Dodge

Redesigned Nissan Titan pickup truck due next year

4:31 pm U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2013
Nissan's U.S. arm is preparing to expand its lineup of full-sized pickup trucks as it replaces the aged Titan, which has not been significantly refreshed since it was introduced in 2003. Engineers and designers are leaving "nothing off the table" in delivering a competitive truck to U.S. consumers, said Pierre Loing, Nissan North America's chief for product planning and marketing strategy.... Read More »

 

Chrysler's new roadmap

12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 4, 2013
Chrysler Group has dropped plans to pack five more small nameplates into its crowded Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep Ram showrooms. Instead, it's adding nameplates at its Fiat and upcoming Alfa Romeo dealerships.... Read More »

 

Fiat, SRT almost fill U.S. dealership networks

12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 4, 2013
Chrysler Group's two smallest brands -- Fiat and SRT -- have nearly filled out their dealership rosters in the United States. Ralph Gilles, who heads the automaker's SRT brand, said 430 Chrysler Group dealerships have finished their training to sell the 2013 SRT Viper.... Read More »

 

Hit the gas and let the awd do its work

12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 4, 2013
The sudden wind gusts kicked up a barrier of snow as I maneuvered a 2013 Dodge Charger with all-wheel drive around Chrysler's winter testing grounds in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.... Read More »

 

Chicago Auto Show preview

12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 4, 2013
Toyota will make a big splash at the Chicago Auto Show this week with the introduction of its redesigned Tundra pickup. The full-sized truck will be positioned upscale, avoiding a direct face-off with the Detroit 3 pickups, say company sources.... Read More »

 

Chrysler gain propelled by sedans and coupes

11:59 am U.S. ET | Feb. 1, 2013
Chrysler rode strong sales of sedans and coupes to a 16 percent sales increase in January, increasing its string of consecutive monthly year-over-year sales gains to 34 months. Chrysler Group sold 117,731 vehicles last month, compared with 101,149 units in January 2012. Car sales were up 50 percent for the month and accounted for 37 percent of the company’s sales.... Read More »

 

Chrysler drops one shift at Dundee Engine plant line

4:00 pm U.S. ET | Jan. 24, 2013
Chrysler Group has eliminated a shift of production at its Dundee Engine plant on the line that builds 1.4-liter engines, including the turbocharged version, for the Fiat 500 subcompact and some variations of the Dodge Dart.... Read More »

 

LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE

Sergio promises updated Chrysler product plan next week

3:52 pm U.S. ET | Jan. 24, 2013
Sergio Marchionne said he will update the five-year product plan that the automaker laid out in November 2009 when Chrysler Group announces its earnings Wednesday. Speaking to Automotive News last week during the Detroit auto show, the Chrysler-Fiat CEO said that enough changes have been made to the original product roadmap to warrant a redraft.... Read More »

 

2013 DETROIT AUTO SHOW

Prime time for big pickups

12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 21, 2013
Low incentives, new products and construction sites filled with aging pickups have set the stage for an especially competitive -- and lucrative -- battle in the one segment the Detroit 3 still dominate: big pickups.... Read More »

 

NORTH AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL AUTO SHOW

Execs unfazed by Dart's slow start

12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 21, 2013
Top Chrysler Group executives took responsibility for the 2013 Dodge Dart's sluggish sales start but said they have "a lot of levers" available to boost sales.... Read More »

 

For some, trucks are about panache, not power

12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 21, 2013
As the economy improves, marketers of full-sized pickups are devising strategies to snag first-time buyers and lifestyle buyers who are returning to the vehicles.... Read More »

 

Chrysler CEO sees 200,000 9-speed transmissions for 3 new models

2:37 pm U.S. ET | Jan. 18, 2013
Chrysler Group LLC may have as many as 200,000 nine-speed transmissions available this year that will eventually go in three new models, its CEO said.... Read More »

 

Dodge rethinks the wedding registry to pitch the Dart

6:32 pm U.S. ET | Jan. 17, 2013
Chrysler Group is trying to redefine a wedding ritual with "The Dodge Dart Registry," a site that lets engaged couples raise money toward purchasing a new car by asking their friends and family to chip in.... Read More »

