Back in the 1960s, magazine writers thought the turbine was on the verge of replacing the piston engine entirely, and nowadays, it’s hardly brought up at all in the auto industry’s alt-fuel fantasies. For SIA #57, Leon Dixon took a look at Chrysler’s turbine program, which came the closest to an actual, offered-to-the-masses production turbine car, and which dates back to the early 1950s. Continue reading over at Hemmings.

One of the big concerns for those of us observing the automotive market and community is the fate of Chrysler. Rob and I as well as many others have written on the subject of their potential impending doom, merge with Fiat, and resulting product line.

Sergio Marchionne finally revealed the product lines we can expect in the coming years, and in doing so confirmed some rumors, clarified others, and dispelled others. For those of you that didn’t catch the news, I will provide the highlights, from a smattering of news sources that I caught.

Marchionne has a lot to wrestle into submission at Chrysler, including ailing sales, debt to the government and others, a poor reputation for quality and fuel mileage, and an uninspiring product line. Since few of you have business degrees, and even fewer give a lug nut about the entire financial climate, I am going to provide a car guy’s lens on the new product overview.

Continue reading after the jump!

Continue reading "Word on Chrysler" »

There were some great comments in my blog about Fiat’s plan for Chrysler. Apparently, the Sebring is getting the axe. Well, what about the 200C concept that was shown at NAIAS? Remember that? This is truly what the Sebring could/should be. I sure hope it doesn’t end up in the dustbin.

There was a fair amount of noise generated by yesterday’s Wall Street Journal article on Fiat’s plans for Chrysler. Ray Wert at Jalopnik has the Cliff notes. Ok, here’s my take:

Chrysler

Yes, redesign the 300C, yes keep the Town and Country, sure go ahead and kill the PT Cruiser. But keep the Sebring. Only, it needs to be a mid-sized RWD sedan (see my notes on the Dodge Avenger below).

Dodge

Go ahead and kill the Caliber and the Nitro. Not sure about the Grand Caravan, and I have no opinion on the Journey. But let’s keep the Avenger. Like I said the with Sebring above, this car needs to be a mid-size RWD sedan. Think of it as a modern day Dodge Dart. Heck, maybe just call it a Dart. It should be available as a two and four door, maybe as wagon and convertible as well. Power should come from efficient four and six bangers. AWD should be an option. Now, I think the next generation Challenger should be based on this new mid-sized RWD platform as well. The Challenger needs to shrink a bit if it’s gonna stay competitive. Redesign the Charger as a big TWO DOOR muscle car. Call the four door version of the Charger a Magnum or Coronet.

Ram Trucks

Seriously? Is this for real? Just keep ‘em Dodges.

Jeep

Go ahead and kill the Commander and the Compass. Of course keep the Wrangler and the Grand Cherokee. But I think they should keep the Patriot. Jeep needs a car-based Subaru Outback fighter and the Patriot is a half-decent offering, though it needs some love. They also need an affordable Cherokee-type vehicle. The Liberty never really did it for me. So why not just bring back the Cherokee? Oh yeah, Jeep needs a small pickup, too. Bring back the Comanche.

Fiat and Alfa Romeo

I’m very happy to see Fiat and Alfa come back to the US. The Fiat 500 is very cool and should do well. And I’m stoked about the Mito and Milano. But where the heck is the Alfa Spider?

So what do you think of my plan? Totally unrealistic? Not possible with the new CAFE standards? Probably. But it’s nice to dream…

In the movie Gone in 60 Seconds, the main character has a car that always gives him trouble when he tries to steal it. Its name is Eleanor. My Eleanor is the 1974 Dodge Dart. While I don’t make a habit of stealing cars, the 1974 Dart has given me plenty of trouble.

My first experience with a 1974 Dodge Dart was ten years ago. She came to me with knife stab holes in the hood where a ritual sacrifice had taken place. The previous owner had left some pictures of head wounds in the trunk. The car would die randomly and start randomly. This should have been a sign to me.

When my friend Art called me and said, “Hey I found a 1974 Dart for $100! Wanna help fix it up?” I should have warned him. I should have known better. After helping him, I now know without a doubt that all 1974 Darts are possessed.

Continue reading after the jump!

Continue reading "My Eleanor: the 1974 Dart" »

So last week at Hershey, we got an earful on the issue of Chrysler Town and Country cars in the Classic Car Club of America. Whatever your position on the issue, there’s no denying that T&Cs are some of the most sought-after and prestigious postwar American cars, especially the convertible versions. So it’s not unusual to find one, beautifully restored with a few personal touches, on Hemmings.com. What is unusual is to find one on Hemmings.com, but physically located in Paris, France. We’re pointed to the seller’s website to find out how it found its way in the land of Simcas and Renaults. Continue reading at Hemmings

Well the journey is finally over, it’s been over one month since I started my hunt for a new car and it finally came to an end this weekend. It’s been a long harsh road filled with a host of automotive ups and downs. If you recall I started my search during the “Cash for Clunkers” program, but alas, it yielded nothing but annoying dealer confrontations. Then I tried the “certified used” route but this too was met with more aggravation due to inept dealers. I finally settled on a low mileage, privately owned vehicle that fit my needs and wants and honestly feel that it was the best way to go.

