TheFlash
11-22-2004, 01:13 AM
DETROIT (Reuters) - The head of DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler division borrowed a phrase from rapper Snoop Dogg on Thursday to thank Motor Trend magazine for naming the Chrysler 300 its 2005 "car of the year."
"Winning the Motor Trend Car of the Year award is huge for us," said Dieter Zetsche, Chrysler's president and chief executive.
"As Snoop Dogg would say, it's the shizzle," he added.
Shizzle is urban slang that can have many different meanings, according to Snoop Dogg himself. But it is mostly used in the phrase "fo' shizzle," as in "for real" or "for sure."
Zetsche's reference to Snoop Dogg, in his German-accented English, was not gratuitous.
The Los Angeles rapper is a big fan of the 3OO, which has a large chrome grill and low-slung roof. He grabbed headlines in Detroit last May after he left a voicemail message for Zetsche demanding to know how he could get his hands on the hot-selling sedan.
Chrysler spokesman Jason Vines said Snoop, whose real name is Calvin Broadus, got his wish after he agreed to put the car in one of his recently released hip-hop videos.
"That's a pretty fair payment," said Vines, referring to the power of celebrity buzz and endorsement.
Zetsche addressed the awards ceremony at Chrysler's Detroit-area headquarters by video linkup from Las Vegas, where he was meeting with Chrysler's national auto dealers.
On display at the ceremony was the white one Snoop Dogg asked for back in May.
Gadgets and design changes, made to order for the rapper, included gull-wing doors, a sound system big enough to fill the car's trunk, and a trio of video screens.
Motor Trend praised the 300 as a "compelling combination of power, responsiveness, room and refinement."
The U.S. magazine's editorial staff tested 24 new vehicles to find what it called the automobile that best represented exceptional value, superiority in its class, and the most significant development on the new car scene.
Article can be found by clicking here. (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=reutersEdge&storyID=6858875)
"Winning the Motor Trend Car of the Year award is huge for us," said Dieter Zetsche, Chrysler's president and chief executive.
"As Snoop Dogg would say, it's the shizzle," he added.
Shizzle is urban slang that can have many different meanings, according to Snoop Dogg himself. But it is mostly used in the phrase "fo' shizzle," as in "for real" or "for sure."
Zetsche's reference to Snoop Dogg, in his German-accented English, was not gratuitous.
The Los Angeles rapper is a big fan of the 3OO, which has a large chrome grill and low-slung roof. He grabbed headlines in Detroit last May after he left a voicemail message for Zetsche demanding to know how he could get his hands on the hot-selling sedan.
Chrysler spokesman Jason Vines said Snoop, whose real name is Calvin Broadus, got his wish after he agreed to put the car in one of his recently released hip-hop videos.
"That's a pretty fair payment," said Vines, referring to the power of celebrity buzz and endorsement.
Zetsche addressed the awards ceremony at Chrysler's Detroit-area headquarters by video linkup from Las Vegas, where he was meeting with Chrysler's national auto dealers.
On display at the ceremony was the white one Snoop Dogg asked for back in May.
Gadgets and design changes, made to order for the rapper, included gull-wing doors, a sound system big enough to fill the car's trunk, and a trio of video screens.
Motor Trend praised the 300 as a "compelling combination of power, responsiveness, room and refinement."
The U.S. magazine's editorial staff tested 24 new vehicles to find what it called the automobile that best represented exceptional value, superiority in its class, and the most significant development on the new car scene.
Article can be found by clicking here. (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=reutersEdge&storyID=6858875)