2013 - Jeep Wrangler on 2040-cars

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2020 Jeep Gladiator pickup revealed: class-leading towing, diesel option, much more

Even though we've all pretty much seen the Jeep Gladiator, it's still exciting to finally see the officially unveiled pickup truck. And it does indeed look like a simple Wrangler pickup. It has fully removable soft and hard tops, doors and a folding windshield. The doors are the same as the Wrangler Unlimited's. It has round headlights, chunky fender flares and nearly the same interior. But it's more than that, blending much of the beloved SUV with some unique features for the pickup truck. For starters, the Gladiator features a new frame not shared with Wrangler that's a whopping 31 inches longer than the one under the Wrangler Unlimited. The wheelbase of the Gladiator is also 19.4 inches longer than a Wrangler Unlimited. The Gladiator continues to use solid front and rear axles, both of which are Dana 44s in two available track widths, but the rear five-link coil suspension is a unique design developed for better ride quality. Propelling this chassis initially will be the 3.6-liter gasoline V6 from the Wrangler with either a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission. It makes 285 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque. In 2020, Jeep will start offering a 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6 that is a thoroughly redesigned version of the engine found in the outgoing Ram EcoDiesel. It's down in power compared to the gas engine at 260 horses, but it more than makes up for it with 442 pound-feet of torque. The only other diesel in this small to midsize truck segment is the Colorado and Canyon diesel trucks. Their diesel four-cylinder engines only make 181 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque. All Gladiators with either engine send their power through a selectable part-time four-wheel drive system. Fuel economy for either engine option has yet to be announced. On the subject of capability, the Gladiator has some impressive towing and payload numbers. Maximum towing capacity is 7,650 pounds. That's 150 pounds more than the next best gas-powered truck in this segment, the Ford Ranger. Maximum payload capacity is 1,600 pounds, which isn't the highest in the segment, but falls right in the range of the Ford Ranger and Chevy Colorado gas models. The bed is 5 feet long and is made of steel with an aluminum tailgate. It has various tie-down points and power outlets. Regarding the towing and payload numbers, it should be noted that the top towing capacity is only available on a Sport trim with the 3.6-liter V6, eight-speed automatic and 4.10 final drive ratio.

CEO Sergio Marchionne curses FCA spokesman for emissions cheating denial

WASHINGTON — Fiat Chrysler Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne reprimanded the company's top U.S. spokesman for issuing press releases about Fiat's vehicle emissions practices days after Volkswagen's disclosure in September 2015 that the German automaker had used illegal software to evade emissions tests, documents released Monday show. Lawyers suing Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in a securities case filed excerpts of an email from Marchionne to Gualberto Ranieri, then the company's U.S. spokesman, in a filing in federal court in New York criticizing him for saying that the company does not use defeat devices. "Are you out of your goddam mind?" Marchionne wrote in an email on Sept. 22, 2015, adding that Ranieri should be fired and calling his actions "utterly stupid and unconscionable." The company said in a statement on Monday it was "understandable that our CEO would have a forceful response to any employee who would opine on such a significant and complex matter, without the matter having been fully reviewed through its appropriate channels." The statement added that Ranieri's comments came just days after VW's emissions issue became public "and before a comprehensive internal review and discussions with component suppliers was possible." Fiat Chrysler was sued in 2015 along with Marchionne and other executives over claims it defrauded shareholders by overstating its ability to comply with vehicle safety laws. An amended version of the complaint filed in 2017 added claims about its compliance with emissions laws. The shareholders accused the defendants of inflating Fiat Chrysler's share price by hundreds of millions of dollars from October 2014 to October 2015 by downplaying safety concerns. They said the shortcomings materialized in 2015 when the automaker was fined $175 million by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and took a roughly $670 million charge for recalls. Plaintiffs filed the excerpts seeking approval to take up to 40 additional depositions, including Marchionne's. The U.S. Justice Department sued Fiat Chrysler in May 2017, accusing it of illegally using software to bypass emission controls in 104,000 diesel vehicles sold since 2014. Fiat Chrysler has held numerous rounds of settlement talks with the Justice Department and California Air Resources Board to settle the civil suit, including talks as recently as earlier this month. It faces a separate criminal probe into the matter.

2018 Jeep Wrangler scores 1 star in European crash tests

The Jeep Wrangler got a full redesign for the 2018 model year, and this Euro NCAP test we have here is the first official independent safety testing we've seen for the new model. Historically, the Wrangler has performed poorly in crash tests. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration awarded the previous generation a three-star rating. Euro NCAP testing puts a lot more weight on driver assistance systems in its testing, an area where the new Wrangler is somewhat lacking. It lost points for not having things like automatic emergency braking and lane-keep assist — the Wrangler doesn't offer either of those things in Europe, even as an option. However, the 2019 model year Wrangler does (2018 does not) offer active braking for the U.S., a $795 package gives your Wrangler the ability to brake itself to a full stop if it senses the risk of a collision. This package includes adaptive cruise control, too, but lane-keep assist is not available. On top of the lack of active driver safety systems, its performance in NCAP's impact testing left a bit to be desired, as well. We did the math to see the raw Euro NCAP scores for a crash without it being dragged down by the driver assistance systems, and adult occupant safety came out to 56.7 percent. Child occupant safety was a tad better at 69 percent. These still aren't great numbers, so it's clear that the lack of driver assistance features isn't the only thing pulling the score down. We aren't particularly surprised by the Wrangler's numbers, but it's information potential buyers should know about the truck. For those wanting an even deeper dive, check out Euro NCAP's full testing results here. The Euro NCAP also released a video of its Jeep Wrangler crash testing, which you can watch above. None of it looks particularly egregious at first blush, especially compared to video of the Fiat Panda, which recently received a whopping zero star rating. Scoring zero stars in a crash test is always a red flag, but customers won't ever buy the Panda in the U.S. anyway. We'll be watching for crash test ratings from the NHTSA and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety for U.S. market 2018 Wranglers to see if those tests produce different results. Related video: