fiat buys chrysler?????

[moe7404]

fiat buys chrysler??????? is it time to go to a diff brand?? me? buy a car made in Italy? i think not!!!!!

 

[hamz9561]

They're still made here except for the van which is imported, Moe.

 

[SMaxxin]

Fiat has had their hands in Chrysler for a while now, they finally convinced Chrysler to sell out completely.

 

[Rolex]

I'm pretty sure Fiat is still the major owner of Ferrari and Alfa Romeo, so I wouldn't be worried about the quality of Chrysler going downhill.

 

[moe7404]

i dont worry about going down hill. i have trouble pushing it to my mech shop.

 

[hamz9561]

So find one that's down hill from you...

 

[Sixtysixdeuce]

The Fiat of today is not the "fix it again, Tony" of yore. If I'm not mistaken, they are currently the largest conglomerate automaker in the world. While I don't really care for any euro styling, gotta give credit where it's due.

More importantly, while I'd prefer that Chrysler remain a US owned company, I'm glad that Fiat bought them rather than them becoming government motors 2 or simply going bankrupt. The American automakers have had a tough go of it, with so much of their sales having been the larger SUVs and trucks that are getting hammered by new EPA standards.

Whatever comes of it, I am confident it will be better than the Daimler partnership trainwreck that yielded such crap as the PT Cruiser and Crossfire (not to mentioned the 3.7 & 4.7L Mercedes designed :dancingpoop

 

[hamz9561]

Well. Diamler-Chrysler did give us the chassis for the current Jeep Wrangler and the Grand Cherokee as well as the Dodge Magnum/Charger/Challenger and current Chrysler 300.

 

[Sixtysixdeuce]

Diamler-Chrysler did give us the chassis for the current Jeep Wrangler and the Grand Cherokee as well as the Dodge Magnum/Charger/Challenger and current Chrysler 300.

Well, they can keep the KJ, JK and WK; like all newer "Jeeps", they are an insult to the formerly great label. I mean, really? A minivan engine in an "off-road" chassis? Not to mention the new "Cherokee", which looks like Hyundai, and has not a hint of it's off-road heritage remaining with the transverse 4 cylinder aluminum engine and 4 wheel independent suspension.

As for the LX/LD/LC cars, the only part that stinks of Benz is the pile-o-poo transmission.

 

[SMaxxin]

While I don't care for the looks of the new Cherokee in an off road situation it would run circles around the old Cherokee if both were left in stock running gear....IMO thats what a Jeep should do! Without mods the old Cherokee would get stuck in it's own shadow!

The American automakers have had a tough go of it, with so much of their sales having been the larger SUVs and trucks that are getting hammered by new EPA standards.

This is why Fiat pushed for the Ram 1500 diesel which we should see very soon in the US, a truck that can do the work and still get great mpg's for a truck. They also pushed to get the eco diesel in the Jeeps in the US.

 

[Sixtysixdeuce]

While I don't care for the looks of the new Cherokee in an off road situation it would run circles around the old Cherokee if both were left in stock running gear....IMO thats what a Jeep should do! Without mods the old Cherokee would get stuck in it's own shadow!

Have you ever owned one? The '84-01 XJ was a very capable vehicle, even in stock form. Mine had stock open 3.55 diffs, and only a "budget boost" 1.5" lift with 31x10.50 tires, had no trouble with 4 and 5 rated Colorado trails.

The new thing has about 4" less ground clearance, squishy suspension, and you have to opt for a low range locking transfer case; standard equipment is a plain old AWD system, like a Subaru. It should tell us something about the design and intended use that it comes equipped with regular all season passenger car tires.

I have built quite a few trucks and designed/crewed for an XRRA team. There's a reason live axles are preferred. The HMMWV is an exception, but it hardly has a conventional independent suspension system.

 

[hamz9561]

The current JK is a capable off-roader stock and is a favorite of a lot of off-roaders today. I loved mine.

