2003 Chrysler Pt Cruiser on 2040-cars

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For some, getting a Fiat 500e last week was almost free

Auto-racing clubs know a thing or two about moving fast. And a couple of them out in California appeared to do just that when a bunch of incentives for the Fiat 500e electric vehicle added up to a pretty sweet deal. Actually, a borderline free one. Green Car Reports was kind enough to do the math on the calculation of an $83-a-month, three-year lease deal on that included a $2,100 perk and required an $11,000 downpayment on the $32,000 car. California and federal government incentives for EVs cut that downpayment down to $1,000 out of pocket once the incentives ($7,500 from the feds, $2,500 from the state) were factored in by the leasing company. Then, Fiat-Chrysler was throwing in another $1,000 for folks who were leasing a car from another car company, hence the freebie. That means some lucky people, at least temporarily, were able to work basically a zero-downpayment agreement for a three-year lease on a car whose monthly payment is the equivalent of about two full tanks of gas. Once word of those perks got around to some California racing clubs, about 100 500e vehicles to be moved off of California lots during the past week or so. Plugged in, indeed. Related Videos: Featured Gallery 2013 Fiat 500e: Review View 40 Photos News Source: Green Car Reports Green Chrysler Fiat incentives fiat 500e

Time to catch up with Jay Leno's Garage, including his Lamborghini Espada restoration

If you're already jealous of the time, effort and money that Jay Leno can devote to his massive car collection, prepare to get a little greener with envy with this latest video from Jay Leno's Garage. Instead of the usual format of discussing a model for about ten minutes and then taking it out for a test drive, this week Leno gives viewers on a tour of over a dozen projects concurrently happening in his stable. The breadth of the vehicles shown and the things being done to them run the entire span of the automotive hobby. At the same time, Jay's shop is working on just a simple restoration of his 1969 Lamborghini Espada (pictured), and at the other side of the building, the team is rebuilding a wood-bodied 1914 Detroit Electric from scratch. He eventually plans to slot a more modern electric drivetrain into it. If bikes are more your interest, there's a freshly completed Brough Superior just waiting for a ride, and if American models are your thing, a Ford Bronco is getting a Coyote V8 installed into it. You have some very specific tastes if you can't watch this clip and start wishing at least one of these vehicles could be in your own garage. Other than the personal projects his mechanics are working on in the shop, Jay gets to have them all, plus plenty more.

Chrysler Town & Country plug-in hybrid minivan coming in 2015

Among the multitude of models that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles announced as part of its five-year production plan in May was a plug-in hybrid version of the Town & Country minivan for sometime in 2016. However, according to the latest pronouncement from company CEO Sergio Marchionne, that timetable may have been moved forward quite a bit.
Marchionne told Automotive News at the Paris Motor Show that the PHEV minivan would now be launching in late 2015. That strategy does seem a bit confusing, though, because the next-gen platform for the T&C isn't supposed to hit the road until sometime in 2016, according to the plan. So it's not clear whether the boss means the PHEV rides on the current chassis or if the new model is going on sale early.
The technology underpinning the new plug-in hybrid has been shrouded in mystery. However, during the five-year plan meeting, FCA claimed the model could earn fuel economy figures around 75 mpge. Chrysler previously tested a 25-unit fleet of them as part of a demonstration test in Auburn Hills, MI, in 2012, but that didn't go so well.