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Buyers ditching expensive European sedans to buy expensive American trucks

The New York Times ended the automotive week with a story that adds numbers and context to a range of other stories, from the crossover craze to the increasing median price of a new car to ever more grandiose pickup trucks. The NYT piece reveals that the shift to larger vehicles isn't merely about the average U.S. buyer swapping the midsize sedan for a Ford Edge. Luxury buyers are migrating from plush sedans to plush SUVs and trucks that creep close to six-figure prices, and the Detroit Three are running Treasury presses because of it. From 2013 to 2017, the truck category — everything from pickups to minivans — climbed from 30 percent of the market to 41 percent. In January of this year, trucks claimed 66 percent of new vehicle sales. At the milk-and-honey end of profits, GMC alone accounted for 11.3 percent of all vehicle sales over $60,000, not just trucks. That puts the luxury truck maker behind Mercedes-Benz and Ford, The Blue Oval's feasting on Lariat, King Ranch and Raptor versions of the F-150, which make up more than half of that pickup's sales, putting it ahead of Chevrolet, Porsche and Lexus on the high-dollar sales list. The average transaction price of a GMC in Denali trim last year was $56,000; it's easy to see why, when one dealer told the NYT he just swapped a 2012 BMW 550i for a $71,000 GMC Sierra Denali. That truck starts at $52,900. The NYT started its story with a buyer who took home a Ford Raptor instead of an Audi A6, and optioned that $50,020 Ford Raptor close to $80,000. Over at Lincoln, the new $72,055 Navigator — the one so popular that Ford will increase production — crossed hands for an average sale price of $77,000 in January. And a Jeep dealer told the NYT that the two $93,000 Trackhawks he had on his lot "won't be here more than a few weeks." While trucks head up in sales volume and price, cars are headed so viciously in the opposite direction that "the Detroit Three and even some foreign manufacturers acknowledge they are now losing money on many of the cars they sell." So ... get ready for a lot more crossovers and trucks. Related Video: Find out what vehicle is right for you. Give our Car Finder tool a try.

2018 Jeep Wrangler four-cylinder fuel economy revealed

Fuel economy numbers for the 2018 Jeep Wrangler with the turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder have finally been announced by the EPA. In the city, the two-door model gets 23 mpg, and the four-door Unlimited gets 22. Highway fuel economy for the two-door is 25 mpg and 24 for the four-door. Combined for the two-door and four-door is 24 and 22 respectively. These aren't Prius numbers, but they do make the four-cylinder Wrangler the most efficient version of the off-roader so far. The rest of the Wrangler range with V6 power gets 20 mpg combined, with the exception of the manual four-door, which gets 19. The most efficient V6 models in the city are the automatic models, which, regardless of length, get 18 mpg. On the highway, the best V6 is the manual two-door, which manages 25 mpg, and only loses 1 mpg in the city to the automatic. The question is, is the improved fuel economy worth the price premium of the four-cylinder? The automatic-only four-cylinder engine is an extra $1,000 over a V6 automatic, and $3,000 over a V6 manual. And when looking at the annual fuel cost estimates at fueleconomy.gov, you might only save $50 to $100 each year. The problem being that, while it's more efficient, it also demands premium fuel that the V6 doesn't. So it could be quite a while before the upfront cost is recouped. But if you want a Wrangler that's a little nicer to the planet, it's probably the way to go, plus you get an extra 35 pound-feet of torque over the V6, even if it means sacrificing nearly 20 horsepower. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

FCA nears plea deal in diesel emissions fraud probe

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is nearing an agreement to plead guilty to criminal conduct to resolve a multiyear emissions fraud probe surrounding Ram pickup trucks and Jeep sport-utility vehicles with diesel engines, people familiar with the matter said. FCA lawyers and U.S. Justice Department officials are brokering a plea deal that could be unveiled in coming weeks and include financial penalties totaling between $250 million and $300 million, the people said. Such a resolution with FCA, which is now part of Stellantis NV, would come more than four years after Volkswagen AG pleaded guilty to criminal charges  to resolve its own diesel-emissions scandal involving nearly 600,000 vehicles.It would also mark the final significant chapter in the government crackdown on automakers' emissions practices that was precipitated by Volkswagen's deception, which became known as "Dieselgate." The FCA investigation focuses on roughly 100,000 diesel-powered vehicles that allegedly evaded emissions requirements. The plea negotiations are fluid and some terms, including the size of any financial penalties, could change as discussions continue, the people said. Justice Department officials are preparing paperwork that will likely be negotiated with FCA to finalize the plea deal, which could result in changes and also present an outside chance for the agreement to fall apart, the people said. A plea agreement would cap a series of investigations dating back to 2015 surrounding diesel-powered vehicles in FCA's U.S. lineup. The current criminal investigation targets the U.S unit of the Italian-American automaker. The affected vehicles span model years 2014 to 2016. Representatives for FCA parent Stellantis and the Justice Department declined to comment. The scandals over emissions cheating tarnished diesel technology and accelerated the industry's shift to electric vehicles. The European automakers had promoted "clean diesel" technology as a way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and ease a transition to an all-electric future. When regulators on both sides of the Atlantic uncovered evidence that diesel vehicles polluted far more in real world driving, the argument for a slower transition to battery electric vehicles was shredded. Now, automakers are accelerating battery electric vehicle development to comply with tougher, post-Dieselgate pollution standards.