Jeep News - Could Jeep introduce new model based on Fiat Panda Cross?

Could Jeep introduce new model based on Fiat Panda Cross?

Filed under: Diesel, MPG, Chrysler, Jeep, Fiat, USA

When Chrysler and Fiat announced that they were planning to join forces to better attack the worldwide auto market, the first question on all of our minds was which vehicles from Fiat the American side would import to the States? Much of the attention was focused on the little Fiat 500, and deservedly so. Small cars like the smart fortwo and MINI Cooper have proven that Americans will buy little machines as long as they are stylish, loaded with features and fun to drive.

Another vehicle that many enthusiasts are keenly interested in is the Fiat Panda, especially in its jacked-up off-road Cross trim. The overactive internet rumormill is now working on the idea that there’s a possibility that the Panda Cross may make it Stateside wearing a Jeep badge. As long as we’re dreaming, how ’bout throwing in the little 1.3L turbocharged diesel engine that powers it in Europe?

Chrysler’s viability plan did include the introduction of a new Jeep in 2011, and the timing would be perfect to help the SUV maker meet looming fuel economy requirements. Before any of that can happen, though, the automaker has until the end of the month to prove it can survive as a viable company that’s capable of repaying taxpayer-funded loans.

[Source: Motor Authority]

Could Jeep introduce new model based on Fiat Panda Cross? originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 24 Mar 2009 17:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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[tags]jeep cars, jeep news, jeep models[/tags]

Jeep News - Washington 2009: Riding in the Chrysler EVs [w/VIDEO]

Washington 2009: Riding in the Chrysler EVs [w/VIDEO]

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, AutoblogGreen Exclusive, Green Daily, Washington DC Auto Show

People are rightly skeptical about whether or not the Chrysler electric vehicles will ever make it to market. For now, all we can say for sure is that some of Chrysler’s EV prototypes can go for a spin around the Washington DC Convention Center. We were able to go for a ride in the Dodge EV and the Jeep ER-EV with Crysler’s Douglas Quigley, executive of product engineering for ENVI (the Chrysler electric vehicle “start up”) when we were in town last week, and you can see our video of the rides (no drives yet, sadly) after the jump.

Quigley said that it is not Chrysler’s intention to sell 100,000 of the Dodge EVs a year. You can roll your own joke about that, but his explanation was that the battery pack that is good for 150 miles will be expensive and therefore the target audience is someone who wants to cruise through the city or on the track for a few hours on the weekend. He’s got a lot more to say about these two vehicles in the video, including how they’re being used for testing in Arizona, what might make it into a possible production version and how fun it is to drive the Lotus Europa-based Dodge EV.

Continue reading Washington 2009: Riding in the Chrysler EVs [w/VIDEO]

Washington 2009: Riding in the Chrysler EVs [w/VIDEO] originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 10 Feb 2009 12:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jeep News - VIDEO: How big is your footprint?

VIDEO: How big is your footprint?

Filed under: Etc., EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Jeep, Toyota, Lightweight

A couple of days ago, a Norwegian, know to us only as geisha44, uploaded to YouTube a nice little video meant to promote and provoke discussion. Consisting of wintry scenes from a bustling town in Norway, we are confronted by a sight unknown to many of the relatively balmy locales in the U.S. No, not the sled, though that would definitely qualify as rare, but rather the people walking on the sidewalks.

We also see some traffic and specifically observe three different choices that individuals made to reach a store. One took a Jeep, one took a Prius and the third arrives in a Kewet Buddy. Obviously, a four-wheel-drive Jeep may be handy to get about in a place that receives a lot of snow. On the other hand, the Prius hybrid is not home hiding in the garage until winter ends and has a smaller carbon footprint than the Jeep. With the arrival of the all-electric Kewet Buddy, whose lead-acid batteries haven’t kept it garaged either, we are treated to a demonstration of another advantage of a truly small footprint. Want to see what it is? Hit the jump for a little thought provocation in action!

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading VIDEO: How big is your footprint?

VIDEO: How big is your footprint? originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Mon, 02 Feb 2009 12:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jeep News - As Chrysler deathwatch continues, most ’09s get mileage tweaks

As Chrysler deathwatch continues, most ’09s get mileage tweaks

Filed under: MPG, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep

Things are not looking good in Auburn Hills these days. It’s looking increasingly like Chrysler is about to head off to hospice to live out its final days as Cerberus has given up on trying to revive the littlest of the Detroit 3. But even as the turkey vultures circle outside waiting for the carcass to cool off, the engineers in the tech center are still trying to show some signs of life, no matter how meek. To that end they have been working away, trying to tweak the mileage numbers of most of the lineup. They have managed to improve the numbers of 73 percent of the surviving models for 2009. With the exception of the soon to be euthanized Durango and Aspen hybrids, the improvements are only 1-2 mpg but when you don’t have much to work with, you do what you can. Considering most of the models had no significant hardware upgrades, getting what they did is something of an achievement. Unfortunately, it may all be for naught soon as Chrysler seems almost certain to be killed off either by absorption or liquidation. The Chrysler press release is after the jump.

[Source: Chrysler]

Continue reading As Chrysler deathwatch continues, most ’09s get mileage tweaks

As Chrysler deathwatch continues, most ’09s get mileage tweaks originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sat, 01 Nov 2008 11:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jeep News - Chrysler: Half of all cars electric by 2020

Chrysler: Half of all cars electric by 2020

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, GEM, USA

We’ve taken a good look at each of the three electric vehicle concepts that Chrysler took the wraps off of last week, plus one extra for good measure. For various reasons, none of these vehicles really seems quite ready for prime time - one is based on a Lotus sportscar chassis, two require huge battery packs and the last is limited to 25 miles per hour. Tough bring those to market. Still, Chrysler says it plans to launch one of them by 2010 in the U.S. with European delivery scheduled a bit later. We’ll see. If that does happen, Chrysler’s EV would join the Chevy Volt as the first mainstream(-ish) cars in the States not powered by gasoline in a very, very long time.

If Chrysler’s predictions are accurate, though, don’t expect the market to stay petroleum-dependent for long. In fact, Chrysler’s executive vice president of product development, Frank Klegon, has said that half the cars sold here in 2020 will feature electric power. That’s a long way to go in just a decade. In any case, the future promises lots of interesting things for the domestic auto market.

[Source: Automotive News Europe - sub. req'd]

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