Continue reading after the jump!

Continue reading "Buying a New Car: The Purchase, The Review, The End" »

The American auto manufacturing companies have continued to stand under the scrutinizing spotlight of media attention since the government issued the bailout “loans.” Government Motors is scrambling to shave some weight from their oppressive cost structure and prove their sustainability. All the while, the media all but deifies Ford for their pass on free taxpayer money. Despite all this attention on Ford and GM, Chrysler just drifts in and out of the headlines. As many of you are aware, Fiat bargained for a portion of Chrysler, rescuing them from bankruptcy and hopefully breathing some new life into both companies.

With all this impending change, I thought it appropriate to expose some of the background on this Italian auto manufacturer and venture to guess what we might expect to see coming from both Chrysler and the family of Fiat brands.

Continue reading after the jump!

Thanks to Fiat.Com and Alfa Romeo.Com for the Photos!

Continue reading "Coming to the USA" »

Allpar is reporting that Chrysler is considering launching Ram as a fourth brand to be used for trucks only. Dodge would then be reserved for cars, which would be more closely associated with Fiat-based vehicles. This makes absolutely no sense to me, but whatever. I just hope they don’t kill off the Challenger.

We’ve had Imperials on the brain ever since we saw the footage of the one wrecked on the set of the Green Hornet movie. The good news is that we found one for sale in Minnesota. The bad news is that it is being prepped for demo derby action and will most likely be smashed to a pulp in the near future.

The seller claims that the body is mostly rust free, save for a small spot on the front fender, and the car has been stripped of virtually everything. It would still be a decent start for a restoration project, especially by the standards of northern BangShifters who normally have to deal with the rust monster.

This car is a rare one, with only 3,974 two door hard top coupes being produced in 1965, and deserves a better fate than the derby ring. It would have had a 340hp, 413 from the factory.

The car’s hefty 5,075-pound shipping weight and allows these to kill virtually every other car built in the demo derby world. Guys argue that only a suicide door Lincoln has the guts to take an Imperial on mano-a-mano.

Someone save this car! It is already suffering the indignity of being equipped with forklift tires!

I got this press release from Chrysler today, and thought it was funny that they named the remains of the former ChryCo “Old Carco.” On the plus side, they have volunteered to retain liability for all Chrysler cars, something GM has not done.

“Decision reflects confidence in viability of the company”
Auburn Hills, Mich. -
In a letter sent today to Members of Congress, Chrysler Group LLC announced that the company will accept product liability claims on vehicles manufactured by Chrysler LLC (now OldCarco LLC) before June 10, 2009, and involved in accidents on or after that date. On June 10, 2009, Chrysler Group purchased substantially all of the assets of Old Carco.

More after the jump…..

Continue reading "Old Carco, LLC" »

Okay, last week’s Hemmings Six Degrees of Automotive Separation Challenge kinda fell flat on its face. Maybe too open-ended? And in reviewing past challenges, we quickly realized that we haven’t yet made a Japanese car manufacturer one of the endpoints of a challenge.

So to make up for last week, a typical challenge. And to make up for the last five months, a challenge involving a Japanese company. Let’s pick Nissan. And let’s also pick its third-place counterpart in the U.S., Chrysler. I know you can connect these two in six degrees or less. But how obscure can you make the connections?

The rules, as always, are simple: A connection consists of one company owning another, merging with another or sharing another’s parts. Explain your connections, and if you need examples, check out our previous Hemmings Six Degrees of Automotive Separation Challenges.

Bet you’ve never seen that before! Check out Artie’s ride page for more pics!

Eager to witness the brutal destruction of a pile of neglected cars, I attended the local county fair demolition derby this past weekend.  My expectations were met and exceeded as the killing blows were dealt to nearly all vehicles, most of which had entered the event hanging onto life by only a thread.  As is always true with any good demo derby, the un-muffled roar of engines filled the air blending with radiator steam, oil-burning exhaust and mud.

What I did not expect to see was an orange, reasonably straight AMC Gremlin complete with header relief in the hood, and all the other demo derby trimmings.  I always love to see an obscure piece of automotive history, but I had mixed emotions. The announcer begged it be withdrawn from the derby and restored and I couldn’t help but wonder if this little Gremlin is representative of Chrysler Corporation’s fate.

Continue reading after the jump!

Continue reading "Chrysler’s Fate?" »

Sunday was a great day for me. The weather was really nice so I could not have picked a better day to go for a drive. As it happened the Chrysler club that I am a member of was having a club run, so I decided to tag along. Now for the record I have been a member of the BCCCC for two years, and Sunday was the first time that I had been on run or met any of the club members. Circumstances have always kept me away, and for a long time I was unsure about the whole ‘club’ thing. However it turned out to be a really enjoyable day. I got to check out some really cool cars, met some great people and we had a bit of fun by driving around my home town of Geelong. The club President, Eddie Castello, organised the run and decided to keep it local rather than making it a long distance affair.  This was a great move as I got to check out some local attractions that I have never looked at. So if you are organising your own club run it can be worthwhile keeping it local. More pics after the jump.

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Continue reading "Local Club Runs Can Be Fun" »