2004 Chrysler Crossfire on 2040-cars

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Forget the stupid millennial pitch, the Chrysler Portal Concept is full of good ideas

Chrysler's statements on the Portal Concept are heavy on the millennial, as we previously mentioned. And as such, the six-passenger people hauler shown at CES 2017 has all the elements of a concept for the m-word generation - connectivity, cameras, and plenty of items with a "modular" adjective on them. But put aside the tired idea that millennials are different from other car shoppers for a moment, because the Portal Concept boasts a bunch of great design ideas that anyone would appreciate. The thing is that millennials are the widest chunk of population in the United States. As such, they're hard to define. It seems like someone at Chrysler realizes this, as the press release for the Portal states: "While millennials are a broad group of consumers at varying life stages, the Chrysler Portal concept is designed and engineered with all life stages and lifestyles in mind, including active/adventure, single, married/partnered, those with newborns and older children." In other words, this is a vehicle designed for all kinds of people that suits all kinds of needs. Spoiler alert: The best package for flexible hauling of people and cargo is a minivan. And that's what the Portal Concept is, albeit slightly smaller than the current Pacifica. Chrysler Portal Concept View 20 Photos It's an obvious angle, as Chrysler popularized the modern minivan. But with current vans ballooning in size, there's room for the same virtues in a smaller footprint. If it takes 360-degree cameras and a customizable light ring around the doors to convince people that a flat floor and movable seats are cool, so be it. It's the practical aspects of the Portal that we like best, not the throwaway concessions to connectivity and autonomy. The best, most practical feature in the Portal is its seating arrangement. The seats ride on two parallel tracks, and each folds skinny with the seat pan popping vertical, or low with the seatback down. All (save the driver's bucket) slide back for room in front, or vice versa for space in the rear. Integrated seatbelts further help the seating flexibility. Even in a more realistic production form this is a clever innovation, almost as good as the original Stow 'N' Go. The same goes for the panoramic, high-mount screen that shows the dashboard and a host of other informative bits of data.

Chrysler Q3 profits surge to $611M but per-unit profits trouble

Chrysler Group has announced its third-quarter financial results a little later than its crosstown rivals at General Motors and Ford, but the company has reason to celebrate thanks to strong numbers across the board.
The biggest attention-grabber from the automaker is that its net income was up 32 percent in the third quarter to $611 million, compared to $464 million over the same period last year. Modified operating profit was also strong at $946 million - a 10 percent gain. Furthermore, net revenue grew as well to $20.7 billion - 18 percent higher Q3 2013.
Growing sales pushed the strong financials. Chrysler Group sold about 711,000 vehicles worldwide for the quarter, up 18 percent from a year ago. Things looked especially good in the US, where its market share grew to 12.3 percent, versus 11.2 percent in Q3 2013.

The UAW's 'record contract' hinges on pensions, battery plants

DETROIT - After nearly four weeks of disruptive strikes and hard bargaining, the United Auto Workers and the Detroit Three automakers have edged closer to a deal that could offer record-setting wage gains for nearly 150,000 U.S. workers. General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis have all agreed to raise base wages by between 20% and 23% over a four-year deal, according to union and company statements. Ford and Stellantis have agreed to reinstate cost-of-living adjustments, or COLA. The companies have offered to boost pay for temporary workers and give them a faster path to full-time, full-wage status. All three have proposed slashing the time it takes a new hire to get to the top UAW pay rate. The progress in contract talks follows the first-ever simultaneous strike by the UAW against Detroit's Big Three automakers. The union began the strike on Sept. 15 in hopes of forcing a better deal from each major automaker. But coming close to a deal is not the same thing as reaching a deal. Big obstacles remain on at least two major UAW demands: restoring the retirement security provided by pre-2007 defined benefit pension plans, and covering present and future joint- venture electric vehicle battery plants under the union's master contracts with the automakers. On retirement, none of the automakers has agreed to restore pre-2007 defined-benefit pension plans for workers hired after 2007. Doing so could force the automakers to again burden their balance sheets with multibillion-dollar liabilities. GM and the former Chrysler unloaded most of those liabilities in their 2009 bankruptcies. The union and automakers have explored an approach to providing more income security by offering annuities as an investment option in their company-sponsored 401(k) savings plans, people familiar with the discussions said. Stellantis referred to an annuity option as part of a more generous 401(k) proposal on Sept. 22. Annuities or similar instruments could give UAW retirees assurance of fixed, predictable payouts less dependent on stock market ups and downs, experts said. Recent changes in federal law have removed obstacles to including annuities as a feature of corporate 401(k) plans, said Olivia Mitchell, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School and an expert on pensions and retirement. "Retirees want a way to be assured they won't run out of money," Mitchell said.