Many online discussions about the Alfa Romeo Stelvio focus on the hot Quadrifoglio, which makes sense from an enthusiast’s standpoint, as the 505-horsepower Ferrari V6 is an absolute delight. However, most Stelvios are powered by the turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder powerplant, so when planning an 800-mile road trip, I happily accepted the offer to test a … Read more
Chrysler seems to be traveling to a future without V8 engines in its light duty cars and trucks. Some hate the idea, but it’s all in the Mopar tradition.The Dodge brothers never made a car with an eight cylinder; they stuck with four-cylinders. When Walter P. Chrysler was President of Maxwell and then of Chrysler, … Read more
As Jeep prepares for the 58th Easter Safari at Moab, where it launches new concepts and new performance parts, the marque is also launching new “Jeep Beach” models. These are partly an incentive for customers to move up to the 4xe system, which provides 21 miles of electric range at 49 MPGe; they can also … Read more
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.
Trenton Engine was built in 1951 to make high-volume V8s; today, it makes V6 engines and motor parts. Nearly a quarter of a century ago, the plant was just about at its capacity, as Chrysler had been building up its sales through the 1990s and dropping imported Mitsubishi fours and sixes. They made aluminum-block V6 … Read more
The minivan famously arrived in 1983, for the 1984 model year, starting with a Mitsubishi-engined Plymouth Voyager which was followed by a Dodge Caravan*. But it could have started by 1976 or 1977. According to artist Dennis Kline, minivan work started around 1972…
Jack Benny, a vaudeville master of ceremonies with a suave manner and self-deprecating jokes, went on the radio in 1932 radio show. He was to become a legend, inspiring Johnny Carson, other comedians, and at least one Shakespearean actor….
A new Dodge Challenger prototype has been spotted within the company, according to a stellpower source. Over a year ago, a different source said the “LB” body Challenger would boast a choice of Hurricane straight-six or full-electric power; a “4xe” style setup is also possible, and the Pentastar V6 could well make a comeback as a low-cost entry-level engine to keep the starting price low. Another low-end option would be the Hurricane Four.
Harry’s U-Pull-It, which has four locations in Pennsylvania, sometimes comes across cars too good to junk—and in this case, they have a neat Chrysler 300, with some rust, up for grabs.The car has a clean title, an amazingly low 45,401 miles, skirts, caps, and trim, and a reasonable amount of rust. It needs upholstery repair … Read more
When the fuel crises of the 1970s hit, American automakers were unprepared. Once Chrysler saw that big car owners were dropping their V8s in favor of newly-available slant sixes to save fuel, they authorized a two-barrel slant six to make the smaller engine more satisfactory—but could they go further?Chrysler had more than one slant six … Read more
Back when I got my 2006 Dodge Ram 1500, one of my first updates was a Diablosport tuning device with a preprogrammed performance engine tune for 93 octane. When I got my 2006 Ram used in 2007, it had about 18,000 miles on it and I installed the Diablosport Predator 93 octane performance tune around … Read more
A quarter of a century ago, Daimler took over the growing and highly profitable Chrysler Corporation in a move which proved disastrous to the American company. Chrysler at the time was fairly truck-and-Jeep-heavy in sales, but that meant that the company was well positioned for the rapid American move to pickups and crossovers.How can we … Read more
To prove their point, Falken sent me a set of Azenis FK460 A/S for testing. Although they arrived in mid-April, we have seen freezing temperatures and a little snow here in Michigan. This has provided me with a great chance to test these all season tires in a setting that is very similar to the fall and early winter. We have had enough rain to wash away the winter road salt and other debris that accumulates during snow plowing, but plenty of 20°F road surfaces and even some light snow to make things slippery.
In 1896, Henry G. Morris and Pedro G. Salom, makers of the Electrobat taxi cab, formed the Electric Carriage & Wagon Company. Nobody knew that gasoline was the future of the car then: the very first cars, made in the 18th century, had been steamers. Karl Benz made several copies of a single gasoline-burning car in 1885, but then Thomas Edison had opened the world’s first generating station for commercial and residential buyers even earlier—and electricity seemed like it might be the fuel of the future.
Opinion. Back in 2019, I wrote about the “Tornado,” as the turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine then being development was coded. At that point, the GME 2.0 turbo, coded “Hurricane,” was still in planning. The code names were based on warplanes, as were the Eagle, Apache, and so forth—not past Jeep engines. The Willys/Jeep Tornado engine was an inline six-cylinder with an overhead cam, an advanced design which did not last long on the market. The Willys/Jeep Hurricane engine, in contrast, was a four-cylinder, replacing the “Go-Devil” engine, made from 1950 to 1971. (There was also a Jeep Hurricane concept car in 2005 which is unrelated.)
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
