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Filed under: Coupes , Economy , Hatchbacks , Chrysler , Dodge , Nissan Click above for high-res gallery of the Dodge Hornet concept The Dodge Hornet was one of the best-looking concepts that Chrysler has produced the past few years, and thanks to a partnership with Nissan , the impressive-looking compact is inching closer to production. Chrysler and Nissan have yet to officially announce details of the upcoming Nissan Versa-based vehicle they'll develop together, other than to say that it'd be available as a 2010 model, but everyone is banking on a production Hornet. Chrysler vice president of international sales Thomas Hausch recently said that the Pentastar is working hard on a Hornet Study, and that Chrysler would "announce something" in the near future. The linked Automotive News article is further evidence that our suspicions were correct and that Nissan, rather than Chinese automaker Chery, will build it. [Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd] Read | Permalink...
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Filed under: Economy , Plants/Manufacturing , Hatchbacks , Chrysler , Dodge Click above to view high-res gallery of the Dodge Hornet Concept It's been so long since we've heard anything new regarding the Dodge Hornet concept from way back in 2006 that you could be forgiven for assuming it was dead on arrival. Not so, according to Thomas Hausch, ChryCo's veep for international purchasing, who says that the automaker is hard at work developing its Hornet model. Not that it's particularly shocking that Chrysler would be doing everything in its power to bring more small cars to market, considering that sales in that segment are so strong in the face of $4 per gallon gasoline. It has long been assumed that the tie-up with Chinese automaker Chery would yield the first Chrysler compact, but remember that Chrysler recently made a deal with Nissan. In that arrangement, Nissan would get a version of the Dodge Ram in exchange for a Nissan-built small designed and developed by Chrysler...
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Filed under: Hatchbacks , Chevrolet , Dodge , Mazda , Pontiac , Subaru , Toyota , Volkswagen If Consumer Reports is right, Volkswagen is well on its way to attaining its dream of outselling Toyota by 2015. In the magazine's June 2008 issue, CR threw a handful of hatchbacks into the ring and the VW Rabbit hopped out the winner. The magazine cited the Rabbit's "very well finished" interior for its class, agility, braking and transmission as reasons to choose it over a growing field of small hatchbacks. CR also expects the Rabbit to have an "above average" reliability record. The biggest negative the staff found in the VW was "mediocre" fuel economy for a car its size, though many SUV drivers looking to downsize will love seeing its 24 mpg figure. Staffers also complained about the large C-pillars blocking their view and engine lag after stops. Consumer Reports has routinely praised the Mazda3 as one of its favorite hatches, but in overall scoring, the...
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Filed under: Economy , China , Plants/Manufacturing , Hatchbacks , Chrysler , Dodge The Dodge Breeze is A #1. Or, rather, it's an A1. Chinese automaker Chery's deal with Chrysler LLC to produce small cars for Chrysler's three brands begat the little buzz-about you see above. The photo appeared on a Chinese forum and is supposedly the Chinese Plymouth Dodge Breeze, one of the aforementioned adventures in rebadging. The cars produced as a result of the agreement would not be limited to China, as the low-end rides would be sold in other developing markets, and high-end cars will be destined for others. The Breeze would be a Chinese-built car that gives Dodge a presence in the minicar segment. It also has the honor of dragging (if obliquely) The Brand Formerly Known As Plymouth back into our lives, though we really wish they would have gone with Volare. [Source: Carscoop] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Economy , Plants/Manufacturing , Hatchbacks , Chrysler , Dodge , Jeep After a five-day shutdown due to a mechanical glitch at Chrysler's Belvidere stamping plant, the facility will again be able to resume building the Dodge Caliber , Jeep Compass, and Jeep Patriot . In the short term, Chrysler will keep the assembly facility running smoothly by outsourcing stamping to other nearby plants. The shutdown came only weeks before the Belvidere plant permanently drops one shift, which will result in the indefinite layoff of 1,000 workers. With a tough economy in which automakers are struggling to sell units, it's unlikely many people will have difficulty finding a Caliber, Compass, or Patriot as a result of the temporary shutdown. [Source: Auto News (subs. req'd)] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing , Hatchbacks Carlos Ghosn, Nissan/Renault's CEO, has been looking for a U.S. automaker to partner up with for some time and he may have finally found a suitable