2012 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara on 2040-cars

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Daily Driver: 2015 Jeep Renegade Sport 4x4

Daily Driver videos are micro-reviews of vehicles in the Autoblog test fleet, reviewed by the staffers who drive them every day. Today's Daily Driver features the 2015 Jeep Renegade Sport 4x4, reviewed by Adam Morath. Something to note: The vehicle tested here is a pre-production unit, and we had some issues with the MySky removable roof system. (Associate editor Brandon Turkus mentioned these problems in his Quick Spin.) FCA confirms that improvements were made for production-spec cars. You can watch the video above or read a transcript below. Watch more Autoblog videos at /videos. [00:00:00] Hey, this is Adam Morath with another Daily Driver. Today, we're in the 2015 Jeep Renegade and I'm excited to be driving this in a Sport trim level. That's the lowest trim that they offer it in. I say I'm excited, because often we get the cars to totally spec-ed out to the max, the automaker trying to show off what they can do with the car but it doesn't always give you a realistic view of how most customers are going to spec the car, and I think with the Renegade being the entry-level model for Jeep now [00:00:30] replacing the outgoing Patriot and Compass, it makes sense to drive this in the Sport trim. We do have it in 4x4, comes in at just around $23,000. It's powered by a turbocharged 1.4 liter inline 4 and we've got it, made it to the 6-speed manual transmission, which is pretty cool. Again you can see FCA's fingerprints on this car. If they wanted to do well in Europe, of course you've got to offer it with a manual and that's nice for consumers here to have that choice of having a stick shift in the Jeep again. [00:01:00] That's kind of fun. It produces 160-horsepower, 184 pound-feet of torque. It's got a little pack to it. I wouldn't call it sporty but it's enough for a vehicle of this size. This is a pretty basic version of the renegade. The only options we have on it are the AC, the roof rails, 4-wheel drive, which is a must here in Michigan and then these MySky roof panels, which I'll get to in a minute, but that takes us from a base price of $18,000, the cheapest you'll be able to get into a Renegade for [00:01:30] up to about $23,700, which is where we're at. Yes, these are MySky roof panels. It's a totally new feature on the Renegade that Jeep is trying out and I think it's pretty cool. It's like a tee top system, except the panels aren't side by side. You have one in the front and one in the back.

Next Jeep Wrangler to keep solid axles

Jeep fans, you're not out of the woods yet, but the latest news is good: Automotive News reports that the next-generation Wrangler will stick with floating solid axles front and rear. Fiat-Chrysler wouldn't comment on the report, but the theory is that the combination of cost, capability, and ease of modification were deciding factors. We're sure the multibillion dollar aftermarket industry is also pleased. Remember, Jeep showed off the lifted Cherokee Dakar Concept at the Easter Jeep Safari last year, but the first ingredient in the recipe for jacking up its independent suspension was, "a whole new suspension." Above that there will be an aluminum body that's smaller than the current one, which Allpar says could be done with a narrower track and tighter gaps. It will sport a fixed windshield with increased rake to improve aero efficiency, and while there are rumors of a diesel-engined version that we'll finally get in the US, there's been no reliable info as of yet to back that up. Related Video: News Source: Automotive News - sub. req. Jeep Truck Off-Road Vehicles

FCA's UAW workers to get $8,010 profit-sharing payout

UAW workers at FCA will soon be receiving $8,010 checks, which represent profit-sharing based on the company's 2020 performance. Although FCA's profit margins in 2020 were slimmer than the year prior, the union-employee payouts are slightly larger, due to a change in the formula that was negotiated in 2019 and has now gone into effect. Employees are now paid $900 for every 1% of profit margin FCA achieves in its North American operations. For 2020, the company enjoyed an 8.9% profit margin, and although that was down slightly from 9.1% in 2019, the checks are larger than last year's $7,280 payout. Still, FCA employees didn't fare quite as well as their counterparts at GM, who stand to receive profit-sharing checks of up to $9,000. GM workers did even better last year, netting $10,000. UAW workers at Ford had less to celebrate. They'll receive $3,525, based on the company's 2020 performance. That's a steep drop from last year's $6,600. FCA earned $6.472 billion in North America in 2020. The company is expecting an improved financial performance in 2021, as it's expected to avoid another coronavirus-related shutdown. It's also expected to benefit from the launch of the three-row Grand Cherokee L, as well as the Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer, all of which are high-margin products. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.