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A Chrysler LeBaron Town & Country with 12,000 miles is up for auction

A hundred years ago, the LeBaron name was among America's top luxury nameplates, so when we heard that auction house R.M. Sotheby's was auctioning one off, we immediately thought of one of the coachbuilt Imperial-branded classics that competed with the highest-order Gatsby-era Cadillacs and Lincolns. What we found instead, however, was arguably even better. It's a 1985 Chrysler LeBaron Town and Country convertible, the one most of us know from when "Back to the Future" was still in theaters, complete with faux wood paneling. This has strong nostalgic value, especially as one of my best grade-school friends' mom had one, and I always felt like a celebrity to get picked up from school with the top down. While the LeBaron name may have fallen from grace by then, becoming the entry-level Chrysler offering, the T&C droptop was the most glamorous of the midsize K-cars. Did the Plymouth Reliant or Dodge Aries have acres of plastic timber applique on their flanks and four words (five if you count "Le" as its own) in their model names? Hell no. It may have been powered by a 2.6-liter Mitsubishi Astron engine, but the front-driver was pure Americana. K-cars were as common in the 1980s as RAV4s are today, and the K platform was largely responsible for saving Chrysler from bankruptcy. Nothing from Ford, GM, Germany or Japan came close, then-CEO Lee Iacocca said, and, "If you can find a better car, buy it!" he would threaten. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Beyond that, the LeBaron was the steed that carried Neal Page and Del Griffith cross-country in time for Thanksgiving dinner in Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Esteemed LeBaron T&C owners counted Iacocca himself, Frank Sinatra (a wagon, even!), and if George Costanza is to be believed, Jon Voight. For a car that sold over 2 million examples, the "wood"-sided Town and Country convertible variant was rare. Chrysler made only 1,105 of them, and this particular example has a claimed 12,345 miles on the clock. The color is gold, Jerry, gold! And given what we known in hindsight about their build quality, you're not likely to find a better one. According to its CarFax report, the LeBaron was purchased new in Vermont, where it resided until 2004 when it was sold to a new owner in West Virginia. Five years later, it made its way to a dealer in Utah.

2022 Chrysler Pacifica gets price hike, starts at $38,160

Mopar Insiders says its Chrysler dealer contacts gave the outlet a glimpse at what's coming for the 2022 model year. The most important change to the Pacifica range — we're not including the Voyager and Pacifica Hybrid in this — is the addition of a front-wheel-drive model to the penultimate Limited and top Pinnacle trims. Both are available only with all-wheel drive at the moment, so the change will lower their MSRPs when next year's models arrive on lots. There are a few price increases, however, so the savings won't be as large as one might wish. Pricing for the range based on info from MI's dealer sources, including the $1,495 destination charge, and the increase compared to 2021, is: Pacifica Touring: $38,160 ($845) Pacifica Touring L: $41,785 ($1,170) Pacifica Touring L AWD: $44,780 ($1,170) Pacifica Limited FWD: $49,815 (new for 2022, $495 less expensive than the 2021 Limited AWD) Pacifica Limited AWD: $52,410 ($2,100) Pacifica Pinnacle FWD: $54,270 (new for 2022, $1,320 less expensive than the 2021 Pinnacle AWD) Pacifica Pinnacle AWD: $56,865 ($1,275) Across the range, all the minivans get a rear seat reminder safety alert and the Stellantis Clean Air Filtration System that acts like the minivan's wearing an N95 mask, capturing 95% of particulates in the air including bacteria, allergens, and pollen. Looks like Chrysler's going to start charging for certain exterior colors on a reduced palette. There are ten colors now, all of which are free. Next year there will be seven, and only Bright White, Brilliant Black, and Ceramic Grey will be no charge. Granite Crystal and the new Silver Mist, which replaces Billet Silver, will cost $95. And Fathom Blue and Velvet Red will cost $395.  The entry-level Touring pulls the opposite trick from the Limited and Pinnacle, losing its AWD option. Driving the rear axle cost an extra $2,995 on this trim, perhaps why Chrysler said only 2% of Touring buyers chose the option this year. Next year's Touring gets the Cold Weather Group, with features like heated front seats and a heated steering wheel, as standard equipment. That option cost $495 this year and its inclusion might be responsible for the trim's price increase.  The Touring L gets the makes this year's optional $995 Safety Sphere Group standard equipment for next year. That installs features like ParkSense for front, parallel, and perpendicular parking, and a 360-degree surround view camera.

Fiat Chrysler recalls 4.8 million U.S. vehicles for cruise control defect

WASHINGTON - Fiat Chrysler said on Friday it is recalling 4.8 million U.S. vehicles over a defect that could prevent drivers from deactivating cruise control and warned owners not to use the function until they get software upgrades. The Italian-American automaker said no injuries or crashes are related to the large recall campaign but said it had one report of a driver of a 2017 Dodge Journey rental car unable to deactivate the cruise control. Fiat Chrysler, which in 2015 was hit with penalties from U.S. regulators totaling $175 million for safety lapses, did not say how much the recalls would cost. The recall addresses what Fiat Chrysler called an "extremely rare" series of events that could lead to drivers being unable to cancel cruise control. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on Friday it "strongly encourages vehicle owners to follow a warning" to stop using cruise control on the recalled vehicles until repaired. NHTSA said drivers could overpower the system by forcefully applying the brakes until the vehicle stopped. Fiat Chrysler also said the vehicle could be stopped by shifting into neutral and braking. Fiat Chrysler shares fell more than 2 percent in premarket trading in New York on the recall. Fiat Chrysler noted that at times cruise control systems automatically initiate acceleration to help vehicles maintain driver-selected speeds, including when going up an incline. If an acceleration occurs simultaneously with a short-circuit in a specific electrical network, a driver could be unable to deactivate the function. Fiat Chrysler said vehicles may be placed in park once stopped, at which point cruise-control is canceled. The recall involves a group of gasoline-powered vehicles with automatic transmissions from various model years built from 2014 through the 2019 model year. Most of the vehicles being recalled cover the 2014-2018 model years. Among the vehicles being recalled are the Chrysler 200, Chrysler 300, Chrysler Pacifica, Dodge Charger, Dodge Challenger, Dodge Journey, Dodge Durango, Jeep Cherokee, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jeep Wrangler and Ram 1500, 2500 and 3500 pickup trucks and Ram 3500/4500/5500 cab chassis trucks. Fiat Chrysler made the announcement going into the busy Memorial Day weekend, which traditionally kicks off the summer driving season.