 

[Non Crimen]

awd system, like a subaru.

 

[SMaxxin]

Have you ever owned one?

An off roading buddy had one, a stock 4 runner on at's would put it to shame and the Cherokee had off road tires. They are great rigs to build up but IMO nothing special when left stock.

 

[Sixtysixdeuce]

The current JK is a capable off-roader stock and is a favorite of a lot of off-roaders today. I loved mine.

My big beef with the JK is the 3.8 V6; it belongs in a caravan, where it began life. Nixing the 4.0 L6 was the biggest mistake they could have made (kinda like Ford axing the Navistar 7.3).

Now, once you stick a Hemi in them, then you have something. A friend of mine owns Nemesis Industries; he was the Western branch of Burnsville Off Road, doing 5.7, 6.2 and 6.4 Hemi conversions. He's not doing them anymore, but still has his prototype with the 6.4 VVT Hemi. That thing runs.

 

[hamz9561]

Actually, the JK has a 3.5 liter Pentastar V-6. It's the same basic one that they run in everything from the Ram 1500 to the Grand Cherokee and the Chrysler 300. It is NOT used in the Caravan.

The 2007 JK came with the 3.5 and plenty of power and got over 25 mpg on the road. I know because I did it with mine.

 

[Sixtysixdeuce]

Actually, the JK has a 3.5 liter Pentastar V-6. It's the same basic one that they run in everything from the Ram 1500 to the Grand Cherokee and the Chrysler 300. It is NOT used in the Caravan.

The 2007 JK came with the 3.5 and plenty of power and got over 25 mpg on the road. I know because I did it with mine.

It's a 3.6L DOHC, and that didn't start until MY 2012 . 2007-11 JK came with the 3.8L iron block/aluminum head pushrod engine that was used in the AS van chassis and carried on through the NS, RS & 2008-2010 RT chassis. It also found a home in the larger cars of the early '90s, such as the Imperial & Fifth Avenue.

The 3.5L SOHC was found in LH cars starting in 1994, was destroked to 3.2L for MY 1998, returned in an HO version with the '99 300M, found a new home when the LH gave way to the LX, and finally was replaced with the 3.6L DOHC in 2011/12 for LX/LD/LC chassis.

Ram has NEVER had the 3.5L, nor any engine based on it. Neither has any Jeep model. The V6 truck engine was a 3.7L SOHC that was based on the 4.7L SOHC V8, less two cylinders. The 3.7 had a home in the Dakota, Durango, 1/2 ton ram, Liberty and Grand Cherokee from '02-'11.

Please remember that I own and operate an auto shop, been wrenching professionally for 16 years (I'm 32 now). I know a thing or two about what's going on underhood & undercar.

A little reading on the Pentastar powerplant: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysler_Pentastar_engine

---------- Post added at 1:07 AM ---------- Previous post was at 1:02 AM ----------

In case you're doubting me:

Sorry, I've been trying to make this screen shot larger. No dice.

 

[hamz9561]

I stand corrected on the engine displacement, but it did have plenty of power and it did get over 25 mpg.

The reason many put a Hemi in them is because like all hot rodders and a lot of people on here believe that there is no such thing as too much power.

 

[aMawds]

Yeah Fiat is one of the largest automotive companies in the world. It isn't because they still build things that rust. I'm rolling onto year three of daily driving a '76 124 Spider. I will tell you right now, it wasn't so much poor build quality as much as morons with wire snips and electrical tape making modifications to the complicated electrical. Example: Fiat used a genius little string of fiber optic lit up by a single 194 style bulb to light up all of the little icons around the heater controls. One of the previous owners actually tried to splice into one of the fibers for whatever reason.

 

[Sixtysixdeuce]

hot rodders and a lot of people on here believe that there is no such thing as too much power.

There isn't! Nor such a thing as too much ammo! (unless you're drowning or on fire)