Jeep Grand Cherokee Getting a Hellcat Engine?

Posted on June 1, 2015 by baysideadmin

The Dodge Charger and Challenger Hellcats have been popular with muscle car fans and while Dodge is scrambling to keep up with the demand of the public, the question is if any other vehicles will be getting the Hellcat engine. According to Motor Authority, a Jeep may be next in line.

The SRT brand is coming under Dodge and with it most of their performance tech will be placed into Dodge vehicles, such as the Hellcats. Since SRT serviced all of the vehicles under the Chrysler flag, what is going to happen to the non-Dodge vehicles? While the 300 SRT is looking to only be available overseas, SRT is still going to put its stamp on the Grand Cherokee.

While it won’t be a Dodge Jeep or anything like that, the Grand Cherokee SRT is looking to be named Trackhawk, something that was trademarked by FCA a year ago. By going off the five-year strategy FCA showed off, the Grand Cherokee is getting an update here soon and this new Trackhawk could be shown off as part of that update.

A new name and SRT labeling isn’t the only thing, as the Hellcat engine may also be included in the Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, something that Car and Diver seemed to think was a given at this point. As they stated when they first broke the Hellcat engine in a Grand Cherokee, the problem is that the Jeep will need some work to be able to handle the engine’s power and will be undergoing some revisions.

Do you think the Grand Cherokee should get the Hellcat engine?

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Jeep Compass and Patriot Replacement Spotted!

Posted on May 28, 2015 by baysideadmin

Many aspects of Fiat-Chrysler’s previously announced five-year strategy have yet to come to pass. So far, everything seems to be in line as some models get ready to get put away and to be replaced that new vehicles. As part of the Jeep brand, the Patriot and the Compass are going away for a time and will be getting a new Jeep to replace the two. What it should be in theory is a half-way point between the new starter Jeep Renegade and the new popular Jeep Cherokee. That Jeep, or at least a prototype, was spotted in the open.

Jeep wasn’t too shy about it either. It was the first public road test of this new unnamed Jeep. Motor Authority got their hands on the pictures and, sadly in this case, the prototype looks to be not too different from the Renegade. It makes sense that the newest design for a Jeep, the Renegade, would be the starter platform for anything new to come into the Jeep brand.

Another look, as Motor Authority shows, that this isn’t simply a Renegade. The test mule shown in the shots has a longer rear section. What else is known isn’t what is seen in the prototype and that is that the new nine-speed automatic transmission will likely be an option and all-wheel drive will also probably be available.

What would you like to see in the new Jeep slated to replace the Patriot and the Compass? Let us know in the comments.

Where is the New Wrangler Going to be Produced?

Posted on May 23, 2015 by baysideadmin

The Wall Street Journal maps out the long road it has been to keep the Wrangler production at the Toledo plant. Sergio Marchionne has been keeping the people at the Toledo Assembly Plant on edge with his comments about what to expect from the 2017 Jeep Wrangler. He said that the new Jeep will be making use of aluminum to have better fuel efficiency but the new Wrangler will not have an all-aluminum body.

This is a change from his comments back in October that the new Wrangler would be having an aluminum body. Using that material would mean the Jeep would have to be built elsewhere, taking the Wrangler away from the Toledo plant for the first time in many years.

“We’ve run the numbers and we’ve simulated the mileage,” Mr. Marchionne is quoted as saying. “But because of the difference in costs, not just in materials but the actual assembly process, I think we can do almost as well without aluminum.”

This may be the sign that Marchionne is keeping the Wrangler still in Toledo, something he said he wanted to do. The plant and local city officials have been working hard to convince the company to keep the Wrangler there as well. They’ve bought up additional land for the auto maker to use if any additional building for the plant needed to happen.

While Marchionne hasn’t said for sure one way or the other, it is clear that Toledo will be fighting until the end to hold onto that Wrangler production.