Dieter's adoring North American dealers put together quite a soiree for the departing Chrysler Division chief as he heads off to his homeland to take the reins of the whole freakin' enchilada, including direct stewardship of its ailing Mercedes brand. Equipping everyone's favorite David Cross doppelg nger (could it be Dieter, sans 'stache that our media-obsessed brother and sister over at Gawker have been spotting around NYC, pretending he's the Arrested Development actor to pick up chicks?) with all manner of James Bond gadgetry, the DCX CEO was surprised with a party cameo by none other than Sean Connery, who said, "Who the hell are you? And why are you wearing all my stuff?" We're guessing that the concept seemed funnier in the meeting than it sounded in execution. You kinda had to be there, we guess.
Dieter reported on the state of the company, admitting that MB has its woes, but vowing to return it to its former glory, stating something we imagine would sound really fucking funny in a German accent: "Chrysler was basically flat on all four tires [when I arrived]." The future of smart was also in the air, with Zetsche announcing that DaimlerChrysler will decide within six months whether to sell the diminutive cars in the United States or not. Of course, there are also rumors floating around that DCX may sell off the entire division...
DCX to decide on Smart cars for U.S. [Detroit Free Press]
Related:
DaimlerChrysler Sells Stake in Mitsubishi [Internal]