While Stellantis tallies, GM announces higher EV and retail sales, lower fleets

GM sales

GM announced a small downturn in overall USA sales, selling 659,601 vehicles in the United States for the third quarter of 2024. That’s down 2% from the same quarter in 2023, but retail sales were up by 3%, meaning that the decline was entirely in fleet sales. The company sold 32,195 battery-electrics during the quarter … Read more

Recalls from Ford, Mercedes, BMW, and others

Fiat 124 Spider “Fiata”

Yesterday, Stellantis issued a cautionary notice on its 4xe Jeeps, which overshadowed a hefty number of recalls from other automakers. Ford, for example, had two recalls, one on 2024 Explorers whose battery cable may short-circuit, and one on 2024 Bronco Sports which can stall. The widest recall may have been on BMW/Mini/Rolls-Royce, with a panoply … Read more

UAW officially protests possible plant closure, lack of new pickup

uaw vs stla

As Stellantis prepares to lay off thousands of plant workers as they have already paid off many non-union engineers and support staff, the United Auto Workers union (UAW) filed federal charges with the National Labor Relations Board to protest the company’s failure to honor its 2023 contract commitments. Stellantis has already notified the union and … Read more

The Voyager Returns for 2025 as Chrysler Pacifica Budget Model

2025 Chrysler Voyager LX

The Voyager minivan is returning to the company lineup for 2025, but as was the case a few years back, it will be a budget model of the Chrysler Pacifica (rather than a model from the Plymouth brand). With a starting price of $39,995 (without destination), it is the lowest-priced option in the 2025 Pacifica … Read more

Feast Your Eyes on the 2025 Ram Heavy Duty Lineup’s New Look

2025 Ram Heavy Duty

The 2025 Ram Heavy Duty lineup will feature a long list of changes for the new model year, including the exterior design and the powertrain. As the company is nearing the final phases of testing ahead of the grand debut of the refreshed Ram 2500, Ram 3500 and Chassis Cab, and a key component of … Read more

STLA may be working on a successor for Carlos Tavares

Carlos Tavares (left) and Mike Koval

Stellantis, which owns the former Chrysler as well as Fiat and Peugeot, is reportedly planning to find a successor to Carlos Tavares for his contract expiration in 2026—according to the respected industry weekly Automotive News. While many liked Tavares’ pledge to give each marque ten years to turn itself around, including Chrysler, Dodge, and Alfa … Read more

Stellantis says it honored commitments without otherwise contradicting UAW

uaw vs stla

The UAW recently filed grievances regarding Stellantis’ warning that the upcoming midsized pickup targeted for Belvidere would be delayed beyond the contract term, and rumors that the upcoming Durango would move from Jefferson Avenue to Windsor, Ontario. Today Stellantis released a statement that it had honored its commitments for product, without actually disputing the product … Read more

Tipton Transmission becoming solar plant

tipton transmission

When Stellantis shifted from using ZF nine-speed automatics, it idled the Tipton Transmission Plant which had made them. Now, the Tipton county council have announced that the plant will be used by IRH Manufacturing LLC to make solar panel cells. The company is investing $500 million into the plant, $175 million of which is going … Read more

Hurricane-Powered Ram 1500s in Real World Performance

2025 Ram 1500

The new twin turbocharged inline-six engines in the Ram 1500 lineup are both very powerful on paper, delivering 420 horsepower and 469 lb-ft of torque in Standard Output form; the High Output packs 540 horsepower and 521 lb-ft of torque. Since the non-TRX Hemi engine in the Ram 1500 was rated at 395 horsepower and 410 lb-ft of torque, both of these engines have far more power, but how does that translate to real world performance?

Jeep finally admits Gladiator prices were too high, but drops stick and roll-up windows

Gladiator at 2024 Camp Jeep at New York Auto Show

After dropping the price of the Compass and Wrangler, Jeep has turned to the 2025 Jeep Gladiator, which will start at $39,995. The manual transmission appears to be gone, with a standard eight-speed automatic. Every model has been “price repositioned.” The only open-air pickup truck, the Gladiator has best in class V6 towing and payload … Read more