Turbo Diesel Registry
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/594528
30 www.turbodieselregister.com TDR 90 THE SAGA OF SERGIO Carpetbagger or Truthful Prognosticator (Two Sides to Every Story) Sergio: Who the heck is Sergio and why does Sergio matter to the TDR? Good questions. Sergio Marchionne is the CEO of FiatChrysler (FCA). His decisions have immediate impact. To the TDR audience this means that the Cummins 6.7-liter engine could be replaced by a 6.7-liter Iveco (Fiat) engine (same engine architecture, see TDR 65, page 114) by the time you finish reading this article. Yes, as the head of FCA, Sergio Marchionne is in a powerful position. Folks with an abundance of power are continuously scrutinized by the media. (Think Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.) So, too, is the fate of Sergio Marchionne. FCA's Sergio Marchionne Sergio the Carpetbagger Marchionne's take-no-prisoners style has ruffled more than a few feathers in the automotive business. Specifically automotive journalist Peter DeLorenzo has taken Marchionne to task in several scathing editorials since Marchionne appeared on the scene with the 2008 Chrysler buyout. Let me share with you some excerpts from DeLorenzo's previous rants about Marchionne. Oops…this just in, literally. It is early September and DeLorenzo has written another editorial about Marchionne (www.autoextremist. com). The title, "The Full Sergio: A Truly Ugly Sight to Behold." A review of his latest rant will save me a bit of time, I don't have to go through the years of his editorials, pulling out old quotes. Let's get right to it, excerpts from DeLorenzo's 8/31/15 editorial follow: "I have been writing editorial commentaries about FCA's Sergio Marchionne, the self-appointed auto CEO of the world, for years now. I even recall a previous column where I used the term 'the full Sergio.' And every time I do, I get the usual array of hate emails suggesting that I am a 'disgrace to my heritage,' 'completely misguided and wrong,' 'plainly mental' and 'how do you sleep at night being the biggest asshole in the business?' etc., etc., etc. "And those are just a few highlights from the nicer ones. "Yes, I have relentlessly pounded Marchionne, but he has deserved every single word of my scathing assessments of who he really is and what his true mission in life—as he sees it—is. I have kept my foot down hard on Marchionne because frankly, most everyone else in the business—you lapdogs in the media know who you are—has given the guy a free pass from the moment he showed up here, gathering at his feet like children around a campfire for story time. You let him exhale his fantasy mind clouds containing his view of the world—both real and imagined—while dutifully reporting every word as if they had just witnessed the return from the mountaintop of the New Savior of the auto business, grasping carbon fiber tablets etched with his personal musings and meanderings designed to save us all. "And Sergio's message? He is always right and everyone else is always wrong. So wrong, in fact, as to be laughable, especially here in the Motor City where he could hardly conceal his derision toward the 'lesser lights' as he viewed them, toiling away at the other car companies. BITW is a forum to report on industry trends and vehicle development. Compiled/written by Robert Patton.