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Chrysler slows minivan production, hasn't built VW Routan this year

Chrysler has slowed production of its Town and Country and Dodge Grand Caravan minivans this week, Automotive News reports. The Windsor, Ontario plant will cut its three shifts from eight hours each to four hours each in an effort "to align production with market demand," a Chrysler spokesperson told AN. Chrysler also builds the closely related Routan minivan for Volkswagen at its Ontario facility, but has not built a single example thus far in 2013.
Sales of Chrysler's minivans fell 15 percent for the first two months of 2013, and a large part of that has to do with the 26-percent drop of the Grand Caravan alone (the T&C was only down by one percent). According to Automotive News data, as of March 1, Chrysler had an unsold inventory of 24,713 Town and Country models and 18,547 Grand Caravans - a 69- and 43-day supply, respectively.
"No sense running full speed now, then have a lot of vehicles sitting around a few months down the line," Chrysler spokeswoman Jodi Tinson told AN. Full production is expected to resume again on March 18.

FCA's U.S. sales chief sues company for wrongful retaliation

Some fresh controversy is brewing at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles as The Detroit News reports that the head of U.S. sales has filed a federal whistleblower lawsuit against the company.. Reid Bigland, who's also in charge of the Ram truck brand, alleges that FCA made him a scapegoat for wrongful sales inflation practices and fixing vehicle sales statistics, which are currently under investigation by federal agents. Bigland claims that FCA executives punished him for cooperating with the federal investigators in the case by cutting his pay by more than 90 percent, according to the lawsuit he filed. The plan apparently was to use the money saved to pay for fines following any settlements made with the Securities and Exchange Commission. So far, the lawsuit alleges that FCA cost Bigland over $1.8 million in income. "They had the largest growth in retail sales in 17 years last year and refuses to pay him," Deborah Gordon, Bigland's lawyer in the case, said to The Detroit News. "Why is that? Because he participated in the SEC investigation and they don't like what he said." Bigland claims he just cooperated with the SEC investigation by testifying about FCA's sales reporting, from the time he took the position to the period prior to being appointed the company's U.S. sales chief. "In late 2018, presumably as a way to wrap up their investigation with some result, the SEC suggested to plaintiff that he admit to some wrongdoing as to defendants' monthly sales reporting," Gordon further said in a statement as part of the lawsuit. "The SEC also suggested a resolution involving some penalty to FCA. Because (Bigland) had not engaged in any wrongdoing, and there was no wrongdoing, he declined to do so." However, exacerbating the issue is the fact that Bigland reportedly sold his shares in the company last year, prompting FCA to act against him even more. FCA came under fire recently by federal agents in at least two separate investigations, potentially exposing conspiracy and corruption between company executives and private entities. The investigations are being led independently by the U.S. Attorney's Office and the FBI. So far, eight convictions were reportedly secured, with one including former Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Vice President Alphons Iacobelli, as one of the defendants. Iacobelli was one of the former top labor-relations executives for the automaker.

2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid | Mountain road / fuel economy review

PORTLAND, Ore. — I don't have children, which makes it a wee bit difficult to fully appreciate and evaluate every nuance of the 2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. I'll leave that to Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore and any other proud parents at Michigan HQ where the long-term and extremely blue Pacifica resides. However, with an extremely beige Pacifica Hybrid in my driveway this week, I figured I could tackle something that's difficult to fully evaluate in the Mitten State: mountain road driving. You know, that thing families totally care about, right after safety ratings and cupholder count. ... Or not. Again, no kids. Admittedly, putting it through a fuel economy test seems more useful, so I did that too. Now, typically, minivans are huge boxes with a stratospheric center of gravity courtesy a whole bunch of steel, a whole bunch of panoramic sunroof glass, and a whole bunch of air ducting packed into the roof. This leads to a rather tippy driving experience that's exacerbated by a soft suspension intended to provide pillow-like comfort for the kiddos in the back. . This would apply to the regular Pacifica, but the Hybrid, it's different. Stuffed into the area where the Stow 'n Go seats would normally stow and go into, this plug-in hybrid's 96-cell lithium-ion battery pack is smack dab in the middle of the van and quite low to the ground. It's exactly where you'd want to stuff 568 extra pounds to counteract all that weight up high. It also settles that suspension down, resulting in a minivan that feels more buttoned down and poised with minimal rebound over bumps. Body roll is even kept nicely in check. This, despite balloonier, higher-profile tires than what you'd get in a comparable regular Pacifica. The steering could still use just a smidge more effort upon turn-in, but remains more reassuring and engaging than Honda's disappointingly loosey-goosey steering. Throttle response is different in the Pacifica Hybrid as well, providing ultra-smooth and torque-rich electric power delivery reminiscent of an EV. Even when the all-electric range has been depleted, the Pacifica Hybrid continues to feel more like an electric car than one that also has a gasoline engine aboard. It certainly helps that that engine is a smooth 3.6-liter V6 rather than a buzzy four-cylinder bound to make a racket. Unless you really gun the thing, it's difficult to detect when puttering around town or at a steady highway cruise. In total, the Pacifica Hybrid is better to drive.