2006 Jeep Wrangler 2dr Rubicon on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Auto critic calls out Corvette, Mustang and Cherokee faithful

Most automotive purists fear change, but not without reason. Change, after all, did kill big-block V8s, along with most station wagons and manual transmissions. But change has also brought with it far more performance, safety and fuel economy - not to mention ridding the world of shag carpet interiors, bias-ply tires and those horrible motorized seatbelts of the early '90s.
By this time next year, the Chevy Corvette, Jeep Cherokee and next-generation Ford Mustang will all be on sale and will all, in some way, have angered or offended purists. To those critics, Mark Phelan of the Detroit Free Press is preemptively telling them to stop complaining - at least until they've all been driven. From the Corvette's square taillights and the Cherokee's radical nose to whatever pony car purists will harp on the 2015 Mustang for, Phelan's column points out the positives of automotive evolution and the negatives of staying the course for too long. That's fair enough, but do you think Phelan is on point, or all wet? Head on over to the Detroit Free Press to read his words, then have your say in Comments.

NHTSA closes investigation on 4.7M FCA power modules, no recall

FCA US hasn't had the best time with recalls as of late. Not only did the company recently agree to greater safety oversight and paid $105 million to the government, that came just days after hacking fears prompted a 1.4-million model recall campaign. However, a recent decision to close an investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration means that the automaker doesn't have to worry about another major recall possibly affecting 4.7 million vehicles, according to the agency's report (as a PDF). Last September, the Center for Auto Safety petitioned NHTSA to investigate an alleged problem with the totally integrated power module (TIPM) on these FCA US models. The group claimed that a fault with the component could cause a variety of maladies, including stalls, not starting, catching fire, unintended acceleration, and airbag non-deployment. At the time, it also submitted 70 cases where this had reportedly happened. According to NHTSA, "no valid evidence was presented in support of claims related to airbag non-deployment, unintended acceleration, or fire resulting from TIPM faults and these claims were found to be wholly without merit based on review of the field data and design of the relevant systems and components." The agency did find signs of an issue with the fuel pump relay in some Jeep Grand Cherokees and Dodge Durangos, but FCA US issued recalls for the problem in September 2014 and February 2015. Without anything else to go on, the Feds don't think it's worth investigating this topic any more.

Maserati Levante crossover not Jeep based after all?

Maserati has been teasing its crossover project since 2011, which is when it first showed off the Kubang concept (pictured above). Still, the production version, rumored to be called the Levante, remains a complete mystery. The CUV was first rumored to borrow the platform from the Jeep Grand Cherokee, but new rumors indicate that the Italian, luxury crossover might actually take the underpinnings from the Quattroporte and Ghibli.
In a brief interview, Maserati CEO Harald Wester told CNN Money that the Levante wouldn't use Jeep's platform. Motor Trend spoke with an unnamed Maserati engineer who confirmed the rumor. Officially, the company says that no decision has been made.
We can add this to another long list of rumors about the Italian CUV. It was originally supposed to be built at Chrysler's Jefferson North assembly plant in Detroit. Then, plans were changed to build it in Italy.