Chrysler/private equity: Sweetened low

Will private equity save Chrysler? It’s not impossible. But it’s unlikely to appeal as the ideal option for Daimler, the struggling car company’s parent. As it stands, not only would a leveraged-buyout firm balk at paying at all for for Motor City’s number three þit would probably insist on being paid. Here is why. Chrysler should be worth about $10bn if its 2009 pre-tax return on sales hits its 2.5% target. Trouble is that’s more than wiped out by the estimated $13bn of unfunded healthcare and...