2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4x4 Altitude Limited Edition 3.6 L V-6 on 2040-cars

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Off-roading the Lyman Trail in the 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk

Lyman Trail is in the backwoods of the Chelsea Proving Grounds in Chelsea, Mich. It's where FCA goes to push off-roaders to the limits. Autoblog's Greg Miglore made a recent visit to Lyman Trail with the 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk. Check out the video to see how the SUV performed. Show full video transcript text [00:00:00] We are on Lyman Trail here, deep within the Chelsea proving grounds in the woods. This is where they test all the off-roaders, the Jeeps, the Rams, everything that's capable and needs some sort of a trail rating - this is where they bring it to shake it down. It's all downhill from here. Except when it's rocky and wet. Here we go! [00:00:30] Grand Cherokee Trailhawk is very capable off-road. Of course it's trail-rated. It definitely has all of the gizmos and things that you need to get over the obstacles that we're going to encounter. This first one is called traction. This is where, basically, to be trail-rated the vehicles need to have a certain degree of traction so they can basically, you know, stay sure-footed over certain obstacles. When going up things like this, pick your line, I'm going straight up the middle, and just stay nice and even. [00:10:00] Go straight up let the Jeep do the work, keep on going, skid plates doing their thing, there ya go. This one is over the riverbed. This simulates a dried riverbed. It's rocky, lots of stones here, things you might see on the shores of Lake Michigan. We're just gonna go right over it. Keep it nice and simple. Nice and easy. Okay, hit it kind of hard, gonna straighten the wheels. Again, you hear those skid plates, they are protecting the fuel tank, ... [00:01:30] the transfer case, and the front of the vehicle. So I'm not gonna touch the brakes, I just want to go over it nice and easy. We've come upon one of my favorite events here. This is where you go through the water. It's basically mud, a little bit of a bog kind of thing. Jeeps are so capable, you don't even have to worry about it.The trick about going through the water is to keep a nice even pace ... [00:02:00] and don't loose your nerve. Some people go in the water and are like "woah," freaking out because literally there's water all around you. So, just keep right on going, steer, point the vehicle right on through. We're making some waves here. Keep on going. Keep it smooth. Up the hill we go. And there you have it. Your Jeep not only went off-roading, it went off-landing. That's a bad joke.

Baby Jeep to join Renegade in FCA's plan for new Italian-built models

FCA is boosting its European production, introducing new models that will be built in currently under-utilized manufacturing facilities. Among the new models is a new small Jeep, smaller than the current Renegade, as Automotive News reports. FCA's Mike Manley mentioned the entry-level Jeep model earlier this year, also saying that the vehicle is targeted to European and possibly Latin American customers; in the summer, Autocar placed the launch date in 2022. The new "baby" Jeep would be made in the same factory in Pomigliano, Italy, as the small Fiat Panda, which is a top seller in Italy. The current generation Panda was introduced in 2011; if it gets a replacement in 2022, it could possibly share a platform with the Jeep model — or, the Jeep could be an eventual outright replacement for the Panda. One of Fiat's earlier core products, the Punto hatchback, was canned in August, and that production capacity will be used to make the Jeep Compass instead, at the Renegade-producing Melfi factory in southern Italy. The Compass has not previously been built in Europe. The Fiat model portfolio would be shrunk to just the 500 model family and the Panda — the 500 would also be FCA's key electric vehicle offered in Europe. It is not yet clear whether the electric 500 would be made in Turin, Italy, or in Poland; Turin might also get a Giardiniera-badged wagon version of the refreshed 500. As for the Alfa Romeo brand, it is set to gain an even bigger SUV model than the Stelvio, based on the Maserati Levante's platform. The Levante's sales have suffered recently in China, but Maserati does have light in the horizon: The Alfieri 2+2 grand tourer is still in the cards, with a launch expected for 2020 and both a convertible and an electrified version planned to follow. The Alfieri would be made in Modena, Italy, according to Automotive News' sources. None of these plans namedrop the storied Lancia brand, which has been shrunk to just the Ypsilon hatchback, based on the same platform as the current 500 and Panda. Despite that, the Ypsilon was again the second-bestselling car in Italy after the Panda in October. It is unlikely that FCA will be able to ignore this, but it is just as unlikely that any development money will be afforded to come up with a replacement for the Ypsilon, which is as similarly old as the Panda. Perhaps official announcements expected on Thursday will also clarify what will happen to Lancia.

Jeep, Ram tease SEMA builds, and one looks like a Ram 1500 TRX PHEV

SEMA is back this year, and shows no signs of cancellation. And that means a whole new crop of custom builds from not only aftermarket companies, but OEMs such as Jeep and Ram. The two brands released teasers of their modified trucks for the show, and there are a couple of seriously intriguing ones. And the most brow-raising is the silver Ram 1500 TRX that could be a plug-in hybrid. What makes us say that? Well, take a look at the badging. The "RAM" badge in the grille is bright blue. And the front tow hooks are blue, too. Those cues are signatures of the Jeep 4xe plug-in hybrid models. And Jeep isn't the only one to utilize blue badging for electrified models. Ram 1500s with the 48-volt eTorque hybrid assist get blue-highlighted badges. So it seems like a slam-dunk that the wide-bodied desert-stomper in the teaser has a hybrid powertrain. We'd bet on it being the 375-horsepower turbo-four from the Wrangler, but maybe Ram put something unique together. The next curious model is what's quite clearly a variant of the military M715 truck. It's undoubtedly this year's restomod, as Stellantis brands are wont to build. Looking closer, it has a very high roof and center-mounted spotlight. Those are cues shared with the M725 ambulance. We wouldn't be surprised if Jeep took one of the old ambulances and turned it into one beast of an overlanding rig. We're excited to see what sort of other upgrades have been done, such as what engine will be powering it. Then we come to the interior of a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. At first glance, there doesn't seem to be much going on, at least until you look at the roof. The cargo area has a significantly raised section. And there are safari windows letting light in. It will be interesting to see what it looks like from the outside. Finally, we have teasers of what's probably a Wrangler Rubicon 4xe and a Ram 1500. The Wrangler shot is of the front fender, and the Ram is of the rear. They don't show much except what seem to be Mopar accessories. As such, we suspect these are show pieces for the Mopar catalog, and they might each have a couple of concept parts, but are otherwise a bit tame compared to the Jeep and Ram one-offs. All of these trucks will be revealed and on display at the SEMA show in Las Vegas. The show will run Nov. 2-5. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.