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Today at the Geneva Motor Show, Jeep celebrated the European premieres of the Jeep Cherokee Renegade and Red River Edition, and the restyled Jeep Grand Cherokee.
The Jeep model range has also widened thanks to the new Wrangler Rubicon, and new engineering enhancements for Grand Cherokee, Cherokee and Wrangler.
In 2002, Jeep brand sales outside North America grew by 13 per cent to 78,108
units, versus 69,271 units in 2001. The Jeep share of total Chrysler volume
internationally was 44 per cent. Jeep brand sales in Western Europe also increased
35 per cent from 2001 to 2002.
Jeep Cherokee
The Jeep Cherokee Red River Edition features unique
exterior and interior treatments. The new Cherokee Renegade also builds on the
vehicle's expressive appearance and adds rugged design cues taken from the Dakar
concept vehicle. In addition, Cherokee now offers a new powertrain to the line-up:
a 2.8 common-rail turbo diesel engine mated to a five-speed automatic transmission.
Jeep Grand Cherokee
The latest Jeep Grand Cherokee premieres in Europe with a new appearance
that accentuates the vehicle's distinctive design and 4x4 leadership. The new
Grand Cherokee features a fresh look with a new front fascia, grille and round
fog lamps for all models. The top-of-the-range Grand Cherokee Overland version,
previously offered with a high-output 4.7 petrol engine, now adds the 2.7 CRD
to the mix. Jeep Grand Cherokee is built at the Jefferson North Assembly Plant in Detroit,
Michigan, USA, and at the Steyr-Daimler-Puch Fahrzeugtechnik AG assembly plant in Graz,
Austria.
Standard multi-stage driver and passenger front air bags are designed to deploy at different levels depending on the severity of the impact. Available ceiling-mounted side curtain air bags offer additional head protection for both front and rear outboard occupants.
Utilising a rain sensor attached to the windscreen, Grand Cherokee offers rain-sensing front wipers. When the windscreen wiper control is turned to "AUTO," the wiper system automatically activates when it rains and adjusts its speed according to the severity of the rain. This feature is optional on Limited and standard on Overland.
The diesel engine spends 9.7 liters on 100 km, with 0-62 mph in 11.2 seconds, compared with the 4.7 HO, with 0-62 in 8.2 seconds but requiring a full 15 liters of fuel for 100 km. The old 4-liter six, with an automatic, requires even more fuel but has acceleration similar to the diesel.
Jeep Wrangler
The icon of the brand, the Jeep Wrangler now offers a new four-speed automatic
transmission, an improvement over the previous three-speed transmission, mated
to its tried and true 4.0 petrol engine. Additionally, for the Wrangler Sport
model, a new 2.4 PowerTech™ petrol engine replaces the previous 2.5 engine
and provides better performance.
Jeep Wrangler Rubicon
The Rubicon name is not just for one of North America's toughest off-road trails
- it's also what the Jeep brand is calling its ultimate off-road vehicle. The
new Jeep Wrangler Rubicon is a limited-production vehicle engineered to take
on trails previously reserved for only highly modified vehicles.
More than Sixty Years of Jeep Heritage
From July 23, 1941, to the present, the Jeep brand has stood for authentic
four-wheel-drive
capability, innovative technology and continuous refinement. Through Willys-Overland,
the "Jeep" initiated the 4x4 segment over six decades ago and kicked
off the compact "sport-utility" boom with its four-door, 4x4 1984
Jeep Cherokee. Today's Jeep vehicles are still directly descended from the first
Jeep vehicles.
(This information provided by DCX)
The State of Washington may start a pilot project to use biodiesel fuel in school buses, according to Doug Hetrick. Biodiesel's many advantages include lower toxicity than petroleum-based diesel fuel. Past studies have shown it to be economical and apparently harmless to conventional diesel engines. Click on a link for more information: the Washington bill - biodiesel fuel
Detroit News noted that Ford has settled a lawsuit related to 15-passenger van safety. A federal judge noted that Ford's conduct "almost borders on criminal," since the company claimed that safety records did not exist (they did). The case involved the flipping of an E350 van in 1996 which killed two passengers. U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman said last Friday (according to Detroit News) "I don't want to believe lawyers would come and risk their licenses and livelihoods and professional reputations by making false statements to a court, but that's what is happening, Whether they're being set up by their client to do it ... you know, it's a big company ... and maybe they can do that sort of thing and hope they get away with it ... It almost borders on criminal to be honest with you."
For details on this case, including various instances which could be classified as perjury and probably would be if you or I was doing it, see http://www.autosinsider.com/
As a result of cutbacks at Chrysler and "adjusted production capacity" in commercial vehicles, DaimlerChrysler (that is, the global corporation) cut its employee count from 372,470 to 365,571 people in 2002. DaimlerChrysler said that last year it had invested $7.5 billion in property, plants, and equipment and spent $6.5 billion on research and development.
