Last year, it was reported that China's Great Wall Motors (GWM) had shown an interest in purchasing the Jeep brand worth more than all of FCA's other marques combined, yet this was subsequently denied despite FCA having signed a partnership with another Chinese manufacturer, GAC, to sell Jeeps in China.

Speaking at a media briefing this past week at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Marchionne, whose tenure as FCA boss ends next year, said, "We're not going to break up anything. We have no intention of breaking it up and giving it to the Chinese".

His announcement came not long after the unveiling of the new Ram 1500 and at the US showpiece, and increasing sales of Jeep models with a production target set at two million vehicles this year.

Automotive News Europe has meanwhile alleged that GAC's link-up with FCA could even lead to the Chinese marque entering the US market at some stage, despite Marchionne stating that, "none of these things are designed to impact on the independence of FCA".