Chrysler is working around the clock to complete an alliance with Italy's Fiat SpA that would also result in a new board for the U.S. automaker, Vice Chairman Jim Press said on Wednesday.

Chrysler, about 80 percent controlled by Cerberus Capital Management , was given until the end of April by the U.S. autos task force to complete an alliance with Fiat that would give it access to small car technology it now lacks.

The automaker has been operating under $4 billion of U.S. government emergency loans and has sought additional loans. The autos task force said it would consider investing up to $6 billion more if Chrysler completed the tie-up with Fiat, but warned that bankruptcy might be an option.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the New York Auto Show, Press said Chrysler was working very hard to avoid bankruptcy and has had a constructive dialogue with all of its stakeholders.

Chrysler is proceeding on the Fiat alliance as though there would be no bankruptcy, Press said, describing the pairing as a marriage of two automakers that have no overlap in vehicles or distribution.

(Reporting by Poornima Gupta; Writing by David Bailey; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)

Chrysler