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2020 Dodge Journey loses trims and colors, adds equipment

Update: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that all-wheel-drive was available on the Journey. It has been discontinued for the 2020 model year. The text has been changed to reflect this. The 2020 Dodge Journey sticks with the formula that's served it for its entire 11-year lifespan so far, which is to say nothing more than incremental changes will usher in the new year. The lineup shrinks by half, the SE and GT trims going away, leaving the SE Value and Crossroad trims. The end of the Journey GT means the end of the 283-horsepower, 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 for the Journey, the two remaining models powered by the 2.4-liter four-cylinder with 172 horsepower and 165 pound-feet of torque shifting through a four-speed automatic. The SE Value sits on 17-inch steelies with wheel covers, the Crossroad rides on 19-inchers, and both models turn the front wheels only; the option of all-wheel drive has left the building. Both trims add new standard equipment, Rear Park Assist included on both, the Crossroad acquiring a sunroof. The color wheel for exterior hues loses two options, Destroyer Grey and Verde Oliva, leaving seven choices. The SE Value interior retains its choice of black or tan cloth, the Crossroads sticks with black only. SE Value and Crossroad will offer an option called the Popular Entertainment Group that installs different equipment depending on trim. For the SE Value, that will add a power driver seat, premium cloth seating, leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, tri-zone temperature control, Uconnect Voice Command with Bluetooth, a 12-month subscription to SiriusXM Radio, interior observation mirror, and security alarm. On the Crossroad, the same package means navigation, heated front seats and steering wheel, six premium speakers and subwoofer, remote start, a universal garage door opener. Pricing hasn't been announced yet, but with the 11-year-old Journey selling itself as a value proposition — it's right there in the name — we don't expect much change from the $24,740 price of the 2019 SE Value.

Autonomous tech will drive motorheads off the road

While autonomous technology could make car travel much safer and more efficient — and automakers and marketers are salivating over the prospect of a "passenger economy" that could potentially generate $7 trillion by 2050 — those of us who enjoy driving are not so stoked. Experts have predicted that as autonomous vehicles are deployed in large numbers, human-driven cars eventually could be outlawed on public roads due to the carnage they create, which is currently more than 41,000 deaths a year in the U.S. alone and climbing. Such scenarios have driving enthusiasts envisioning a "Red Barchetta" style nightmare becoming reality, making Rush lyricist Neil Peart a clairvoyant as well as one of rock's most badass skin-pounders. But there could be a couple of refuges left for motorheads, and they won't be on public roads. As Popular Science's Joe Brown points out in a recent editorial, we're seeing a wave of vehicles being offered by legit mainstream automakers that aren't made for public roads. The poster child of this vanguard is the 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon, which comes with a crate full of goodies that lets you turn the already formidable street-legal muscle car into a drag-strip dominator. Brown also notes that two out of five of the Ford GT's driving modes are for use on the track, "catering to the $450,000 machine's club-racing clientele." We're also currently enjoying the heyday of production off-road-ready pickups that kicked off with the Ford Raptor in 2009. The latest salvo in this escalating war of overachieving trucks is the Chevy Colorado ZR2 that can take on the likes of California's Rubicon Trail without issue. Brown also gives a shout-out to his magazine's Grand Award Winner, the Alta Motors Redshift MX, which "isn't even allowed on public roads" and is "meant for bombing around motocross tracks, big backyards and single-track woods trails." If you follow Brown on Instagram, you know that he's also a two-wheel aficionado, and he points out that sales of off-road bikes are leaving street machines in the dust. Sales of off-highway motorcycles rose 29 percent between 2012 and 2016, according to the ­Motorcycle Industry Council — compared to 6 percent for road-bike sales during the same period. "That's a nearly 400-percent drubbing," Brown remarks.

Fiat Chrysler halts European production as coronavirus hits demand

MILAN — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is halting production for two weeks at most of its European plants to help protect staff against the coronavirus pandemic and adjust to a slump in demand, the Italian-American carmaker said on Monday. Italy has been the European country worst hit by the crisis and the first to enforce a nationwide lockdown, which has now been replicated by Spain and, to a lesser extent, by France as the virus sweeps through the continent. With all non essential services closed, including car dealers, and people forced home except for strict working needs, many forecast a heavy fall in car sales in March. FCA — which according to analyst estimates produces around 25% of its vehicles in Europe — said the suspensions through March 27 would allow it "to effectively respond to the interruption in market demand by ensuring the optimization of supply." Ferrari, meanwhile, said it closed its two plants until March 27. Ferrari said it had so far ensured production continuity, and it already implemented all the health measures decided by the Italian government at the two sites, in hometown Maranello and in Modena. But it was "now experiencing the first serious supply chain issues, which no longer allow for continued production." Marco Opipari, an analyst at Fidentiis, said a few weeks of closures was not a big problem in an over-supplied European auto industry and lost production could be recovered later on. "The real problem is on the demand side, people are not buying cars now, and sales volumes are expected to be very bad in March, with a real impact on automakers' earnings," he said. FCA said in a statement that production for its FCA Italy and luxury Maserati units would stop for two weeks, extending a temporary closure period already planned for some Italian facilities. Affected plants are Melfi, Pomigliano, Cassino, Mirafiori, Grugliasco and Modena in Italy, Kragujevac in Serbia and Tychy in Poland. The FIOM union said FCA's decision was "necessary". The carmaker said the freeze would help it to resume activity promptly once market conditions allow it. "The group is working with its supply base and business partners to be ready to enable our manufacturing operations to deliver previously planned total levels of production despite the suspension when market demand returns," it said.