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Autonomous Chrysler Pacficas join Lyft test fleet

Lyft has another year of building out its autonomous driving program under its belt, and the ride-hailing company has been expanding its testing steadily throughout 2019. The company says that it's now driving four times more miles on a quarterly basis than it was just six months ago, and has roughly 400 people worldwide dedicated to autonomous vehicle technology development. Going into next year, it's also expanding the program by adding a new type of self-driving test car to its fleet: Chrysler's Pacifica hybrid minivan, which is also the platform of choice for Waymo's current generation of self-driving car. The Pacifica makes a lot of sense as a ridesharing vehicle, since it's a perfect passenger car with easy access via the big sliding door and plenty of creature comforts inside. Indeed, Lyft says that it was chosen specifically because of its "size and functionality" and what those offer to the Lyft AV team when it comes to "experiment[ing] with the self-driving rideshare experience. Lyft says it's currently working on building these test vehicles out in order to get them on the road. Lyft's choice of vehicle is likely informed by its existing experience with the Pacificas, which it encountered when it partnered with Waymo starting back in May, with that company's autonomous vehicle pilot program in Phoenix, Arizona. That ongoing partnership, in which Waymo rides are offered on Lyft's ride-hailing network, is providing Lyft with plenty of information about how riders experience self-driving ride-hailing, Lyft says. In addition to Waymo, Lyft is also currently partnering with Aptiv on providing self-driving services commercially to the public through that company's Vegas AV deployment. In addition to adding Pacificas to its fleet alongside the current Ford Fusion test vehicles it has in operation, Lyft is opening a second facility in addition to its Level 5 Engineering Center, the current central hub of its global AV development program. Like the Level 5 Engineering Center, its new dedicated testing facility will be located in Palo Alto, and having the two close together will help "increase the number of tests we run," according to Lyft. The new test site is designed to host intersections, traffic lights, roadway merges, pedestrian pathways and other features of public roads, all reconfigurable to simulate a wide range of real-world driving scenarios.

Mopar-modified Chrysler 200 reappears in Chicago

Chrysler made what was one of the biggest debuts of the 2014 North American International Auto Show last month when it debuted the heavily redesigned 200. While impressive on its own, the sleek sedan's Mopar counterpart, which was tucked away in a corner during the Detroit show, adds even more visual flair.
Based on the Chrysler 200S, the showcar had already benefitted from Lunar White Tricoat paint and meaty, 19-inch wheels (now in Satin Lite Bronze finish). White leather seats with bronze stitching accented the cabin treatment.
For Chicago, Chrysler added a Mopar body kit and new upper and lower grilles, both of which give the four-door a considerably more menacing look. The rear fascia is set off by a new bumper and a revised set of exhaust tips. The cabin is unchanged from the Detroit car.

Undersized grille was #1 complaint of 2011-2014 Chrysler 300 owners

Not only did the 2005-2011 Chrysler 300 have a big ol' grille, it jutted ahead of the car. The grille was the metaphorical figurehead for the USS 300, and it did its job, making the sedan the Central Casting submission for "in-your-face styling" that rolled down the street winning the game of "Made You Look." The one-billion-dollar redesign for 2011 (pictured above) aimed for more upscale and less aggression - "a more grown-up look" - so the grille shrunk. And Chrysler 300 buyers hated that. So said Chrysler brand president Al Gardner to Edmunds, relating that the smaller grille was "the No. 1 issue" on the list of customer complaints about the model years from 2011 to 2014. It doesn't appear to have been much loved in-house, either, with Ralph Gilles having said of it, "Our previous generation of leaders didn't understand the car very well, and kind of forced this front end on us." That's why the grille on the 2015 model (pictured in 300S trim, inset) was aggrandized by 33 percent, although it's still not as large as on the first generation, and the more fluid design of the current car doesn't let it stand out as before. Gardner went on to say that designers "spent more time on the front end than on anything else," in search of, as Gilles put it, "the attitude it deserves." We'll soon find out if that increases the number of buyers it deserves as well. Related Gallery 2015 Chrysler 300: First Drive View 40 Photos News Source: EdmundsImage Credit: Copyright 2014 AOL Design/Style Chrysler Sedan