2014 Dodge Challenger on 2040-cars

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2023 J.D. Power Initial Quality Study shows there's less quality than last year

Vehicle inventory, vehicle pricing, and the supply chain are finally showing improvement. Vehicle quality, on the other hand, is still going the wrong way. That's the takeaway from the 2023 J.D. Power Initial Quality Study that found overall problems exceeded last year's record high. The study surveyed owners of 2022-model-year vehicles to assess the average rate of problems per 100 vehicles (PP100) during the first 90 days of ownership. The average figure for the 32 ranked manufacturers in 2020 was about 166 problems per 100 vehicles. In the 2021 IQS, that dropped to an average of 162. For 2022, the average jumped to 180 problems. For 2023, the PP100 is up to an industry average of 192 — an increase of 30 problems per 100 vehicles in just two years. Let's get to the good news first: Dodge reclaimed the crown of having the lowest number of problems per 100 vehicles at 140. Buick won last year with 139 PP100, falling to third this year. Dodge was the first American automaker to top the IQS in 2021. Its return as the least problematic gives parent company Stellantis three wins in four years after Ram was crowned in 2021. It also gives U.S. brands a four-peat after Buick topped the chart in 2022 by having owners report the fewest problems. This year's top 10 is Dodge, Ram, Alfa Romeo, Buick, Chevrolet, GMC, Porsche, Cadillac, Kia, and Lexus. Stellantis gathered a few feathers for its cap, in fact. Maserati showed the largest improvement year-on-year, followed by Alfa Romeo, and Alfa Romeo posted the lowest PP100 among the premium class, beating Porsche and Cadillac. Alfa Romeo has been vocal about working to improve quality, mentioning Lexus as a target. Last year the Japanese brand finished sixth, the Italians finished near the bottom, between Jaguar and Mitsubishi. This year Alfa jumped to third, Lexus dropped to tenth. Ram was the third-best on the list of improvers from 2022 to 2023.   The individual model with the lowest PP100 is the Nissan Maxima. Now for the troublesome bits. In the words of Frank Hanley, senior director of auto benchmarking at J.D. Power, "The industry is at a major crossroad and the path each manufacturer chooses is paramount for its future.

2020 Dodge Charger Hellcat Widebody, Scat Pack Widebody get grip, go faster

You all knew this was coming. Dodge basically showed it to the public a few months ago. But it's finally official, the 2020 Dodge Charger Hellcat Widebody and naturally aspirated Scat Pack Widebody are going into production. Like the Challenger Widebody, the Charger version is defined by its, well, wide body, which is now standard on all Hellcats and an option on Scat Packs. The fender flares add a total of 3.5 inches of width. Dodge also tweaked the front and rear bumpers and added wider side skirts to help the flares blend into the body. The Hellcat gets a unique rear spoiler, whereas the Scat Pack sticks with the same one its scrawnier twin uses. 2020 Dodge Charger Scat Pack Widebody View 20 Photos But the big advantage to this wide body is the fact Dodge can stick way more tire under the Charger. All Charger Widebody models get 11-inch-wide wheels with 305-mm tires at all four corners. Each version gets revised suspension, too. The Hellcat gets stiffer front springs, thicker front and rear anti-roll bars and retuned shocks. The Scat Pack gets a similar update, but without the thicker front anti-roll bars. Both cars also get six-piston front brake calipers from Brembo with two-piece rotors. All these handling upgrades mean the Charger is an even more impressive track machine. Dodge says the Hellcat now pulls 0.96g on a skid pad, and the Scat Pack Widebody does a little better at 0.98g. The Hellcat has also improved its lap time of Chrysler's 2.1-mile test course by 2.1 seconds, and the Scat Pack improved by 1.3 seconds. Both cars are also still fast in a straight line, with Dodge saying the Hellcat will hit 60 mph in 3.6 seconds on the way to a 10.96 quarter-mile time. Which, Dodge proclaims, makes it the world's most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan. The Scat Pack Widebody will hit 60 in 4.3 seconds on the way to a 12.4-second quarter-mile.

Dodge closes Caravan order books at the end of this month

After being introduced as the Dodge Caravan in 1983, after debuting a long wheelbase Grand Caravan in 1987, after entering its fifth generation in 2007 and going almost unchanged since then to become the oldest minivan in the segment, after being publicly sent to the slaughterhouse in 2011, again in 2013, and again in 2015 before being pardoned thrice by the automotive governor, this month it's over for good for the best-selling Dodge and best-selling minivan in the U.S. and Canada. At least, according to Mopar Insiders, which credits dealer sources for the news that "the end of the month" will be a car shopper's last chance to order the Dodge Grand Caravan in the states that don't adhere to California emissions. Since the Grand Caravan's 3.6-liter V6 can't clear CARB mandates, Dodge pulled the model from the 13 so-called ZEV states in March this year.  Last summer, an analyst at AutoForecast Solutions told Automotive News that Dodge would cease Grand Caravan production at the Windsor Assembly Plant in Ontario, Canada in May this year. The brief reprieve is said to be related to the coronavirus standstill, Fiat Chrysler not alone in revising its plans to make up for two months of lost production. The new 2020 Chrysler Voyager is the official replacement for the Dodge, being a de-contented Pacifica that returns an old Chrysler nameplate to circulation and is built in the same plant as the Pacifica and Grand Caravan. The Grand Caravan's numbers have come down this year, but Dodge still sold a strong 24,931 units through the first quarter of the year; the kid-hauler has sold less than 100,000 units in a year in the U.S. only twice since 1985, topping six figures for the last four years. In 35 years on sale here, the minivan has hurdled the 200,000-unit marker 19 times. With the order books open until the end of the month and Windsor plant working a single shift and still finding its feet, Grand Caravans will continue to trickle off the lines after May, but not for long.