Autoblog

The Audi R10 TDI is dead. Long live the R15. That's the moniker given to the next-generation Le Mans prototype set to wear the interlocking rings. The car will make its race debut in March at the 12 Hours of Sebring, and by the time the 24 Hours of Le Mans rolls around in June, Audi will have three of the cars ready to defend the trophy won by the R10 earlier this year. Details on the new car are very limited at the moment. All that's known is that it'll have a smaller, lighter, more efficient TDI motor, will once again be a roadster, and is a more significant change than Audi undertook when it went from the R8 to the R10.

The car will be publicly revealed closer to the Sebring race. According to the ALMS website, Audi Motorsport honcho Wolfgang Ullrich was quoted as saying, "It was clear to us that we must develop a new car if we wanted to continue to be successful in Le Mans." We read that as code for, "Those Peugeots were f**king fast this year. Here's our answer." By the time the cars hit the grid at Circuit de la Sarthe, the hype's going to be at a fever pitch. Bring it. Thanks to Ashutosh for the tip!


[Source: ALMS]

Anyone who's rolling in a 2007-2008 Chrysler Sebring or Dodge Avenger, take note. Chryslerberus is recalling all 181,000 of those vehicles sold during that time to fix an electrical defect that affects unused connectors on the tire pressure monitoring system. Apparently, corrosion can cause a short, and owners could experience their vehicles failing to start, stalling once underway, or some other affectations of the electrical components, including the cruise control. Formal notices are going to be sent out later this month, and dealers have been instructed to locate the problem and seal the affected circuits. Check your mailboxes, folks.

[Source: Automotive News – sub. req.]

Twenty-four year Chrysler employee Mike Donoughe has left the company after two months in his new post. Named to head Project D in January of this year, the program is creating new mid-sized cars that would replace the Sebring and Avenger and have actually have a chance against the Camcordimabu.

Chrysler says that there was no conflict, but other outlets have reported that Donoughe clashed with CEO Bob Nardelli and so-called Acting Chief Innovation Officer Peter Arnell. Arnell is an outside marketing consultant who also worked with Nardelli at Home Depot, and apparently came up with the Celine Dion/Pacifica campaign (does anyone remember that?). Project D is tasked with developing Chrysler's next-gen midsize cars and also investigating ways for the automaker to be more competitive. (Not allowing demonstrably inferior product like the current Sebring and Avenger to ever see the light of day would be a great starting point.)

We know Chrysler has the talent to get this right, it's only a matter of how much upheaval it will take to do so. And since the new Sebring and Avenger aren't due until 2010 or 2011, whatever Chrysler comes up with better be awfully good, since most people's experience with them will be via the rental fleet gulag. Mark Chernoby has replaced Donoughe as vice president and chief engineer for Chrysler's future mid-size product team.

[Source: Wall Street Journal via Autoweek]

click above to view more high-res live shots of BMW M3 ALMS race car

The American Le Mans Series is going to get a dose of Bavarian brilliance in 2009, as Bobby Rahal and David Letterman are teaming up to bring the fourth-generation M3 to the racing series. To properly battle the best competition in ALMS, BMW bumps the power quotient of its high-revving 4.0L V8 from 414 to 485 ponies, but brute force is just one facet of the M3's attack plan. The already outstanding chassis of the M3 has been further enhanced for the track, and weight has been reduced to make the deadly M even more nimble.

BMW also employed its extensive F1 knowledge into the M-racer, including computational fluid dynamics and wind tunnel analyses to make the carbon fiber-winged M3 slip freely through the air. BMW Motorsport is still tweaking the M3 racer in advance of the 2009 season, and the car will be taken through its paces by Andy Priaulx, Jorg Muller and Augusto Farfus of FIA World Touring Car Championship fame. Since the previous two generations of M3 hold six manufacturers championships in nine years of US sports car racing, we're guessing this baddest M3 ever will continue to be a handful for the competition. If it drives as well as it looks, Mr. Rahal should be a happy man.

The new Chrysler Sebring has rightfully become the de facto whipping boy for all things wrong with design by committee. But unlike the former stalwart for unbridled criticism, the Pontiac Aztek, one of the main gripes has been the deplorable interior Chrysler saw fit to torture its customers with. According to a supplier sourced by Automotive News, a crack team of designers – dubbed "Project D" -- has been assembled to address the ills inside Chrysler's mid-sized sedan.

The team is comprised of senior managers and directors who are returning as contract employees after walking out the door during the recent round of buyouts. We wish them the best of luck and hope, despite Chrysler's current cash crunch, that they can finally offer consumers some of the up-market materials found on the Sebring's closest competitors.

[Source: Automotive News – Sub. Req.]

According to the USAToday, the new Avenger has had its share of engineering issues, something that the publication allowed Chrysler to respond to in depth within its review. As if being publicly humiliated by one of the largest papers in the land wasn't enough, yesterday's duo of recalls is being followed by yet another safety issue plaguing both the Dodge Avenger and the Chrysler Sebring.

A fan motor on 102,042 Avengers and Sebrings can apparently catch fire when coming into contact with engine coolant. The recall affects both 2007 and 2008 models, and owners should expect to receive notification next month to replace either the wiring or the motor itself.

