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2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid Long-Term Update | Keeping things fresh

We're big fans of our long-term 2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. In the few months we've had it, we've racked up quite a few miles. We have some road-trip stories coming later on (including a 2,500-mile round trip to New England), but I wanted to highlight a small but interesting feature on our Ocean Blue people mover, the "Fuel and Oil Refresh Mode". From the owner's manual: Since it is possible to operate this vehicle for extended periods of time without running the gas engine, the fuel within the vehicle's fuel tank can become stale. To prevent engine and/or fuel system damage due to stale fuel, as well as, maintaining internal engine lubrication, this vehicle is equipped with a "Fuel and Oil Refresh Mode". The vehicle will automatically enter into the Fuel and Oil Refresh Mode to minimize potential for stale fuel, and to ensure lubrication of internal engine components. When operating in this mode, the gas engine will run to provide vehicle propulsion (electric only operation is inhibited). A message will be displayed in the instrument cluster whenever Fuel and Oil Refresh Mode is active. The vehicle will automatically exit the Fuel and Oil Refresh Mode when conditions have been satisfied. If the vehicle enters Fuel and Oil Refresh Mode, due to fuel which has been in the fuel tank for a long period of time (becoming stale fuel), the engine will run whenever the vehicle is operational (no electric only operation) until the low fuel level warning is activated. It is possible to exit the Fuel and Oil Refresh Mode sooner by adding new fuel to the vehicle's fuel tank. Basically, the engine will automatically cycle on to help burn fuel and lubricate the engine if the Pacifica has been running on pure electricity for an extended period of time. This may sound wasteful, but fuel does go stale and it's not good for the Pacifica's V6 to go without circulating oil every once in a while. A message pops up on the instrument cluster and the engine runs until the computer decides its cycled enough. In our experience, it's not run for more than a few minutes at a time. Since most of us live within 15 or so miles of the office, we can usually make it home and back without expending the Pacifica's 33-mile electric range, even if we make a trip to the store or go out for dinner. The refresh mode has kicked on a few times already, and we expect it to kick on quite a few more times before our loan is up. Related Video:

Fiat Chrysler to pay $800M in Jeep, Ram emissions cheating case

WASHINGTON — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV has agreed to a settlement worth about $800 million to resolve claims from the U.S. Justice Department and state of California that it used illegal software that produced false results on diesel-emissions tests, but still faces an ongoing criminal probe. The hefty penalty is the latest fallout from the U.S. government's stepped-up enforcement of vehicle emissions rules after Volkswagen AG admitted in September 2015 to intentionally evading emissions rules. The Fiat Chrysler settlement includes $311 million in total civil penalties to U.S. and California regulators, up to $280 million to resolve claims from diesel owners, and extended warranties worth $105 million. It covers 104,000 Fiat Chrysler 2014-16 Ram 1500 and Jeep Grand Cherokee diesels, the Justice Department said. Regulators said Fiat Chrysler used "defeat devices" to cheat emissions tests in real-world driving. Fiat Chrysler said in a statement that "the settlements do not change the Company's position that it did not engage in any deliberate scheme to install defeat devices to cheat emissions tests." The company did not admit liability. "You wouldn't pay $311 million total dollars to the federal government in civil penalties if there were not a serious problem," U.S. assistant attorney general Jeff Clark told a news conference. The settlement also includes $72.5 million for state civil penalties, and $33.5 million in payments to California to offset excess emissions and consumer claims. German auto supplier Robert Bosch GmbH, which provided the emissions control software for the vehicles, also agreed to pay $27.5 million to resolve claims from diesel owners. Owners will receive an average of $2,800 to obtain software updates as part of the emissions recall, Fiat Chrysler said. Elizabeth Cabraser, a lawyer for the owners, said the "substantial cash compensation" will ensure that consumers get the recall fix. Bosch, which also provided diesel emissions software to Volkswagen, also agreed to pay $103.5 million to settle claims with 47 U.S. states that said the supplier "enabled" the cheating and should have known its customers would use the software improperly, the New York Attorney General's Office said.

Fiat Chrysler says it did not know about Marchionne's illness

ZURICH/MILAN — Fiat Chrysler said it knew nothing about the medical condition of Sergio Marchionne after a Swiss hospital said on Thursday it had been treating the deceased chief executive for more than a year. "Due to medical privacy, the company had no knowledge of the facts relating to Mr. Marchionne's health," a Fiat Chrysler spokesman said. Questions have been raised about how long Marchionne, who died on Wednesday, was ill and how much the company knew before it made the situation public. Marchionne rescued Fiat and Chrysler from bankruptcy after taking the wheel of the Italian carmaker in 2004 and he multiplied Fiat's value 11 times through 14 years of canny dealmaking. He was due to step down at FCA in April next year. "The company was made aware that Mr. Marchionne had undergone shoulder surgery and released a statement about this," the spokesperson said. "On Friday, July 20, the company was made aware with no detail by Mr. Marchionne's family of the serious deterioration in Mr. Marchionne's condition and that as a result he would be unable to return to work. The company promptly took and announced the appropriate action the following day." Asked whether the scope of the statement included the board and the chairman, the company declined to comment. In emailed comments, Marchionne's family confirmed the companies had not been aware of his health conditions. "At the end of last week FCA was made aware Sergio Marchionne would no longer be able to return to work without mentioning any further details," the family said. The announcement of the death of Marchionne, 66, one of the auto industry's most tenacious and respected CEOs, drew tributes from rivals and tears from his closest colleagues on Wednesday. University Hospital Zurich said earlier on Thursday Marchionne had been treated for a serious illness for more than a year before his death. Marchionne had fallen gravely ill after what the company had described as shoulder surgery at a Zurich hospital. He was replaced as chief executive last weekend after Fiat Chrysler (FCA) said his condition had worsened. "Mr. Sergio Marchionne was a patient at USZ. Due to serious illness, he had been the recipient of recurring treatment for more than a year," the hospital said in a statement. "Although all the options offered by cutting-edge medicine were utilized, Mr.