2018 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon on 2040-cars

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Jeep: 4x4ever

Jeep is turning 75 this year, and it seems like the star of the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles brand stable has been making cool ads that run during the Super Bowl almost as long. (Yes, we know this was Super Bowl 50. We're exaggerating.) In this spot, all kinds of active sports and nature stuff that Jeep owners do (or least like other to think they do) is shown with every kind of Jeep, old and new. Here's to another 75 years. Marketing/Advertising Jeep Super Bowl Commercials 2016 super bowl ad

Ford, Stellantis workers join those at GM in ratifying contract that ended UAW strikes

DETROIT — The United Auto Workers union overwhelmingly ratified new contracts with Ford and Stellantis, that along with a similar deal with General Motors will raise pay across the industry, force automakers to absorb higher costs and help reshape the auto business as it shifts away from gasoline-fueled vehicles. Workers at Stellantis, the maker of Jeep, Dodge and Ram vehicles, voted 68.8% in favor of the deal. Their approval brought to a close a contentious labor dispute that included name-calling and a series of punishing strikes that imposed high costs on the companies and led to significant gains in pay and benefits for UAW workers. The deal at Stellantis passed by a roughly 10,000 vote margin, with ballot counts ending Saturday afternoon. Workers at Ford voted 69.3% in favor of the pact, which passed with nearly a 15,000-vote margin in balloting that ended early Saturday. Earlier this week, GM workers narrowly approved a similar contract. The agreements, which run through April 2028, will end contentious talks that began last summer and led to six-week-long strikes at all three automakers. Shawn Fain, the pugnacious new UAW leader, had branded the companies enemies of the UAW who were led by overpaid CEOs, declaring the days of union cooperation with the automakers were over. After summerlong negotiations failed to produce a deal, Fain kicked off strikes on Sept. 15 at one assembly plant at each company. The union later extended the strike to parts warehouses and other factories to try to intensify pressure on the automakers until tentative agreements were reached late in October. The new contract agreements were widely seen as a victory for the UAW. The companies agreed to dramatically raise pay for top-scale assembly plant workers, with increases and cost-of-living adjustments that would translate into 33% wage gains. Top assembly plant workers are to receive immediate 11% raises and will earn roughly $42 an hour when the contracts expire in April of 2028. Under the agreements, the automakers also ended many of the multiple tiers of wages they had used to pay different workers. They also agreed in principle to bring new electric-vehicle battery plants into the national union contract. This provision will give the UAW an opportunity to unionize the EV battery plants plants, which will represent a rising share of industry jobs in the years ahead.

2018 Jeep Wrangler interior revealed with retro touches and bright colors

Easily one of the weakest points of the current Jeep Wrangler (and most past ones for that matter) is the bleak, black plastic interior. Now, thanks to a pair of images from Jeep we get our first unobscured look at the new Wrangler's interior. And thanks to some retro cues, it's a much brighter and more cheerful place. As expected from spy photos, the dashboard's main design features are simple, flat body-color panels positioned in front of the driver and passenger. They harken back to the painted metal dashboards of vintage Jeeps, and at the same time bring a splash of color and contrast to what would otherwise be a plain, average interior. In fact, it's the same strategy used by both the Fiat 500 and Volkswagen Beetle. There's more metal-finish trim around the switches that advance the bright look, too. The whole dash is flatter, with things like the grab handle mounted flusher. Everything has a more geometric, crisp shape, with each bank of buttons featuring beveled borders. At the top of the dash is a big touch screen for infotainment. It's possible lower-trim levels will have head units with smaller screens and some more buttons, but at least on this model, it's all about the touchscreen. There are volume and tuning knobs lower, though. This is also where the various climate controls are found. The instrument panel gets a sharp-looking center screen, too, and the analog dials have been reduced from four large units down to two on either side of the screen. Below the climate controls are the window switches, power outlet and media inputs. At the very bottom we find switches for off-road features, indicating that this is probably a Rubicon model. A switch to the left surrounded by red accenting controls the front and rear differential locks, and in the middle is a button for disconnecting the anti-roll bars for greater articulation. On the right are four generic buttons that seem like the auxiliary toggles in the F-150 Raptor, so they should be able to connect to lights, a winch, and other aftermarket accessories. Jeep still hasn't revealed any other details on specifications or pricing. That information will be released on November 29 during the Wrangler's official reveal at the L.A. auto show. We expect it to only offer a V6 at launch with either a manual transmission (shown in the images) or an automatic, with the turbocharged four-cylinder engine coming later. Related Video: