Chrysler snags key Toyota (TM) exec

Autoblog informs us that Chrysler has hired a key executive from Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM). James Press, the top-ranking Toyota executive in North America, will join the Chrysler Group as Vice Chairman and President. The announcement was made by Chrysler earlier this morning, and you can read the press release at Autoblog.

At Toyota, Mr. Press' title was President and Chief Operating Officer of Toyota North America, and during his tenure Toyota made significant gains in the American market. Mr. Press is widely respected in the industry, earning the honor of being the first non-Japanese member of Toyota's board, as well as Automotive Executive of the Year.

This change at Chrysler, owned by Cerberus Capital Management since early August, has to be seen as good news. By all reports, Mr. Press loves cars (as opposed to finance or advertising, the preoccupations of most American car execs) and his experience with the world's best automaker should help Chrysler enormously. Interestingly, Mr. Press was quoted in The New York Times in April, when he was still at Toyota, as saying that Chrysler had "solid products" and a bright future. Maybe he knew then that Detroit would be calling for help.