Dave Van Buren sent in these two photos from Trenton Engine’s archives. The first shows final inspection of engine blocks for Department 72 Main, which made the low-deck B-engine blocks—the 361, 383, and later 400. The bore sizes were painted onto the blocks because there were variations in the diameter of both blocks and pistons … Read more
A couple of days ago, photos from the Illinois Toll Road’s social media feed made a stir as a car carrier loaded mainly with new Jeeps was clearly on fire. Two Wranglers were most badly burned, and one of them was a 4xe, which could have stirred some anti-EV hate. An inquiry to Stellantis North America media relations yielded no answers. [Read more…]
Stellantis is asking over 33,500 employees in the US and Canada to take a buyout or early retirement, according to the Detroit News. The breakdown is 31,000 hourly workers and 2,500 salaried ones, though not all of those will be lost jobs: there are numerous workers on indefinite layoff at the moment, and the actual … Read more
Excuses for avoiding electric cars are plentiful enough to have bingo cards (see end of story), but one of them—the risk of long, difficult fires—may have a solution now. While electric cars are not as likely to catch fire as gasoline cars, they are far harder to put out. (Cheap electric bikes seem to catch … Read more
Created solely for racing, the famed 426 Hemi was a cross between Chrysler’s first V8 engines, which had hemispherical heads, and the big Cross-Ram Wedge engines which were winning on the street but failing in NASCAR—the company’s second completely new V8 design. The engine people believed that the wedge engines would have an edge if they … Read more
A UAW local just announced that Stellantis is seeking 3,500 early departures from FCA US via buyouts and retirement offers, according to Automotive News. The company has around 40,500 hourly workers. (See update.) The news comes via a letter to members from UAW Local 1264, which reported that the cuts will be widespread (AutoNews posted … Read more
It’s the 2023 Dodge Journey, but you can’t buy it in the United States.
There is very little information available on Dodge’s web site. The Stellantis North America media site doesn’t mention it at all. But the 2023 Dodge Journey is on sale in Mexico, with over a thousand sales reported in March. There are three trim levels, SXT, Sport, and GT; the Sport raises the price to MX$667,900 and the GT to over MX$700,000. It’s not a new story, really—the ’23 follows a 2022 model. [Read more…]
Fuel pump failures can cause stalling in the Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator and Ram 1500 with the diesel engine. The fix is for Ram or Jeep to replace the high pressure fuel pump and possibly other fuel system parts. The vehicles affected are: 2021-23 Wrangler made 11/2/21 to 1/13/23 (around 12,000) 2021-23 Gladiator made 10/14/21 to … Read more
According to Brazilian publication Autos Segredos, which posted this rendering, a medium-sized pickup dubbed Rampage is set to do battle with the Toyota Hilux (Tacoma) and other pickups. It will, they claim, share a unibody structure with the SUSW Jeep Renegade an Compass, and to have a conventional opening. The name “Rampage” has not been … Read more
Stellantis may be committed to selling only battery-electrics in Europe by 2030, but it is also testing “eFuels” (also known as “electrofuels”) on European vehicles made since 2014. The company said eFuels could potentially be used on up to 28 million of their vehicles, possibly reducing another 400 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions in … Read more
According to a source inside Brampton, Stellantis officials recently visited the plant and told workers that Stellantis was happy with its work—and had big plans for its future. They confirmed that the plant would have a major transformation to make electric cars on a new, flexible platform.
Last year, Stellantis announced that it would be spending nearly US$3 billion to upgrade the Windsor and Brampton plants. A major battery factory, a joint venture with LG, is being placed in Windsor to support the Canadian factories, both of which are in Ontario. The company could not commit to the number of shifts, but previously announced that it expected to run three shifts. There was some concern expressed over wage growth and the need for competitive costs. [Read more…]
Ram has yet to announce changes to its 2024 models, which makes sense given that they usually come out in August. Either the 2024s or 2025s are likely to jettison the Hemi V8s in favor of Hurricane Sixes, with the possible exception of the 6.4 liter truck engines in the Heavy Duty lineup. Ram has … Read more
Three currently sold vehicles from Stellantis will get hefty tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act, which also ends credits for a number of foreign and domestic cars. The full $7,500 credit goes to the Chrysler Pacifica PHEV, while a still considerable $3,750 goes to the Wrangler 4xe and Grand Cherokee 4xe. No Mopars are … Read more
Analysis. Social media, forums, and comments sections have all seen complaints about Dodge’s future, which many claim will be “all BEV.” In point of fact, there’s never been any indication that this is Stellantis’ plan for Dodge—only for Chrysler.
What we know so far is that Chrysler-the-marque, as opposed to the no-longer-around Chrysler-the-company, is planning to go all-electric by 2030, and at last report was only working on STLA Large—but these are subject to change. FCA US, on the other hand, was looking at being just 50% electric in 2030. That means it’ll still be 50% not-electric.
The last credible installment from our sources claimed that an LB Challenger was indeed on the way, powered by a Hurricane twin-turbo straight six engine…
[Read more…]
The New York Auto Show is closing soon; this is a quick overview of what you might miss if you’re not there, starting with the outdoors attractions—the Toyota Thrill Ride (professional drivers in a small paved area do make for some thrills) and Camp Jeep, also a thrill ride as you go up and down a steep, tall steel-surfaced roller coaster in your choice of Jeeps. [Read more…]
The Dodge Hornet, after a long sea voyage, is finally reaching dealerships.
Dodge called the Hornet a “gateway vehicle.” Some thought it would be a hybrid Challenger or Charger to bridge the gap between gas-powered models and EVs; but it was a gateway in different ways—
A gateway to Dodge for first-time buyers
A gateway between FCA and Stellantis—between SUSW and STLA Small
A gateway between gasoline and electric
A gateway between Dodge as “only big cars and trucks” and Dodge as a full line
One could also call the Hornet a gateway between past and future; the original Hudson Hornet was a full sized car, sold in several body styles, that won NASCAR and AAA racing championships with its six-cylinder engine and either two-barrel carburetor or twin single-barrels (Twin-H Power). [Read more…]
