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2019 Jeep Scrambler interior spied, will have Wrangler's removable top

The Jeep Scrambler — the long-awaited truck variant of the Jeep Wrangler — has been in development for a long, long time. We've seen spy shots of various prototypes for years now. Even with the camouflage, it's not difficult to tell what's hiding underneath. We have a new batch here, and while there isn't really anything new on the outside, these do give us a good look at the new Jeep's interior. Good news: It looks like the Scrambler will get the Wrangler's removable roof panels. The roll bar, latch and removable panel are all quite obvious from the inside. Although we know the Scrambler is based on the Wrangler, it was unclear how much of the design would carry over. The rest of the interior is a little more odd. We fully expect the Scrambler to be based on the new 2018 Jeep Wrangler JL, but this prototype has the dashboard of the outgoing Wrangler JK. It also has a Chrysler steering wheel, so this may simply be either a parts-bin prototype or an older tester that hasn't been updated. We don't yet know when we'll see a full reveal, but it doesn't look like the Scrambler will hit dealer showrooms until April 2019. Until then, pore over some more spy photos and some great renderings of the new Jeep truck. Related Video: Featured Gallery Jeep Scrambler Spy Shots View 15 Photos Design/Style Spy Photos Jeep Truck Off-Road Vehicles jeep scrambler

UAW Chief Shawn Fain disrupts Detroit's labor tradition

He's known to quote the Bible and Nation of Islam civil rights leader Malcolm X. He's a social media fanatic who keeps the pay stubs of his union member grandfather in his wallet. And now, Shawn Fain is representing nearly 150,000 auto workers in one of the biggest labor strikes in decades. In taking action against all three Detroit carmakers, Fain, the head of the United Auto Workers, has remade the strategy of the union he leads, choosing a bolder, much riskier path than his predecessors after he won office by a narrow margin in a first-ever direct election earlier this year. The strike started as the clock hit midnight on Friday, and followed Fain's decision to open negotiations with Ford Motor, General Motors and Stellantis simultaneously and eschew public niceties involving choreographed handshakes that famously kicked off previous negotiating efforts. The strategy is not without risk. A weeks-long strike would hit workers who live paycheck to paycheck, while the Detroit Three automakers have billions in cash to withstand the walkout. Fain, 54, has made creative use of social media, appearances on network and cable news programs and alliances with high-profile progressive politicians such as U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, to reframe the UAW's contract bargaining as a battle to re-set the balance of power between workers and global corporations. He has rebutted automakers' concerns about labor costs by pointing out that they have poured billions into share buybacks to benefit investors. "If they’ve got money for Wall Street they sure as hell have money for the workers making the product," he said. “We fight for the good of the entire working class and the poor." In lengthy social media talks to UAW members, Fain alternates quoting Bible verses with the use of charts and graphs to dissect wage and benefit offers from the automakers - details his predecessors kept behind closed doors during bargaining crunch time. Fain, in his unorthodox approach, ran what amounted to a public auction among the companies to push each one to top the other to avoid a costly walkout. Prior UAW presidents picked just one automaker to set a pattern for the other two. Over and over, Fain has told UAW members at the Detroit Three that they can reverse 20 years of wage and retiree benefit concessions, stop further plant closures and end a seniority-based, tiered compensation system that pays new hires as much as 44% less than veteran workers.

Marchionne: Midsize pickup still not in the cards; Ram 1500, Jeep Wrangler could use aluminum

During the Fiat-Chrysler briefings on Tuesday, Reid Bigland, head of Ram Trucks, outlined the new product plans for his brand, including confirmation that an all-new light-duty Ram 1500 will launch in 2017. From there, discussions spun off in two directions, with the main questions being: will Ram build a midsize pickup? And, following Ford's move to extensively use aluminum in its new 2015 F-150, will Chrysler be using this weight-saving material for the next round of its fullsize truck, as well?
"I think there is room for a Ram 1000," Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne (pictured above) told members of the media, saying this is a conversation the automaker has been having internally for several years now. "We've tried this ... we've actually taken it to clinics," Marchionne stated, adding that the "response has been lukewarm."
"I have better use of aluminum in this house than a pickup truck." - Sergio Marchionne