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Only in Japan: Dodge van one-make racing series is a thing

Japan seems willing to embrace a level of automotive insanity that many other places lack. Whether it's 1,200-horsepower Nissan GT-Rs blasting through tight, tree-lined mountain roads or advertisements with dances for the Toyota Prius Plug-in, the country definitely has a unique way of expressing a love for autos. The D-Van Grand Prix might be one of our favorite examples yet of crazy Japanese car culture, because the annual, one-make race at the Ebisu Circuit is exclusively for heavily customized Dodge vans. Like many great things, this wonderfully crazy idea came from a little rule breaking. D-Van Grand Prix organizer Takuro Abe was at a track event for a motorcycle racing school, and vans were used to haul the bikes around. During lunch someone came up with the idea for a race. Ignoring that the big machines weren't actually allowed on the circuit, the drivers headed out. The popularity has just grown since then. These days, the racing vans absolutely aren't the stock machines from the event's inspiration. In addition to stripped interiors and track rubber that you might expect, the list of mods for them is a mile long. For every possible advantage, the racers fit them with things like Brembo brakes, cross-drilled rotors, heavy-duty transmissions, and much more. Seeing vans lumbering around the track is very weird at first, but the racers take the competition very seriously. These folks even employ all sorts of little tricks to coax the most from the machines. This is a fascinating motorsports story, but be sure to turn on the subtitles to understand the interviews with the competitors.

Chrysler Recalls Over 566,000 Trucks, SUVs

Fiat Chrysler is recalling more than 566,000 trucks and SUVs in two recalls for malfunctioning fuel heaters that can cause fires and a software glitch can disable the electronic stability control. The recalls bring the newly merged company's total for the year to 6.4 million vehicles worldwide and 5.1 million in the U.S. as it continues to struggle with reliability problems. It was not immediately clear whether those totals were annual records. On Tuesday, its longtime quality chief abruptly left after Fiat Chrysler performed poorly in Consumer Reports magazine's annual reliability rankings. The largest of two recalls announced Wednesday covers almost 382,000 Ram 2500 and 3500 pickups and Ram 4500 and 5500 chassis cabs from 2010 through 2014. In trucks with 6.7-Liter Cummins diesel engines, corrosion on a fuel heater terminal could cause overheating, fuel leaks and fires. Chrysler is not aware of any fires or injuries. Owners could be warned by an odor of diesel fuel. Customers will be notified by letters starting in December. Dealers will install upgraded terminals and fuel heater housings could be replaced. The second recall covers more than 184,000 Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Durango SUVs from 2014. A debris cover over a circuit board in the steering column control module can disrupt communications and disable the stability control. The problem was discovered when dealers started getting reports from customers that electronic stability control warning lights were coming on. Fiat Chrysler says it knows of no crashes or injuries caused by the problem. Technicians will upgrade software to fix the SUVs, and customers will be notified in December. Fiat Chrysler has issued 33 global recalls and 27 in the U.S. so far this year. Doug Betts, its longtime quality chief, left the company to pursue other options after Consumer Reports' survey-based rankings this year showed four FiatChrysler brands at the bottom of its list. Dodge, Ram, Jeep and Fiat performed worst of 28 brands ranked by the magazine. Company spokesman Eric Mayne said Fiat Chrysler's recalls average fewer than 200,000 vehicles each, below the industry average of 301,000. That means the company is responding quickly to problems, he said, adding that eight of its 27 U.S. recalls were announced before the company received any consumer complaints. Chrysler is not alone with a high number of recalls so far this year.

2019 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye priced $14,000 below Demon

Steve Beahm, head of Passenger Car Brands at Dodge, SRT, Chrysler, and Fiat, told Motor Trend that the 2019 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye is "a Hellcat that's been possessed by a Demon." Turns out the Hellcat Redeye was also possessed by The Ghost of Great Deals. Dodge just released pricing for the Challenger line, the crimson-eyed terror at the top starting at $69,650, which is $13,645 less dear than the $83,295 MSRP for the 2018 Challenger SRT Demon. The asterisk: the Redeye needs the same $1,345 destination charge and $1,700 gas guzzler tax as the 2018 Demon, so the difference still holds once you get the Redeye off the dealer lot. The final tally: $72,995. Torque News acquired a copy of the Challenger dealer order guide, and options on the Hellcat Redeye will run you a little more than the bucket of $1 options on the Demon. Among the list, the summer performance tires add $695, the optional 3.09 rear axle adds $1,095, a painted black hood costs $1,995, and the Widebody package adds $6,000 for it's extra 3.5 inches. According to TN, you can run a standard Hellcat Redeye up to almost $90,000, and push a widebody to $95,000. The standard Challenger SRT Hellcat gets touched by the bargain bogeyman, too: the price goes down by $5,645 for 2019 to $58,650, even though it's been uprated by ten horsepower to 717 hp, and by six pound-feet to 656 lb-ft. Out-the-door price after a $1,700 gas guzzler tax and $1,345 destination fee is $61,695. Before including destination, there's a long way down to the next model, the 485-horsepower Challenger R/T Scat Pack at $38,995. Buyers who choose the six-speed manual for this trim will pay a $1,000 gas guzzler tax. The V6-powered, 305-hp Challenger GT in two-wheel drive starts at $29,995. Sending power to all four of the GT's wheels needs $32,995 before destination. The base model, two-wheel drive SXT gets the Challenger doors open at $27,295, the all-wheel drive model costing $30,295. Related Video: