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Marchionne says no offers are on the table for Fiat Chrysler

MONZA, Italy (Reuters) - Fiat Chrysler (FCA) has not received any offer for the company nor is the world's seventh-largest carmaker working on any "big deal", Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne said on Saturday. Speaking on the sidelines of the Italian Formula One Grand Prix, Marchionne said the focus remained on executing the company's business plan to 2018. Asked whether FCA had been approached by someone or whether there was an offer on the table, he simply said: "No." The company's share price jumped to record highs last month after reports of interest for the group or some of its brands from China. China's Great Wall Motor Co Ltd openly said it was interested in FCA, but had not held talks or signed a deal with executives at the Italian-American automaker. The stock move was also helped by expectations that the company might separate from some of its units. Marchionne reiterated on Saturday that FCA was working on a plan to "purify" its portfolio and that units, such as the components businesses, would be separated from the group. He hopes to complete that process by the end of 2018. "There are activities within the group that do not belong to a car manufacturer, for example the components businesses. The group needs to be cleared of those things," he told journalists. Asked whether an announcement could come this year, Marchionne said it was up to the board to decide and that it would next meet at the end of September. He said the time was not right for a spin-off of luxury brand Maserati and premium Alfa Romeo and the two brands needed to become self-sustainable entities first and "have the muscle to stand on their feet, make sufficient cash". "The way we see it now, it's almost impossible, if not impossible, to see a spin-off of Alfa Romeo/Maserati, these are two entities that are immature and in a development phase," he said. "It's the wrong moment, we are not in a condition to do it." He said the concept of separating the two brands from FCA's mass market business made sense and did not rule out this happening in future, but not under his tenure, which lasts until April 2019. "If there is an opportunity in future, it would certainly happen after I'm gone. It won't happen while Marchionne is around," he said.

Your 2018 Jeep Wrangler can already be fitted with a Chevy LS V8

Over a long enough period of time, every car model on the planet will probably have at least one example receive a Chevrolet V8. And a large number of them will have an LS-series V8, commonly found in Corvettes and Camaros from the last 20 years (plus other GM vehicles in slightly different forms). Sometimes it doesn't take very long, as is the case with the 2018 Jeep Wrangler JL. The new Jeep has only been available for a couple of months, and already a company called Bruiser Conversions is offering to install LS engines under the hood. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Specifically, the company will install a GM Performance LS3 V8. Though Bruiser Conversions doesn't yet list exactly what specifications the engine has, it offers the LS3 in both 450- and 500-horsepower versions on the previous Wrangler JK generation. The new V8 will be fitted to the factory 8-speed automatic transmission, and the company says that the transmission will function exactly as it does with the original V6 or turbo inline-4. In addition, Bruiser Conversions says all factory gauges, cruise control, hill descent control and other electronic aids will work like they did from the factory. Pricing is currently not listed for the conversion, but the company is taking pre-orders for both in-shop installations and do-it-yourself kits. Going off the conversion costs for an older JK Wrangler, it will probably cost between $20,000 and $30,000 to have Bruiser Conversions do the installation. In the case of the JK kits, they're about $5,000 less than having Bruiser Conversions do the work. We've reached out to the company to see if we can get specific pricing and will update the post if and when we hear back. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: Bruiser ConversionsImage Credit: Bruiser Conversions Aftermarket GM Jeep SUV Off-Road Vehicles Performance ls3

Chrysler recalls 350k vehicles over ignition switches

Chrysler has announced a recall covering 349,442 vehicles due to ignition switches that can either become stuck or move without warning. All of the affected vehicles are from the 2008 model year, and were built before May 12, 2008.
The automaker has learned that ignition keys on some vehicles "may not fully return to the 'ON' position after rotation to the 'START' position during engine-startup," the company said in a statement. Additionally, "an ignition key may not fully return to the 'ON' position after rotation to the 'START' position and may inadvertently move through the 'ON' position to 'ACCESSORY' or 'OFF.'"
Chrysler says it is unaware of any related injuries, and notes that while reduced braking, engine or steering power is possible in such instances, the airbags are not affected. The later stands in contrast to General Motors' recent rash of high-profile recalls, and it's an important distinction that Chrysler (understandably) felt necessary to call out in bold print in its press release.