2024 Dodge Hornet R/T and R/T Plus – The Key Differences

2024 Dodge Hornet R/T Plus

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

“Branding” is cheapening Mopar brands

branding

As time goes on, FCA US (Stellantis North America) press releases increasingly refer to “the Dodge brand,” “the Jeep brand,” and so on. Maybe this made sense for Chrysler before FCA, to avoid confusion between the marque and the company (many car folk eschew the term “brand” in favor of the more dignified “marque”), but there is no Chrysler Corporation or Chrysler Group today.

There has never been any reason for Dodge people to refer to “the Dodge brand.” It’s just Dodge. Nobody thinks that Dodge City is producing cars—or Phelps Dodge—or Grace Dodge. There’s only one Dodge that makes cars, and it’s the group that used to be Dodge Division and before that Dodge Brothers… and Dodge Brothers didn’t make other brands of cars. <>Read more

Team Dodge Drivers Hagan, Pruett Poised for the NHRA Championship Run

Team Dodge Drivers

Matt Hagan and his Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat funny car are currently in the second spot in the battle for the 2023 NHRA Camping World Funny Car Championship while Leah Pruett and her Dodge//SRT Direct Connection Top Fuel dragster are in the fourth spot in their championship race. There are really only two points in … Read more

Ram’s updates for 2024 are out

2023 Ram 2500 Rebel HD

With the Ram 1500 and possible ProMaster and ProMaster City due for replacement in 2025, Ram’s upgrades for 2024 are relatively minimal. Ram chassis cabs appear to have had no actual changes, keeping their 6.4 liter gasoline Hemi and 6.7 liter Cummins B-engine options intact. Ram 3500 Chassis Cab has the eight-speed automatic with the … Read more

Final true Chrysler Corporation vehicle to leave production

Chrysler X-M1 tank

The last vehicle engineered entirely under Chrysler Corporation, before Daimler, Fiat, and Peugeot, is getting its own last call. The Abrams M-1 tank is finally headed for a full re-engineering project, ending decades of patching and add-on upgrades, according to Military Times. 

The original Abrams tank was the only Chrysler turbine car to actually be sold; it was lauded by procurement officers for its ability to burn any fuel (though that doesn’t appear to ever have been used) and for its power and economy, relative to the only real alternative of the time, diesel. <>Read more

Mopars flunked Mozilla’s car privacy test (and so did others): Here’s the down-and-dirty and what it all means

UConnect 12 screen

Automakers including Stellantis have been rebuilding their in-car platforms using Google software. That might be one reason why so many are flunking Mozilla’s privacy test; indeed, nobody passed it.

Automakers “can collect deeply personal data such as sexual activity, immigration status, race, facial expressions, weight, health and genetic information, and where you drive,” with microphones, cameras, phones, and sensors in the car, as well as their car apps, web sites, and dealership systems. They combine the data to make inferences about buyer traits. None appear to use encryption in the car to keep this data safe. <>Read more

Electrification, hybrid-electric, and the future of Mopar performance

Ram 1500 REV frunk open

Analysis. The industry is steadily moving towards electrification and full electric (via batteries or hydrogen fuel cells) to help with emissions and fuel economy. While there are many advantages, many in the buying public have vociferously objected—and do so again whenever any article so much as mentions electric cars or, in some cases, hybrids… <>Read more

Jeep dropping Gladiator in Europe because of diesel; FarOut to be last edition

Jeep Gladiator FarOut Final Edition

Jeep launched the European Gladiator in 2021; the pickup was exclusively diesel-powered, a position which was already somewhat difficult when it was launched, and which has increasingly become untenable. Diesel sales have been falling in Europe since the Volkswagen scandal spread to other automakers, with its place apparently taken by hybrids and full-electric cars. The latter finally overtook diesels recently.
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Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Tops IIHS Stolen Vehicle List for 2020-2022

2022 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) recently issued the whole vehicle theft loss report for the 2020 through 2022 model years and the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat is officially the most stolen car in the United States. According to this report, the Hellcat Charger is 60 times more … Read more

Ford trucks breaking axle shafts, and other mainly-Ford, non-Mopar recalls

2023 Ford display with Tremor, Transit

Ford is recalling its 2023 “Super Duty” F-250 and F-350 pickups because the left rear axle shaft may break, which can cause loss of power or vehicle rollaway. The recall affects 41,555 trucks in the US. Ford is also recalling the 2023 Edge because the right-side headlight is too bright; and the 2023 Explorer because the turbo oil line may be damaged. Ah, one more Ford recall: various Ford and Lincoln vehicles from 2018 to 2023 (Navigator, Aviator, Transit, Bronco) may lose their rear view camera image. <>Read more

UConnect adding new functions for ’24

UConnect 12 screen

UConnect (or “Maserati Intelligent Assistant”) is adding some new features in the 2024s. Hybrid-electric (and future battery-electric) vehicles have dynamic range mapping which, when the navigation system is used, can predict range on particular roads with existing traffic. It provides alerts if recharging will be needed and shows available stations. Charging schedules can be managed … Read more