Tepidly, Fiat-controlled Chrysler Group will test the U.S. compressed natural gas waters later this year with a small number of Ram CNG pickup trucks. In an interview with Business Week at the Detroit auto show last month, Sergio Marchionne, chief executive officer of both automakers, said, “We are going to bring them here, there is
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Chrysler is killing its dedicated electric car program. General Motors is moving forward with its sleek electric-drive Caddy. What do these news flashes tell us about Detroit’s prospects in the bold new era of EVs and plug-in hybrids? Short Circuit On Friday, Chrysler Spokesman Nick Cappa said that its in-house team of electric car development
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By the fall of 2008, it was hardly a secret that Chrysler was the weakest of the Detroit Three automakers. So its surprise unveiling of three prototype electric and hybrid vehicles was nothing less than a bombshell—as was its pledge that at least one of them would go into production by the end of 2010.
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Update: The Dodge Ram Hybrid has been on-again, off-again for several years. As of mid-March 2010, it’s off—apparently down and out for the count. Sometime in 2010, Dodge will probably unveil the full hybrid version of its big, bold Ram Pickup. Right now, all we know for sure is that it’ll be called the Dodge
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October’s auto sales figures were disastrous. And hidden in the dismal numbers were a couple of hybrid oddities. You might view them as thrillers: The Case of the Missing Hybrids, double-billed with Last Hybrid Standing. Missing from October figures were the Dodge Durango Hybrid and Chrysler Aspen Hybrid, for which not a single sale was
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The Chrysler minivan, a bread and butter vehicle for the company since 1984, has never been known as a paragon of advanced technology—other than cupholders and other consumer-pleasing tech like power side doors and Stow-and-Go seats. Adding a hybrid system makes sense for a family-oriented people-mover like the minivan. Chrysler has been losing market share
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Chrysler confirmed its plans today to release a hybrid version of the Dodge Ram pickup in 2010. Frank Klegon, Chrysler executive vice president of product development, said the hybrid Ram was part of the company’s efforts to revive the company’s product portfolio. Chrysler’s timeline puts the company about two years behind General Motors, which will
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In Oct. 2008, Chrysler discontinued the Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen full-sized hybrids just two months after both vehicles began full-scale production. The Dodge Durango is the quintessential, work-hard, play-hard, do-anything SUV—except when filling up a 13-mpg vehicle means it’s smarter to leave it parked in the driveway. To avoid this dilemma, the Durango was
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The Dodge Caravan is considered one of the true workhorse E85 vehicles. Dodge has made select Caravans E85-capable for several years running now. For 2008, this flex-fuel model features a 3.3-liter overhead valve V6 engine, rated at a respectable 175 horsepower and 205 pound-feet of torque. The E85 version only comes in 2WD and offers
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