hockey team. Actual amateurs versus the so-called “amateurs” of the USSR.

WalmartTech
WalmartTech
2 days ago

The 2.7 wasn’t launched until after the “Merger of Equals” with the Gen2 LHs, and the 41TE/LE issue was dealerships failing to properly educate customers on what fluid those transmissions needed.

My Other Car is a Tetanus Shot
My Other Car is a Tetanus Shot
2 days ago
Reply to  WalmartTech

The 2.7L debuted with the 1998 Dodge Intrepid, so it was developed pre-merger. Water pump driven by timing chain is a dumb idea, period.

The Chrysler transmission debacle had been ongoing since the debut of the Ultradrive in 1989. The type specific fluid was an issue that was handled poorly by Chrysler, but the transmissions were known to destroy themselves often before the first fluid change. They were still problems a decade post-introduction, unacceptable in a world where something as durable as 1995 Toyota Camry existed.

The sad story of Chrysler’s comeback was to burn a generation of buyers so badly that they would never come back to Detroit vehicles.

Last edited 2 days ago by My Other Car is a Tetanus Shot
GreatFallsGreen
GreatFallsGreen
2 days ago

You beat me to it, the merger was announced spring ’98, 2nd gen Intrepid and Concorde were already on sale.

Chris Stevenson
Chris Stevenson
2 days ago

Biggest automotive comeback: Ford in the 1980s. It’s impossible to overstate how the Taurus/Sable changed the industry. If it had bombed, Ford as we know it wouldn’t exist.

Manwich Sandwich
Manwich Sandwich
2 days ago

Actually that comeback started with the 1983 Ford Thunderbird where Donald Petersen asked “Vice President of Design Jack Telnack of the 1980 Thunderbird: “is this what you would want in your driveway?”.”

He answered ‘no’ and they went back and made a car that he would want in his driveway… which was the aero-design Thunderbird. And the Taurus was a continuation of that.

Also that was when they had their “quality is job 1” program and Ford’s quality did steadily improve through the 1980s and 1990s… until Jac “the Knife” Nasser fucked up all that progress after he became CEO.

Ranwhenparked
Ranwhenparked
2 days ago

Stellantis is aware that a comeback would require building new product that exists in reality, and not just digital renderings of potential products that could hypothetically exist 5-10 years in the future, right?

Anoos
Anoos
2 days ago
Reply to  Ranwhenparked

Until then, they’re going to add more plastic cladding to some Hornets and call them adventure vehicles.

Ranwhenparked
Ranwhenparked
2 days ago
Reply to  Anoos

And maybe a new trim package for the Pacifica

Bob the Hobo
Bob the Hobo
2 days ago
Reply to  Anoos

Dodge Hornet overlanding package called the “Nest”.

Anoos
Anoos
2 days ago
Reply to  Bob the Hobo

Or an all blacked-out version called the Murder Hornet.

Bob the Hobo
Bob the Hobo
2 days ago
Reply to  Anoos

Very Dodge of them.

My Other Car is a Tetanus Shot
My Other Car is a Tetanus Shot
2 days ago
Reply to  Ranwhenparked

Yeah, the last Chrysler comeback was predicated on the talent obtained and product developed after the buyout of AMC/Jeep. We shall see if Stellantis leverages its large portfolio of platforms to deliver. It had better.

Pupmeow
Pupmeow
2 days ago
Reply to  Ranwhenparked

Didn’t you see the other article?? They’re releasing a 2024 model year EV “Jeep” that is wholly uninspiring and costs over $70K. Their future is bright, baby!

Anoos
Anoos
2 days ago
Reply to  Pupmeow

Those will look sweet stored by the hundreds in dead mall parking lots with Charger EVs.

Manwich Sandwich
Manwich Sandwich
2 days ago
Reply to  Ranwhenparked

Wait… so you’re saying that just making plans and not going through with them isn’t good enough????

Signed,
Mergio Sarchionne.

A. Barth
A. Barth
2 days ago

I don’t watch sports, but the greatest comeback must have been Don Roberts (from Hinckley in Leicestershire, UK) coming from far behind to tie Francisco Huron (from Paraguay) at 11 years, 2 months, 26 days, 9 hours, 3 minutes, and 27 seconds in the Olympic Hide-and-Seek final in 1972.

Griznant
Griznant
2 days ago
Reply to  A. Barth

I really wonder how many people are going to get this one, but well played.

A. Barth
A. Barth
2 days ago
Reply to  Griznant

Thanks! Looks like a few people got it 🙂

RalphYeardley
RalphYeardley
2 days ago

Automotive and Sports Comebacks?

Can we combine the two?

Because Harley Davison somehow survived being owned by AMF, the bowling ball company. They went from throwing nothing but gutterballs to bowling well into the 200s.

Speedway Sammy
Speedway Sammy
2 days ago
Reply to  RalphYeardley

And a number of the execs in engineering and manufacturing came over from GM! They used to ring up their former associates at the General and compare bonus checks, LOL.

Rippstik
Rippstik
2 days ago

Porsche and Lamborghini come to mind as big comebacks.

Data
Data
2 days ago

Ah yes, the late 80’s when all the top actors also wanted to be music stars.
Eddie Murphy’s girl wanted to party all the time, Bruce Willis returned as Bruno with a song I don’t even recall, and Don Johnson had a Heartbeat. I’m sure there are others, but those were all A-list actors at peak fame.

