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Chrysler museum to open one last time on June 8

Due to a lack of funding, Chrysler closed the doors to its Walter P. Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills, MI back in December, but it sounds like the facility will be open next month for one last hurrah. According to a report in the Detroit Free Press, the Chrysler Museum will be open to the public one last time on June 8 for the annual Chrysler Employee Motorsport Association car show.
While the car show will take place in the museum's parking lot from 9:00 AM until 4:00 PM on June 8 with a theme dedicated to muscle cars past and present, all attendees will be able to be among the last people to tour the museum - with free admission. The museum is known for housing some of the more important production and concept cars from Chrysler's history. Check out the car show's flyer for more information.

Stellantis reports surprising 2020 results, is 'off to a flying start'

MILAN — Low global car inventories and cost cuts should boost Stellantis's profit margins this year, though a shortage of semiconductors and investments in electric vehicles could weigh on results, the newly-formed automaker said on Wednesday. The forecast came as Stellantis, created by the January merger of Peugeot-maker PSA and Fiat Chrysler (FCA), reported better-than-expected results for 2020 that sent its shares up around 3% in morning trading. "Stellantis gets off to a flying start and is fully focused on achieving the full promised synergies (from the merger)," Chief Executive Carlos Tavares said in a statement. Stellantis is the world's fourth largest carmaker, with 14 brands including Fiat, Peugeot, Opel, Jeep, Ram and Maserati. It said 2021 results should be helped by three new high-margin Jeep vehicles in North America and a strong pricing environment there. The U.S. market has driven profits for years at FCA and starts off as the strongest part of Stellantis. The group's guidance assumes no more significant lockdowns caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic, which shuttered auto plants around the world last spring. Stellantis should also get a lift as its starts to implement a plan aimed at delivering over 5 billion euros a year in savings, without closing any plants. Tavares has also pledged not to cut jobs. But a pandemic-related global shortage of semiconductors, used for everything from maximizing engine fuel economy to driver-assistance features, could hurt business. Auto industry executives have said the shortage should ease by the second half of 2021. Stellantis said its "electrification offensive" could also weigh on results this year. Automakers are racing to develop electric vehicles to meet tighter CO2 emissions targets in Europe and this week Volvo joined a growing number of carmakers aiming for a fully-electric line-up by 2030. Stellantis plans to have fully-electric or hybrid versions of all of its vehicles available in Europe by 2025, broadly in line with plans at top rivals such as Volkswagen and Renault-Nissan, although Stellantis has further to go to meet that goal. The carmaker is targeting an adjusted operating profit margin of 5.5%-7.5% this year. That compares with a 5.3% aggregated margin last year: 4.3% at FCA and 7.1% at PSA excluding a controlling stake in parts maker Faurecia, which is set to be spun-off from Stellantis shortly.

Undersized grille was #1 complaint of 2011-2014 Chrysler 300 owners

Not only did the 2005-2011 Chrysler 300 have a big ol' grille, it jutted ahead of the car. The grille was the metaphorical figurehead for the USS 300, and it did its job, making the sedan the Central Casting submission for "in-your-face styling" that rolled down the street winning the game of "Made You Look." The one-billion-dollar redesign for 2011 (pictured above) aimed for more upscale and less aggression - "a more grown-up look" - so the grille shrunk. And Chrysler 300 buyers hated that. So said Chrysler brand president Al Gardner to Edmunds, relating that the smaller grille was "the No. 1 issue" on the list of customer complaints about the model years from 2011 to 2014. It doesn't appear to have been much loved in-house, either, with Ralph Gilles having said of it, "Our previous generation of leaders didn't understand the car very well, and kind of forced this front end on us." That's why the grille on the 2015 model (pictured in 300S trim, inset) was aggrandized by 33 percent, although it's still not as large as on the first generation, and the more fluid design of the current car doesn't let it stand out as before. Gardner went on to say that designers "spent more time on the front end than on anything else," in search of, as Gilles put it, "the attitude it deserves." We'll soon find out if that increases the number of buyers it deserves as well. Related Gallery 2015 Chrysler 300: First Drive View 40 Photos News Source: EdmundsImage Credit: Copyright 2014 AOL Design/Style Chrysler Sedan