Sergio Marchionne Resigns as FCA CEO, Jeep’s Mike Manley Steps In

Fiat-Chrysler’s Sergio Marchionne has been forced to step down suddenly due to undisclosed health issues.

We have known for some time now that Sergio Marchionne would be stepping down as the leader of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, but the motoring world got a huge shock on Saturday morning when FCA announced that some sudden health issues were forcing him to vacate his role immediately. Within a few hours of the announcement that Marchionne would not be returning to his role as the head of FCA, the company announced that current Jeep boss Mike Manley would become the head of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

Sergio’s Health

Before getting into this any further, we want to point out that we don’t have any inside information as to what is going on with Sergio Marchionne (shown above with Ralph Gilles and former Fiat boss Laura Sove), but considering that this is someone’s health and not news on the next supercharged Hemi, we aren’t going to speculate or share anything that isn’t official. If Marchionne wants the world to know what is going on, he will announce it.

The excerpt below comes from the company press release announcing Marchionne’s health issues and the news of his departure from the company.

“With reference to the health of Sergio Marchionne, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. communicates with profound sorrow that during the course of this week unexpected complications arose while Mr. Marchionne was recovering from surgery and that these have worsened significantly in recent hours. As a consequence, Mr. Marchionne will be unable to return to work.”

What we do know is that Marchionne recently underwent surgery on his right shoulder and it was announced that his recovery would prevent him from participating in the company’s second quarter sales call. That all seemed very routine, but Saturday morning’s news of complications stemming from the surgery came as a big shock with no details. Frankly, the comments in the FCA press releases make the whole situation sound very grave, but it is safe to say that everyone in the Mopar community is pulling for Sergio to recover from this, even if he is effectively no longer part of the management team.

He has been a great leader of the company, playing a huge role in the current success of the “Chrysler brands” and his departure is a huge loss to the company and the industry as a whole.

Mike Manley

Over the past year, there has been talk of Marchionne’s retirement as the head of FCA and it was long been expected that one of the current brand leaders from within the current corporate structure would take his position when it was time for him to step down. Rumors suggested that FCA Canada boss and former Dodge head Reid Bigland or Dodge-boss-turned-Maserati head Tim Kuniskis would move into Marchionne’s role atop the company, but it turns out that a different brand chief was picked to replace Sergio.

Mike Manley has been with Chrysler since 2000, first serving as the Director of Network Development for DaimlerChrysler UK. He would spend time as the Chief Operating Officer for the Asia-Pacific region along with serving as the lead executive for the international activities of Chrysler outside of NAFTA before being promoted to the role of Executive Vice President of International Sales and Global Product Planning Operations in 2008.

In 2009, Manley was named the head of the Jeep brand and in 2015, his title was expanded to include his leadership of the Ram brand. As a result, Manley has guided the Jeep brand through every major product launch in the past 8+ years (including the Trackhawk debut shown above) while also handling the launch of the all-new Ram 1500.

Future Goals

While Mike Manley is likely to begin assembling a management team of his include – including new heads of the Jeep and Ram brands – he is expected to continue on the path laid out in the five-year plan announced back on June 1.

In other words, while Marchionne is no longer calling the shots at FCA, it seems unlikely that the direction of the company or any of the brands will change stray from the course set by Marchionne.

Photos for DodgeForum by Patrick Rall; Podium photo by FCA

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Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

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