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… <>Read more
The Windsor minivan plant has cancelled all production for today without giving a reason. Skilled trades and employees engaged in launching new vehicles were called in for work.
The UAW has struck a number of Stellantis parts distribution centers, which will start to impact dealers trying to get service parts and may impact factories as well. However, the company has a large inventory of minivans at dealerships, so the production stoppage might not be related to the strike. <>Read more
The UAW has stepped up its strikes by targeting Stellantis and GM parts distribution centers (PDCs), while leaving its initial Ford strike in place. The move reinforces the idea that the UAW is making more progress with Ford than with GM or Stellantis. Image of parts warehouse from the company’s remanufactured parts group. 38 GM … Read more
Automotive News recently published an overview of where each American automaker stands in labor negotiations. This is a summary of how Stellantis and the UAW agree and differ, starting with their analysis and continuing beyond it. Salaries. The most salient point is that Stellantis wants to give a 10% raise now, and 10% over the … Read more
Yesterday, a rumor that Stellantis was planning to sell the Chrysler Technology Center, whose campus also houses the American headquarters, made the rounds—and turned out to be both accurate and possibly a little misleading.
The rumor was all the more credible after Ford chose to move its engineering headquarters from Dearborn to a brand new campus in Mexico, an oddly under-reported event which though covered by the Reuters news service didn’t make many front pages. Yesterday, in the absence of official comments <>Read more
Three plants are listed in the 18 former Chrysler sites set for closure, and a recent, unconfirmed leak claims the state-of-the-art Chrysler Technology Center and headquarters campus may be listed as being for sale…. <>Read more
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. <>Read more
There was a single Stellantis recall this past week, for loose battery cables which can cause fires in the 2023-24 Hornet and Tonale. Fewer than 5,000 vehicles were involved, all plug-in hybrids; the 12-volt battery positive cable and/or high voltage connector may be loose, causing fires while parked. In other recalls, 2024 BMW crossover knee … Read more
As the clock on a strike wound down, the UAW dropped its 46% wage increase to 36% and Stellantis finally matched GM’s offer of a 20% increase. This would include a quick 10% raise to counter the inflation of the past year and four annual increases which would total around 10%. The result would be … Read more
The fight over Chrysler’s Trenton Engine plant continues.
In the early 1950s, needing a vast number of V8 engines, Chrysler built the Trenton Engine Plant. Over time the plant made 426 Hemis, 383s, and such, along with enormous numbers of slant sixes; then they moved to four-cylinders and finally V6 engines. Today,… <>Read more
After years of concessions and inflation, the UAW has demanded substantial pay increases. Its original demand of a 46% increase has fallen to 30%, while automakers have proposed 20%( Ford), 18% (GM), and 17.5% (Stellantis), pleading poverty and asking the union to ignore its quite large profits from recent years. The strategy of “stand-up strikes,” … Read more
Peugeot recently introduced the 2023 E-3008, and while that vehicle will likely never have any role in the United States market, it is based on the STLA Medium platform. We know that the STLA Medium platform will be used for vehicles sold in North America at some point, so there is a possibility that some … Read more
The Jeep Gladiator was introduced to satisfy the demand for a Wrangler-like pickup, so it should come as little surprise that the refreshed 2024 Gladiator has the same refreshments as the 2024 Wrangler that debuted earlier this year. In the long run, the majority of the vehicle is unchanged, but there are some very impactful … Read more
This year marks the end of the current generation of the Dodge Challenger and Dodge Charger, including the beloved SRT Hellcat models. In many places, the rush for the final examples of the current supercharged Hemi cars has led to massive dealer markups, and generally speaking, finding a 2023 Hellcat car for MSRP is a … Read more
I was 14 years old when my dad took me to my first Mopar Nationals. Growing up, we went to lots of car shows and visited local tracks, but when we walked into Indianapolis Raceway Park in August of 1993, I had never been to such a massive event. After entering the track, we made … Read more
The Dodge Hornet R/T is the brand’s first plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) while also being the brand’s first compact SUV in more than a decade. With the governmental push for electrified vehicles, the Hornet R/T fills a key role for the Dodge brand in that area, but more importantly, the compact SUV segment is … Read more
