Perfect Condition 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited Suv 5.7l V8 Only 20k Miles! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

This American Life spends a week selling Jeeps in Long Island

So you think you know car dealers? Well, maybe you do, but This American Life spent a month at Town and Country Jeep Chrysler Doge Ram in Long Island to give us a behind-the-scenes look (or listen, since it's a radio program) at what it's like to be a car dealer.
Yes, there's a lot of swearing in thick New York accents, frustration, confusion, and generally it's a madhouse at the dealership. But that's understandable when the sales staff has to sell 129 vehicles in October in order to get an $85,000 manufacturer bonus - with several other Jeep dealerships within a 10-mile radius.
The episode, 129 Cars, is worth a listen, but make sure you have 71 minutes to spare if you want to get through it in one sitting. Head here for the unedited version or here for the bleeped version (which is 58 minutes long).

The UAW's 'record contract' hinges on pensions, battery plants

DETROIT - After nearly four weeks of disruptive strikes and hard bargaining, the United Auto Workers and the Detroit Three automakers have edged closer to a deal that could offer record-setting wage gains for nearly 150,000 U.S. workers. General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis have all agreed to raise base wages by between 20% and 23% over a four-year deal, according to union and company statements. Ford and Stellantis have agreed to reinstate cost-of-living adjustments, or COLA. The companies have offered to boost pay for temporary workers and give them a faster path to full-time, full-wage status. All three have proposed slashing the time it takes a new hire to get to the top UAW pay rate. The progress in contract talks follows the first-ever simultaneous strike by the UAW against Detroit's Big Three automakers. The union began the strike on Sept. 15 in hopes of forcing a better deal from each major automaker. But coming close to a deal is not the same thing as reaching a deal. Big obstacles remain on at least two major UAW demands: restoring the retirement security provided by pre-2007 defined benefit pension plans, and covering present and future joint- venture electric vehicle battery plants under the union's master contracts with the automakers. On retirement, none of the automakers has agreed to restore pre-2007 defined-benefit pension plans for workers hired after 2007. Doing so could force the automakers to again burden their balance sheets with multibillion-dollar liabilities. GM and the former Chrysler unloaded most of those liabilities in their 2009 bankruptcies. The union and automakers have explored an approach to providing more income security by offering annuities as an investment option in their company-sponsored 401(k) savings plans, people familiar with the discussions said. Stellantis referred to an annuity option as part of a more generous 401(k) proposal on Sept. 22. Annuities or similar instruments could give UAW retirees assurance of fixed, predictable payouts less dependent on stock market ups and downs, experts said. Recent changes in federal law have removed obstacles to including annuities as a feature of corporate 401(k) plans, said Olivia Mitchell, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School and an expert on pensions and retirement. "Retirees want a way to be assured they won't run out of money," Mitchell said.

Fiat Chrysler's Q3 profit boosted by strong North American earnings

MILAN, Italy — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) reported a 17 percent jump in third-quarter adjusted operating profit on Tuesday, helped by a strong performance in its key North American market and improving operations in Europe and Latin America. The world's seventh-largest carmaker still makes the lion's share of its profits in North America, so improving, or at least maintaining, its margins there is a key focus. The carmaker reported an 8 percent adjusted operating profit margin in the region, up from 7.6 percent a year ago, despite a drop in sales and shipments. "FCA's profitability in North America remained strong in the quarter despite a weakening market there," a Milan-based analyst said. FCA's profitability compares with an 8.3 percent North America margin reached in the quarter by bigger U.S. rival GM , showing CEO Sergio Marchionne making progress towards his goal of closing the margin gap with GM and the company's other U.S. rival, Ford, by 2018. The company's confirmation of its full-year outlook also pushed shares higher, a trader added. The stock was up 2.8 percent by 1129 GMT, outperforming a 1 percent rise in the European auto index. FCA has been retooling some U.S. factories to boost output of sport-utility vehicles (SUVs) and trucks while ending production of some unprofitable sedans to strengthen profitability as the U.S. car market comes off its peak. The company said a drop in North America shipments due to lower fleet sales and discontinued models was partially offset by higher deliveries of Ram trucks and two models from the Alfa Romeo stable: the Stelvio sport utility vehicle and Giulia sedan. Profitability also improved in Europe, helped by sales of the Stelvio and the new Jeep Compass, and Latin America, while margins at Maserati remained strong at 13.8 percent due to strong demand for its first SUV, the Levante. In a later conference call, investors are looking for hints on the new strategy to 2022 which the company promised to unveil early next year. Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne said earlier this year that FCA would streamline its portfolio and that components businesses, including Magneti Marelli, would be separated from the group, possibly via a spin-off. While FCA confirmed its targets this year, doubts remain about its exposure to a weakening U.S. market, recall costs and potential fines over emissions after it was targeted by European and U.S.