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FCA recalls over 200k Jeep Cherokees for windshield wiper static

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is issuing a recall for over 200,000 versions of the 2014 Jeep Cherokee due to a problem with static buildup disabling the windshield wipers. FCA has identified 158,671 units in the United States. Another 18,366 vehicles are estimated to be affected in Canada, a further 3,582 in Mexico, and 26,049 outside of North America. The problem, according to the first statement below, results from static building up if the wipers are operated in dry conditions. The static could mess with the wipers' control module, rendering them disabled. To fix the problem, dealers will be instructed to install a ground strap to the module. In parallel, FCA is also offering incentives to the owners of certain trucks that were subject to recall but for which remedies were not immediately available. To encourage those owners to bring their older vehicles in for the required service, the automaker will disperse $100 prepaid cards for use at their discretion. The program is offered to owners of certain model year Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jeep Liberty, Chrysler Aspen, and Dodge Durango sport-utility vehicles, as well as certain Dodge Dakota and Ram trucks. Owners of the affected Grand Cherokees will have the option instead to take a $1,000 consideration toward the purchase of a new vehicle or for parts and service. The offers are only being extended under certain specific criteria, though. So if you think that could be you, you'll want to read through the conditions in the second announcement below. STATEMENT: CONTROL MODULE August 31, 2015 , Auburn Hills, Mich. - FCA US LLC is recalling an estimated 158,671 SUVs in the U.S. to help protect their control modules from static buildup that may potentially disable the vehicles' windshield wipers. An investigation by FCA US discovered static buildup may occur if the vehicles' windshield wipers are activated during dry conditions. Significant static buildup may affect a control module that powers the wipers. The Company is unaware of any related injuries or accidents. Affected are model-year 2014 Jeep Cherokee SUVs. An estimated 18,366 vehicles will be recalled in Canada, as will an estimated 3,582 in Mexico and 26,049 outside the NAFTA region. Dealers will install a ground strap to the control module to eliminate the potential for static buildup. Customers will be advised when they may schedule service, which will be performed at no cost.

Weekly Recap: Lincoln Continental serves up the style, Cadillac CT6 delivers the substance in New York

Lincoln and Cadillac grabbed the spotlight this week at the New York Auto Show in a dramatic fashion that evoked the brands' glory days. America's two luxury carmakers went toe-to-toe with their glittering reveals and plans for ambitious expansion. Both were selling their technology, style and the promise of a better future. Cadillac vs. Lincoln. At the Javits Center, 2015 seemed a lot like 1956. Neither company was interested in drawing comparisons with the other, which is fair, and accurate. They're in vastly different places in terms of sales and the pace of their turnarounds, but they hope to reach the same eventual destination at the pinnacle of the luxury-car world. Lincoln used the element of surprise to great effect with the Continental concept. A production version is still at least a year away, and the company was vague on details. Officially, we don't even know if it is front- or rear-wheel drive, though speculation abounds. Who cares? The seats can be adjusted 30 ways! The Continental also showed off a bold chrome grille that will be the new face of Lincoln. The blue bomber also rolled on blinged-out 21-inch polished aluminum wheels, used a 3.0-liter EcoBoost engine and had huge LED head lights with "laser-assisted" high beams. All of this resulted in almost blinding attention. The concept drew rave reviews, stirred controversy with Bentley designers who argued Lincoln ripped them off, and most importantly, pointed a way forward for the newly determined brand that hopes to compete with Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Cadillac and Lexus. View 32 Photos Meanwhile, Cadillac showed the CT6, a finished product that will top its range and is loaded with the best and latest technologies General Motors has at its disposal. With production starting late this year, Cadillac had more specifics at the ready. Engines? Cadillac has a couple V6s and a turbo four for sure. It's working on a hybrid, and has considered a V-Series variant. It's based on a new rear-wheel-drive, aluminum-intensive chassis called Omega, features an advanced collision-mitigation system with automatic braking and has a cabin that's laden with "leathers, exotic woods and carbon fiber." It will be assembled at GM's Detroit-Hamtramck factory and goes on sale next year. At this point, Cadillac is more than willing to talk about every except for the price. The devil was not in the details for Cadillac, as evidenced by the CT6. But it wasn't for Lincoln either.

Ford, Stellantis workers join those at GM in ratifying contract that ended UAW strikes

DETROIT — The United Auto Workers union overwhelmingly ratified new contracts with Ford and Stellantis, that along with a similar deal with General Motors will raise pay across the industry, force automakers to absorb higher costs and help reshape the auto business as it shifts away from gasoline-fueled vehicles. Workers at Stellantis, the maker of Jeep, Dodge and Ram vehicles, voted 68.8% in favor of the deal. Their approval brought to a close a contentious labor dispute that included name-calling and a series of punishing strikes that imposed high costs on the companies and led to significant gains in pay and benefits for UAW workers. The deal at Stellantis passed by a roughly 10,000 vote margin, with ballot counts ending Saturday afternoon. Workers at Ford voted 69.3% in favor of the pact, which passed with nearly a 15,000-vote margin in balloting that ended early Saturday. Earlier this week, GM workers narrowly approved a similar contract. The agreements, which run through April 2028, will end contentious talks that began last summer and led to six-week-long strikes at all three automakers. Shawn Fain, the pugnacious new UAW leader, had branded the companies enemies of the UAW who were led by overpaid CEOs, declaring the days of union cooperation with the automakers were over. After summerlong negotiations failed to produce a deal, Fain kicked off strikes on Sept. 15 at one assembly plant at each company. The union later extended the strike to parts warehouses and other factories to try to intensify pressure on the automakers until tentative agreements were reached late in October. The new contract agreements were widely seen as a victory for the UAW. The companies agreed to dramatically raise pay for top-scale assembly plant workers, with increases and cost-of-living adjustments that would translate into 33% wage gains. Top assembly plant workers are to receive immediate 11% raises and will earn roughly $42 an hour when the contracts expire in April of 2028. Under the agreements, the automakers also ended many of the multiple tiers of wages they had used to pay different workers. They also agreed in principle to bring new electric-vehicle battery plants into the national union contract. This provision will give the UAW an opportunity to unionize the EV battery plants plants, which will represent a rising share of industry jobs in the years ahead.