No one wants their family name dragged through the mud. If you ask Chrysler descendant Frank B. Rhodes, that is exactly what Stellantis is doing to his great-grandfather’s eponymous company. However, his impassioned offer to buy Chrysler, Dodge, and Mopar from Stellantis has been met with terse dismissal.
The whole thing started on August 26. Actually, no, the trouble began long before Monday—at least for Stellantis. Carlos Tavares was named CEO in 2021 of the newly formed 14-brand automotive conglomerate that merged Fiat Chrysler and PSA Group. Size matters, though, and Stellantis appears too big for its britches.
While brand bosses have suggested trimming the lineup fat, Tavares has gone further by publicly lambasting underperforming marques, even threatening to cut them loose. Although he has backtracked on such comments, the damage has already been done. Corporate morale probably isn’t great, especially in the last month with buyouts being offered and 2,450 Detroit-area plant workers being laid off due to the Ram 1500 Classic being discontinued.
Enter Rhodes, who just wants to salvage whatever is left of his automotive heritage. Walter P. Chrysler had four children: two sons and two daughters. Bernice, his second daughter, is Rhodes’ grandmother. However, without a publicly available family tree floating around, Rhodes appears to be the only (living?) great-grandchild of Walter P. What is without question is his fervor and pride for his grandfather and the company he built. According to Automotive News, he’s meddled before, having tried to stop the Stellantis merger.
This time around, Rhodes penned a 17-page proposal to Tavares, which was posted on Mopar Insiders. In it, he admits to having only a “token position” in Stellantis just to keep up with events. But he also discusses the need to refocus on innovation, reinvigorate customer enthusiasm, and the restoration of its American roots. Curiously, he didn’t mention any financial backing regarding such a high-dollar purchase. All indications point to Rhodes being a furniture maker based on a personal website that has a 2013 copyright. Of course, a lot can happen in 11 years, but enough to buy global car companies?
Nevertheless, Rhodes also produced a YouTube video to supplement his passionate plea. The six-minute clip is split evenly between Rhodes waxing poetic about what Chrysler means to him and to the world, followed by a Bruckheimer-esque, quick-cut-style collage of Chrysler’s 99-year history.
During Rhodes’ walk-and-talk portion, he moves around a garage surrounded by company memorabilia. What he highlights most is a 1926 Chrysler E80 Imperial. In particular, he explains that the vehicle is “all original,” including its paint, top, seats, and engine. “It’s a work of art,” he says. “I’m here to let people know about the quality Chrysler had in those days. I’m very proud of what this company did, and I don’t want to see it go away.”
Is this a dig at today’s Chrysler? Oh, for sure. Not that Stellantis seems to care. The company sent a response, but instead of reaching out to him directly, a press release was sent out.
“Stellantis acknowledges the interest in its North American brands and reaffirms the Company’s commitment to its entire portfolio of 14 powerful, iconic brands, which were each given a 10-year timeframe to build a profitable and sustainable business,” the August 30 statement said. “Like the Jeep and Ram brands, Chrysler and Dodge are at the forefront of Stellantis’ transformation to clean mobility, benefitting from the group’s cutting-edge technology and scale. The Company is not pursuing splitting off any of its brands.”
Unsurprisingly, Rhodes was disappointed, but more so in how the communication was handled rather than the dismissive tone. “Since I sent the proposal to Carlos Tavares and [Chrysler and Ram CEO] Christine Feuell, I expected the courtesy of their reply to come directly to me. Instead, I have learned about their comments from my media friends.”