The American car wreck
Thirty years ago, after winning successive Car of the Year awards for the Intrepid and LHS, Chrysler launched the Neon. Developed at the time at a cost of 1.3 billion dollars, this car went on sale just a few months before the arrival of the so-called cloud cars. The Dodge Stratus, Plymouth Breeze and Chrysler Cirrus.
At the time, Chrysler had the wind in its sails and was enjoying tremendous success, thanks in no small part to its cars. Sure, the manufacturer had launched the Grand Cherokee in 1992, then the new Dodge Ram in 1993, but cars were its bread and butter.
On December 22, 2023, the automaker assembled its last traditional American-brand automobile. The Dodge Challenger. A few minutes earlier, the Charger and Chrysler 300 suffered the same fate. Three cars gone, leaving a huge hole in the Dodge and Chrysler ranges. Of course, we know that Dodge will soon be bringing back the Charger in a different variant, but this will undoubtedly be the exception.
At Ford, you only have to look back ten years to recall a complete range of very modern cars, including the Fiesta, Focus, Fusion and Taurus, not forgetting the Lincoln equivalents.
Now all gone, Ford has kept only the iconic Mustang, ironically renewed this year. Because he feels it would be sacrilege to eliminate this icon and keep only the electrified SUV that borrows only its name from it. That said, Ford was the first manufacturer, in 2016, to announce the elimination of its car range, which was considered implausible at the time.
For its part, GM has held out longer. Until recently, it maintained models such as the Spark (which disappeared in 2022) and continued to market the Malibu sedan, still produced in Kansas City. However, the Malibu is due to leave the market by the end of the year, as have the Chevrolet Bolt and Camaro.
Two important cars in the brand's history, for very different reasons. Mary Barra has confirmed the return of the Bolt for 2025, but rest assured that this time it will be a small SUV.
In the absence of Buick cars, GM is left with the Malibu, condemned to death, as well as the Corvette and the Cadillac CT4 and CT5 sedans. Two cars also on life support, built at the same factory as the now-defunct Camaro. What fate do the bosses at General Motors have in store for them?
No doubt the same as the CT6, which disappeared in record time despite being a very impressive large sedan. Incidentally, Cadillac has confirmed that it will soon be launching an electric sedan, the Celestiq. However, with an estimated price of over $300,000, it's unlikely to attract much interest.
Here's the short list of American cars still available in 2024: the Chevrolet Malibu, the Camaro (production of which ceased in December), the Corvette, the Cadillac CT4 and CT5, and the Ford Mustang. That's all there is to it. Sad, you think? Tell me about it!
Especially since it won't be long before we can confirm the death of American sedans with combustion engines. At least, until Dodge confirms the return of a four-door Charger equipped with the Hurricane engine. But that's not yet a done deal.
In closing, how many American cars were available on our market just ten years ago? No fewer than 29, ranging from the Dodge Dart to the Viper, the Buick Verano, the Chrysler 200 and the Chevrolet Impala. Yep! Times have changed...