[Sources: USA Today, The Truth About Cars, Detroit News]

Click the image above for high-resolution photos of Chryser's concepts

Every time there is a special "concept first drive" from one of the major automotive rags, the same rules seem to apply: you can't drive it past 25 or 30mph, none of the components are functional, etc. Well, that pretty much sums up what we encountered at Chrysler's proving grounds, where we hit the pavement with some of the Pentistar's best concept hardware. The concept vehicles were the Dodge Demon, the Jeep Trailhawk, Chrysler Nassau, the Jeep Wrangler Ultimate, a rally-prepped Caliber, and the souped-up SEMA Sebring.

The road course was flat and short with absolutely no hairpin turns, but the opportunity to drive a car that most will never get to experience is a rush in and of itself. Not surprisingly, we chose the Demon as our first test car, and it was quite a challenge to get from gear to gear with its strange and unpredictable slanted shifter. The sporty two-seater definitely looked the part of a cool roadster, though. The Nassau was probably the most fun vehicle to drive because it felt very production-ready. The interior was not very functional other than the funky push-button gear selector, but in the spirit of the concept it looked very cool.

We'll go over each of the concept vehicles in depth as soon as we can, so stay tuned to Autoblog for further updates on Chrysler's ride-and-drive event. Also, be sure to check out some of the high-resolution concept car photos we snapped from the event in the gallery below.

Click above to view more high-resolution images from the Chrysler proving grounds

It isn't just any day when you get to drive dozens of different vehicles that aren't even on sale yet. Chrysler made today just such a day at its Chelsea, MI proving grounds, as the Pentastar rolled out its entire 2008 lineup for automotive journalists to inspect and drive. We were able to drive everything except the 600-hp Viper for 2008 and the new Dodge and Chrysler minivans, which was a bit of a downer, but not nearly enough to spoil an otherwise fun day.

The driving route lined up for us included artificial road hazards, hairpin turns, and a few straightaways that demonstrated just how impressive the 6.1L Hemi SRT engine really is. Other than the aforementioned Viper and minivans, Chrysler left the keys in literally everything else, from the SRT 300C to the Sprinter van and Ram 3500 flat-bed. AutoblogGreen was also on hand to drive Chrysler's new two-mode hybrid system equipped with a Hemi engine in the Aspen SUV, and we'll tell you just how that went as soon as the embargoes are lifted (or as soon as someone else opens the floodgates.)

One of the most popular events of the day was an off-road course where we could see just how capable the Jeep lineup really is. Even the JT concept was on-hand for the rough housing, and the end result was some very dirty metal and a few dinged-up quarter-panels.

We'll be bringing you more posts from this event throughout the day today and tomorrow, but for now you can check out some high-res pics in the gallery below.

Carmakers pay their ad agencies a great deal of money to come up with concepts that will bring buyers to the brand. We hope they kept the receipt for this one. But for those of you who want to win a new Sebring, and we know you are out there, here is what you have to do: 1. Be at least 18 years old. 2. Have a baby exactly at 2:03:04 AM on 5/6/07, or be the adopted parents or guardians of a baby born at that exact moment. 3. Send the birth certificate in to enter the random drawing. Ready for this? It's called the "Chrysler Sebring Bundle of Joy" promotion.

For some reason Chrysler wants to celebrate the birth of a baby born on the twice-every-century 2-3-4-5-6-7 date combination, and thinks a free Sebring is the way to do that. Even though it happens two times -- am and pm -- only the early birds will get the... Sebring. No word on how much of the baby has to be "born" at the time. We also wonder if there will be enough babies magically born at the chosen hour to create a Sebring Generation.

[Source: Detroit News]

Earlier in the month, Kicking Tires got some advanced knowledge of what it would take to get you into Chrysler's newest drop top, the Sebring Convertible. At the time, the only information we had was for the stripped four banger, plus both the base and the optioned up V6 models. Those early estimates were close, but now we've got the real figures.

To start with, the four-cylinder model comes in at $26,145 MSRP (with the $675 destination charge), which is actually $645 less than the outgoing model, but with more toys (side airbags, four discs plus ABS, hard tonneau cover, etc.). The Touring model starts at $28,745 (with destination fee), comes equipped with the new FFV 2.7L V6 and gets heated, color matched mirrors, auto headlights and 17-inch aluminum rollers. Plenty of options await those that are willing to get crazy with the check boxes, but you can read the rest in the press release after the jump.

The top of the line, Limited version gets a 235 HP 3.5L V6, plenty of dead cow, along with tortoise shell accents, chrome, Boston Acoustics ICE and 18-inch aluminum wheels. All that for $32,345 (with the destination fee). Again, there are more options to be had, broken down into both the Luxury Group (18-inch chrome wheels, heated seats, etc.) and the Electronic Convenience Group, with remote start, heated/cooled cupholders, climate control and the like.

The idea of a Sebring knocking on the $40k door leaves us a bit cold, but if the market demands it...

Follow the jump for the full press release.

[Source: Chrysler]