Way back in the early 1990s, Chrysler worked with a power company group to build its first all-electric minivans. They were never too famous—the maker of Who killed the electric car? apparently missed them completely—but some of them ended up in private hands and lasted a good many years after their creation. Chrysler followed up the … Read more
Dodge released an illustration to go with “24 months of muscle,” featuring both events and products; some of them have already been filled in, e.g. the $150,000 per year product ambassador role dubbed “donut maker,” and the launch of Direct Connection.What are the other programs: They are not placed based on date; some events have … Read more
Michigan’s Department of Environmental Protection has released a page with details on the-former-Chrysler’s plant permits and violations. Some plants have recent violations, including the Detroit Assembly Complex née Jefferson North (pictured below from 2017) and Mack Engine I and II (combined recently into Mack Assembly). Violation notices were issued in September, October, and November related … Read more
When NASCAR officially told manufacturers they could no longer directly support racers, a prohibition that was only lightly observed by GM and Ford, Chrysler sought a new series to test their mettle and gain publicity. They chose the new Daytona Continental road race, and built up a 1965 Plymouth Belvedere with the 426 Hemi dual-carb … Read more
Jeep just released the official list prices for the 2022 Grand Cherokee line. These are very likely the prices people will pay, at least until the new-car shortage eases up. There are two surprises…
Yesterday, Ford announced that its revenue had fallen by just 5%, while its third-quarter profit fell 24%, to $1.8 billion. Ford also restored the dividend it had suspended due to COVID, and announced that its full year profits would be much higher than expected—$10.5 to $11 billion. How did Stellantis, parent company of the former … Read more
Stellantis is planning to end up with just four platforms: Small, Medium, Large, and Frame. But what’s the timing, and where are they coming from? First, the timing: Carlos Tavares is engaged in a ten year plan, at this point. By 2030, little will remain of the current platforms. For the moment, anything that was … Read more
LG, whose batteries are perhaps best known for causing a $2 billion GM recall, is Stellantis’ joint venture partner for a North American battery plant. The well-publicized LG gaffe may have helped Stellantis negotiators quite a bit. The new plant is to start pumping out car batteries in early 2024, with an annual capacity of … Read more
On various forums, some people are impatient for a Dodge and Chrysler comeback—and they’re starting to get itchy, insisting that nothing is really coming and that the ten years allocated to each brand isn’t real. It’s a bit early to be dismissing Stellantis’ promises, though. Each brand was promised a ten year trial in 2021; … Read more
The Michigan State Police have released preliminary data from their tests of 2022 police cars. There were no clear winners, but Dodge did well in a variety of roles, fielding four pursuit cars (Charger and Durango with V6 and V8 power), while Ram had three special-service pickups (Ram 1500, 2500, and 3500). Every Dodge pursuit … Read more
Ram beat the Chevrolet Silverado again to be America’s second-best-selling pickup after the wider-ranging Ford F-series, with 434,772 Ram sales year-to-date comfortably above 407,266 Silverados but well below 534,831 Fords. GM still beat Stellantis, overall, given 191,186 GMC Sierra sales; indeed, GM beat Ford, too, if we include both Silverado and Sierra, as we really … Read more
Lancia, which is currently confined to Italy and a single car brand, will be getting a new, battery-powered Delta model in around four years, according to new Lancia CEO Luca Napolitano, as quoted by motor1. At least one observer believes that a Chrysler version is likely, given that Lancia has a mission which could be … Read more
The third quarter of 2021 was one of the worst in the past few years for the American muscle cars, with the Dodge Challenger, the Chevrolet Camaro and the Ford Mustang combining for their worst sales quarter since the companies went to the quarterly reporting method in late 2018. Only 28,312 American muscle cars (and … Read more
In the last quarter, Dodge sold three new Darts—three times as many as in Q3 of 2020. That was a good number for a car which was dropped in 2016. Launched to great fanfare in 2013, the Dodge Dart posted impressive numbers for a midsize car, which it was rather close to being; as the … Read more
The US and Canadian branches of Stellantis saw sales drops, comparing their shortage-prone 2021 figures with the COVID-affected numbers of 2020.The good news in the US was, not unexpectedly, largely in Jeep and Ram; Grand Cherokee saw retail sales shoot up by 47%, with total sales up 45%, in the third quarter. It was the … Read more
Software updates are needed for the 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L and the 2019-2021 Ram ProMaster City to fix…
