|
Browse by Tags
All Tags » SUVs ( RSS)
-
|
Filed under: SUVs , Dodge , Jeep News out of Toledo is that Chrysler plans to drop either the Jeep Liberty or the Dodge Nitro within four years and merge the two vehicles into one. These two 'utes are built on the same exact platform, use basically the same engines and are built in the same Toledo plant. There is no good reason for both of them to exist, which makes us wonder why they ever did in the first place and why it will take three years to correct. Regardless, considering that Jeep will always be the off-road brand, it would make most sense to keep the Liberty name going. Losing the Nitro, meanwhile, might actually help Dodge improve its image as a volume performance brand. This convergence of duplicate vehicles is part of Chrysler's Project Genesis plan. Under the plan, dealers will begin to offer Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge vehicles under the same roof. Other nameplates that are or should be converged include the Jeep Compass/Jeep Patriot and Dodge Durango/Chrysler Aspen...
|
-
|
Filed under: SUVs , HUMMER , Earnings/Financials HUMMER, a brand that has seen its sales drop by a shocking 40% so far this year, is apparently burning an SUV-sized hole in General Motors' pocket. Main money-man at the biggest American automaker, Fritz Henderson, says that GM wold like to rid itself of the brand as quickly as possible, saying that its sale is being approached "on an urgent basis." The time frame given was by the end of this year or early 2009 for a completed transaction. So, who would want the brand that represents wretched American excess? We have no idea, but it seems that somebody does as Henderson reiterated that the General's been approached by multiple suitors. Interestingly, these comments were made in India, a country that had previously been rumored to have two separate bidders for the HUMMER brand. Considering the growing sentiment for small cars in the U.S., it wouldn't be surprising to see HUMMER sold to a company that does most of its...
|
-
|
Filed under: Convertibles , Coupes , Hybrids/Alternative , Sedans/Saloons , SUVs , Green , Rumormill Click above for high-res gallery of the Fisker Karma Fisker Automotive is going to have its work cut out for it when it comes to meeting its self-imposed deadline of bring the Karma sedan to market by the fourth-quarter of 2009 . To complicate matters even further, the automaker is now rumored to be working on three more plug-in hybrids. That would represent a truly serious undertaking for such a small automaker. To ease matters slightly, all four models would use the same basic underpinnings -- including the most important piece of all, the lithium ion battery and its assorted bits. Fisker has recruited Quantum Technologies, a company which has seen success building vehicles for the military, for help in creating the drivetrain for its electric vehicles. Reportedly on the drawing board are a coupe, a convertible and an SUV, all of which should go a long way towards meeting Fisker's...
|
-
|
Filed under: Aftermarket , Tuners , SUVs , Mercedes-Benz Click above to view more of the RENNtech GLK Of all the trucks that have proliferated into the Mercedes-Benz line-up, the GLK isn't exactly the most aggressive. But according to the latest reports, Mercedes is lining up an array of aftermarket tuners at the SEMA show to infuse what appears to be more than a little testosterone into the compact sport-ute. First up to bat is RENNtech, the Florida-based company responsible, among other things, for the bringing the McLaren SLR 722 to America and actually getting it to produce 722 horsepower . RENNtech has taken inspiration from the Pikes Peak challenge - one of the most iconic and power-craven hill-climb events in the world - to create this hardcore GLK. Little is known in the way of details, but the vehicle is said to feature RENNtech's first performance hybrid drivetrain. Brabus, Blvd Customs and Legendary Motorcars are also said to be preparing modified GLKs for SEMA, although...
