A dozen vehicles from the three core Chrysler brands covering more than half of the company’s 2011 models are being recalled in the United States to fix a potential problem with the steering column. The recall covers 11,351 vehicles and affects certain 2011 model year Dodge Journey crossovers, Jeep Wranglers, Chrysler 200s, Chrysler 200 Convertibles, Dodge Avengers, Dodge Nitros, Jeep Liberty SUVs, Dodge Calibers, Jeep Compass crossovers, Jeep Patriots, Dodge Grand Caravans and Chrysler Town & Country minivans.
Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later. U.S. used car prices are up 30% over June 2010, in some cases besting Kelly Blue Book values by as much as 25%. Trade-ins are also up by 30% since this time last year. A variety of factors, including an economy still reeling from the Global Financial Crisis, high gas prices and the TÅhoku earthquake, are thought to be responsible for the massive price rise.
Chrysler and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced a new partnership to explore the possibility of adapting the EPA's hydraulic hybrid system for passenger cars and light-duty vehicles. Developed by the EPA, the hydraulic hybrid system is currently used in industrial applications, including large delivery trucks and refuse trucks, but Chrysler, keen on developing a new portfolio of hybrid vehicles, wants to adopt it for use on passenger vehicles.
In a very…tongue-in-cheek move, Chrysler’s newly formed Street and Racing Technology (SRT) brand responded to fans asking them on various social media sites what future products are in development by posting this…revealing sketch on its dedicated Facebook page. Here is what Chrysler’s SRT team wrote: “Like many of you, Twitter user @DaveOrrSales asked for a taste of what's to come at SRT. We dodged death to sneak you this top-secret photo. That's all you get, crew.”
Whether you love it or loathe it, Chrysler’s PT Cruiser was a running success for the Detroit automaker and over its ten-year lifespan, we saw countless projects cars and tunes based on the retro-styled compact model. However, ask any true Mopar fan what the ultimate modification is for any Chrysler Group model, and you’ll most likely get the answer an engine swap with the Dodge Viper’s ferocious V10 powerplant. 
Here at Carscoop, we’ve shown you plenty of Viper-powered cars ranging from a Chrysler 300 and a Dodge Challenger to a Saab 9-3 and a Jeep Wrangler. Now it’s time to add the Chrysler PT Cruiser to our list of venomous engine swaps with this eBay find. The PT/10 Cruiser Pickup Truck is said to have been built in 2000. It is based on a custom chassis with power coming from the Viper’s V10 engine churning out 500 ponies. Other goods sourced from the Dodge sports car include the 6-speed transmission, rear suspension, steering rack and seats.
And the beat goes on for Chrysler's much-talked about Imported from Detroit campaign with the release of the latest spot of the series called “Good Things” starring hip-hop artist, producer, record executive, and occasional actor, Dr. Dre. The famous rapper is seen driving the 2012 Chrysler 300S sedan through the streets of Los Angeles while showing off his signature Beats by Dr. Dre audio system that is optionally available in the car.
The numbers for U.S. auto sales for the month of May are out and as expected, Japanese automakers continue to be hit hard by the ongoing production disruptions caused by the March 11 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in their home market. As a result, Toyota’s sales plunged 33.4% over the year-ago month to 108,387 units, while rivaling Honda saw its sales fall 22.5% to 90,773 vehicles, Nissan recorded a 9.1% drop to 76,148 units and Mazda 17,875 vehicles, down 20.9%. General Motors dealers in the United States delivered 221,192 vehicles in May posting a decline of 1%, while the Ford Motor Co. said its sales decreased by 0.1% to 192,253 cars, trucks and SUVs.
The launch of the Fiat 500 in the U.S. market has whetted the Italian company’s appetite, as according to reports, Fiat is now considering the addition of a second model to its North-American range, the successor to the Bravo. As we wrote last month, the next-generation Bravo will take the shape of a small crossover with Fiat looking to emulate the success of Nissan's Qashqai. The 500's early sales figures have exceeded the firm’s expectations despite initial concerns about relaunching the Fiat brand in the U.S. with such a small car. The partially open-top 500C was added to the range recently, with more powerful Abarth versions to follow in the very near future.
The refreshed 2011 Town and Country minivan is the point of focus in the latest commercial in Chrysler’s “Imported from Detroit” campaign. The new TV spot is called “The Quiet Ones” and it takes us to Michigan and the state’s 2011 hockey champions, the Novi Wildcats, featuring one of the team members, Mason Pew.
In typical Fiat Group fashion, despite the fact that the new Lancia Ypsilon received its world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show close to three months ago, the company waited until today to release a full gallery of pictures. There are more than 70 photographs showing the Italian supermini mostly in its natural habitat, the city. Along with the new images, Lancia also offered new information on its entry-level model, which will be launched from June in major European markets and from September in the United Kingdom and Ireland, where it will wear the Chrysler logo.
The Chrysler Group announced the repay of U.S. and Canadian government loans totaling $7.6 billion (€5.39 billion), more than six years ahead of schedule. More specifically, the Detroit automaker made a payment of $5.9 billion to the U.S. Treasury (UST) and $1.7 billion to Export Development Canada (EDC) to retire the loans granted in June 2009. EDC is the holding company through which the Canadian federal and Ontario provincial governments provided loans to Chrysler Group.
