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7 months later, Jeep 'trailer hitch' recall still stalled

For the past few years, Chrysler and its CEO, Sergio Marchionne, have gone head-to-head with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and its boss, David Strickland, over the government safety agency's request for Chrysler to recall almost three-million Jeep vehicles due to what NHTSA says is a safety issue that has caused at least 51 deaths. After a three-year investigation and Chrysler's initial refusal to issue a recall because it deemed the vehicles safe and built to the day's federal requirements, last summer, the two parties compromised on a "voluntary campaign" to inspect 1.56 million vehicles, those being the 1992 to 1998 Grand Cherokee and 2002 to 2007 Liberty.
Those vehicles were designed with their gas tanks between the rear axle and the bumper, and NHTSA says that in rear-end collisions, damage to the fuel tank has caused fires responsible for those 51 deaths. The compromise reached last summer was that Chrysler would inspect 1.56 million vehicles and, "if necessary, provide an upgrade to the rear structure of the vehicle." Practically speaking, that meant Chrysler would replace aftermarket trailer hitches, but would take no action if a vehicle had a factory-installed hitch or an aftermarket hitch from Mopar.
A report in The Detroit News says the "voluntary campaign" is just now getting under way, with Chrysler saying last week that the design of the replacement part had been finalized and it was tooling up "to deliver the required volume." Seven months later, still in question is whether NHTSA will crash-test the fix engineered by Chrysler, noteworthy because not only did the vehicles in question pass every safety standard necessary to be cleared for sale at the time, there are still questions (to those of us on the outside) as to how the Jeeps at issue fare among their peers in such incidents. Either way, Chrysler and NHTSA apparently still disagree on the efficacy of the remedy itself: the carmaker says it might help in low-speed crashes but not high-speed collisions, a position the NHTSA is at odds with. All of this means the campaign doesn't yet have an end in sight.

AEV Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon

After their rented 2007 Hummer H3 failed them during the brutal Rallye Aicha des Gazelles in Morocco, Amy Lerner and her sister Tricia Reina were on a quest to find the most capable production off-roader for their next competition - they chose a 2012 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon. Their next mission was to find a company with the competence to configure it to win. After poring over Internet forums and perusing countless magazines for an outfitter who could meet their demanding requirements, they sent their bright orange JK ("Crush" is the official color) to American Expedition Vehicles (AEV) for some modifications.
The Michigan-based team at AEV kept the Jeep's 3.6-liter V6 and automatic transmission stock, but replaced the hood with a tall AEV Heat Reduction Hood and added an AEV Snorkel Kit for water crossings (it serves double-duty as its raised height helps to keep the air intake out of the kicked-up dust on the trail). Front and rear off-road bumpers were bolted in place, and AEV skid plates were added to provide additional undercarriage protection. A pair of IPF-900 off-road lights improve visibility, while a 10.2-gallon AEV Fuel Caddy (located behind the exterior spare) added some range. The suspension was upgraded with a 3.5-inch lift kit with Bilstein remote reservoir shocks, and 35-inch Falken Wildpeak A/T tires (LT285/70R17) were mounted at all four corners on AEV's beadlock wheels.

Jeep Wrangler diesel likely after 2015 model refresh

We automotive journalists aren't always the right people to ask about whether a US-spec vehicle should or should not be offered with a diesel powertrain (hint: the answer is usually "YES"). But when it comes to the iconic, off-road-ready Jeep Wrangler, we aren't the only ones who have been clamoring for an oil-burning engine behind that famous seven-slat grille. To that end, it appears there's good news on the horizon, as Jeep CEO Mike Manley recently told Ward's Auto that the "Wrangler is on the radar to get (a) diesel."
"I'm confident that the Grand Cherokee will show just how large a demand there is for diesel, and I think what that will do is reinforce the need for us to target Wrangler as a vehicle that can take a diesel," Manley told Ward's. The most rugged of Jeeps is scheduled to get an overhaul around 2015-16, and the diesel powertrain will likely be introduced around that time.
This year alone, Chrysler will be adding a diesel engine to the Grand Cherokee SUV, as well as the Ram 1500 pickup and Promaster utility van.