Chrysler kills rebadge of Dodge Journey to work on small car
Auto Blog

Making a step towards a more fuel-efficient vehicle lineup, and reducing the number of overlapping vehicles between its brands, the plug has been pulled on a Chrysler-branded version of the 2009 Dodge Journey. Chrysler LLC will instead focus the resources on a Nissan-manufactured compact car.

While the automaker currently captures the bulk of its sales from light trucks and SUVs, Chrysler is trying to pare down its lineup significantly to cut costs. So far, they have cut four models. Moving forward, the Jeep Commander SUV is expected to be dropped next year, and the company has already said they were canceling the PT Cruiser Convertible. While the 2009 Dodge lineup gains the aforementioned Journey, Dodge Challenger, and a redesigned Dodge Ram pickup, Chrysler's product lineup for the next twelve months looks particularly bleak with nothing significantly new in the pipeline. Company officials are holding their breath for 2010, when the new Nissan-built compact, new Jeep Grand Cherokee, and redesigned Chrysler 300 sedans arrive.