Nearly 400 Chrysler Group LLC fleet customers, and many prospective customers who now have Chrysler, Jeep®, Dodge, Ram Truck, and FIAT brand models on their radar screen, are wrapping up the 2012 Chrysler Fleet Preview here in this historic and bustling Atlantic seaport.
Fleet managers representing municipalities, government agencies, large and medium sized businesses, police and sheriff departments, and rental car companies are grilling Chrysler Group designers, engineers and brand specialists on the company’s product lineup.
They are driving Chrysler Group models – including the Dodge Charger Pursuit police vehicle – on a closed race course, Jeep Wranglers and Grand Cherokees on a trail with some seemingly-insurmountable earthen obstacles, and on city streets in the shadow of the towering Talmadge Memorial Bridge that spans the Savannah River here.
The fleet managers are driving everything from the all-new 2013 Dodge Dart compact car to the Ram 2500 Compressed Natural Gas pickup truck. Some already are unwavering Chrysler fleet customers while others are considering Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram Truck and FIAT models for the first time.
Take Celena Stone for example. As fleet manager at Cardno TBE, a consulting, design, engineering and construction services firm based in Clearwater, Fla., Stone is here to learn more about the new 2013 Ram 1500, especially about its best-in-class fuel economy.
She’s already a staunch Ram Truck buyer. When Stone joined Cardno TBE two years ago, the company had Ford pickups. But Stone, impressed with the reliability and quality of the Ram 1500, offered the company’s drivers the option of a new Ram or Ford. Only one wanted a Ram. But one year later, she made the same offer again. This time all her drivers opted for the Ram 1500.
“I haven’t had one complaint on the Ram,” Stone said here. She has about 50 Ram pickups in the Cardno TBE fleet and plans to add more.
Stone’s passion for Ram trucks was solidified when the company’s only Ram 5500 – used for vacuum excavation to locate subsurface utilities – developed an engine problem on a job in Phoenix. The engine was quickly diagnosed and replaced by a Phoenix dealer and the highly-specialized truck was back on the job. As she shared her story with me over lunch, another fleet manager listened intently, noting later that her passion and excitement for the brand convinced him to take a closer look at the Ram.
Richard Evans is looking for new police cars, so his first order of business here is to evaluate the Dodge Charger Pursuit police vehicle. Evans, the Fleet Logistics Supervisor for the city of Tampa, Fla., also is assessing how other Chrysler Group models would fit into the city’s fleet for government officials.
“I’m very interested in the Dodge Dart,” Evans said. “I’m excited about a compact car that is highly fuel-efficient and is comfortable to drive.”
The Chrysler Fleet Preview also offers discussion forums and advisory panels for customers to provide the fleet team with feedback on its products.
Police Chief Jan Noble, of the Belvidere, Ill. police department, is here advocating the ordering of Dodge Charger Pursuits with factory-installed police equipment developed by Mopar and industry-equipment leader Crown North America. It’s a departure from the norm of sending police cruisers to upfitters to install police equipment, Noble said.
“So the first time I ordered the Pursuit with the factory-installed equipment it was a risk, because I’ve been doing it differently for 18 years,” Noble said. “But I found out it was the right decision. I save time and money and only have to install local graphics on the car when it arrives.”
This year’s event featured a keynote address from Chrysler Group CEO Sergio Marchionne, who spoke of Chrysler Group’s turnaround, thanked the fleet customers “for putting your faith in us,” and emphasized that “fleet business is an essential part of our plan going forward.”
“We value the connections we have built with you over the years, and we are committed to nurture and grow these relationships,” Marchionne said.
