DETROIT (AP) - When DaimlerChrysler AG Chairman Dieter Zetsche was getting his hair cut a few years ago in suburban Detroit, he mentioned Mercedes-Benz to the woman giving him a trim. "What does your company have to do with Mercedes?" the balding Zetsche remembers the woman at the downtown Birmingham shop asking him.
The question, which came in an area where people are bombarded with automotive news by the minute, became a metaphor for the company's recent research.
Most people, it said, don't know that the Chrysler and Mercedes brands became linked when Chrysler Corp. merged with Daimler-Benz AG in 1998, and they don't know that Chrysler cars are equipped with Mercedes safety technology and engineering.
"That's Birmingham. That's Motown. That's reality," Zetsche said at a meeting with reporters in Detroit on Wednesday.
On Friday, DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler Group will unveil an ad campaign featuring the affable Zetsche as the pitchman, in an effort to change that image and more closely link Chrysler cars with Mercedes.
The campaign, Zetsche said, will aim to distance Chrysler from General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co.
"Chrysler benefits a lot from the know-how of the other divisions, and vice versa," Zetsche said. "This is what differentiates Chrysler from GM or Ford ... and we want to highlight that."
Research shows that Zetsche's approval rating as a pitchman is "off the charts," said Jason H. Vines, Chrysler's vice president of communications.
Last summer, Chrysler used former boss Lee Iacocca—an octogenarian and inventor of the minivan—in its ads. Iacocca appeared in memorable ads throughout the 1980s with the signature tag line, "If you can find a better car, buy it."
But the company's more recent efforts with celebrity spokespeople haven't fared as well. Its last attempt—with singer Celine Dion—quickly bombed, analysts said.
Also as part of its announcement Friday, Chrysler said it will unveil incentives to move slow-selling trucks, sport utility and other vehicles. Zetsche said offering employee pricing to all customers is something under consideration.
GM, Ford and Chrysler each have said they're trying to move away from incentives to drive sale prices closer to the numbers on the window sticker. Chrysler's plans, which leaked out last week, already have brought a response from GM, which this week offered zero percent financing for up to six years on nearly all of its models. Ford and Chrysler already were offering zero percent on some models.
GM Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said that the zero percent offer would be available only through July 5, and that the company plans to stick with its plan to reduce incentives regardless of the pain.
The Chrysler ads also will try to end the perception that American cars are gas hogs.
"There is some perception ... that import cars are fuel efficient and American cars are not, which in most specific cases is just not true," Zetsche said.
In a wide-ranging discussion with reporters, Zetsche also said SUV sales have plateaued and probably won't return to growth again. But he also predicted that they would remain stable.
He also said the company's inventory is high in some areas, a consequence of too much production and not enough sales. He said the company will experience pain in the transition to balance out the two.
___
On the Net:
DaimlerChrysler AG: http://www.daimlerchrysler.com
