Chinese electric-car pioneer Nio, which set records on the famed German Nürburgring track, is setting up battery-swapping stations in Europe. The idea is that you can buy a Nio without a battery; a 75-kWh battery pack costs $8700 but can be leased for around $135 per month. The company is planning to set up 1,000 … Read more
The odds are good that if you are reading this, you are familiar with the new Dodge Charger Daytona EV Concept. The muscular looking EV debuted a few weeks ago, on the final day of the brand’s “muscle announcements” at the M1 Concourse road racing facility in Michigan. Of course, because the Charger Daytona Concept … Read more
Lithium-ion batteries, despite their almost miraculous ability to store and deliver energy, have some issues when used in cars, most notably the difficulty of dealing with (rare) fires. Many believe the next generation of batteries will use solid electrolyte material, which increases safety and range. Stellantis had already set up an agreement with “solid state” … Read more
On Monday, FCA US announced that it would be making a 1.6 liter turbocharged engine for use with hybrid powertrains in two American vehicles. This engine appears to be a new edition in the established EP6 series. The first EP6 four-cylinders had rather public issues with the valve timing; when these were fixed, PSA assigned the … Read more
There have been rumors floating around the internet claiming that Dodge is working on one final Hellcat car that will be the most powerful production vehicle to date. Those rumors state that this car will run on E85 ethanol-gasoline blend, but these rumors are being spread by the same people who insisted that there was … Read more
This morning, Dodge announced that the Roadkill Nights event in Metro Detroit will be a part of what the brand is calling Dodge Speed Week – starting on August 12th and finishing up on August 20th – with 3 days of worldwide product reveals in the middle. We don’t know exactly what will be introduced … Read more
Creating a new hybrid-electric transmission (with integrated electric motors) brings up some problems and opportunities; one of the more prosaic ones is the humble parking pawl, that little bit of metal that keeps the car or truck from moving when the transmission is in Park. Typically, a notched wheel on the output shaft locks up … Read more
We talk a great deal about the shockingly quick quarter mile times turned in by all of the Hemi-powered modern Mopars, but we rarely bring any attention to the folks racing Pentastar-powered cars. While the vast majority of modern Dodge buyers who want to go racing opt for a V8, the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 has … Read more
Hurricane engines, following a trend set by European designs, do not have a dipstick. Instead, an electronic sensing system warns drivers when the oil level falls. The change was likely made for three reasons: most drivers no longer check their own oil anyway, given the lack of leaks and burning in most modern cars, and … Read more
Rumor has pegged the Saltillo plant’s Hurricane twin-turbo-straight-six output at 200,000 or more engines per year—but is that enough? It depends on whether the Hurricane engine series will replace the Hemi V8. The Hurricane beats the Hemi in peak power and torque, low-end torque, and fuel economy. Its 10% boost in fuel economy is a … Read more
Automotive News’ Grace Macaluso has just posted details on the new battery plant arriving in a vacant lot in Windsor, Canada. The plant will cost $4 billion, and produce 45gWh of battery cells and modules per year for FCA US factories in both the United States and Canada. The plant is supported by funding and/or … Read more
On Friday, Stellantis unexpectedly revealed its new Hurricane Six, after it was accidentally revealed to the public yesterday, fittingly by an Allpar reader. Stellpower followed quickly with a story to confirm the existence of an engine I have written about for at least five years. The Hurricane will be the primary gasoline engine for STLA … Read more
