Well if Chrysler decided to discontinue the Nitro, I would not be surprised. Does not mean I would agree, but let’s face it they do have too many competing models. I think the Dodge Nitro is a good vehicle for showroom traffic. It may bring in customers to their Dealers that instead buy another Chrysler vehicle. I feel that if the Nitro had been a Jeep with full-time 4WD it would have been a winner, or at least be selling at a higher rate than the Nitro. (sales of Nitro were up 51% in August over the previous month, but cash rebate has gone to 1K from $750 on 2007 models)
It is plain to see that everything is about the JEEP line, and that is what they want to protect as a sales leader for any possible sale in the future. That is why they changed their original plan to offer the Nitro R/T as a full time 4X4 (off-road) vehicle. They found out that their own Jeep Commander (production started in 2006) took so many sales away from their money maker Jeep Grand Cherokee that they have notified the Union they plan to stop production of it!
I believe any Nitro sales are looked at doing the same thing to other Jeep vehicles. So again, it could happen.
Some don’t like the looks of the Nitro as well as we do here. I wanted a Nitro and even having a Jeep Grand Cherokee, I didn’t see anything in the Jeep lineup that looked as good as the R/T. I wanted a unique vehicle, and very pleased to own one. If Chrysler was to discontinue it, it would be even more unique. It would not really affect us if my past experiences with the Chrysler Line of Eagle when it was abandoned and replaced with the Chrysler 300, hold true.
Wife bought a new Eagle Vision TSI in 1995. It was really a neat car and should have been costing 25K back then. Had the 100,000 warranty, and no service or parts issues since it was really a re-skinned Dodge Intrepid with a larger engine. People always commented on it. As far as re-sale it was considered a Dodge Intrepid.
This could happen to us Nitro owners. If it does I can only say I am sure glad I got mine before it was discontinued.
After Posting I ran across this Article on The Scoop At Chrysler. I contend that anything that would or could increase JEEP sales is their plan, and if they think that to discontinue the Dodge Nitro would increase JEEP sales, it's a done deal.
Jeep brand maintains Chrysler market share
At a time when its Detroit rivals are seeing their U.S. market share decrease, Chrysler LLC has been able to hold steady in large part because of its new Jeep® vehicles, according to the Detroit Free Press. The introduction of new Jeep products—Compass, Patriot and the four-door Wrangler—are helping the automaker in a year when General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. have seen significant declines. "Those products, particularly the Compass and the Patriot, play right into where the market is going in terms of smaller vehicles and in terms of crossovers," Tom Libby, senior director of industry analysis with J.D. Power and Associates' Power Information Network, said. "The timing of those two products is pretty good." Chrysler U.S. market share has increased slightly to 12.86 percent so far this year, up from 12.85 percent in the same period last year, according to Autodata Corp., a New Jersey-based market analysis company. Sales of Jeep Wranglers are up nearly 71 percent so far this year compared to last year, according to Autodata. "Our new products, such as the Wrangler two-door and four-door, are really helping," Steve Landry, Executive Vice President—North American Sales, Global Marketing, Service and Parts, said. "The four-door has really created a halo effect for the Jeep brand, bringing people into the Jeep showrooms, and it has improved our two-door sales." These sales expansion efforts are directly linked to Chrysler's Recovery and Transformation Plan: Sub-work Module 5.1 (U.S. Retail Sales and Market), which is focused on improving the company's domestic sales.