|
-
|
Filed under: SUVs , Hirings/Firings/Layoffs , Plants/Manufacturing , Jeep click above to view more high-res pics of the 2008 Jeep Liberty Employees at Jeep's factory in Toledo, Ohio reported back to work this week after two months of mandatory downtime. The good news is that they still have their jobs; the bad news is that they've been told to expect another four weeks off before the end of the year. This time, however, the shutdowns will be scheduled in week-long intervals instead of covering an entire four-week period. The slowdown of SUV sales has been widely covered and the Jeep brand has not been immune, including its bread-and-butter Wrangler model that had proven extremely popular a short while back when the first-ever four-door version was unveiled. Of course, back then gas was below $3 a gallon. Besides the Wrangler, Jeep also makes the Liberty and Dodge Nitro at the Toledo plant. Gallery: 2008 Jeep Liberty [Source: 13 ABC ] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
|
-
|
Filed under: Economy , Sedans/Saloons , SUVs , Euro , Plants/Manufacturing , Ford click above to view more high-res shots of the Euro-Focus News flash: small cars like the Ford Focus are selling beyond expectations (ours anyway) while trucks and SUVs are sitting on dealer lots much longer than auto manufacturers would like. For this reason, Ford is moving as quickly as possible to switch a few of its truck plants into car plants, including its Michigan Truck plant where behemoth SUVs like the Expedition and Navigator were being built. The switchover is going to cost the automaker since these are not flexible manufacturing facilities, with the first bit of retooling ringing the registers to the tune of $75 million bucks -- and that's just for a new bodyshop. The total cost to retool the plant will be in the hundreds of millions. As they say, it takes money to make money. While the plant is being refurbished, workers will be shuffled to the nearby Wayne plant to build even more Focuses...
|
-
|
Filed under: SUVs , GM , HUMMER The HUMMER brand isn't exactly sterling here in the States due to high fuel prices and its standing as the poster vehicle for green groups trying to save the environment from the evils of CO2 emissions. That's probably the biggest reason GM is looking to offload the brand , and while it doesn't seem likely that anyone would want the marque, there are interested parties. According to GM's Middle East Managing Director, Terry Johnsson, one group is a pair of Arab investors. The Middle East has been a player in the automotive landscape over the past few years, as the region is rife with cash and oil and has growing transportation needs. Arab investors were 50% of the Aston Martin sale in 2007, and Abu Dhabi's investment group purchased 5% of Ferrari in 2005. Many of the early suitors for the HUMMER brand have since decided to bow out . Whether the final buyer is Tata Motors, investors from the Gulf, or some yet unknown party, the General...
|
-
|
Filed under: In the Autoblog Garage , SUVs , Jeep Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2008 Jeep Compass We weren't really sure what direction Jeep was heading when it introduced the Compass in 2007. Built on a shared platform with the Dodge Caliber, the Compass goes against what we normally think a Jeep should be - rugged, tough, capable, and... well... square. The departure from classic Jeep styling hasn't received rave reviews, and the interior has been a source of complaints, as well. Does the Compass deserve the criticism it's been receiving? We aimed to find out and secured a 2008 4x2 Sport model for the Autoblog Garage. Gallery: In the Autoblog Garage: 2008 Jeep Compass Sport 4x2 All photos Copyright (C)2008 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc. Continue reading In the Autoblog Garage: 2008 Jeep Compass Sport 4x2 Permalink | Email this | Comments
|
-
|
Filed under: Spy Photos , SUVs , Crossovers/CUVs , BMW Click above for high-res gallery of BMW X5 M and X6 M spy shots Despite earlier assertions to the contrary, all indications are now that BMW is preparing its first batch of M-tuned sport-utilities, including an X5 M and X6 M. Advanced-stage test mules for both have now been spied by a keen photographer right here in the United States, at BMW's Performance Center test track in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The prototype X5 and X6 M have enlarged air intakes with white LED headlamps up front and aerodynamic rear bumpers with quad pipes poking out the back. The trademark M division side gills have been camouflaged, but the exhaust notes are a reported dead giveaway: the X5 M prototype sounding like a twin-turbo V8, while the X6 M sounds more like a V10 or V12. The appearance of the M-tuned crossovers on American soil instead of on the Nurburgring gives us an idea of just who BMW will be targeting with these performance sport-utes. Check...
|
-
|
Filed under: SUVs , Jaguar , Land Rover Land Rover sales are tanking along with the rest of SUVs sold here in the States and in Europe, but strong sales in China and Russia are keeping Tata's new luxury SUV brand to within 3% of last year's sales volume. Encouraging sales in emerging markets isn't enough, however, for the Indian automaker to keep from cutting production to hedge against a further worsening of market conditions. In an effort to keep production in line with sales, two shifts have been cut from the Solihull Land Rover plant and 300 workers have been moved to the Castle Broomwich Jaguar plant. Tata is also executing production cuts at the Halewood Jaguar factory where the perpetually disappointing X-Type is produced. With Land Rover making up all the profits between Tata's two newly owned British Marquees, the Indian automaker is keeping a keen eye on production to make sure the luxury SUV brand continues to bring in profits. If sales begin to slip further,...
