Lord Vader, Your Minivan Is Ready: The 2019 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid Limited S

The 2019 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid Limited S.

Want to help save the planet while looking like a total badass?  Siths with a conscience, welcome to your new ride---the 2019 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid Limited S.  The S is for the S Appearance package, which paints the Pacifica Brilliant Black Crystal Pearlcoat, pops on a set of 18-inch Black Noise painted wheels, and loads the interior with more black leather than a biker bar in Sturgis.

But, you know---tastefully.

Redefining A Genre: The 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Touring-L Plus

The 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Touring-L Plus.

Having had only a few minutes behind the wheel of the (at that time) pre-production Chrysler Pacifica at last year's Western Automotive Journalists Media Days, I was hoping to get some time at the wheel of a production model.  My first impressions in those few minutes more than a year ago were good ones, but how well would they hold up once I'd had a chance to see a few Pacificas on the street and had the opportunity to live with one for a week?

Endurance Racer: The 2017 Chrysler 300S

The 2017 Chrysler 300S.

I remember the first time I saw a Chrysler 300 in the flesh.  It was 2004.  Although there was a refresh six years ago, the effect is still pretty much the same.

This is called not messing with success.  There is a market for a large, Bentley-esque (if you squint) American sedan with a range of powerplants under the hood...from a six-cylinder for the rental market to a Hemi V8.

Unlikely Object of Desire: The 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Touring L Plus

The 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Touring L Plus.

If you want proof of the power of peer pressure, look no further than the minivan.  More useful than sedans or most SUVs for most American drivers, filled with convenience touches other vehicles do not or cannot provide and configurable in everything from base-level family hauler to near-private jet luxury, they are uncool.

Why?  Because everyone says so.

The one vehicle that could turn that around is the Chrysler Pacifica.

S Is For "Sinister": The 2016 Chrysler 300S

The 2016 Chrysler 300S.

It was a trick first learned decades ago, most likely by hot-rodders.  The right tires, wheels and trim can make a four-door sedan---well, some four-door sedans---look like a race car.

Unlikely Sex Symbol: The 2015 Chrysler 200S

The 2015 Chrysler 200S.

The more I see the 2015 Chrysler 200 on the streets, the more it grows on me.  The car looks very good in the sheetmetal, with balanced proportions, a purposeful stance and an upscale look.  About eleven months ago, I reviewed the top-of-the-line 200C AWD and liked it a lot, finding the price to be the only real drawback.

Muscles In A Tuxedo: The 2015 Chrysler 300C Platinum

The 2015 Chrysler 300C Platinum.

In the ten years the Chrysler 300C has been with us (in this incarnation), there have been endless comparisons to Bentley. Most of it was prompted by the simple visual of a big grille with a large winged badge on it. Others had to do with the smooth yet substantial shape and wide, determined stance of the 300C, which had more than a passing resemblance to the Bentley Flying Spur sedan introduced the year before.

Most Improved Player: The 2015 Chrysler 200C

The 2015 Chrysler 200C.

Having expounded a few times on my thoughts regarding automobiles and art, it should come as no surprise that I considered the 2014 and earlier Chrysler 200 as graffiti.  An ungainly mess of a car, excused only by the fact that it was something of an improvement over the Chrysler Sebring.  Fiat did a rush job putting lipstick strategically on a pig.

But this---this is what can happen when you have time, taste and money all devoted to building a new mid-size sedan.

New Car Review: 2012 Chrysler 300 SRT8



The 2012 Chrysler 300 SRT8.

It's been almost three years since our last test of a Chrysler 300 SRT8. Normally, that wouldn't allow for much in the way of changes, but the 2012 SRT8 is soooo much more car than the '09.

6.1 liters worth of V8 Hemi muscle has become 6.4. 425 horsepower is now 470 (with 470 pounds per foot of torque to back it up). The "Wow!" that involuntarily escaped your lips last time around is now more like "Whooooooaaaaa!". 60 miles an hour comes up in under 5 seconds.

New Car Review: 2011 Chrysler 300

The 2011 Chrysler 300.

This is the second 2011 Chrysler 300 the press fleet folks have sent our way in the past few months. I wrote about the first one for High Gear Media's Carnewser.com a couple of weeks back.  That first car came option-free...sporting a price tag $7590 less than the 2011 Dodge Charger reviewed here on TireKicker in late September.

The Carnewser.com piece focused on my trying (and failing) to understand why Chrysler, working to set itself apart as an upscale brand would build and sell such reasonably priced examples of their flagship, the 300.

