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Dodge Durango SRT Pursuit packs the 797-horsepower Hellcat Redeye engine

When the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT Trackhawk launched we were stunned that it featured both the 707-horsepower Hellcat engine and all-wheel drive. But SRT has one-upped itself with a custom Durango for the One Lap of America motorsports event. It's called the Dodge Durango SRT Pursuit — nicknamed "Speed Trap" — and it has the 797-horsepower Hellcat Redeye engine, and it still has all-wheel drive! Besides the 90-horsepower advantage over the stock Trackhawk, the Durango SRT Pursuit race SUV gets improved handling via concept lowering springs and 11-inch wide wheels with 305-mm wide tires that are shared with the Challenger Hellcat Widebody. It has improved stopping ability from 15.75-inch brake rotors up front with 6-piston calipers, and 13.78-inch rotors with four-piston calipers. This is the same kind of setup as the Trackhawk uses. Oddly enough, Dodge left the factory heated and cooled front seats, but removed the two rear rows of seats for weight savings. The Durango also gets a roll cage and racing harness. The finishing touches include a cat-back exhaust and the low-profile police light bar and paint scheme. Now before you ask, there don't appear to be plans to put a Redeye-powered Durango into production. With that being said, the company clearly has the capability to mate that engine to an all-wheel-drive system, and it would be hard to imagine the company not capitalizing on that. Even if the powertrain didn't make it to a Durango, it would seem like a great complement to the existing Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, or even an updated version of it. Hint, hint, wink, wink, FCA. Related Video:

Fiat Chrysler recalls 320,000 Dodge Darts that could roll away

WASHINGTON — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV said Friday it is recalling more than 320,000 Dodge Dart compact cars in North America that could roll away because of a defective part that could allow the shift cable to detach from the transmission. The Italian-American automaker said the recall covers 2013 through 2016 model year automatic transmission Dart cars and that the defect could prevent drivers from shifting vehicles into park. The company said it is not aware of any crashes or injuries related to the issue but has several thousand reports of related repairs to vehicles. The company said a cable bushing may degrade after prolonged exposure to high ambient heat and humidity. The company said owners should make sure they shut off the vehicle and engage the parking brake. Fiat Chrysler will replace the transmission side shifter cable bushing, the company said. The company did not said when repairs will be ready. The recall covers about 298,000 U.S. vehicles, 20,117 in Canada, 3,400 in Mexico and about 900 outside of North America. Fiat Chrysler ended production of the Dart in 2016. FCA has had a number of recalls over shifter problems in recent years. Some 1.5 million Ram trucks were recalled in 2017 for a shifter problem, and another 228,000 were recalled in 2018. And 1.1 million Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep models were recalled in 2016 over what the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration called an "unintuitive" shifter design that caused drivers to exit their vehicles thinking they were in Park when in reality they were still in Drive or Reverse. The shifter in Dodge Chargers, Chrysler 300s and Jeep Grand Cherokees was implicated in more than 120 accidents, more than 40 injuries, and in the death of "Star Trek" actor Anton Yelchin.

Fiat Chrysler profit up as it closes in on retiring its debt

MILAN — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles reduced its debt by more than expected in the first quarter, putting the carmaker well on course to become cash positive later this year. Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne expects to cancel all debt during 2018 — possibly by the end of June — and generate around 4 billion euros ($5 billion) in net cash by the end of the year. Marchionne has said that forecast does not include any one-off measures, nor the impact of the planned spinoff of parts maker Magneti Marelli, which he hopes to execute by early 2019. The world's seventh-largest carmaker said on Thursday net debt had fallen to 1.3 billion euros ($1.6 billion) by the end of March, well below a consensus forecast of 2.6 billion euros in a Thomson Reuters poll of analysts. FCA said capital spending fell 900 million euros in the quarter due to "program timing," which analysts said implied higher investments for the rest of the year. The Italian-American group said first-quarter operating profit rose 5 percent to 1.61 billion euros, below a consensus forecast of 1.74 billion, as a weaker performance from its North American profit center weighed. Shipments there were higher due to the new Jeep Wrangler and Compass models. But currency moves hit revenues and earnings, and costs related to new product launches added to the pressure. FCA's shift to sell more trucks and SUVs boosted margins yet again in North America to 7.4 percent from 7.3 percent in the same quarter a year ago, although they were down from the 8 percent recorded in the preceding three months. Marchionne, preparing to hand over to an internal successor next year, is close to his goal of ending a margin gap with larger U.S. rivals General Motors and Ford. The 65-year-old has said becoming debt free and being able to compete on a par with U.S. peers would mean FCA no longer needed a partner to survive and could well succeed on its own. The CEO has previously said tying up with another carmaker would help to meet the huge costs in an industry investing in electric vehicles and automated driving. FCA shares fell immediately after the results, but recovered to trade up 3 percent at 19.71 euros by 1150 GMT, outperforming a 0.4 percent rise in Europe's blue-chip stock index. ($1 = 0.8214 euros) Reporting by Agnieszka FlakRelated Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.