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As the Dodge B-series van, which once dominated the industry (much as the Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager once dominated minivans, but seemed doomed to becoming minor players) winds to a close, the Pillette Road plant increasingly looks doomed to demolition. Chrysler's parent company has announced that the Mercedes Sprinter vans, sold here as Freightliners, will be built in a greenfield factory (that is, one created on fresh land which could be used for farming or houses as opposed to re-using one of many existing facilities). The Sprinter plant will assemble up to 120,000 vans per year, presumably using nonunion, Southern labor, but the components are likely to be shipped in from Germany. The B-series van has not seen much investment over the past two decades, and has only been "freshened" once in the 1990s. UPS has already started using the Sprinter, which is relatively efficient.
DCX has written off the Pillette Road plant, despite a brand new paint facility added in 1999 but never used. The plant was rumored to be the home of several new vehicles, including the Ramcharger full-size SUV (which will not be produced), and currently makes full size vans which are due to be discontinued. Writing off the plant indicates that it will be closed, which would be logical since there are no new vehicles waiting to be built except Mercedes Sprinters, and no Mercedes will be built above the Mason-Dixon line. DCX may however use the write-off as a bargaining chip with the Canadian Auto Workers union.
To review, the list of future Chrysler vehicles is currently:
Thus, closing the Pillette Road plant is entirely "in character" for DCX - especially considering that two plants have already been sold, with more on the block.
Thanks to untiring efforts and a publicity stunt, chryslertakeover.com was finally noticed by Detroit News, though the story which mentioned the site ignored much of the content and took a "nut cases rooting for Iaccoca" viewpoint. It's still notable that a group fighting to get Chrysler back as an independent entity which actually designs and produces cars has made it to an influential news publication.
Wouldn't you like it if we had more time to make updates? Here is one reason why I don't - trying to get AT&T to admit that we do not owe the $29.95. Yes, I have spent countless hours on the phone, being put on hold, being transferred, being cut off - by the long-distance phone company!
We have very little recourse to this sort of thing, ordinarily, but in this case I can abuse my editorial position and ask you to avoid AT&T on our behalf. When they call you, day, evening, and night, to harass you into buying their long-distance services, Internet services, etc., simply tell them to lay off David Zatz! (They can ask Risk Management Alternatives, their collection agency, who I am).
For background, here is the letter which will apparently now appear in my credit report along with a note that I am a deadbeat:
The AT&T Long Distance claim of $29.95 against me is invalid. An AT&T operator told me the claim was based on service charges for a closed account - an account which had been closed for some months when the charges were made -but was unable to provide a credit. After spending many hours trying to find someone at AT&T who could do this, I gave up.This is an invalid claim. I cannot be responsible for AT&T charges on a closed account. I have made a reasonable effort to get AT&T to void their claim but they repeatedly put me onto indefinite hold or hung up on me while transferring me.
I would appreciate your resolving this or at least including this note in my credit report.
Now, I offer my apologies to you for abusing my editorial position, and assure you we will return to normal programming.
We are currently being bombarded with yet another annoying virus sent automatically by infected copies of Microsoft Outlook. At this time, we urge you to switch from Outlook, once called a highly effective virus distribution system with built-in e-mail capabilities, to pretty much any other e-mail client - Eudora comes to mind, along with Pegasus, Mailsmith, and hundreds of others. Thank you.
Nine out of 10 of the child safety seats inspected at Chilton Hospital in Pompton Plains this past weekend were incorrectly installed, according to safety seat inspectors. Nationwide, 80 percent of children in safety seats are not buckled in properly. Most parents are not even aware of this epidemic, which in our (Allpar's) editorial opinion is largely due to poor infant/child seat design as well as a lax attitude by car seat designers towards safety.
The findings of child seat inspectors are particulary important because a Chrysler Group survey showed that 97 percent of parents incorrectly believe that they always properly use and install their child safety seats.
Fit for a Kid is a free child safety seat inspection service open to everyone, regardless of what make or model car they drive. Families can find a Fit for a Kid dealer by calling toll free 1-877-FIT-4-A-KID or clicking on the Web site www.fitforakid.org.
Since Fit for a Kid was launched in 1999, there have been 19 known cases in which children across the country have been protected from harm because their parents took the time to have a child safety seat inspection at a participating Fit for a Kid Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge dealer. [This paragraph, taken from a Chrysler press release - as was most of this article - is unusual because it didn't have the words "DaimlerChrysler" or "Group" in it. Normally, we filter those out, but Chrysler PR never mentions Chrysler except as DaimlerChrysler - as in DaimlerChrysler's NASCAR efforts, or the DaimlerChrysler Dodge Intrepid - or as Chrysler Group.]
Marlin's fourth top-five finish of the season, and his seventh top 10 in nine starts, allowed the 44-year-old Tennessee native to increase his points lead to 109 points over Matt Kenseth. Marlin has led the standings since his runner-up finish at Rockingham in February, and the 109-point advantage is his largest of the season.
Kyle Petty finished 10th in his No. 45 Sprint Dodge Intrepid R/T. It was Petty's best finish of the season and his first top 10 since he finished ninth at Talladega Superspeedway in April 2000.
The Jeep Liberty got the government's highest side impact rating, while the two wheel drive Chevy Blazer got the lowest rollover rating (one star). The government, which uses a mathematical model for rollover ratings, gave two stars ratings to Ford's 2002 Explorer, for both two-wheel and four-wheel-drive models, the four-wheel-drive Blazer, and the Mazda B- Series four-wheel-drive pickups. So far, only cars - including the Stratus/Sebring sedans - have gotten the best five-star ratings.
In a stunning move to anyone who has actually driven the small SUVs, Consumer Reports ranked the Liberty below even the Suzuki XL-7 in April 2002. Their summary did not even mention off-road capabilities, and does not, aside from a reference to poor gas mileage, seem to have been written by people who actually drive the vehicle.
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