Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), hoping to build on the long tradition of American carmakers, will unveil two key cars at the Chicago Auto Show that opens next week. FCA has subtly linked the 200S Alloy Edition and the 300S Alloy Edition to the Motor City’s significant manufacturing heritage. The “Chrysler brand embodies Detroit style,” Tim Kuniskis, head of passenger car brands at FCA North America, said today. Continuing, the FCA executive noted that “our new 200S and 300S Alloy Editions are a perfect meld of our engineering innovation and craftsmanship, forged with cutting-edge colors and materials inspired by the Motor City’s ingenuity and creativity.”
The 200S Alloy features glossy black accents that, combined with dark bronze 19-inch aluminum wheels, give it a unique look. The 200 Alloy features a distinctive dark bronze trunk badge and “titanium touches” on the wing badge and dual exhaust tips (tips emphasize a vehicle without intruding in the overall design). Adding to its uniqueness, FCA has featured a unique Mopar exterior package that includes a chin spoiler up front, as well as taller side sills with rear side extensions and a rear valance. On the inside, buyers can choose between black cloth with leather or black leather. The interior features caramel accent stitching throughout.
Meantime, the 300S Alloy features similar exterior and interior treatments. It features a dark bronze and black textured grille, as well as a bronze-finished 300S badge, titanium-plated tips, and dark bronze 20-inch aluminum wheels. FCA uses 19-inch wheels for all-wheel-drive models. The interior features black Nappa leather with caramel accent stitching. Six color choices are available for both models. When the Alloy Editions arrive in dealer showrooms in the spring, the 200S will start at $27,680 while the 300S will begin at $36,960. Both prices include shipping.
The Alloy editions are important to the automaker. According to Automotive News, at a time when midsized car sales slipped 2.3 percent as buyers moved into crossovers and small SUV-style vehicles, the 200 swam decidedly against that tide. In 2015, the 200, though spiced with incentive support, performed brilliantly, selling 177,889 vehicles, a 52 percent increase over the year before. And, though 300 sales did dip, the drop was slight – 0.5 percent – to 53,109. The 200 was one of six midsized marques that posted gains in sales, quite an achievement in a market segment feeling enormous competitive pressure. The sales performance of the 200 and 300 helped push the automaker to a series of record months that still continues. Without those nameplates, though FCA may have been successful, it would have been far harder to do so.