Since then, though, word has come that Chrysler's dropping the ax on the Dodge Grand Caravan. Come 2013, they'll only be selling the Chrysler Town and Country, setting off speculation that once Fiats, Alfa Romeos and Lancia-sourced Chryslers begin appearing in showrooms, the product mix between those brands, Dodge and Jeep may be very different from what we see now.

So let's assume a plan is in the works and assess the 300 on its own merits, absent percieved price crowding with its cousin, the Dodge Charger.

Global Rental Domination: Hertz Buys Dollar-Thrifty

Hertz is dropping some significant change to acquire the competition...$1.17 Billion for Dollar-Thrifty.

Dollar was founded in 1965...Thrifty in 1958. They merged under then-owner Chrysler in 1990.

Full details of the deal at USA Today.

Fiat By Chrysler, Chrysler By Fiat

The five-year plan is coming into clearer focus and it looks....confusing.

Fiat's going to build a mid-size sedan in Italy. It will be sold mainly in America, replacing the Sebring. They'll also build a new compact Chrysler for the USA over there.

Meantime, Chrysler might build not one, but two SUVs for Alfa Romeo on American soil.

Automotive News (free registration required) has the game plan.

Alfa Comes Back To The USA

Alfistis rejoice! After a decades-long absence, Alfa Romeo is coming back to America, thanks to the Fiat/Chrysler deal.

The product hits showrooms in 2012 and there's a lot of platform sharing with Chrysler.

Full details from Automotive News (free registration required).

Dodge Challenger SE Review

So you want a Dodge Challenger, but can't swing either the price or insurance or gas for the Hemi-powered R/T or SRT-8?

$750 buys you the cosmetics that will make your six-cylinder SE look pretty darn good.

It's called the Rallye Group. 18" aluminum wheels, a bright fuel filler door, dual stripes, a carbon-fiber looking bezel on the instrument panel and a body-colored rear spoiler.

                             

Our tester was just as you see above...bright silver metallic with black stripes. It actually got more admiring looks than the last red Challenger that came through...possibly because those are seen so often.

Best part of the deal is the SE's base price of $22,735. Second best is the gas mileage: 17 city/25 highway.

TireKicker Time Machine: 1962 Chrysler 300

                    

No, not a 300H...just a 300. But who's complaining?

                           

Judging by the temporary plate, this '62 recently found a new home and it appears the new owner was having some work done at this local shop.

Like yesterday's '55 Chevy Two-Ten, this big Chrysler appears to be all original and mostly all there.

Dodge Grand Caravan SXT Review

Ignorance is bliss.

During my week in the Dodge Grand Caravan SXT, I was won over...the user-friendliness, utility and ease of driving erased misgivings I had about the materials inside being a cut or so below that of a Honda Odyssey.

It was delivered without a window sticker, so I checked the Dodge website. Base price $27,825. Reasonable, bordering on a bargain.

I knew it was loaded...but I didn't realize how loaded until I asked for a copy of the sticker. This minivan had more than $13,000 in options...jacking the bottom line all the way up to $41,385. No longer reasonable nor a bargain.

So what could I live without if I were playing with my own money?

2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee: Build In May, Sell In July

The product drought is coming to an end for Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep dealers. The 2011 Grand Cherokee begins production in May and should begin arriving in showrooms by July.

Full story from Automotive News.

Hitman Challenger UPDATE: The Real Deal Revealed (updated 5:50 PM)

The mystery (well, at least part of it) of "Hitman" and the $29,100 Dodge Challenger SRT-8 auction is over.

Brad Davis at Glenn E. Thomas Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep confirms that the dealership did honor the $29,100 auction as Hitman said...but for a different car of arguably higher value. 

Jonny Lieberman at Autoblog got it right...Hitman (real first name Alex) went home in a new 2010 Challenger SRT-8 instead of the 2009 with 500 miles on the odometer.  Davis tells me the '09 was sold to another client last week while the auction was in dispute.

Hitman was offered his pick of three 2010 Challenger SRT-8s and chose a black one. The '09 was blue.

Hitman also gets $2,000 worth of Mopar accessories of his choosing.

All this leaves his cheering section at the ChallengerTalk Forums wondering why "Hitman"s been so uncommunicative since taking delivery of the car on Saturday. If anything, he won bigger. A poster who says he talked to "Hitman" says he's under legal constraints about what he can discuss...but if so, why was Brad Davis so willing to divulge details?

Dunno. Tirekicker only pawn in game of life.



If you want more, there's still a fair amount of head-scratching going on at the ChallengerTalk forums, where the auction thread, started by "Hitman" on March 13, just had its 400,000th page view today. Pick it up from where we broke the story this afternoon here.

