2014 Chrysler Town & Country Touring on 2040-cars

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The Chrysler Pacifica has clever 'Stow 'n Place' roof rack crossbars

While we focused yesterday on all the places you can store stuff (and especially bottles) inside the Toyota Sienna interior, today I thought I'd point out how another minivan makes it easier to store stuff up on the roof. The 2021 Chrysler Pacifica includes a clever integrated roof rack system dubbed "Stow 'N Place" that basically lets you store the cross bars on the van itself rather than somewhere in the garage. But wait, can't you always just leave crossbars on your car? Sure, if you want to live with extra wind noise and a fuel economy reduction. You see, the Pacifica stores them flush within a rail unit running length-wise with the roof. Basically, they're hidden away until you need them. The Subaru Outback has something similar to this, which we've previously reviewed. With its integrated crossbars, you just flip open a latch, fling the bar to the opposite side of the car and plug it in. Then repeat. It couldn't be simpler. Although the Chrysler system is more complicated, it does have a key advantage. Let's see how they work.  Chrysler tries to use chrome trim in order to create the visual illusion of raised roof rails from afar, but up close ... ... they clearly aren't. It's just a G.O.B.-grade illusion created by the chrome trim arching over black plastic trim.  You have to unscrew each end of the bars by turning these little pieces.  The bars are then completely detached from the van. You then have to articulate each of the bars so that they go from their straight, flush-mounted position to the necessary raised position. That's quite easy to do. Be careful, though as these suckers are sturdy metal. You don't want to drop one onto those fancy glass roof panels.  Subaru avoids all this and allows you to simply swing the bar across by utilizing a bulky rail housing that raises them up to the necessary height, but provides a visual that probably gives some car designers nightmares.   There are letters at each mounting point that align to those on a bar end. So, make sure to go A with A, D with D, etc.  However, you have two options for placing the C/D bar, meaning you're not stuck with a one-size-must-fit-all gap as with the Subaru. This is without question the advantage to Chrysler's approach here. So voila! What once didn't have crossbars now has them. It might not take seconds as with the Outback, but they're sure-as-hell quicker and easier to install than aftermarket crossbars.

Fiat Chrysler parts firm Magneti Marelli sold for $7.1B

TOKYO/MILAN — Japan's Calsonic Kansei, owned by U.S. private equity firm KKR, has agreed to buy Fiat Chrysler's Magneti Marelli for 6.2 billion euros ($7.1 billion) to form the seventh-largest independent car parts supplier. The first big deal by FCA's newly-appointed chief executive Mike Manley, who took over in July after the sudden death of long-time boss Sergio Marchionne, creates a company with revenue of 15.2 billion euros ($17.5 billion), the companies said. The newly formed Magneti Marelli CK Holdings is likely to cut costs through synergies and expand its customer base as components makers try to keep up with a shift by carmakers into autonomous driving, connected cars and electric vehicles. "This combination with Calsonic Kansei has emerged as an ideal opportunity to accelerate Magneti Marelli's future growth," Manley said on Monday of the FCA unit, which specializes in lighting, powertrain and high-tech electronics. FCA shares were up 5.2 percent at 0906 GMT as investors welcomed the hefty price tag, which will boost FCA's net cash position and raises expectations of a share buyback. "Getting this transaction completed at the price agreed is a significant early milestone and accomplishment," George Galliers, an analyst at Evercore ISI, said of Manley and his team's ability to match Marchionne's deal-making reputation. Marchionne had set in motion a process to spin off the unit and distribute its shares to FCA shareholders by early 2019, but said in June that FCA would still be "receptive" to an offer. Neither FCA nor its top shareholder, Fiat's founding Agnelli family, will have a stake in the combined business, but FCA said it would enter into a multi-year agreement to secure supplies to its plants and also to maintain operations and staff in Italy. Part of a global expansion KKR bought Calsonic from Nissan and other shareholders in 2016, saying it would help the parts maker, which relies on the Japanese carmaker for most of its sales, to expand globally. Calsonic has been in talks with FCA for months and made an initial 5.8 billion euro bid, sources have said. FCA does not break out earnings for Magneti Marelli, which sits within its components unit alongside robotics specialist Comau and castings firm Teksid. The unit employs around 43,000 people and operates in 19 countries. A takeover of Magneti Marelli had remained elusive as potential bidders were offering too little or were only interested in some parts of the business.

Some Jeep Cherokees and Chrysler 200s to get standard stop-start in 2015

Automakers the world over are striving to find ways to make their models more efficient, and Chrysler has a solution for some versions of the 2015 Chrysler 200 and 2015 Jeep Cherokee (2014 model shown). The Tigershark 2.4-liter four-cylinder in the 200 and the 3.2-liter Pentastar V6 in the Cherokee are getting a slight boost later this year thanks to the addition of Chrysler's Engine Stop-Start system as standard equipment. The company predicts modest gains - a three-percent improvement in fuel economy and a three percent reduction in CO2 emissions with the new tech compared to without it. While it's not much, those who sit in traffic a lot may see a difference.
Chrysler's stop/start system uses a high-speed starter motor to restart the vehicle in a claimed a third of a second. It works by detecting when the vehicle comes to a stop and turning off the engine. A more powerful battery maintains all of the model's accessories while it sits. When the driver lets off the brake, the car starts up again to drive away. There is even a button in the cabin to turn the ESS off, if desired.
The Jeep will be the first to receive ESS in the third quarter of this year to coincide with the start of production of the 2015 model-year version. The 200 will follow in the fourth quarter as a rolling change in production.