Chrysler Group Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne is expected to lay out a formal, 5-year product plan for Chrysler today. Expected on it are 2010 launches of the 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee (though Jim Press, above, won't be around for that) shown at this year's New York Auto Show, and the Chrysler 300, which will spawn Dodge and Alfa variants.

Marchionne is also likely to order makeovers for the Chrysler minivans, Dodge Caliber, Jeep Compass/Patriot and, somewhat surprisingly, the PT Cruiser. Marchionne wants these updated products on the market by mid-2011, the Detroit Free Press reports, and will rehire an unspecified number of employees to get this done. The word around Detroit, says Auto Observer, is that Chrysler has been so throughly gutted of talent and manpower, it currently doesn't have enough of a workforce to take on such projects.

The Fiat 500 is also expected to get a U.S. introduction by mid-2011, and it will be built at Chrysler's Toluca, Mexico, plant. All of this, of course, has to be greenlighted by the President's automotive taskforce.

Auto Observer

Detrot Free Press