Continuing Chrysler's tradition of supporting diversity, the division has posted an on-line application for ten Dodge Motorsports Diversity Scholarships, to cultivate minority participation in NASCAR and Dodge Motorsports. The scholarship covers education at the NASCAR Technical Institute in Moorseville, NC, as preparation for employment in NASCAR. Candidates must have a high school degree, be under 28 years old, and belong to a "recognized U.S. minority group." The scholarship application is on the dodge.com Web site under "Motorsports" and then "Special Features." Applications must be postmarked by March 1, 2003.
For the approximately 143,000 employees of DaimlerChrysler AG in Germany, the profit-sharing payments were set at 1,200 euros. It will be paid out with monthly salaries in April 2003. Approximately 86,000 eligible Chrysler employees in the United States will receive profit-sharing payments averaging $460 this year.
The DaimlerChrysler AG bonus in Germany – which was discussed in several meetings between management and the General Works Council - is significantly above the profit-sharing payment that would have been awarded on the calculated basis of the Agreement with the General Works Council. The American workers received payments in accordance with standard formulas.
The Crossfire, designed mostly by Mercedes and built alongside Mercedes coupes in Germany, has been officially launched. Full details are at Chrysler's sales and press Web sites, chrysler.com and media.daimlerchrysler.com.
By Bill Cawthon
As expected, the automakers are protesting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's proposal to raise light truck fuel-economy standards by 1.5 mpg by 2007.
DaimlerChrysler says its costs of compliance would be about four times the government's estimate of $11 million, and suggested a smaller increase of 1 mpg.
Actually, Chrysler is in good shape to comply by introducing more efficient diesel engines into its light truck lines, including SUVs and minivans. It is already replacing its full-size vans with the diesel-powered Sprinter, which gets significantly better mileage than conventionally powered vans. 2007 U.S. diesel fuel standards call for a sulfur content low enough to allow the use of new catalyst-equipped diesels already being introduced to the European market.
Ford calls the new standards challenging, but says the company is committed to meeting them.
GM is the loudest screamer, saying it will have to invest more than a billion dollars to bring its light trucks into compliance, far more than the $660 million estimated by the NHTSA.
GM is especially desperate because it spent much of the last decade reducing costs by not making the investments in new engine technology that both Ford and Chrysler have already made.
GM further claims compliance will force it to reduce the weight of its truck line, rendering them less safe. In this, GM may be relying on a recent Insurance Institute of Highway Safety study showing larger SUVs to be the safest for their occupants. (The flaw in this reasoning is the study showed pickups, also generally larger, heavier and taller than passenger cars, have the highest fatality rate of any vehicle in the study.)
In 2000, when the National Academy of Science studied the effect of the original CAFE standards, the panel concluded that most of the weight reductions were actually carried out to reduce manufacturing costs and were not related to compliance.
GM also plays down its commitment to produce 1 million hybrid vehicles, saying those won't be enough. Basically, GM is hiding behind technologies not yet practical to avoid having to spend money on technologies that are available today.
The new federal standards are far lower than those proposed a year ago, while overall fleet economy is the lowest in two decades. Gasoline prices are rising and oil supply is dropping. Some increase in fuel economy standards is in the cards, so the Detroit automakers might want to gracefully accept this comparatively minor adjustment.
GM had a decade in which to enjoy its savings. The denizens of the Renaissance Center might also want to remember Nissan's new truck plant will open soon and Toyota has committed to a new full-size truck plant in Texas. If GM does not wish to produce vehicles that comply with the new standards, there will be plenty of competitors ready to take up the slack while GM either exits the market or adds hefty fines to its rising pension and healthcare costs.
Jeremy Mayfield finished eighth Sunday in the rain-delayed Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Driving the No. 19 Dodge Dealers/UAW Intrepid out of the Evernham Motorsports stables, Mayfield led the way for the Dodge teams.
Mike Wallace in the No. 09 Miccosukee Resort Dodge Intrepid finished ninth in the rain-shortened NASCAR Winston Cup season opener. Only 109 of 200 laps were completed before a driving rain forced NASCAR to throw in the towel on the 45th edition of the Great American Race.
Fourteen Dodges made the field for the Daytona 500, the most since Dodge returned to the big league circuit in 2001. Mike Wallace led the way for the three Wallace brothers. Kenny Wallace finished 16th in the No. 23 Stacker2 Dodge Intrepid, and big brother Rusty Wallace finished 25th in the Miller Lite Dodge Intrepid.
Meanwhile, in truck racing, Robert Pressley in the No. 59 Kingsford/Harris Trucking Dodge Ram held the lead entering the final lap but couldn't hold off Rick Crawford and Travis Kvapil down the stretch in Friday's Florida Dodge Dealers 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Daytona International Speedway. Bobby Hamilton finished fourth in the No. 4 Square D Dodge Ram, and Brendan Gaughan finished 10th in the No. 62 Orleans Hotel Dodge Ram.
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