2005 Chrysler Sebring Base Coupe 2-door 2.4l on 2040-cars

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500+ hp Stellantis 'Hurricane' I6 previews a world without Hemis

After years of rumored development, Stellantis has revealed its new six-cylinder engine family. The 3.0-liter, twin-turbocharged "Hurricane" I6 will offer V8 power, forced induction torque and six-cylinder efficiency in a package designed to fit into any of the company's North American rear-wheel-drive platforms.  What is "V8 power," exactly? Well, in standard output guise, the new I6 cranks out more than 400 horsepower (the specific figure will vary by application) and 450 pound-feet of torque, while the high-output variant is good for more than 500 horses and 475 lb-ft. The final figures will be dependent on the application. We'll save you a little legwork: In current Ram, Jeep and Dodge products, the 5.7-liter Hemi tops out at about 395 hp and 410 lb-ft, give or take, and the 6.4-liter around 485 hp and 475 lb-ft.    This is a clean-sheet design that is only related to the company's turbocharged four-cylinder by some common measurements. The I6 is exclusively direct-injection (no hybrid/port-injection here) and the two I6 variants share 96 common parts, including the block and oil pan design. The differences are found in their internals, intake plumbing, valvetrain components and the turbochargers themselves. Stellantis is not yet ready to share specs or supplier info for the turbos but says announcements will come from its partners soon.  The standard-output I6 has a compression ratio of 10.4:1 and revs to 5,800 rpm. It will run on regular fuel, albeit with reduced performance; 91 octane is recommended for maximum output. The high-output variant has a compression ratio of 9.4:1 and will rev to 6,100 rpm. That one will require premium. The new I6's advantages go beyond basic power output. Every Hemi family engine currently in production is based on an iron block design, so they're heavy. The aluminum-block I6 shaves weight off the total engine package, even if some of that gets added back thanks to the turbos and their associated plumbing. The standard-output I6 weighs 430 pounds, Stellantis engineers told us; the high-output adds just another 11. Fully dressed 5.7-liter V8s are in the 550-560-pound ballpark, and 6.4-liters close in on 600 pounds.  You may be wondering, "Why a clean-sheet gasoline engine now, when the industry is moving toward battery-electrics?" A valid inquiry, and one Stellantis was prepared to address. While the company will be pivoting to electrification over the next decade, it won't be instantaneous.

The USPS needs 180,000 new delivery vehicles, automakers gearing up to bid

Winning the New York City Taxi of Tomorrow tender was a huge prize for Nissan, even though the company is still working through the process of claiming its prize. The United States Postal Service has begun the process to take bids for a new delivery vehicle to replace the all-too-familiar Grumman Long Life Vehicle, and that will be a much larger plum for the automaker who wins it, perhaps worth more than six billion dollars. The Grumman LLV is an aluminum body covering a Chevrolet S-10 pickup chassis and General Motors' Iron Duke four-cylinder engine. The USPS bought them from 1987 to 1994, and the 163,000 of them still in service are a monumental drain on postal resources: they get roughly ten miles to the gallon instead of the quoted 16 mpg, drink up more than $530 million in fuel each year, and their constant repair needs like the balky sliding door and leaky windshields have led the service to increase the annual maintenance budget from $100 million to $500 million. A seat belt is about as modern as it gets for safety technology, and the USPS says that assuming things stay the same, it can't afford to run them beyond 2017. Last year it put out two triage requests for proposals seeking 10,000 new chassis and drivetrains for the Grumman and 10,000 new vehicles. The LLV is also too small for the modern mail system in which package delivery is growing and letter delivery is declining. The service says it doesn't have a fixed idea of the ideal "next-generation delivery vehicles," but it listed a number of requirements in its initial request and is open to any proposal. Carriers have some suggestions, though, saying they want better cupholders, sun visors that they can stuff letters behind, a driver's compartment free of slits that can swallow mail, and a backup camera. The request for information sent to automakers pegs the tender at 180,000 vehicles that would cost between $25,000 and $35,000 apiece, and it will hold a conference on February 18 to answer questions about the contract. GM is the only domestic maker to avow an interest, while Ford and Fiat-Chrysler have remained cagey. Yet with a possible $6.3 billion up for grabs and some new vans for sale that would be advertised on every block in the country, we have a feeling everyone will be listening closely come February 18. We also have a feeling the LeMons series is going to be flooded with Grummans come 2017. News Source: Wall Street Journal, Automotive News - sub.

Chrysler 200 prototype spied for first time with new body

Chrysler is deep into testing for its next-generation 200 sedan, a new model that is utterly essential to the brand's continued health. The next iteration is tasked with wiping away anything reminiscent of the Sebring, which the current 200 is still based on. According to our spy, this is one of the first of the new 200s to wear a production body rather than the Alfa Romeo Giulietta-based mules that are thick on the ground in Auburn Hills.
Immediately apparent is that the new 200 ditches the awkwardly styled C-pillar that's typified four-door 200 sedans (and Sebrings before them) for years. The new, sleeker roofline is almost more of a four-door coupe than a traditional sedan, which hints that this new car will try to be more fashion-forward than its predecessor. The rear deck is set off by a sporty decklid spoiler, while a set of staggered rectangular exhaust pipes poke out of the bumper.
The front end appears sleeker, and we'd be lying if we didn't spy a bit of Dart through the camouflage, particularly with the headlights. A large, gaping lower air intake is visible, although our spy seems to think it'll shrink before production models debut. Whatever the new 200 ends up looking like, we expect to see a lot more of its styling from Chrysler in the coming years.