Status report: Grand Cherokee Hurricane, Hemi, and four-banger

Jim Morrison piloting Grand Cherokee

When the Hurricane Six engines were first unveiled, a company executive said that the long-awaited twin-turbo straight sixes were to be optional in the Jeep Grand Cherokee, as well as appearing in the Jeep Wagoneer. 2023 models came and went without this option; and then the 2024s arrived, and while the Wagoneer went Hurricane-only, the Grand Cherokee stayed mostly as it was. Read more

Recall Monday: Wrangler and other companies

recalls

The Wrangler 4xe recall last week, which got perhaps more attention than it deserved (as only 1% of the vehicles actually have the flaw), grabbed headlines; but today’s list of recalls from the NHTSA is remarkably short, excluding as we always do commercial and recreational vehicles.The worst recall belongs to Land Rover’s 2023 Defender, with … Read more

STLA halves Chinese company’s shares

Stellantis financials - earnings - dollars

Stellantis confirmed that they had bought back 50 million shares of STLA stock from Dongfeng for $1 billion. The Chinese company had owned roughly 3.2% of Stellantis’ stock, and will now own a bit less than 1.6%.  The shares will be cancelled once Stellantis has them, rather than being resold, as Stellantis is also buying … Read more

Canada houses STLA’s battery testing hub

2024 Ram EV

With battery-electric cars set to become a major part of Stellantis’ product line—and a projected 50% of US sales in 2030—the company has to have some way of testing battery-electric vehicles while keeping its gasoline powertrain testing. It also has to avoid unquenchable fires in the basement of the Auburn Hills testing center.The first of … Read more

New generation of Fiat Ducato EV provides longer range

large vans

Stellantis is the #2 automaker in Europe, and the #1 in commercial vehicles. Globally, its commercial vehicle range, now dubbed Pro One, includes six brands including Ram, ten pick-ups, and a hydrogen solution. The company plans for light commercial vehicles to account for a third of Stellantis profits, including aftersale services.The new Fiat E-Ducato, was … Read more

UAW members approve FCA US, GM contracts

UAW members voted to ratify contracts with GM and Stellantis (FCA US). Key parts of this deals were ending pay disparities, abuse of temporary workers, and raises to counter inflation and partly make up for past concessions.The GM deal was more difficult than the one at FCA US; 68% of Stellantis employees voted for the … Read more

FCA US announces layoffs to non-UAW employees

The Wall Street Journal recently reported that Stellantis had sent buyout offers to half its white collar staff in the United States, blaming the expenses of moving to electric vehicles.A company representative clarified that an offer was being sent to “6,400 non-bargaining-unit U.S. employees with at least five years of corporate service” out of 12,700 … Read more

Recall Monday dominated by Mercedes, with windows falling out

recalls (generated for Mercedes windows falling out)

Mercedes is dominating the week’s recalls—and Stellantis is absent from it. The main issue is a missing brake inspection gauge on a variety of 2019-21 Mercedes models, along with a sunroof that may close unexpectedly in the 2020 GLS580.

Finally, finishing a rough recall week for the Germany maker, the 2024 GLC300 may have windows come out… Read more

Why the Ramcharger makes more sense than people think

Ramcharger Limited explanation

Since the release of the Ram 1500 Ramcharger, there has been a good deal of unfounded criticism of the engineering choices—even before such key figures as the fuel economy on an empty battery have been released.

The Ramcharger is almost unique as a hybrid in that the engine is used both to recharge the battery and to power the motors when needed, but has no physical way to drive the wheels. Read more

Truck rams Mopar dealership

Truck rams dealership (crash)

A tractor-trailer truck rammed into a car dealership in Tooele, Utah last week, causing a fire at the Mopar/Ford dealership.The crash occured last Friday and, according to the local TV station, KMVT, injured 11 people, damaged 27 vehicles, and left visible damage to the dealership building One person had to be airlifted to the hospital.The … Read more

Belvidere, Illinois becoming a Stellantis hub

Belvidere plant

The reopening of Belvidere as an assembly plant won’t take place until 2027, which seemed like a surprisingly long time away—until more information was released yesterday.The local newspaper, the Rockford Register Star, described the deal as changing the large factory on the site into a “megahub,” or an extra-large parts distribution center. While it isn’t … Read more