When the 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L, the brand new three-row edition which is based on a new platform, was first launched, dealers could only buy high-end models—Limited and Summit. Now, according to Mopar Insiders, the Laredo, Altitude, and Overland are all also available. Even the Laredo is well equipped, with LED reflector headlamps, 18-inch … Read more
This past weekend, the Team Mopar NHRA Dodge Charger funny car racers headed to Las Vegas for the Denso Spark Plugs Four Wide Nationals, looking for their first win of the young 2021 season. As the name of the event suggests, this stop in Vegas includes four-wide drag racing, with four cars competing side-by-side-by-side-by-side, creating … Read more
What is Chrysler? What makes it unique? These are questions I have asked heads-of-the-Chrysler-brand, without getting particularly useful answers, much less consistent ones. They can hardly be blamed. Nobody seems to have known what Chrysler is, what makes it unique, perhaps since Walter P. Chrysler was in charge. After all, it was Walter—or WPC—who decided … Read more
Jefferson North is likely to shut down in early May until it gets a new supply of HVAC control chips, according to an article in Automotive News. Jeep supplier JVIS relies on chips from NXP, which makes them in Austin; while JVIS needs 70,000 chips for the plant for the quarter, only around 27,000 are … Read more
One of this site’s writers has written three books, covering the Dodge Viper, Mopar minivans, and four Jeeps (the Wagoneer, Gladiator, Scrambler, and Comanche). There are numerous positive reviews for the Viper book and the minivan book—but so far, nobody has posted a critical or customer review of the Jeep book, as far as we … Read more
The Mopar ’21 Ram 1500 is an option pack for the Big Horn/Lone Star Crew Cab 4×4, limited to 250 units: 210 in the United States and 40 in Canada. Available colors are Billet Silver, Bright White, Flame Red, and Hydro Blue. The new 2021 Ram 1500 Big Horn/Lone Star Crew Cab 4×4 is well-equipped … Read more
Is Dodge Law Enforcement giving us a hint about a future new vehicle, by featuring a brushfire-fighting Wrangler conversion from Reiselt’s Machine Works? The idea of a customized law enforcement or fire-fighting Wrangler is perhaps long overdue. The old Dodge Power Wagon was often converted to firefighting duty, but not by Dodge itself. The company … Read more
Late last month, the Modern Street Hemi Shootout opened their 2021 season with the first event at Orlando Speedworld being sponsored by Legmaker Intakes. The season got off to a great start, with the event beating any past opener by more than a hundred registered race cars, with NHRA superstar Leah Pruett serving as the … Read more
Texas is the largest truck market in the country, and Jeep is celebrating it with the new 2021 Gladiator Texas Trail. Based on the Gladiator Sport S trim, the Texas Trail will only be sold in Texas. Jeep also added two Texas trails to the Jeep Badge of Honor program: Black Gap 4×4 in Big Bend … Read more
The Slant Six Club is having a meet in 2021, on October 3, rain or shine. They are starting at noon, and meeting at the Olive Garden at 510 Woodbridge Center Drive, Woodbridge, New Jersey. (Photo is from a past event.) Contact the Slant Six Club for details.
Dodge announced back in January that the 710-horsepower Durango SRT Hellcat was officially sold out. Technically, that meant that the company had reached its planned production capacity of 2,000 units, so the order banks were closed. The problem is that some dealers had sold orders for the supercharged three-row SUV that were not fulfilled during … Read more
Consumer Reports is the most popular and most trusted name in general-population reviews, but how good are they with cars? The magazine and its annual car book have been both praised and critiqued for years; I did a large critique on Allpar one or two decades ago, and recently revisited it. Not to turn this … Read more
According to a story in today’s Automotive News, the compact Alfa Romeo Tonale crossover is being delayed because the hybrid powertrain could not even get the power and range of a far cheaper Peugeot 3008. Alfa Romeo is being presented as a premium brand, above Dodge or Chrysler, and comparable to BMW. The Tonale, as … Read more
Bob Rodger died in 1971, of leukemia, at the height of the muscle car era. Among his contributions to Chrysler was the 300 “letter car” series, hailed by many critics as the absolute best Detroit had to offer—on part with just about anything in the world; and, for that matter, the 200-mph Dodge Charger Daytona. … Read more
Vauxhall was owned by General Motors for decades, selling a lineup of Opels and sometimes Chevrolets under their own badge. Nobody seemed to complain about the arrangement then, but with Stellantis in charge, some people are having a problem with it now. When Vauxhall started running TV ads concluding with the words “British brand since … Read more
General Motors may not be selling any Hummers until next year, but they’ve just reposted the specs. Shall we compare it with the top Ram, the supercharged-Hemi-powered Ram 1500 TRX? Stay with us as we see if the TRX can beat the Hummer — and compare the Hellcat to GM’s new electric pickup. (There’s also … Read more