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Chrysler LLC Chief Executive Bob Nardelli and President Tom LaSorda said Thursday they will leave the company, as the auto maker filed for bankruptcy and agreed to an alliance with Fiat SpA (FIATY).

Nardelli said he will step down once the bankruptcy process is complete, while LaSorda said he will leave sometime before then, although he didn't specify a date.

Nardelli, who took over as head of Chrysler in August 2007, said he wasn't asked to leave by the Obama administration, which had forced the resignation of General Motors Corp. (GM) CEO Rick Wagoner. Nardelli will return to Cerberus Capital Management, a private equity firm that had acquired Chrysler from Germany's Daimler AG (DAI.XE), as an adviser.

"Now is an appropriate time to let others take the lead in the transformation of Chrysler with Fiat," Nardelli said in a statement, referring to the alliance agreement with the Italian auto maker. "I am going to pick up my pencil and go. As you know, I have no golden parachute."

The exit of Nardelli, who led Home Depot Inc. before assuming his position at Chrysler, clears the way for Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne to either take over the top spot or name a successor. Fiat will contribute advanced technology and offer Chrysler access to a global distribution network. The Italian company will get an initial 20% equity stake in the reorganized company.

Nardelli foreshadowed his own departure on April 17 when he sent a letter to employees telling them that Chrysler's future leadership would be decided jointly by the U.S. government and Fiat. The two entities will appoint a new board of directors.

LaSorda said he was asked to stay by Fiat but is opting to retire to spend more time with his family. LaSorda has earned respect with union workers based on his knowledge of the manufacturing process and his time working at a wheel manufacturer in Canada. His father was president of a local union body in Ontario.

LaSorda joined Chrysler in 2000 as a group vice president after 23 years at GM. LaSorda was named CEO of Chrysler in 2005 but then stepped aside when Nardelli was installed as CEO by Cerberus.

The future of Chrysler Vice Chairman Jim Press is still unclear, as he was also appointed by Cerberus in September 2007 after a long career at Toyota Motor Corp. (TM).

"I plan to see this through and I have had no thoughts about leaving," Press said during a conference call.

-By Jeff Bennett, Dow Jones Newswires; jeff.bennett@dowjones.com; 248-204-5542