Chrysler Flirts With Nissan- Renault as GM Seeks Credit

Chrysler is considering joining Nissan-Renault, adding a North American arm to the Japanese-French auto alliance that could rescue Chrysler’s operations, the Wall Street Journal reports. Cerberus, Chrysler’s majority owner, prefers a merger with General Motors, but overlap with a Detroit competitor would likely eliminate half of Chrysler’s 66,000 jobs. A deal with Nissan-Renault would leave Chrysler largely intact.

Cerberus could have Nissan and Renault take a minority stake in Chrysler, though whether Chrysler would return the favor is unclear. Though a deal with GM would vastly reduce Cerberus’ exposure to the volatile auto industry, GM has had trouble securing the financing for a deal amid the ongoing credit crisis. (More Nissan-Renault stories.)