2000 Dodge Dakota - Regular Cab, 2wd on 2040-cars

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Fiat Chrysler profit up as it closes in on retiring its debt

MILAN — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles reduced its debt by more than expected in the first quarter, putting the carmaker well on course to become cash positive later this year. Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne expects to cancel all debt during 2018 — possibly by the end of June — and generate around 4 billion euros ($5 billion) in net cash by the end of the year. Marchionne has said that forecast does not include any one-off measures, nor the impact of the planned spinoff of parts maker Magneti Marelli, which he hopes to execute by early 2019. The world's seventh-largest carmaker said on Thursday net debt had fallen to 1.3 billion euros ($1.6 billion) by the end of March, well below a consensus forecast of 2.6 billion euros in a Thomson Reuters poll of analysts. FCA said capital spending fell 900 million euros in the quarter due to "program timing," which analysts said implied higher investments for the rest of the year. The Italian-American group said first-quarter operating profit rose 5 percent to 1.61 billion euros, below a consensus forecast of 1.74 billion, as a weaker performance from its North American profit center weighed. Shipments there were higher due to the new Jeep Wrangler and Compass models. But currency moves hit revenues and earnings, and costs related to new product launches added to the pressure. FCA's shift to sell more trucks and SUVs boosted margins yet again in North America to 7.4 percent from 7.3 percent in the same quarter a year ago, although they were down from the 8 percent recorded in the preceding three months. Marchionne, preparing to hand over to an internal successor next year, is close to his goal of ending a margin gap with larger U.S. rivals General Motors and Ford. The 65-year-old has said becoming debt free and being able to compete on a par with U.S. peers would mean FCA no longer needed a partner to survive and could well succeed on its own. The CEO has previously said tying up with another carmaker would help to meet the huge costs in an industry investing in electric vehicles and automated driving. FCA shares fell immediately after the results, but recovered to trade up 3 percent at 19.71 euros by 1150 GMT, outperforming a 0.4 percent rise in Europe's blue-chip stock index. ($1 = 0.8214 euros) Reporting by Agnieszka FlakRelated Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Junkyard Gem: 2007 Dodge Caliber SXT with 5-speed manual transmission

When DaimlerChrysler unleashed the Caliber as a Neon replacement for the 2007 model year, the American car-buying world was put on notice that cute transportation appliances would be kicked to the side by the hobnailed boots of a new generation of angry, brutish, truck-influenced transportation appliances. The Caliber sold well enough at first, but eventually blurred into the fleet-car background noise and got shoved aside by the Alfa-derived Dart after 2012. Since I'm always on the lookout for super-rare three-pedal cars while I'm poking around in junkyards, I check out discarded Calibers in the hope of spying such a machine. This work paid off when I spotted this first-model-year '07 in a Northern California yard last month. In fact, the 5-speed manual transmission came as standard equipment on the non-R/T Calibers in 2007, but nearly every Caliber buyer opted to get the continuously variable automatic instead. That odd-looking horizontal shifter rod reminds me of the one in the early-1970s Honda 600. One reason I check out junkyard Calibers is that I'm trying to find a Boston Acoustics "MusicGate" speaker box, an optional rig that went on the inside of the hatch, to use in my next car-parts boombox project. I haven't managed to find one yet, but I'm not giving up. This car is a luxurious SXT, the trim level that squeezed between the bare-bones SE and the high-zoot R/T. When you bought the SXT, you got the pimp-grade Chill Zone™ (a beverage compartment with internal air-conditioner ducts) as standard equipment. Now this rare Caliber sits among the discarded PT Cruisers and Avengers of the yard's Chrysler section, on the flight path of the big C-5s heading into Travis Air Force Base. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Dodge's marketers tried hard to make the Caliber look tough, even murderous, the kind of car that would use an old Polara bumper jack to beat cuddly cartoon characters to death in a spray of flying teeth and blood-spattered fur. If all Calibers had come with manual transmissions, perhaps this macho image would have stuck better than it did. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Silly little fairy!

1968 Dodge D200 'Lowliner' adds low-down diesel torque to a lowrider

When Mopar does a custom classic car, it's always spectacular, whether it's a Dodge muscle car like the 1,000-horsepower Super Charger or the monster Jeep Five-Quarter off-road pickup. For SEMA this year, Mopar skipped another Dodge sports coupe in favor of a 1968 Dodge D200 pickup truck done up as a lowrider, but with a twist. Or more accurately, with lots of twist. Under the gorgeous candy red metallic body is a 5.9-liter 24-valve Cummins turbodiesel straight-six. It makes an estimated 325 horsepower and 610 pound-feet of torque, and it's paired with a six-speed manual transmission. Representatives from Chrysler estimated the weight of the engine and transmission alone at 1,100 pounds. The diesel engine's power goes to the rear wheels, which are 22 inches in diameter and 11 inches wide with fat 325-mm tires. The front wheels are a tad narrower at 9.5 inches. 1968 Dodge D200 View 7 Photos As cool as the powertrain is, the exterior and the interior of the truck can't be ignored. This generation of Dodge pickup is already intriguing with its distinct character line with a little kink at the end and ribbed and louvered hood. These unique styling cues are accented now that Dodge removed various other details from the body such as the door handles, metallic trim and such. The bumpers were also reshaped to better fit the contours of the body, and the front wheels were pushed forward to reduce the long overhang of the stock truck. The bumpers, grille, and "smoothie" style alloy wheels were also painted in a solid cream color rather than chrome, which both accents the deep red body and gives the truck a more workmanlike feel, as low-trim cars typically had painted trim instead of chrome or stainless steel. The red paint also features subtle Cummins logos on the fenders and Dodge block lettering on the tailgate. The interior continues the simple and classy theme. The original bench seat remains, but with saddle brown leather upholstery. Leather trim has been added throughout, and exposed metal parts have been painted in the same color as the exterior. Simple gray cloth floor mats cover the bottom of the cab, and the instrument panel uses new Mopar gauges in a machine-turned metal housing. The original steering wheel remains, but a custom shifter with red Cummins shift knob sticks through the floor.