suitor. Reuters is reporting that a negotiations between Chrysler and Nissan to supply the Cerberus-owned automaker with a small car that would displace around 1.8-liters are being finalized. The move is an obvious attempt to provide Chrysler with a sub-compact competitor while simultaneously lowering the development and production costs of both automakers. What kind of vehicle will be created by the alliance is open to speculation, but a Dodge- or Chrysler-badged Versa seems like an obvious choice considering its platform and powertrain. [Source: Reuters] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Tech , Hatchbacks , Chrysler , Dodge Click on the Caliber for a hig-res gallery of the 2008 Dodge Caliber SRT-4 While the new Dodge Caliber SRT-4 was in the Autoblog Garage, I had a chat with Erich Heushele and Kathy Graham from Chrysler. Erich is the Vehicle Development Supervisor at Chrysler's in-house tuning group and Kathy is a communications rep for the team. We talked about some of the mechanical changes involved in transforming a Caliber into an SRT-4, including why it doesn't have all-wheel-drive. Autoblog : I just have a few questions about some of the things that your team did on the SRT-4 that differ from the standard Caliber. What sort of suspension and brake changes were made? Also, why is there no all-wheel-drive? Erich Heuschele : Sure, well I will try to see what I can give you. We dropped the front end 28-mm and the rear 22-mm. We actually have shorter dampers on the car so it has more jounce travel. We didn't just lower the car. We actually got...
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Filed under: Garage , Hatchbacks , Dodge , Driving click above image to view high-res gallery of the 2008 Dodge Caliber SRT-4 Picture the following scene if you will. It's early 2004. A meeting comes to order somewhere deep within the halls of a tower adorned with a five-pointed star just off I-75 in Auburn Hills, MI. A group of engineers and product planners gather to shoot around some ideas for what kind of car they want to create that will top off the upcoming Dodge Caliber line-up. The leader of the team opens the meeting by placing a cup in the middle of the table and declaring that anyone who utters the words 'subtle' or 'subdued' during the discussions must pay a dollar into the cup toward the beer fund. And thus, the Caliber SRT-4 was born. We have absolutely no idea if it actually went down that way, but there's no doubt that the latest addition to the Chrysler SRT family is in no way subtle or subdued. If you are looking for a Q-ship, move right along because...
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Filed under: Concept Cars , Detroit Auto Show , Green , Hatchbacks , Dodge click above image for more views of the Dodge ZEO Concept var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/environment/No_HEMI_Dodge_Zeo_electric_vehicle_concept_to_debut_in_January'; The second of three concepts that Chrysler LLC has planned for the 2007 Detroit Auto Show is the Dodge ZEO Concept. It's eco-friendly credentials come via its all-EV powertrain, which consists of a lithium-ion battery pack capable of an impressive 250-mile range. That's theoretical and on-paper we presume, but it's nice to dream. The ZEO is a 2+2, four-passenger sport wagon that features the familiar cross-hair grille up front with a design that looks more Japanese than American to us. The hatchback profile looks like something we've seen on recent Mazda and Honda concepts, though the haunchy fender flares are all Dodge. Unfortunately, that's all we know about the ZEO until January when Dodge debuts the concept in Detroit...
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Filed under: Concept Cars , Detroit Auto Show , Green , Hatchbacks , Dodge click above image for more views of the Dodge ZEO Concept var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/environment/No_HEMI_Dodge_Zeo_electric_vehicle_concept_to_debut_in_January'; The second of three concepts that Chrysler LLC has planned for the 2007 Detroit Auto Show is the Dodge ZEO Concept. It's eco-friendly credentials come via its all-EV powertrain, which consists of a lithium-ion battery pack capable of an impressive 250-mile range. That's theoretical and on-paper we presume, but it's nice to dream. The ZEO is a 2+2, four-passenger sport wagon that features the familiar cross-hair grille up front with a design that looks more Japanese than American to us. The hatchback profile looks like something we've seen on recent Mazda and Honda concepts, though the haunchy fender flares are all Dodge. Unfortunately, that's all we know about the ZEO until January when Dodge debuts the concept in Detroit...
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Filed under: Car Buying , Sports/GTs , Hatchbacks , Dodge Click image for photo gallery var digg_url = 'http://www.digg.com/business_finance/Dodge_Caliber_SRT4_starts_at_22_995_for_285_HP'; If you're looking for new, interesting, and not-too-expensive...
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