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Italian government to lean on Fiat's Marchionne to commit to country

With the recent chatter that Fiat is looking to move its global headquarters to the US following a complete merger with Chrysler, the Italian government is voicing its opinion on the matter. Facing the potential job loss from the automaker leaving the country, Italy's industry minister is meeting with Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne in what will likely be a plea to keep the company based in Turin rather than moving to Auburn Hills, MI - if indeed it is able to acquire the additional 41.5 percent of Chrysler currently owned by the United Auto Workers.
According to Bloomberg, Fiat is Italy's biggest private employer and unemployment is already nearing a 20-year high. The non-car side of Fiat, Fiat Industrial, is already planning a move to the UK, so it goes without saying that Fiat moving would be a pretty big blow for the Italian economy. In the article, Fiat says that the headquarters issue is "not on its agenda now," but that statement is far from a denial.

Hellcrate 6.2-liter V8 delivers plug-and-play Hellcat hype to SEMA

SEMA just provided another entry for the folder marked "What A Time To Be Alive," with Mopar's announcement of the "Hellcrate" 6.2-liter supercharged Crate HEMI engine. Enthusiasts have been desperate to upgrade their vintage rides with the woozy thrills provided by Dodge's Hellcat motor, so Mopar answered. The Hellcrate engine assembly ships in plug-and-play configuration, in specially designed packaging with "Hellcrate" logos. The assembly sells separately from the Hellcrate engine kit, the kit adding a powertrain control module, power distribution center, engine wiring harness, chassis harness, accelerator pedal, ground jumper, oxygen sensors, charge air temperature sensors, and fuel pump control module. The PCM comes programmed with the production-car engine's 707 horsepower and 650 pound-feet of torque. An optional front-end accessory drive kit contributes peripherals like alternator, power steering pump, belts, and pulleys. Don't bother trying to lash up a sleeper 1997 Chrysler Sebring, though; Mopar tuned the Hellcrate for pre-1976 vehicles and manual transmissions. The engine assembly retails for an MSRP of $19,530, and the kit wants a further $2,195. Mopar didn't announce pricing for the accessory drive kit. The engine and kit come with a three-year, unlimited-mileage warranty when bought together. The Mopar Hemi Crate website will be happy to take your orders as of now. For help envisioning the possibilities, stop by Fiat Chrysler's 15,345-square-foot SEMA booth to check out the Limelight Green, Hellcrate-powered 1970 Plymouth Superbird clone worked up by Mark Worman of Velocity's " Graveyard Carz." While you're there you might as well peep Worman's encore, a 1968 Plymouth GTX stuffed with Mopar's 392 Crate HEMI in place of the original 440 big block, and the 1937 Dodge pickup that swallowed a Mopar 345 Crate HEMI. Mopar's come a long way from its original product: antifreeze products. Tomorrow it'll be Jeep's turn to ring the SEMA bells, once the noise dies down from the Mopar-jacked Wrangler Switchback, CJ66 and Jeep Shortcut. You can watch the brand's presentation online at 7:26 p.m. ET/4:26 p.m. PT. Until then, we're going to work the angles on a Hellcrate-powered Plymouth Volare. The sedan, naturally. Because we're practical. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

FCA cuts powertrain warranties to 60k miles

FCA US is cutting back the mileage of its powertrain warranty on some 2016 model year vehicles. Rather than the current five years/100,000 miles of coverage, the new amount is five years/60,000 miles for gasoline-fueled models from Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge and Ram. In March 2015, General Motors made a similar switch to five-years/60,000-miles of coverage for Chevrolet and GMC, and FCA US seems to be citing this as part of the reason for the shift. "Following changes already made by competitors, FCA US is adjusting powertrain warranty coverage for 2016 model year vehicles to be more consistent with industry practices," the automaker said in a portion of its statement. The bumper-to-bumper warranty for these vehicles is unchanged at three years/36,000 miles. According to Automotive News, Fiat's warranty is remaining at four years/50,000 miles. When it changed the mileage limit, GM also halved the number of free service visits for Chevy, GMC, and Buick to two from the previous four. The automaker claimed that the reason for the adjustments to its coverage was that a long warranty was seldom a reason for customers to buy a vehicle. Related Video: Response to Query: 2016MY Powertrain Warranty Adjustment Following changes already made by competitors, FCA US is adjusting powertrain warranty coverage for 2016 model year vehicles to be more consistent with industry practices. For 2016MY, Chrysler, Jeep®, Dodge and Ram Truck vehicles with gasoline engines will be covered by a 5 year/60,000 mile powertrain warranty. The basic coverage, also known as "bumper to bumper," remains at 3 years/36,000 miles. # # # News Source: FCA US, Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Mark Ralston / AFP / Getty Images Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM Car Buying Maintenance Ownership FCA warranty fca us powertrain