The fruits of Fiat's product development plans for Chrysler won't begin hitting the streets for about year so America's number three car maker doesn't have a whole lot to show at the upcoming Detroit auto show next month. Chrysler won't even be holding a press conference during the press previews, a move that is puzzling industry observers. The Detroit News reports that Fiat does plan to show an electrified Fiat 500 and a Lancia Delta tricked up to look like a Chrysler.

This is a bit ironic. Fiat killed Chrysler's ENVI program which was developing prototype EV vehicles, although it did keep some EV engineering research going. And while a Lancia-based Chrysler would be an interesting exercise, there are no immediate plans to produce such a car. In fact, the company's long term plans, as revealed in November, call for some future Lancias to be based on Chrysler platforms, not the other way around. (Fiat-based Chryslers in the compact and mid-size segments begin arriving here further down the road, in two to four years. And, sadly, last year's stunning Chrysler 200C concept car does not appear anywhere in the company's future plans.)

Watch this space for reports from the North American International Auto Show press previews January 11 and 12.