1970 Dodge Challenger R/t 383 (matching Numbers!) on 2040-cars

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California Highway Patrol powers up with Charger Pursuits

Residents of California, you'll want to adjust your rear-view mirrors and remain vigilant for the menacing maw of the Dodge Charger. The California Highway Patrol (CHP) ordered 580 Dodge Charger Pursuit cars to start replacing the organization's oldest vehicles. According to the CHP's director of communications, Fran Clader, these old cars are patrol versions of the Ford Crown Victoria, Ford Explorer and Dodge Charger. The cars will be delivered over the next two years with the majority equipped with Fiat Chrysler's 3.6-liter V6 engine. The unit makes 292 horsepower in the Charger and is found in everything from the Jeep Wrangler to the Chrysler 200. There will be a handful of Chargers with the 5.7-liter V8 found in the Charger R/T, but Dodge and Clader said they will just be used for training. Bick Pratt, head of FCA US government sales and operations, said the order represents a move back toward four-door police cars. "The CHP is ordering our Charger Pursuit vehicle to reintroduce the sedan into their patrol vehicle fleet," Pratt said. "That's important to us because it reflects a shift back to sedans by a progressive agency like the CHP." Chargers may show up in local law enforcement fleets. Pratt said departments will have the opportunity to also order Charger Pursuits through the CHP's contract. So wherever you are in California, if you see that famous crosshair grille in your rear-view mirror, be ready to pull over. Related video:

Fiat Chrysler and the UAW reach tentative labor deal

DETROIT — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the United Auto Workers (UAW) union on Saturday announced a tentative agreement for a four-year labor contract, a boost for the automaker as it works to merge with France's Groupe PSA. Italian-American Fiat Chrysler and PSA, the maker of Peugeot and Citroen, last month announced a planned $50 billion merger to create the world's fourth-largest automaker. The tentative agreement with Fiat Chrysler, which is subject to ratification by the union members, follows contracts that the UAW already concluded with Ford Motor Co and General Motors Co. The deal with GM followed a 40-day strike in the United States that virtually shuttered GM's North American operations and cost the automaker $3 billion. The UAW on Saturday said the contract with Fiat Chrysler included a commitment from FCA to invest $9 billion, creating 7,900 new jobs over the course of the four-year contract. Of the $9 billion, $4.5 billion was announced earlier this year, to be invested in five plants and creating 6,500 jobs. Detailed terms of the tentative agreement were not released, but they are expected to echo those under the new contracts with GM and Ford, as the UAW typically uses the first deal as a pattern for the others. "FCA has been a great American success story thanks to the hard work of our members," UAW acting President Rory Gamble said in a statement. "We have achieved substantial gains and job security provisions for the fastest growing auto company in the United States." Ratification is not a sure thing. Rank-and-file UAW members at FCA in 2015 rejected the first version of a contract. In addition, a lawsuit related to a federal corruption probe could also raise doubts among union members about the terms agreed. The federal corruption led GM to file a racketeering lawsuit against FCA, alleging that its rival bribed union officials over many years to corrupt the bargaining process and gain advantages, costing GM billions of dollars. FCA has brushed off the lawsuit as groundless. Under the UAW's deal with GM, the automaker agreed to invest $9 billion in the United States, including $7.7 billion directly in its plants, and to create or retain 9,000 UAW jobs. Ford's contract included commitments to invest more than $6 billion in its U.S. plants and to create or retain more than 8,500 UAW jobs. The deals with GM and Ford also created a pathway to full-time employment for temporary workers and left healthcare insurance coverage unchanged.

Junkyard Gem: 1991 Dodge Stealth R/T

Chrysler's relationship with Mitsubishi goes back to the early 1970s, when the first Mitsubishi Colt Galants arrived from Japan with Dodge Colt badging. Plenty of Mitsubishi-built Arrows and Ram 50s and Challengers followed, and the joint Chrysler-Mitsubishi plant in Illinois began building cars in 1988. By the 1990s, you could find Mitsubishi DNA throughout the American Chrysler family, and the Mitsubishi GTO was brought over to become the Dodge Stealth starting in 1991. Here's one of those first-year Stealths, now residing in a Colorado self-service boneyard. Four grades of Stealth were available here in 1991, with the R/T Turbo AWD at the very pinnacle. This car, a regular R/T, is one step down from that model but still a pretty quick machine for its time. MSRP was $25,155, or about $55,370 in 2022 dollars. The R/T got this naturally-aspirated DOHC 6G72 engine, displacing 3.0 liters and making 222 horsepower. If you got the turbocharged version in the R/T Turbo AWD (or the Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4), power went up to 300 horses. The 3000GT (as the GTO was known here) was mechanically identical to this car but had slightly different styling. The GTO/3000GT/Stealth replaced the Mitsubishi Starion and its Chrysler/Dodge Conquest siblings, which were sold here from the 1983 through 1989 model years. The Starion was a rear-wheel-drive machine that competed for sales against the Toyota Supra and Nissan Z, while the Mitsubishi GTO was available with either front- or all-wheel-drive. As illustrated by this photo of the rear suspension, this car is a front-wheel-drive version. Americans loved automatic transmissions 30 years ago, nearly as much as we love them today, but this car has a proper five-on-the-floor manual. If you wanted the optional four-speed automatic, it cost 813 bucks ($1,790 today). The Stealth R/T AWD had a mandatory five-speed manual transmission. This car has been hit hard by junkyard shoppers and the ravages of time, but it was fairly luxurious when new. Air conditioning was standard equipment on the R/T, though not on the lesser Stealths. This car came close to 150,000 total miles, but fell a bit short of that milestone. The final year for the Dodge Stealth was 1996, though the Mitsubishi 3000GT remained available here through 1999. The Mitsubishi GTO held on through 2000 in its homeland. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Outhandles the Lotus Esprit!