2020 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara on 2040-cars

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The UAW's 'record contract' hinges on pensions, battery plants

DETROIT - After nearly four weeks of disruptive strikes and hard bargaining, the United Auto Workers and the Detroit Three automakers have edged closer to a deal that could offer record-setting wage gains for nearly 150,000 U.S. workers. General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis have all agreed to raise base wages by between 20% and 23% over a four-year deal, according to union and company statements. Ford and Stellantis have agreed to reinstate cost-of-living adjustments, or COLA. The companies have offered to boost pay for temporary workers and give them a faster path to full-time, full-wage status. All three have proposed slashing the time it takes a new hire to get to the top UAW pay rate. The progress in contract talks follows the first-ever simultaneous strike by the UAW against Detroit's Big Three automakers. The union began the strike on Sept. 15 in hopes of forcing a better deal from each major automaker. But coming close to a deal is not the same thing as reaching a deal. Big obstacles remain on at least two major UAW demands: restoring the retirement security provided by pre-2007 defined benefit pension plans, and covering present and future joint- venture electric vehicle battery plants under the union's master contracts with the automakers. On retirement, none of the automakers has agreed to restore pre-2007 defined-benefit pension plans for workers hired after 2007. Doing so could force the automakers to again burden their balance sheets with multibillion-dollar liabilities. GM and the former Chrysler unloaded most of those liabilities in their 2009 bankruptcies. The union and automakers have explored an approach to providing more income security by offering annuities as an investment option in their company-sponsored 401(k) savings plans, people familiar with the discussions said. Stellantis referred to an annuity option as part of a more generous 401(k) proposal on Sept. 22. Annuities or similar instruments could give UAW retirees assurance of fixed, predictable payouts less dependent on stock market ups and downs, experts said. Recent changes in federal law have removed obstacles to including annuities as a feature of corporate 401(k) plans, said Olivia Mitchell, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School and an expert on pensions and retirement. "Retirees want a way to be assured they won't run out of money," Mitchell said.

Jeep Wrangler-based Scrambler pickup will have open tops, longer frame

We'll probably have to wait until 2019 to see the Wrangler pickup fully revealed and on dealer lots, but it seems that the truck is already showing up in FCA's computer systems. Someone at Jeep Scrambler Forum did a little digging and found the truck's chassis code, "JT," listed with a number of parts. Among those parts were different tops, seemingly confirming that the Wrangler pickup will have a soft folding top and removable hardtops available, just like a normal Wrangler. These include the plain black soft top, a black hard top, or a body-color hard top. The hard tops are also listed as three-piece units like on a conventional Wrangler, so parts can be removed, or the entire top. The forum quotes sources as saying the pickup will be called the Jeep Scrambler. The company renewed the trademark on that model name in 2015. The forum discovered a few other mechanical details, too. The truck's code is listed under the diesel engine option, confirming that powertrain for the pickup, though no other engine or transmission info was found. The forum also found CAD models of the frame and axles. Jeep Scrambler Forum estimates the frame is about 33 inches longer than the upcoming Wrangler Unlimited four-door SUV. This isn't entirely surprising, as photos show that the Wrangler pickup prototypes are substantially longer than the four-door Unlimited models. And even AEV had to lengthen the Wrangler's frame to turn it into the Brute pickup. Finally, the forum noted that the axles are different from the current generation of Wrangler, and could possibly be stronger than normal for improved towing and payload. Related Video: Related Gallery 2019 Jeep Wrangler Pickup Spy Shots View 14 Photos News Source: Jeep Scrambler ForumImage Credit: Jeep Scrambler Forum Rumormill Jeep Truck Off-Road Vehicles jeep wrangler pickup

Total auto recalls already on record pace in 2014

If you've noticed that there have been more recalls than usual this year, you may be on to something. According to a report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the US market is on pace to break a record for recalls. In 2013, 22 million cars were recalled. We're only a third of the way through 2014, though, and we've already halved that figure, with 11 million units recalled. That's wild.
Considering the past few months, it shouldn't be a surprise that General Motors is leading the charge, with six million of the 11 million units recalled coming from one of the General's four brands. Between truck recalls, CUV recalls and the ignition switch recall, 2014 hasn't been a great year for GM.
Other recall leaders include Nissan (one million Sentra and Altima sedans), Honda (900,000 Odyssey minivans), Toyota (over one million units in a few recalls), Volkswagen (150,000 Passat sedans), Chrysler (644,000 Dodge Durango and Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs) and most recently, Ford (434,000 units, the bulk of which were early Ford Escape CUVs). So while it's been a bad year for GM so far, its competitors aren't doing too well, either.