Andrew Daisuke
Andrew Daisuke
2 days ago
Reply to  Data

Patrick Swayze says hello.

Data
Data
2 days ago
Reply to  Andrew Daisuke

Ah yes, she’s like the wind and blew away from my memory. I’ve also never seen Dirty Dancing, but I know nobody puts Baby in the corner.

Spikersaurusrex
Spikersaurusrex
2 days ago
Reply to  Data

Don’t forget Hasselhoff. I hear he made it big in Germany.

Manwich Sandwich
Manwich Sandwich
2 days ago
Reply to  Data

 Bruce Willis returned as Bruno with a song I don’t even recall”

Under the Boardwalk.

Mr. Fusion
Mr. Fusion
2 days ago
Reply to  Data

“Respect Yourself” (a cover of the Staple Singers hit) was Bruce Willis’ first single off that album.

Bob Boxbody
Bob Boxbody
2 days ago

Great, now I have Eye of the Tiger stuck in my head.

I don't hate manual transmissions
I don't hate manual transmissions
2 days ago
Reply to  Bob Boxbody

Let It Go. (Sorry)

Rad Barchetta
Rad Barchetta
2 days ago
Reply to  Bob Boxbody

And now I do, too. Which is significantly better than the Eddie Murphy song that was in my head until I scrolled down here.

Andrew Daisuke
Andrew Daisuke
2 days ago

Matt, do you guys use Bluesky? If you do, you should delete the old twitter bird logo at the top right of the website (next to the YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram links) and add Bluesky.

V10omous
V10omous
2 days ago

The biggest sports comeback is objectively the Vikings comeback win over the Colts in 2022 from a 33-0 halftime deficit. I will be taking no questions on this statement.

The biggest automotive comeback is probably Porsche. Younguns may not realize how close Porsche was to going under in the early-mid 1990s with an ancient 911, and unloved 928 and 944/968.

Porsche sold 30,000 vehicles in the US in 1986, but was down to 3700 vehicles by 1993. By 1998, that was back up to 18,000 and was 75,000 last year.

It is not an exaggeration that the Boxster, 996, and Cayenne saved the company and made it what it is now.

Andrew Daisuke
Andrew Daisuke
2 days ago
Reply to  V10omous

991.1 owner here, big time agree.

Ottomottopean
Ottomottopean
2 days ago
Reply to  V10omous

If you’re going to just say things at least leave out the word “objectively.” Because Buffalo was down 35-3 in the 4th quarter against the Houston Oilers in 1993 and put in their backup quarterback to come back to win in the playoffs. Objectively better.
You have to use points per minute/second for objectivity, LOL.

Last edited 2 days ago by Ottomottopean
V10omous
V10omous
2 days ago
Reply to  Ottomottopean

I will be taking no questions or arguments on my statement.

Plus where I come from, (MN) 33>32.

The Stig's Misanthropic Cousin
The Stig's Misanthropic Cousin
2 days ago
Reply to  V10omous

Vikings vs Colts was an objectively great comeback. Still, it doesn’t matter much since good Vikings teams (and all other Minnesota sports teams, for that matter) always blow it in the playoffs.

V10omous
V10omous
2 days ago

All the more reason we need to savor stuff like this comeback, because playoff success seems not to be possible.

The Stig's Misanthropic Cousin
The Stig's Misanthropic Cousin
2 days ago
Reply to  V10omous

True. It is still frustrating, though. I thought the Vikings had a chance this year. I have been a fan of various Minnesota teams for decades so I probably should have known better. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me ~15 times, shame on me, I guess.

At least the Timberwolves preemptively traded away their best player so I don’t have any delusions they will compete this year.

Last edited 2 days ago by The Stig's Misanthropic Cousin
Ottomottopean
Ottomottopean
2 days ago
Reply to  V10omous

33 pts divided by two quarters equals 16.5 pts per quarter is less than 32 pts in a single quarter etc, etc etc.

4jim
4jim
2 days ago

When I read about the biggest comeback, I thought about wow I imagine that at some point network Legacy television channels said something about that to combat streaming and social media and that’s not working out all that well.
I would say jeep is probably one of the greatest comebacks if you look at where jeep was between say 75 and 85 their quality wasn’t all that great and they have come along way. Do I miss the broad selection of back then yes but in terms of quality, and sales they’re a lot better than they were back in the dark AMC days.

Mr. Fusion
Mr. Fusion
2 days ago
Reply to  4jim

Counter-point: AMC brought us the 4.0.

4jim
4jim
2 days ago
Reply to  Mr. Fusion

yes that is the exception to prove the rule. A lot of 70s amc was garbage.

Arch Duke Maxyenko
Arch Duke Maxyenko
2 days ago

What do you consider the biggest sports comeback of all time? Michael Jordan coming back to the Chicago Bulls in Space Jam. Followed closely by McLaren winning the constructors championship in F1 in 2024
What about the biggest automotive comeback? The reintroduction of the Camaro in 2009, and outselling the Mustang from 2010-2014, which was huge.

Spikedlemon
Spikedlemon
2 days ago

Re: Camaro
Look where it is now.

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