CarSeekBlog » Dodge

Media Monday: 2011 Dodge Charger First Look

Mel — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 16:39:11 +0000

Can you believe January is almost over? We can’t either. We also can’t believe how cool the 2011 Dodge Charger is. Thanks to Road & Track, and YouTube, you can see for yourself, because their “first look” is today’s Media Monday offering:

“Man’s Van” Coming from Chrysler, Dodge

Mel — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 05:37:24 +0000

According to the Wall Street Journal, Ralph Gilles, CEO of Dodge, discussed a new concept in a recent dealers meeting. He called it the “man van,” and it’s a variant of the minivan that would give the brand – and the vehicle – a more masculine image.

According to the Journal, one of the dealers said, “A man van won’t generate huge sales, but it’s one of those vehicles that gets people talking and heads turning.”

So what’s the man van going to look like? Well, rather like the Dodge Grand Caravan R/T concept displayed at the 2008 SEMA show, this would have exterior and interior details that would help to differentiate dad’s minivan from mom’s. Examples include bespoke stitching on the seats and steering wheel, but the body trim has yet to be finalized.

This announcement closely follows news of two other minivans which are being pushed as family-friendly: Honda’s 2011 Odyssey, which features 15 cup holders and an integrated trash receptacle, and Toyota’s 2011 Sienna, which is being marketed with a “Mommy Like” commercial campaign.

Car and Truck of the Year (Really Six to Consider)

Shorty — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 15:37:30 +0000

As the 2009 Detroit Auto Show kicked off on Sunday, January 11, the Hyundai Genesis picked up top honors as Car of the Year with the Ford F-150 being named Truck of the Year. Eligibility hinged on a complete re-design or substantial degree of change to the model customers could buy in 2008. Fifty journalists from the U.S. and Canada weeded the choices down to three each. That makes for six pretty good-looking vehicles in a year of economic recession when buying last year’s model or a previously earned version may make the best financial sense.

So, the three finalists for Car of the Year were:

- Hyundai Genesis
- Ford Flex
- Volkswagen Jetta TDI (a diesel)

And the three for the truck nod were:

- Ford F-150
- Dodge RAM
- Mercedes-Benz ML320 BueTEC (also a diesel)

Without a doubt, the Genesis is a big step in the right direction for Korean automaker Hyundai in its quest to grab a share of the “upscale” market while trying to hang on to its reputation for affordability. The V6 version of the Genesis opens at $32,000 and reviewers consistently say it drives like a Lexus or Mercedes-Benz. (Exactly the goal Hyundai set for itself from the beginning with this model.)

As for the F-150, really, what is there to say about a truck that has been the best selling model in America for 27 years? Not even a recession, plummeting auto sales, and $4 gasoline did this one in. For 2009 the F-150 is more angular and has a flatter nose while sporting a lighter chassis for better fuel economy and even higher safety ratings. (It’s the Top Safety Pick with the Insurance Institue for Highway Safety.)

While lots of people are not in the market for new wheels at the moment, when that does become possible again — hopefully sooner than later — these models are six to consider.

2009 Dodge Ram

Shorty — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 01:37:15 +0000

Automakers are having to work hard to make a truck or an SUV look like a good purchase in the face of $4 a gallon gas. The 2009 Dodge Ram is promising to play nice at the pump and the company swears the two models coming in 2010 will have all the fuel efficient street cred a driver could want.

The 2009 still has a Hemi engine, but they’ve taken it back to the bench and added fuel saving variable valve timing for peak efficiency. Similar modifications to the cylinder cutoff system open up the rpm range. Better compression, better air and fuel flow — all equal better performance. (And they worked on the aerodynamics.) As opposed to the 2008s, you’re looking a 4% better fuel economy. No mpg estimates released, but Chrysler did point to improved horsepower up to 390 and a zero to sixty leap in six seconds.

At the same time the company confirmed a hybrid of the Ram with a two-mode gasoline-electric power train. That one is going for a 40 percent gain in fuel economy in town and a 25 percent improvement on the highway. Now those are numbers headed in the right direction. As for right now, in 2008, the Ram is getting 13 mpg in town and 19 on the highway — numbers that are just not going to cut it in the new reality of high fuel costs and deep set environmental concerns.