Chronicling the Ever-Changing Automotive Industry
Well, the 3rd quarter of 2010 is over, and sales are down, yet again, for the U.S. automotive industry. While all the other news outlets are saying sales were up 29% in September year-to-year, sales were down when viewed month-to-month. While there is 1 less day in September than there is in August, this doesn’t account for a 3.32% drop (almost 33,000 vehicles) from month to month. Read on for my analysis and graphs.
Continue reading ‘Sales Figures: September, 2010′
A Detroit-based Fox 2 reporter was tipped off to some startling activity going on at Chrysler’s Jefferson North Assembly Plant in Detroit, MI. Last week, reporter Rob Wolchek captured several Chrysler employees drinking on their lunch break at a public park, as well as consuming what could be marijuana. Not only did he and his camera crew catch them one day, but all week! That just stuns me, with as much trouble as the automaker is in, it can’t afford to have people on the payroll who aren’t sober during their shift. Chrysler apparently agrees, since they’ve now fired 13 of them, and suspended 2 more for a month without pay. Read on for more details and the incriminating video and follow-up report.
Continue reading ’13 Chrysler Employees Fired after Fox 2 Catches them Drinking on the Job’
Continuing its complete model makeover for 2011, Chrysler announced the changes to its venerable Town & Country minivan, the direct descendant of the original minivan, the Dodge Caravan. The new “Pentastar” V6 will power it, getting better fuel economy and more power at the same time. Standard safety features now total 40, including Blind Spot Monitoring and Rear Cross Path Detection, which help with lane changes and backing up, respectively. The other big change is the interior – improved for 2011, like all the other Chrysler products we’ve seen so far. Click past the jump for high-resolution photos of the updated Town & Country.
Continue reading ‘Updated: 2011 Chrysler Town & Country’
Ever since Fiat took control of Chrysler, we knew this day would arrive. The questions, however, were many. How much would change between the European Fiat 500 and the American version? Will it sell? What will it look like? Where will they sell it? Well, today I have answers for a few of those questions. First, there will be around 600 dealers appointed by Chrysler to sell Fiats. Second, the first Fiat to hit our shores, the 500 Sport, will look like the photo above and the pictures found after the jump. Third, as to whether or not it will sell, that depends upon pricing and American mindsets when it reaches us later this year, but I think it’ll be fairly popular with the city crowd as a much better alternative to the Smart ForTwo.
Continue reading ‘Chrysler announces the American-Bound Fiat 500′
The Chrysler Sebring started out in the 1990s as a decent mid-sized sedan, with coupe and convertible variants added in. Nowadays, it’s sales are slow and it’s the butt of many jokes. Chrysler is looking to change that with the Chrysler 200 mid-sized sedan. It will be replacing the long-in-the-tooth Sebring probably later this year, since it’s listed as a 2011 model. Follow the jump for details and a few more teaser photos.
Continue reading ‘Introducing the Chrysler 200′
Garmin Nuvi 785T
Remember the laptop battery recalls which came and went a couple years ago? Yeah, me too. It seems that an unknown number of Garmin satellite navigation units can spark a fire if their faulty batteries get too hot. The affected units are available both as built-in navigation units sold with a car and through the aftermarket.
There’s a long list of recalled units after the jump, including specific recalls from Nissan and Suzuki. As more manufacturers figure out specifics, we’ll be sure and keep you informed.
Continue reading ‘Garmin Recalls Nav Units, Affects Automotive Market’
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