Are you in the market for a new car in San Francisco and are considering a product built by America’s Big 2.5? If so, then I have some bad news: the last U.S. domestic automaker dealership has just shut up shop. San Francisco Ford Lincoln Mercury on Van Ness Avenue closed a few weeks ago, leaving some 50 employees out of a job. Ford Lincoln Mercury presidente Mel Turner told the San Fransisco Chronicle: “We are proud to have served the San Francisco community and will be focusing over the coming weeks on helping employees through this transition and ensuring our current customer commitments are met.”
The next chapter of the Chrysler Group’s much talked about 'Imported from Detroit' campaign brings us yet another native of America’s Motor City who made it big, renowned fashion designer and entrepreneur, John Varvatos. The TV spot is named ‘Attitude’ and centers on the new 2011 Chrysler 300 sedan (notice the new Mopar grille?) playing on Varvatos’ sense of style, and according to the ad, his “Detroit blue-collar attitude” when it comes to work. 
The latest commercial in Chrysler's ‘Imported from Detroit’ series follows the ads with rapper Eminem for the 200 sedan and more recently, the Homecoming spot starring Detroit Lions rookie, Ndamukong Suh, again for the 300 sedan. The US automaker also plans to air a commercial featuring artist, producer, label head and entrepreneur, Dr. Dre in the all-new 2012 Chrysler 300S. Watch the spot with John Varvatos in the video after the jump.
Mopar, the Chrysler Group’s in-house performance and styling brand, has been on the busy side lately having introduced several upgrades for the latest Jeep vehicles, as well as standalone versions of the newest Dodge Charger and Challenger models. Now, the Detroit firm’s tuning division is onto its next project sprucing up the new Chrysler 300 sedan with a range of custom grilles and bespoke alloy wheel designs.
Unless you’re a fan of the NFL, chances are you’ve never heard of the new face of Chrysler’s ‘Imported from Detroit’ campaign, Ndamukong Suh. For those of you whom the name doesn’t ring a bell, Suh is a young football player who was recently named Defensive Rookie of the Year. In the summer of 2010, the 24-year old signed a five-year contract with the Detroit Lions worth $68,000,000 with $40,000,000 guaranteed – no, we got the zeros right…. Even though the Ford family is signing his checks, Suh is the star of Chrysler’s latest ‘Detroit’ ad for the new 300 sedan titled “Homecoming”. The commercial plays up the values of humble beginnings and hard work ethics with Suh putting up a face that makes you ask “why so serious?” Hit the break to watch the advert.
Following in the footsteps of its sister brands Dodge, Chrysler and Jeep, the Chrysler LLC Group’s Ram Truck division is relaunching its marketing strategy with a new tag line that will make its official debut during this weekend’s TV broadcast of the Kentucky Derby racing event, which the company is an official sponsor. The firm’s new motto is ‘Guts. Glory. Ram’ and according to the Auburn Hills-based group, it pays homage to the history of Ram Truck Brand and “represents the hard work and dedication placed in the design, engineering and production of each and every Ram truck”.
The Chrysler Group claims, “they don’t get much bigger” than its new Ram Long-Hauler Concept truck and at a whopping 24 feet (about 7.3 meters) long, who can blame them? Based on a Class 5 Ram 5500 Chassis Cab, the monstrous Long Hauler rides on an extended wheelbase measuring 197.4-in. (5,014mm) in length, which is more than enough to fit a Mercedes-Benz E-Class (191.7-in)! 
The concept truck is also 79.1 inches tall and tips the scales at an environmentally…unfriendly 9,300 lbs (4,218 kg), or close to 2.5-times as much as a Mercedes-Benz E350 sedan. Ram says the Long-Hauler has a maximum Gross Combined Weight Rating of 37,500 lbs (16,783 kg).
On Monday, the Chrysler Group LLC reported its first quarter gains since exiting bankruptcy almost two years ago in June 2009. The Auburn Hills-based automaker, which is now operated by Fiat S.p.A., said net income totaled $116 million in the first quarter of 2011 compared to a net loss of $197 million in the same period last year. At the same time, the company’s revenues grew 35 percent from $9.7 billion in Q1 2010 to $13.1 billion in Q1 2011. In addition, the automaker said it had $9.9 billion in cash reserves at the end of the first quarter compares to 2.5 billion in December 31, 2010.
The future, as we imagine it now, may be full of robots doing all kinds of things for us humans, including driving our cars. As some scientists over at Google recently proved, driver-less vehicles may become a reality sooner than we expect, so here's what an automaker that produces cars for drivers has to say about this issue. In the Chrysler Group’s latest commercial for the 2011 Dodge Charger called “The Future of Driving”, we are presented with a gloomy future, in which robots control all aspects of our lives, from choosing our diet and wardrobe to even walking our pet dogs. The hero of the commercial has nothing to say about all these things, but when a robot invites him to sit on the passenger seat of his own car, things get a little bit out of control...
