Continue reading VIDEO: In Da Club Cherokee? Enterprising kids go all Jeep techno

VIDEO: In Da Club Cherokee? Enterprising kids go all Jeep techno originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Spy Shots: 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee grows grander originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 14 Jan 2009 10:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Chrysler wants to bring up to 9 new vehicles by 2010 originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 10 Sep 2008 17:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Bad brakes cause Jeep to recall 28k vehicles originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 21 Sep 2007 14:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Detroit Auto Show: Jeep Trailhawk offers open-air off-roading for four

Detroit Auto Show: Jeep Trailhawk offers open-air off-roading for four originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 08 Jan 2007 18:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sheesh, it's about time... Pricing on the Dodge Caliber-based Jeep Patriot has been announced, with the first Patriots rolling off the line in Belvedere set to arrive in dealerships around January 1. The news, which comes a little later than the fall launch plans Chrysler announced previously, finally satisfies those of us who have been eagerly awaiting the little ute's arrival since its launch at April's New York Auto Show. As promised, the Patriot starts at under 15 grand -- $14,958 including shipping, to be exact. The Patriot Limited 4x4 rings in at $23,530, still at the low end of its class in terms of price.

Sharing a platform with the Caliber and Jeep Compass means Patriot is available with the option of a continuously variable transmission (CVT), as well as DaimlerChrysler's 2.4L World Engine. Die hards need not be disappointed by the non-truck platform, however -- in the upper-level trims, the vehicle still comes "Trail Rated," complete with four-wheel-drive, tow hooks and skid plates, and its design hearkens back to the Cherokees of the 90s. No word on the nature of the marketing push yet, but Jeep should roll that out by the end of first quarter when dealerships are all stocked up.

[Source: Automotive News]

Jeep Patriot pricing announced originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 14 Dec 2006 08:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading RR of the Day: Meet Blowby

RR of the Day: Meet Blowby originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 03 Oct 2006 14:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Bad Credit? No Credit? Chrysler doesn't care either originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 13 Sep 2006 18:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A piece of automotive history will soon fade into the record books as the longest-running vehicle assembly plant in American history, the Jeep Parkway in Toledo, OH, prepares to close up shop this week.

What started as the Willys-Overland factory in 1910 helped Willys become the second-largest car company in the US through World War I, and for a stretch in the 1920s the company was led by Walter P. Chrysler. The factory helped the US flex its industrial might and built vehicles and ordinance for the military in World War II, and in 1945, the first civilian Jeep CJ rolled off the line. Presumably, no one expected the sport-utility vehicle craze that would follow nearly five decades later. Throughout the post-war years, the company went through the hands of Kaiser, AMC, and Renault, with history coming full circle when the Chrysler Corporation acquired it in 1987.

The Cherokee SUV was added in the mid-80s and helped keep the plant alive (not to mention its role in popularizing mid-size SUVs), but the replacement of that model by the Liberty - produced at the nearby and significantly more modern Toledo North factory - made the demise of the plant somewhat unavoidable.

Once occupying over 4 million square feet, somewhere in the neighborhood of 11 million vehicles have rolled out of the factory over the years. GM's Jansville, WI facility will need to run another decade to match the Toledo facility's 96 years of existence.

[Source: Toledo Blade]

Nation's oldest auto assembly plant to close doors originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 27 Jun 2006 10:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Take a quick look around the light-truck market, and it's clear that diesels are the hottest thing on dealer lots right now - but oddly enough, it's not currently possible to get an oil-burner in a full-size SUV. Jeep has apparently identified this massive hole in the market and will announce later today that a diesel Grand Cherokee will be available for the 2007 model year.

Details are a bit sketchy at this point, but it sounds as if the vehicle will use a 3.0L Bluetec common-rail diesel from Mercedes - an engine that makes 221 HP and 376 lb-ft of torque. Fuel economy is said to be improved by "30 percent" (we're guessing this is compared to the somewhat thirsty Hemi V8), yielding a driving range of 425 miles on one tank. Towing capacity is also supposed to be impressive, but that claim will need to be evaluated further once we have more information. Like its smaller Liberty brother, the Jeep Grand Cherokee diesel will be shipped from the factory with a tank of B5 biodiesel blend.  

While it will be the only full-size diesel SUV available in the US when it debuts in the first quarter of next year, we have to remind Chrysler that it isn't the first (as they claim) - GM's Suburban, Jimmy, and Blazer were available with the 6.2L Detroit Diesel way back in 1982, and more recently, Ford offered its monstrous Excursion with a Powerstroke diesel engine until that vehicle's demise last year.

[Source: The Chrysler Group; the press release is available after the jump]

Continue reading Jeep announces a diesel Grand Cherokee

Jeep announces a diesel Grand Cherokee originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 01 Jun 2006 11:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Arizona Supreme court rules lessee can't sue automaker over lemon originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 16 Mar 2006 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.