2011 Chrysler Town & Country Touring on 2040-cars

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Marchionne uses racial epithet to describe what must power future Alfa Romeo models

Sergio Marchionne and his Fiat empire have a lot riding on the US return of the Alfa Romeo brand. The endeavor has been in progress for what feels like a lifetime - certainly for as long as Fiat has had the Chrysler brand under its Italian wing.
It's not surprising that Fiat CEO Marchionne needs a perfect first Alfa to mark a return to America. And here's where things get dicey. Nobody would argue with Marchionne's insistence that Alfa Romeo's be powered by Italian engines - as Marchionne himself is quoted to have said at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show, "There are some things that are well done in Italy."
If not what he said, then, it's how he said it that has eyebrows raised. "I cannot come up with a schlock product, I just won't. I won't put an American engine into that car. With all due respect to my American friends, it needs to be a wop engine." Wait, what's that?

2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid Long-Term Update | Recall!

Our long-term 2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid has been in the fleet for about six months now and is quickly accumulating more miles than most of our long-term vehicles do in a full year. Thanks to a couple of recent road trips, one to New England and one to Florida, our Ocean Blue Metallic minivan has racked up about 15,000 miles. I personally hope we can cross the 25,000-mile mark before we're finished. The Pacifica Hybrid has garnered near universal praise from the Autoblog staff, especially those of us who have kids or pets. While it's mostly been hiccup free, one recall had us a bit on edge. NHTSA campaign number 18V740000 was issued last fall, but we didn't get the notification until early this year. Blame the delay on the weird ownership situation of long-term vehicles. NHTSA's basic description is short. "After the vehicle has been operating in PHEV propulsion mode, the gas-fueled engine may not restart properly resulting in unburned fuel entering the exhaust catalyst." Basically, the engine may not restart correctly after running in EV mode, and the fuel being fed to the engine could make its way past the exhaust manifold to the catalytic converters and ignite, possibly starting a fire. Obviously, that's bad. We scheduled a visit to the dealer as soon as we got the news. Chrysler's fix is to update the computer, visually inspect the cats and replace them if needed. We hadn't noticed any issues with the Pacifica's powertrain, and the inspection came back clean, so our Pacifica was back in our hands in a few hours. The service sheet says the left and right cats were inspected by borescope and the powertrain control module was updated. All in, the Pacifica was out of our hands for about half a day. Related Video:

78k Chrysler 200 sedans recalled for stalling

Chrysler has been at the top of our list of recalls lately, and is showing little sign of dropping down. The latest campaign announced from Auburn Hills affects nearly 80,000 units over a problem that could see the vehicle suddenly stall or shift into neutral unexpectedly. According to the automaker's statement below, the issue primarily affects the 2015 Chrysler 200. However it indicates that unspecified "additional vehicles are also included in the campaign." Of the 77,834 units affected by the recall, the vast majority – nearly 70k – are in the United States. Another 7,115 are located in Canada, 848 in Mexico, and another 19 outside of North America. The problem stems from some electrical connectors that may have been damaged by the supplier during post-production validation tests. FCA stresses, however, that it is "unaware of any related injuries or accidents" resulting from this issue, and that the glitch may or may not be "accompanied by a dashboard warning-light illumination." Airbag function is reportedly unaffected. Related Video: Statement: Electrical Connectors August 14, 2015 , Auburn Hills, Mich. - FCA US LLC is conducting a voluntary safety recall to correct a condition in an estimated 77,834 U.S.-market sedans that may lead to engine stall or gearshift to neutral. The Company is unaware of any related injuries or accidents. The condition, which may be accompanied by a dashboard warning-light illumination, does not affect air-bag function. An investigation by FCA US revealed some electrical connectors were damaged when the supplier conducted post-production validation tests. Affected are certain 2015 Chrysler 200 midsize sedans. Additional vehicles also are included in campaign. Of these, approximately 7,115 are in Canada; 848 are in Mexico; and 19 are outside the NAFTA region Affected customers will be advised when they may schedule service, which will be performed free of charge. Customers with questions or concerns may call the FCA US Customer Care Center at 1-800-853-1403.