8 MILLIONTH MPV PRODUCED BY CHRYSLER

DaimlerChrysler President surprises original MPV Owner by delivering eight millionth people carrier to doorstep The owner of one of the world's first MPVs had a Thanksgiving Day to remember when the President of DaimlerChrysler arrived on his doorstep to present him with the keys to the eight millionth Chrysler Voyager.

Chuck Fulton, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA, was awoken at 7.30am on Thanksgiving Day to the sounds of a complete street parade with marching band, jugglers, clowns, unicyclists, neighbours, 50 local Chrysler dealer employees and even a helicopter hovering overhead. He opened his front door to be greeted by Jim Holden, DaimlerChrysler President, who broke the good news that Chuck had been chosen as the lucky recipient of a brand new Voyager - badged Dodge Grand Caravan in the USA - the company's eight millionth MPV.

Chuck was chosen because of his impressive track record when it comes to buying and owning Voyagers. Sixteen years ago while out driving, Chuck saw a car transporter carrying what he thought was an unusual looking vehicle. He followed it to a dealership, test drove the car and bought it. It was the Voyager - the world's first people carrier.

Jim Holden said: "In addition to buying one of the world's first MPVs, we chose Chuck Fulton and his family because they are loyal MPV owners - they didn't stop after buying one, they went on to buy two more of our Voyagers over the course of 16 years.

"When we learned that Chuck followed the transporter to the dealership in 1983, we thought it would be appropriate to celebrate this historic sales milestone and the 16th anniversary of the MPV by bringing the car transporter to him."

The transporter carrying the red Dodge Grand Caravan was part of the Thanksgiving Day parade and the helicopter hovering overhead carried a sign reading: "Thanks Eight Million, Chuck!".

Chuck's first purchase put him right in the thick of a consumer movement that was started by the former Chrysler Corporation and still led today by DaimlerChrysler. He was a pioneer in the ever-growing population of MPV owners that today number nearly 15 million in the US alone.

The MPV was born on 2 November 1983 at the former Chrysler Corporation's assembly plant in Windsor, Ontario. When the company introduced its 'magic wagon' 16 years ago, it had little idea that it would go on to replace the station wagon, save a leading car manufacturer from bankruptcy and forever change the landscape of the world's highways and driveways.

The MPV segment has come a long way in the US since its initial model year sales of 100,000 units. The segment reached an all-time high in model year 1999 with sales of 1.5 million units, representing eight per cent of all new vehicles sold in North America. DaimlerChrysler continues to command 40 per cent of the MPV segment with sales of 607,000 units in 1999, nearly 200,000 more units than its nearest competitor, General Motors.

Since creating the MPV, DaimlerChrysler has introduced 38 MPV firsts and earned more than 130 awards for its impressive line-up of Chrysler and Dodge people carriers. The company sells more than 600,000 MPVs every year in more than 70 countries throughout the world. More than 14,000 Voyagers have been sold in the UK since its March 1997 launch, and over 300,000 have been sold throughout Europe since its introduction in 1990.

"Sixteen years and eight million people carriers later, I can assure you that we're not resting on our laurels," said Holden. "We want to do everything we can to keep customers like Chuck Fulton coming back. By continuing to offer the greatest selection of best-selling minivans and introducing even more minivan firsts, we plan to do just that."

Dodge Caravan, Chrysler Voyager and Chrysler Town & Country are manufactured in St Louis, Missouri, Windsor, Ontario and Graz, Austria.

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