It's long past the point where US auto manufacturers could do that. Maybe in the late 70s that would have been a good piece of advice, but not now. Chrysler is just the weak member of the pack, and the pack is getting thinned. In the mean time they've accumulated huge liabilities that even Daimler can't stomach, especially given the fact that the BMW side of the house is doing great.
This new crew thinks there's a way to fix it, but only by erasing the past. And that eraser is going to hurt, as the airlines have figured out in the last few years (and the railroads figured out before that).
/jordan