Chrysler has decided to make its Dodge car and truck units two independent businesses. Many industry insiders have speculated that this would, in fact happen, and now they have confirmed it. Fred Diaz Jr., formerly Director of the Denver Business Center will be the new head of the RAM brand.

Here is Chrysler’s press release:

“Chrysler Group LLC today announces brand and commercial organization changes.

“The brand-focused strategy has been refined further with the unbundling of the Dodge Brand which now consists of the Dodge RAM Brand and the Dodge Car Brand organizations. This reorganization will allow us to protect and develop the unique nature of the product offerings within the Dodge Brand,” Mr. Sergio Marchionne, Chief Executive Officer, Chrysler Group LLC said.

Fred Diaz Jr. is appointed President and CEO, Dodge RAM Brand with profit and loss responsibility for the Dodge RAM product portfolio. Mr. Diaz will also be the lead executive for the Sales organization in the United States. He was previously the Director of the Denver Business Center. Mr. Diaz has been with the Company since 1989 in positions of increasing responsibility. The Company will announce Mr. Diaz’s replacement with a separate announcement.

Ralph Gilles is appointed President and CEO, Dodge Car Brand with profit and loss responsibility for the Dodge Car product portfolio. Mr. Gilles will continue to lead the Product Design organization of Chrysler Group which he joined in 1992.

Olivier Francois is appointed President and CEO, Chrysler Brand, with profit and loss responsibility for the Chrysler product portfolio. Mr. Francois joins the Company from Fiat Group Automobiles where he serves as head of the Lancia Brand, a position he retains. Mr. Francois will also be the lead executive for the Marketing organization with responsibility to coordinate worldwide marketing strategies, brand development and advertising for the Chrysler, Jeep®, Dodge Car and Dodge RAM brands. He will continue to lead these functions within Fiat Group Automobiles. Mr. Francois joined Fiat in 2005.

Michael Manley will continue as the President and CEO, Jeep Brand with profit and loss responsibility for the Jeep Brand product portfolio. Mr. Manley will also be the lead executive for the international activities of the Company outside of NAFTA and will be responsible for implementing the co-operation agreements for distribution of Chrysler Group products through Fiat’s international distribution network. Mr. Manley has been with Chrysler since 1998.

Joseph Veltri joins the Management Team as Head of Product Planning. Mr. Veltri started with the Company in 1988. His career has included positions in product planning, marketing, business strategy, and finance. He served most recently as Product Planning Lead and Head of Truck/SUV Planning.

Peter Fong, head of the Chrysler Brand has resigned for personal reasons. Michael Accavitti, head of the Dodge Brand has resigned to pursue other interests.”

The Chevy electric car, or more properly, the new Chevy Volt plug-in hybrid, and the similar cars its’ success is sure to spawn, is the best chance the General has to return to profitability after an especially bleak quarter. Even GM can’t absorb too many -$15 billion quarters and expect to survive. To be fair to GM, some of this can be attributed to non recurring events and write downs, that aren’t likely to be repeated.

As a manufacturer built on the success of relatively fuel inefficient vehicles, such as the Silverado and Tahoe, GM needs alternatives that consumers want to by with the same fervor that they flocked to lots with when gas was $1.80/ gallon and new Tahoes had dealer incentives. With gas hovering at $4.00 per, those days may never return, but GM’s hoping that a new era of profitability returns, driven by $30,000+ plug-in hybrids.

$30,000+? Yes, the initial versions of the Volt promise to carry a fairly robust price tag. Don’t for get that fuel efficient vehicles will continue carry with them some pretty attractive tax incentives. Unfortunately the $30,000 price for the first versions of the Volt likely factors those tax benefits in already. The actual price is closer to $40K! Now, if you’re Leonardo DiCaprio, that’s no big deal. For those of you that get your paychecks from Paramount Sand and Gravel, Paramount Landscape Services, or Paramount Electric, rather than Paramount Pictures, the Volt’s price may be a bit of a stretch.

If Chevy can just get the Volt to have the same cachet among the ultra green set as the Prius enjoys, the same automaker that draws ire and wrath for daring to concoct the Tahoe / Suburban will ironically be lionized for popularizing the plug-in hybrid.

One thing’s for sure, it will take more than $4 or $5 gasoline to make the Volt a success. Chevy’s marketing department had better do a bang-up job. After all Toyota will be hot on their heels with the plug-in Prius. The Volt promises a higher level of technology than the Prius, and will be larger, theoretically appealing to those with larger (Suburban sized?) families.

The Volt will face stiff competition in the marketplace when it arrives however. Besides the aforementioned Prius plug-in, Honda is readying a few possible competitors, such as a hybrid version of the already economical Fit, a “Global Small Hybrid”, and the new CR-Z, being referred to by some as the “CR-X for the 2010’s”. All will feature hybrid power trains and outstanding fuel economy. Nissan also has electric cars just around the corner, having announced them in May of this year.

The question is weather or not Chevy’s “electric car” (it can go up to 40 miles on electric only power), as they like to call it, will rise above the competition and generate sufficient sales and profits to pull GM out of its doldrums. GM may be able to generate substantial licensing revenues from some of the technologies it’s developed for the new car and its E-flex drive train. GM has substantial engineering might, and has developed some of the things we take for granted in cars today, like another electric enhancement to our rides, the electric starter.

It’s already reportedly talking with rival Ford to use some of the power train. How long will the batteries in the Volt last? GM is saying that they expect a 10 year battery life, which is a good thing, considering the initial cost of the advanced lithium ion battery pack. Priced a replacement lithium ion battery for your laptop recently? Now you see what I mean.

So, although the Chevy electric car may be a paragon of modern technology, and may in fact help the General return to profitability, it will not be a cheap car for the masses, which may be okay, since they’ll only build about 10,000 units the first year, and could probably sell them all, even at $40,000. If the price of gas remains above the magic $4.00 per gallon barrier, or people expect it to, the Chevy Volt will be a slam dunk for GM.

If the price of gas should decline to around $3.25, and people expect it to stay there, the less expensive traditional hybrid alternatives will be much more attractive to car buyers, especially given the rising price of electricity.

Until next time, save that gas, you’ll need it.