Stellantis today announced that the 2021 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat, a one-year, 710-horsepower limited edition, has started production. The big SUV runs from 0-60 mph in just 3.5 seconds and can run a muscle-car-humiliating quarter mile of 11.5 seconds, and the entire production run was sold quickly. The hot Durango lists for $80,995 plus $1,495 … Read more
Ram is recalling a mere two dozen (24) 2021 Ram 1500 Classic trucks, all SLT models, because someone forgot to add the clip that secures the brake master cylinder pushrod to the brake pedal assembly. Ram has asked owners to avoid driving the trucks until they are inspected and, if needed, fixed. The fix is … Read more
A popular meme claims shows Dodge engineers shoving a Hellcat into every Dodge, and not stopping there. Since they now sell the Pacifica as a Caravan in Canada, will we see a Hellcat Caravan, as pictured below (credit to abimelecdesign and reposted by Ralph Gilles on his Instagram feed)? In short, well, no. Ralph Gilles’ … Read more
The urbane Pietro Gorlier, a man willing to patiently sit and answer any question a journalist might have for hours (while sipping fresh espresso), has been put in charge of Stellantis’ global part and service. While at Chrysler, Gorlier read every letter addressed to him, righting wrongs, investigating claims, and generally cleaning up any messes … Read more
The fact that the Dodge Durango Hellcat is a one-year phenomenon should tell you something about how long we can expect these trucks to last. The Durango started out on a truck platform and stayed there for years before becoming a longer, less off-road-tuned version of the Jeep Grand Cherokee. Rumors at Allpar and Mopar … Read more
Nearly four years ago, I wrote about the “Tornado,” as the turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine then being development was coded (not after the Jeep engine, but the airplane, in line with other Chrysler engine projects). Insiders were certain that the 5.7 Hemi, which was overdue for upgrades—upgrades which had reportedly been at least partly created, … Read more
The Dodge brothers generally didn’t make trucks; they made cars, and the Graham brothers turned some of them into trucks. Chrysler, acquiring both companies, focused on Dodge for the truck market, which was still too small for more than one corporate brand (Fargo, the Plymouth truck division, was relegated to export duty). Dodge made four … Read more
The 710-horsepower Durango SRT Hellcat, which propels the big SUV from 0-60 mph in just 3.5 seconds and can run a muscle-car-humiliating quarter mile of 11.5 seconds, has already sold out. Those who want instant power will have to settle for the 392 Hemi. The hot Durango lists for $80,995 plus $1,495 destination, and is … Read more
Since the 1960 Valiant shook up Chrysler’s product line, resulting in changes to every other car’s brakes, axles, and front suspensions, Chrysler has done well when it set up skunkworks or other arrangements that led low-level employees have more of a say. Indeed, the revolutionary changes of the 1990s centered mainly on empowering groups to … Read more
The signs are up at Auburn Hills and other headquarters. The old FCA and FCA US email address are already being replaced by stellantis.com. But who is running the show? It appears that Stellantis is using matrix management, with both regional and brand leaders. For the Mopars, we have Christian Meunier running global SUV / … Read more
Back in the days when there was still a Chrysler Corporation, engineers started working an a manual transmission that shifted itself—a dual-clutch automatic of the style later produced by Fiat, Ford, and others. At the time, such transmissions had never been successfully used in light-duty vehicles, but were used by heavy-duty trucks. The transmission was … Read more
Groupe PSA (Peugeot S.A.) and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) have now merged; the stock appears tomorrow and Tuesday, respectively, on Euronext and Mercato, then on the New York Stock Exchange, under the symbol STLA (Stellantis). In other news, Stellantis will be the first automaker to use Amazon’s Alexa Custom Assistant, which can be tailored to … Read more
Canoo came to my attention due to a report that Apple had talked with them about making electric vehicles together. Of particular interest to me was their electric minivan. Like Rivian, Canoo has created a modular platform for making electric vans, cars, and trucks. Like the old body-on-frame cars, which long ago were jettisoned for … Read more
For years, some buyers of 2.4 liter engines have been afflicted by oil use. Not all the engines had problems, which was even more puzzling; manufacturing tolerances are extremely tight, so how could it be that one person would do oil changes every ten months or 10,000 miles and never have to add any, while … Read more
Frank Rhodes, Walter P. Chrysler’s great-grandson, has been battling to save the Chrysler brand for years. Chrysler has been battered and abused since the 1970s; its upscale image was diluted with thinly disguised Plymouths, and then the brand was starved of new product—the always-in-the-future Portal and Americanized Grand Commander notwithstanding. The 300 went from being … Read more
Some reacted to news of FCA’s 2020 sales shortfall by pointing out that dealers were short of cars—a situation that is not likely to be improved by the global microchip shortage, which has shut down the Toluca and Brampton plants. Toluca makes the Jeep Compass and until recently produced the Dodge Journey and Fiat 500; … Read more