Stephen Feinberg, the publicity-shy founder of Cerberus, which owns 80.1 per cent of Chrysler, spent part of Friday last week on the phone with James B. Lee, vice-chairman of JPMorgan Chase, working on the plan they intend to submit to Washington on Tuesday on how to rejuvenate the US car company.

The plan will probably call for more job cuts, progress in fuel efficiency and reductions in the dealer networks. It is also likely to reflect Mr Feinberg’s view that the industry needs far more consolidation.