|
-
|
Filed under: SUVs , Trucks/Pickups , India Truck shoppers hoping to grab a Mahindra pickup early next year are gonna have to wait a little longer. It seems the challenges of bringing an India-made vehicle to the U.S. are difficult, and the vehicles now won't go on sale in the U.S. before the fourth quarter of 2009. Even though 324 dealers have signed up to sell the truck, few of them have actually built the needed facilities. That's not enough to keep Georgia-based Global Vehicles from going ahead with their plans to begin U.S. sales. But GV's CEO John Perez recenly spoke to Mahindra's global managing director Anand Mahindra who, according to Automotive News, said that no truck with his family's name on it was going to fail in the U.S. Mr. Mahindra plans to run a fleet of his company's vehicles over 3.2 million miles of U.S. roads before he'll be approve the trucks for sale here. The plan is for the trucks to utilize a 4-cylinder diesel engine not yet approved...
|
-
|
Filed under: Tuners , SUVs , Euro , Audi Click above for a hi-res gallery of the ABT Q5 Every time a new Volkswagen or Audi is released, German tuner ABT Sportsline can be relied upon to come up with performance and appearance packages to enhance them. The latest ride to get attention is the Audi Q5, and as you can see in the renderings ABT sent out, the body kit helps matters, because the showroom-trim Q5 is actually pretty vanilla-looking . The new visuals are backed up by a modified suspension, a 20" wheels, more braking power, and power packages for each available engine. Depending on which mill is nestled underhood, horsepower in the ABT-tuned Q5 ranges from 240 horsepower for the 2.0 TFSI all the way up to 310 horses for the 3.0 TDI with the Power S package. Gallery: ABT Sportsline Audi Q5 [Source: ABT Sportsline ] Continue reading ABT Sportsline tweaks the Audi Q5 Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
|
-
|
Filed under: Motorsports , SUVs , HUMMER The TSCO Vegas to Reno race, part of the Best in the Desert off-road racing series, is 457 miles long through the Nevada sand and scrub. From start to finish takes many racers 12 hours or more, and a driver that goes the entire distance is known as an "Ironman." For this year's edition, Emily Miller of Team HUMMER plans on being the race's first ever Iron woman . Miller will be piloting an H2 in the stock class with a navigator, Jake Povey. Some will undoubtedly think it crazy to try winning off-road races in an H2, but Miller's teammate Josh Hall has won the race three years in a row in his H2 SUT. Miller's no stranger to the podium herself, having come second at this year's Terribles 250. The TSCO Vegas to Reno race happens this Friday, August 22 (that'd be tomorrow), where Miller will probably have some vintage Cake playing on the iPod. You can keep up with all the live action at www.rodhallracing.com, and to...
|
-
|
Filed under: SUVs , Safety Click above for high-res gallery of each crash test The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has released complete crash test scores today for eight SUVs including the 2009 Ford Escape, 2008 Mitsubishi Outlander, 2008 Nissan Rogue, 2009 VW Tiguan, 2008 Chevy Equinox/Pontiac Torrent, 2008 Jeep Wrangler 2-door, the Jeep Patriot and the Suzuki Grand Vitara. When we say complete crash tests, we mean the IIHS performed front, side and rear crash tests on all eight SUVs. Each vehicle was given an overall rating of good, acceptable, marginal or poor, and the Escape, Outlander, Rogue and Tiguan earned good ratings in all three tests and, since they each come with electronic stability control as standard equipment, were also named Top Safety Picks by the IIHS. The rest of the group received either acceptable or marginal ratings in some tests, though the worst performing was the Jeep Wrangler 2-door. While the Jeep did earn a good rating in the frontal crash test, its...
|
-
|
Filed under: SUVs , Recalls/TSBs , Safety , Honda , Holden All owners of 2008 Honda Elements are being asked to stop driving their cars until they have had them inspected at their local Honda dealer. According to a recall issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration , the front bushing bracket of the left trailing arm of the rear suspension may have been improperly welded. If it fails, it could separate from the trailing arm causing the suspension to release part of the wheel hub, thus leading to a loss of control or crash. Although only 241 Elements are potentially affected (there are specific VIN number ranges during certain production dates), Honda is notifying all owners immediately and will inspect and replace defective parts at no charge. Rather than taking a risk, err on the side of safety and call your Honda dealer if you've got the keys to a 2008 Element in your pocket. [Source: NHTSA via Carscoop ] Permalink | Email this | Comments
|
More Posts Next page »
|
|
|