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Junkyard Gem: 1990 Chrysler LeBaron GT Convertible

When Chrysler sprang back to life under Lee Iacocca and his K-Cars, the flagship of the new front-wheel-drive order was the luxurious new 1982 LeBaron convertible, which shoved aside the drab and antiquated Dodge Diplomat-based 1981 LeBaron. The LeBaron sedan got the axe after 1989, with only sporty coupes and devil-may-care ragtops given LeBaron badges after that. Here's an example of the third-generation LeBaron convertible, found in a Colorado wrecking yard a few months ago. There were four trim levels of LeBaron convertible available for the 1990 model year: Highline, Premium, GT and GTC. Today's Junkyard Gem is a second-from-the-top GT, which had an MSRP of $17,799 (about $43,383 in 2023 dollars). The intake manifold may bear the Chrysler name, but this engine is three liters of pure Mitsubishi 6G72 power. With 141 horsepower and 171 pound-feet, this engine was  standard equipment on the GT convertible (if you bought the GTC Coupe, you got a 175-horse 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder). The idea of a Detroit luxury machine with a manual transmission seems strange today… and it was also somewhat strange 33 years ago. The original buyer of this car almost certainly had the money for the optional automatic ($552, or $1,314 today) but preferred the five-on-the-floor manual. With a curb weight of just 2,775 pounds, this car would have been plenty of fun to drive with a three-pedal setup. The resemblance between this car and its far more expensive first cousin, Chrysler's TC by Maserati, was all too obvious to TC shoppers. Yes, that's genuine Corinthian Leather on the seats. Driver's-side airbags were rare on 1990 US-market cars, but Chrysler was ahead of the competition with this safety feature. This car nearly reached 275,000 miles during its life. Who says a convertible doesn't make a good daily commuter? It looks to have been in good condition at the end, though the driver's door latch mechanism needed to be reattached via welding repairs at some point. The retractable headlight covers are open in these photos. Chrysler ditched the hidden headlights for the 1993 LeBarons; production ended after 1995. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. There is no luxury without engineering. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. In Canada, Celine Dion pitched this generation of LeBaron convertible.

Harsh words from senators over Chrysler's delay in reporting hack

The federal agency charged with protecting American motorists wants to know more about how hackers remotely commandeered and controlled a Jeep Cherokee. Hours after Fiat Chrysler Automobiles recalled 1.4 million cars affected by a flaw in their cellular connections, officials with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday they'll further probe the defect by conducting a formal recall query investigation. "Opening this investigation will allow NHTSA to better assess the effectiveness of the remedy proposed," the agency said in a written statement. The remedy works, said Chris Valasek, one of the researchers who first discovered the security flaw. After testing for the vulnerability again Friday, he wrote on Twitter: "Looks like I can't get to @0xcharlie's Jeep from my house via my phone. Good job FCA/Sprint!" From his Pittsburgh home, Valasek had previously accessed and controlled co-worker Charlie Miller's Jeep along a St. Louis highway. Researchers have demonstrated remote hacks before, but the scope and severity of the Jeep vulnerability was unprecedented. The recall for a cyber threat was the first of its kind. Although a software patch and changes made by cellular provider Sprint appeared to fix the problem, news of the exploit and Chrysler's response brought a fresh round of consternation on Capitol Hill, where federal lawmakers had already expressed concerns about automotive cyber security. The Jeep hack elevated their concerns to a new level. "Cyber threats in cars are real and urgent, no figment of the imagination, as this huge recall demonstrates," said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT). "Incredibly, Chrysler delayed disclosing this chilling cyber-security danger egregiously and inexcusably, and strong sanctions are appropriate to send a message that other auto manufacturers will heed." Chrysler had known about the security gap since October, and Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) wondered why it took the company so long to let customers know they were at risk. "Despite knowing about this security gap for nearly nine months, Chrysler is only now recalling 1.4 million vehicles to fix this vulnerability," he said. That's a potential pitfall for Chrysler, and something NHTSA will likely address in its investigation. Automakers are supposed to report safety-related defects to the agency within five days of discovery. But according to a chronology of events Chrysler submitted in its recall paperwork, it didn't inform NHTSA until July 15.

Watch Jay Leno's Garage work on a Porsche 911 and others

Jay Leno doesn't just own a bunch of cars – he restores them. (Or has people who restores them, at any rate.) For this latest video, he's showing us some of the projects he and his team are currently working on. The tour-de-garage starts with a 1953 Cunningham that had been in storage since '68, complete with a copper grille ready for plating and a 331 Hemi V8. Jay says that every one of the cars that Briggs Cunningham made is still on the road – but that's just one of the dozen or so projects Jay and company are working on. There's a suitably brown '71 Porsche 911 T in near-original condition having sat untouched parked underground in Beverly Hills for decades, and a '58 Chrysler Imperial convertible once driven by Clark Gable and Frank Sinatra, and now getting a brake upgrade. There's a Volvo 122 wagon that's been stripped down, media-blasted, and powder-coated, a thousand-horsepower Rolls-Royce, a 1960 Nash Metropolitan, a supercharged Mercedes-Benz 600 Pullman, and a 1914 Detroit Electric. And those are just the four-wheeled automobiles. Over in the two-wheeler section there's a pair of Brough Superiors, a BSA, an Indian, and a custom racing sidecar that Jay's mechanic Bernard is working on. In short, Jay Leno's Garage isn't just one where vehicles are kept – it's one where vehicles are brought back to life. Related Video: News Source: Jay Leno's Garage via YouTube Chrysler Mercedes-Benz Porsche Classics Videos Jay Lenos Garage bsa