On Superbowl Sunday, Clint Eastwood appeared in a two-minute ad that has been dubbed "Half Time in America." Sponsored by the Chrysler car company, it shows a Detroit that escaped the jaws of defeat to become a model for American recovery. Eastwood's narration goes on to suggest that America is in similarly dire straits: “This country can’t be knocked out with one punch. We get right back up again and when we do the world is gonna hear the roar of our engines. It’s half time America, and our second half is about to begin.”

Contract negotiations between Chrysler and the United Auto Workers Union kicked off on Monday, as the industry fights to stay competitive with foreign automakers. Fellow "Big Three" companies General Motors and Ford will also begin negotiations with the UAW later this week. Will the parties involved be able to reconcile their demands and reach a suitable agreement before contracts expire in mid-September? Paul Eisenstein, publisher of The Detroit Bureau, has been following the negotiations.

Ford has been open about its plans to phase out the massively popular Crown Victoria line in 2011, but is inviting stiff competition from both Chrysler and General Motors, who are unveiling vehicles aimed squarely at police fleets. Will Ford be able to keep the 75 percent market-share of the police cruiser market, that the Crown Victoria managed?

After one of the worst years for the auto industry, automakers may begin to hiring workers and offering more overtime, a possible sign of economic recovery. 

The CEO of Fiat-Chrysler, Sergio Marchionne, is scheduled to make a major announcement today charting his five-year plan for the struggling car maker. Wes Lutz, the owner of a Dodge dealership in Jackson, Mich., knows nothing about what will be in today's announcement. He's not alone in wondering what's coming next: The company is keeping their plans close to their chest. We also talk to Paul Eisenstein, publisher of The Detroit Bureau, an online magazine covering the American auto industry.

When GM and Chrysler declared bankruptcy, the court allowed them to prematurely end contracts with car dealers across the nation. Today, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) is meeting with auto makers and auto dealers as they try and work out a compensation agreement for dealers left out in the cold. Our Washington correspondent, Todd Zwillich, talks us through the meeting.

Thanks to the protest of a group of Indiana-based debt holders, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay on the deal to sell Chrysler to Italian carmaker Fiat. The stay of proceedings allows the Court to consider whether to hear the objections of three Indiana state funds and consumer groups. Many industry watchers saw this deal as Chrysler's best chance to avoid liquidation. Joining us to look at how the Court will proceed — and if this will force Chrysler to fold— is Michael de la Merced, business reporter with our partner, The New York Times.

For more, read Michael de la Merced's article, Supreme Court Delays Sale of Chrysler to Fiat, in the New York Times.

As Treasury Department officials pore over the books of GM and Chrysler, what do they make of the millions of dollars the auto makers spend on NASCAR? Is it worthwhile marketing? Does NASCAR success translate to bottom-line profit? To answer some of these questions we turn to Gary Belsky, editor-in-chief of ESPN The Magazine.

GM and Chrysler are making big plans to slash dealerships. The idea is that if they have fewer dealers, those remaining will be more profitable. Chrysler tells us today which dealers it will close, and GM will do the same tomorrow. All together, that could add up to 3,600 dealerships closing up shop across the country. John McEleney is a Chrysler dealer from Clinton, Iowa. He's meeting with President Obama’s auto task force later today to plead his case, along with other dealers from GM and Chrysler. McEleney is also the chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Association.

Chrysler is going to drive on into the future... an uncertain future with a few glimmers of hope. As we have been reporting, last week the landmark American car brand filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and formed an alliance with Italian automaker, FIAT. FIAT will take an initial 20% stake in the company with incentives to take more. But will Fiat’s corporate culture mix with Detroit-style automaking? And how are the unions responding? To help answer those questions we are joined by Karl Ludvigsen, the former Executive Vice-President of FIAT North America.

One thing for American buyers to look forward to, George Clooney comes free with every FIAT:

The future of the iconic American automaker isn’t so American anymore. Last week, Chrysler filed for bankruptcy and made a deal with the Italian automaker FIAT, which will control at least twenty percent of the company initially, and maybe more down the road. And there may even be a move to get GM’s German subsidiary, Opel in on a three-way deal.

So what lies on the road ahead for American autoworkers and their new Italian bosses? No one knows for sure, but when Japanese automakers Honda and Toyota set up shop in America in the 1980s, American autoworkers were asking similar questions. Joining The Takeaway to offer advice to workers facing a new era at Chrysler are two Americans who worked for Japanese car manufacturers. Jim Harbour worked for 28 years in the automotive industry as a manager and director in the engineering and financial services at Ford and Chrysler Corporation and Tim Garrett is the retired vice-president of administration at Honda.

Officials in the Obama administration have been negotiating with the leaders of Chrysler, Fiat and the United Auto Workers to find a way to salvage Chrysler. A deal has been tentatively reached that gives all parties an ownership stake in the company. In the deal, the UAW would get 55% of Chrysler’s stock, but that majority stake is in return for the latest round of concessions to the U.S. auto maker and now the U.S. government. But UAW members still have to ratify what their union leaders have agreed to and some aren’t biting this time. Two UAW members who will be heading out to vote on the plan today and are stopping by The Takeaway first. Ken Mefford is an hourly worker in Chrysler’s Warren Plant in Michigan and Stephanie Ramberger is a laid-off autoworker waiting to be put back on the job.

Chrysler and the United Auto Workers have reached an agreement that will allow the automaker to receive more federal funding. The deal eliminates some of the non-salary benefits the autoworkers had earned over the years, but even with these concessions it is likely that Chrysler will still seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. Also in the deal is a partnership with Italian automaker Fiat, a collaboration which the U.S. government ordered.

Also in the news GM is expected to unveil its own federally-mandated reorganization plan. One unexpected item in the works? The shuttering of the company's storied Pontiac brand. To talk us through all of this upheaval in the car world is Micheline Maynard, senior business editor for the New York Times Senior Business Correspondent in Detroit.

President Obama gave Chrysler until the end of April to finalize a deal with the Italian car company, Fiat. While the partnership may seem an unlikely pairing, Fiat was facing similar dire straits to Chrysler until a recent turnaround under new management. Is this the breath of fresh air that Chrysler needs? And how does this international team sound to Italy? To help answer that question we turn to David Willey, the BBC's Rome correspondent.

To find out more about Chrysler's potential partner, watch this classic Fiat advertisement.