Challenger SRT-8 Auction Watch: The Hitman Cometh, Leaveth Questions

Yesterday, we told you about the strange online silence of  "Hitman", the purported winner of a $29,100 eBay auction for a 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT-8.

Well, last night at 9:47PM PDT, "Hitman" surfaced on the forum, acknowledging, but not answering any of the questions:

A lot of questions and rumors definitely coming to light after this whole experience from different sources that are making claims. Many requests to post pictures and give an explanation of how it went down in the end.


Plan of posting pics and all that good stuff after I work on getting a couple of coats of wax and the right shine. It's only been a few days of driving it around and trying to do the proper break period as it has been suggested.


Been on the board every night reading everyone's posts in this thread and jumping around the ChallengerTalk.com board, learning more about the SRT8 and looking at what the proud owners have done to personalize theirs. This board has a lot to offer and maybe I will learn a few things along the way as well.

The ChallengerTalk forum members who rallied around "Hitman" when it appeared Glenn E. Thomas Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep of Signal Hill, California was going to refuse to give him the car (at first claiming a glitch erased their $42,000+ reserve...which eBay said didn't and couldn't happen) also cheered at "Hitman"'s posting early Sunday morning that "the dealership honored the $29.1K auction", along with this photo:

But now, as we reported, a lot of them are beginning to doubt the whole story...whether "Hitman" got the car in the auction....whether he got it for $29,100....whether he got a different car (fueled by a Jonny Lieberman piece on Autoblog which reported that the delership "did better than the right thing, selling Alex a 2010 Challenger SRT8 rather than the 250-mile car he won in the auction"---Jonny got the mileage wrong, it had 500)....whether he got any car, or whether "Hitman" is in fact the person who won that auction (eBay generates anonymous bidder IDs). 

And there are questions raised by the eBay bidding record for the auction, which shows the winning bid was $9,000 higher than the leading bid at the time...several hours before the end of the auction.

Does "Hitman's" post last night make ChallengerTalk members happy now? Not a chance. Just one response:

Sorry, I am really on the edge of calling BS here. (And I know I am an outsider, but still...)

You can take the time to post this dribble, but can not take the time to tell us what went down and what exactly you ended up buying? Also, a brand new car does not need to be waxed to shine.
Forget the pics, just tell the story.


Follow along, beginning with "Hitman's" post last night, here.

By the way, we checked...the SRT-8 in the auction is not in the dealership's online inventory as of this morning.

Where's 'Hitman" And His Car? (Updated 12:36 PM MST)

The ChallengerTalk Forums have been on a rollercoaster ride the past week: Outrage over a member named "Hitman" being denied the keys to a 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT-8 after a $29,100 winning bid on eBay was disputed by Southern California dealer Glenn E. Thomas Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep....support for "Hitman" when it was announced that he and the dealer were going to sit down face to face last Friday after eBay announced there was no technical glitch, as the dealer had claimed.....and celebration when, just after 7:00 AM PST Sunday morning, "Hitman" posted the news that the dealership "honored the $29.1K auction", along with a photo that showed a key with a Glenn E. Thomas fob atop a Challenger brochure and a handwritten note reading "YES!"

One more post, three hours later...saying he was going to take it easy, read the owner's manual...and since then...silence. At least from "Hitman".  No more posts, no more photos.

From members of the forums? Well, a growing number of posters are questioning whether things are as they seem.  They don't really know "Hitman" (he'd only made two posts on the forum prior to starting the thread about his having won the auction on March 13).

An examination of the bidding record for the auction raises some questions, too. 15 bids were made for the SRT-8, by only 5 bidders.

March 12, a single bidder made 10 bids, ranging from $22,000 to $29,000, with no competing bids in between, in a four and a half hour period. These appear to be automatic bids.

And then comes "Hitman" (or so we're told, since eBay keeps actual bidder IDs confidential by assigning an anonymous bidder name)...who makes his one and only bid of $29,100.

But unless there's a glitch with eBay time stamps, that's weird, too...because the $29,100 bid is shown as having been made at 08:54:13 PST...and the 10-bid streak described above didn't start until 11:00:25 PST...more than two hours later. Which means "Hitman" chose $29,100 as his bid when the standing high bid was $20,100.

A last-moment hail-mary to shut out the competition? Maybe. Except "Hitman"'s winning bid was more than five hours before the auction closed. And eBay says automatic bidders' maximum bids are kept confidential from other bidders.

Open up "Hitman"'s bidding history and you'll find he's no power bidder. He's been involved in exactly four eBay auctions...and the Challenger SRT-8 is the only one where he had the winning bid.

Hey, it could be that "Hitman" is just out enjoying the SRT-8...but his friends in the Challenger community are beginning to wonder if they've been had.