REUTERS - Chrysler Group LLC, the U.S. automaker controlled by Italy's Fiat SpA, could build a compact hatchback that Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne calls the "Chrysler 100," the CEO told the Detroit Free Press.
If built, the compact hatchback would be exported as a Lancia model, Fiat's luxury brand in Europe, Marchionne said in an interview with the newspaper.
The success of the Fiat and Chrysler combination relies on Marchionne's ability to fuse the automakers' operations to lower costs and develop vehicles in unison.
At the Detroit auto show this month, Chrysler introduced the Dodge Dart compact sedan, the first vehicle developed by both Fiat and Chrysler.
The Dart is built on a Fiat-engineered platform that will also serve as the basis for the next generation of Jeep SUVs.
(Reporting by Deepa Seetharaman; Editing by Bernard Orr)
