Chrysler is a 1,000-Piece Puzzle, in Pieces

(MoneyWatch)  What a mess Chrysler is in, as it attempts to redefine its brands and merge with Fiat (FIATY.PK) at the same time.

Lucky for them the spotlight is on Toyota (TM), because Chrysler needs all the time it can get below the radar.

It's no wonder Chrysler is in turmoil. In the last decade, Chrysler passed into and out of the hands of Germany's Daimler (DAI), private-equity firm Cerberus, then U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Now it is a ward of Fiat.

Fittingly, Chrysler's display at this month's Geneva auto show has a "puzzle" motif. Chrysler's intention was to show how all the pieces fit together, but it's more like one of those 1,000-piece puzzles that take forever, with pieces left over.

According to Chrysler, here's how its brands should be positioned:

Dodge, now also known as the Dodge Car brand, is the "Full-of-Life Brand," with vehicles like the retro muscle-car Dodge Challenger.

Dodge Truck is now Ram Truck, featuring, yes, the Ram pickup truck.

Jeep, "The Authentic SUV for Those Seeking Extraordinary Journeys," is closest to its existing identity. There's no question Jeep has the credentials to be "The Authentic SUV," but for the last several years Jeep was concentrating on becoming less truck-like and more car-like.

The Chrysler brand positioning is, "Provocative Designs Engineered for Passionate Living." The Chrysler 300 is a provocative design, but it's more than five years old. And "Passion" is something everybody claims, from food and beverage companies to resume writers.

In the meantime, Fiat paired up the Chrysler brand with its premium Lancia brand, which is not offered in the United States. Fiat put the same executive in charge of both brands in October 2009.

That's Olivier Francois, who was already president and CEO of the Lancia brand. Francois is also the lead Chrysler Group executive for marketing, with responsibility for marketing strategies, brand development and advertising for the Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge Car and Dodge Ram, plus the same responsibilities for Fiat Group automobiles.

Oh, and before joining Fiat in 2005, Francois worked for Citroen, another brand that's not offered in the United States. All this is his puzzle to fit together.