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Italian car maker Fiat has become an even bigger player in the global automobile industry, now that it has closed its takeover of privately held Chrysler. In the next few months, Fiat will begin the process of transferring its technology, platforms and powertrains to Chrysler plants throughout North America. Although Fiat shares were up on the news, analysts say the deal carries with it enormous risk for Fiat in trying to revive an American automaker that has an aging product line and is emerging from bankruptcy.

David Whiston is an auto analyst at Morningstar in Chicago. "Chrysler is really only known right now for vans, jeeps and Dodge Ram pickup trucks, and that's great for those consumers that want those vehicles. But you, to be a mass-market automaker, you gotta be in the compact car, and midsize sedan market too, and Chrysler just doesn't have that right now.

Fiat has sent a team of executives and engineers to Detroit to work with Chrysler to cut cost and prepare for the US launch of the Cinquecento, Fiat's popular small car.

“In a free market economy , if there is low gas prices , Americans just don't want small vehicles, so it sounds rather twisted but really the best thing that could happen for all these automakers who are pushing these smaller, more European-style designed vehicles is that gas prices actually shoot up.”

Chrysler had been operating in bankruptcy with the backing and financing of the US Treasury since April 30th, a decision defended Wednesday in congressional testimony by Ron Bloom, a senior adviser to the White House Auto Task Force, " But the steps the president has taken have not only helped to stabilize the auto industry, and save hundreds of thousands of jobs, but for the first time in decades, they have also given GM and Chrysler a chance to become viable, competitive American businesses with bright futures".

Combined, Chrysler and Fiat will rank as the world's sixth largest automaker, rivaling Volkswagen and Honda in size. Fiat CEO has argued that no car maker could survive the global financial crisis without producing at least 5 million cars a year.

John Decker, Reuters.