We’ve all seen them by now, the “Dr. Z” commercials featuring the friendly bespectacled DaimlerChrysler CEO Dieter Zetsche and his trademark handlebar mustache espousing the merger benefits between Daimler-Benz and Chrysler, and how the infusion of German technology has taken Chrysler from the distant third of the Big 3 to a carmarker featuring some of the hottest products on the road.

We’ve all seen them by now, the “Dr. Z” commercials featuring the friendly bespectacled DaimlerChrysler CEO Dieter Zetsche and his trademark handlebar mustache espousing the merger benefits between Daimler-Benz and Chrysler, and how the infusion of German technology has taken Chrysler from the distant third of the Big 3 to a carmarker featuring some of the hottest products on the road.

A compelling case could be made that the trickle-down effect of premium German technology to mid-market vehicles gives them a competitive edge. A secondary benefit of this scheme is that the bugs inherent in Goldbergian German technology have a generation to be hammered out before they migrate down into their American cousins. Think it’s a coincidence that Mercedes has been plagued with quality issues as of late, while Chrysler’s have improved? Maybe getting hand-me-downs isn’t so bad after all.

But moving forward, Daimler-Benz’s traditionally paternalistic, hierarchical management style looks like it got sidelined by the surprisingly progressive Dr. Zetsche (yes, one in the same as the aforementioned Dr. Z). According to industry reports, the next-generation Chrysler Group LY-series vehicles will actually debut first, and their Mercedes counterparts will follow. What!?!? How can this be? The scrappy, swaggering American models will precede their patrician Teutonic cousins? Could the tables be turning with technology transfer? Let’s hope that the Chrysler products don’t now become the guinea pigs for unproven technologies and cause quality ratings to tank. Likewise, the next-generation V-6 engine is going to be shared between Mercedes and Chrysler Group brand products. So much for the initial post-merger statements made by former Daimler Benz CEO Juergen Schrempp about keeping the bloodlines “pure” between Chrysler and Mercedes. Could it be that Zetsche realizes that the hyper-competitive global automotive marketplace no longer allows for the inefficiencies of redundant platforms and powertrains that his ivory-tower predecessor did not? It seems so.

As humorous and clever as the Dr. Z campaign may be, the underlying theme is undeniable: The superiority of German engineering which Chrysler would be a faded has-been in the automotive world without it. I’m sure there are some Americans who find this subliminal snootiness insulting. My question is when are the commercials going to talk about R&D taking place in Auburn Hills that will be implemented in Stuttgart? My guess is never, although it’s no secret that Chrysler Group execs are rolling up their sleeves to tackle the production inefficiencies that have plagued Mercedes for the past several decades, streamlining their assembly lines and supplier relationships, increasing profit margins AND quality. Personally, I could care less what ad campaigns latte-sipping hipsters in New York and L.A. that don’t even own cars are thinking up to move metal. If the behind-the-scenes inner workings result in better, more desirable products for a lower price, I’m all for it.