Separating Ram Trucks from the Dodge car line--and making Dodge a performance-car brand--are two elements of the plan that FIAT S.p.A. has in the works for Chrysler, according to Reuters and Automotive News.

Under that revival plan--to be shown to Federal officials this week--FIAT will rush its first all-new Chrysler model to the U.S. market by the end of next year (FYI: Today--October 1--is Day One of the 2010 model year--Scott), compressing the normal vehicle-development plan. That new car will join the FIAT 500 in Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep showrooms, a subcompact that FIAT plans to introduce to the U.S. market by late next year, with more new models rolling out in 2012.

Sources also tell Reuters and Automotive News that separating  the Ram Truck brand will allow FIAT to make Dodge more of a performance-car brand. That move could also make it easier for Chrysler to spin off its truck business down the road if a continuing slump forced FIAT  to consider such a step.

Dodge got into the truck business years ago, when  the Dodge Brothers Motor Company acquired the Graham Brothers Motor Company's truck operations in 1926, two years before Chrysler bought Dodge.

Also, FIAT plans to revamp the mid-sized Dodge Avenger and Sebring sedans which reverses an earlier plan to scrap those models after 2010, when Chrysler's Sterling Heights (MI) Assembly Plant that makes the vehicles is scheduled to close. That decision would represent a reprieve for Sterling Heights Assembly, where hundreds of workers rallied last week in an effort to save some 1,200 jobs. "They have a great future, said FIAT/Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne. "You'll love the cars."

By focusing on steps to bring quick improvements to Chrysler cars, FIAT hopes to shore up sliding sales over the next two years.

Marchionne, who's due to appear at Chrysler headquarters today, said earlier this week that part of his plan for Chrysler would involve more "universal" platforms that FIAT and Chrysler could use as the basis for a number of vehicles.

While Chrysler and FIAT had no official comment, sources told Reuters and Automotive News that Marchionne briefed Chrysler's board of directors last week on the strategy for reviving  the Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep vehicle line-up. Chrysler has said it will not discuss its product strategy until it unveils a five-year plan in November.

Auto-industry analysts, as well as suppliers and other automotive executives, say Chrysler desperately needs new vehicles after emerging from bankruptcy with $10 billion in U.S. government financing.

Chrysler's prior owners, Cerberus Capital Management and Daimler AG, had both cut investment in new vehicle programs. Partly in response, FIAT's plan for Chrysler will focus first on investment in improving vehicle interiors, an area where Chrysler has come under sharp criticism for trying to cut costs too aggressively.

(Courtesy Reuters/Automotive News/autonews.com)