ABSTRACT
In March Beijing Jeep almost shut down its Cherokee production line again because of a nasty customs dispute. Officials at the customs bureau in Tianjin suddenly announced a hefty increase in the duties on the parts kits Chrysler was shipping to China, a rate so high that Chrysler calculated it would lose money on every Cherokee it built in China. The American company enlisted the help of Beijing city officials and even suggested it might close the factory and air its complaints publicly, much as St. Pierre and American Motors had done three years earlier. Finally, after a series of negotiations, the customs officials backed down. American Motors and Chrysler had put a lot of work into getting a business established in China, Ivins acknowledged. And at Beijing Jeep itself, the Chinese he worked alongside seemed to be decent people.