 

Marchionne says Dart's slow start due to transmission availability

12:47 pm U.S. ET | Jan. 14, 2013
Sales of the 2013 Dodge Dart have been slow because the car didn't launch with the transmission it should have, Chrysler-Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne said this morning. Speaking to journalists at the Detroit auto show, Marchionne said Dart sales were hampered because only manual transmissions were available at first, with a six-speed automatic sourced from Hyundai serving as a stopgap until a promised nine-speed automatic is available.... Read More »

 

2013 DETROIT AUTO SHOW

Cadillac ATS, Ram 1500 win North American car, truck awards

7:10 am U.S. ET | Jan. 14, 2013
The Cadillac ATS and Ram 1500 were named 2013 North American Car and Truck of the Year today by a panel of automotive journalists.... Read More »

 

FINAL ASSEMBLY

Found: The missing Dart, with new name, lower price

12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 14, 2013
When the 2013 Dart was launched last spring, Dodge dealers were told to expect a high-performance Dart R/T in September. It never showed up, and until last week there were few clues to the whereabouts of the mystery machine.... Read More »

 

Viper production gets featured in NYT Magazine

11:25 am U.S. ET | Jan. 11, 2013
The New York Times Magazine is taking an inside look at how Chrysler Group's most expensive vehicle -- the 2013 SRT Viper -- is built by hand in the company's newly refurbished Conner Avenue assembly plant in Detroit.... Read More »

 

Ram boosts towing capacity on heavy-duty pickup

12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 9, 2013
Ram has fired the latest salvo in the ongoing pickup war between the domestic automakers, releasing what the brand claims is now best-in-class towing capacity for its 2013 heavy-duty pickups. The 2013 Ram 3500 was rated to tow a 30,000-pound trailer, up from a maximum towing capacity of 22,750 pounds for the same vehicle and powertrain setup in 2012.... Read More »

 

LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE

Dodge Dart R/T morphs into GT -- at a lower price

9:00 am U.S. ET | Jan. 8, 2013
What does it take to turn an “R/T” into a “GT?” Apparently for Dodge, the answer is less money and competitors with more powerful and less expensive performance compact sedans.... Read More »

 

LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE

Hanger-on Avenger mars the Dart's start

12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 7, 2013
It's not yet quite fair to compare monthly Dodge Dart sales with sales of such segment stalwarts as the Ford Focus, Chevy Cruze and Honda Civic. And several Chrysler dealers in recent months have told me that one of the prime factors holding down Dart sales is in their own showrooms: a deeply discounted Dodge Avenger Larry P. Vellequette covers Chrysler Group for Automotive News.... Read More »

 

LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE

Dodge Dart posts best sales month yet despite Avenger discounts

4:08 pm U.S. ET | Jan. 3, 2013
Chrysler Group's new Fiat-based compact sedan posted its best-ever sales month in December, more than a half-year after the 2013 Dodge Dart began showing up on dealer lots. The 6,105 Darts that dealers sold last month came as the four-door made the final cut on several Car of the Year lists and boosted its total U.S. sales for 2012 to 25,303 units.... Read More »

 

2012 LISTS OF 10

10 fine designs

12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 31, 2012
Great design is in the details. Here we note 10 fabulous fine points found on production vehicles that were unveiled or went on sale in 2012.... Read More »

 

Lynn Hickey, former Oklahoma City Dodge dealer, dies

10:36 am U.S. ET | Dec. 28, 2012
Lynn Hickey, former owner of Lynn Hickey Dodge in Oklahoma City, died Dec. 14. He was 74. Hickey started his automotive career washing cars at a Ford dealership. In 1970, he opened the Dodge store.... Read More »

 

2012: THE YEAR IN PHOTOS

Cars & Concepts

12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 24, 2012
A look at some of the cars that turned heads at auto shows in 2012.... Read More »

 

Chrysler Group gains 14% in November on strong car, pickup sales

3:03 pm U.S. ET | Dec. 3, 2012
Chrysler Group relied on growing sales of sedans and coupes to boost sales 14 percent last month to 122,565 units, its best November since 2007. It was Chrysler's 32nd consecutive month of year-over-year sales gains.... Read More »