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2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe Enters Production, Starting Price Still Unknown

2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe Enters Production, Starting Price Still Unknown

11 Dec 2020, 20:56 UTC ·
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Mircea Panait

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Ford may have stolen the Wrangler’s thunder with the Bronco, but Jeep fought back with a couple of new engine options. One of them is the 4xe that boasts 25 miles of EV range and nearly 400 miles of total range.
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“The most technologically advanced Wrangler ever” is offered with four doors and a long wheelbase that isn’t as capable off the beaten path as the two-door JL. Be that as it may, Jeep has gifted the 4xe with the Trail Rated badge that dates back to the 2004 Grand Cherokee, Liberty, and Wrangler.
Now in production at the Toledo Assembly Complex, the eco-friendly utility vehicle combines a 17-kilowatt battery with two electric motors, a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, and a TorqueFlite eight-speed transmission. The 375-horsepower rating isn’t too shabby, but torque is of the essence at 470 pound-feet or 28 pound-feet more than the EcoDiesel.
Wrangler 4xe customers have three drive modes to choose from, starting with Hybrid and Electric. The third – called eSave – is designed to save the battery charge for later use. Regenerative braking happens at all four corners when four-wheel drive is engaged, and all-electric modes will be available in every drivetrain mode, including 4 Low. The Rubicon is the one to have if you plan on taking this bad boy off-road thanks to a 77.2:1 crawl ratio.
One of the biggest mysteries of the 4xe is the price. Jeep isn’t ready to confirm how much greenback you’ll have to pony up for the entry-level trim, but $40,000 would be my guess. By comparison, the four-door Rubicon with the Pentastar V6 retails at $42k excluding freight.
As for the second of two new engine options for model year 2021, the Wrangler Rubicon 392 is rocking a 470-horsepower HEMI V8 with 470 pound-feet of torque. Available with four doors just like the Wrangler 4xe, this fellow is rumored to cost in the mid-to-high $70k range.

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2021 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat Sells Out, It’s Rarer Than the Dodge Demon

2021 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat Sells Out, It’s Rarer Than the Dodge Demon

22 Jan 2021, 10:58 UTC ·
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Mircea Panait

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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, now known as Stellantis thanks to the merger with Groupe PSA, has a habit of shoehorning the Hellcat under the hood of otherwise boring vehicles. The Durango SRT Hellcat is anything but dull thanks to the 6.2-liter unit of an engine, partly because it runs the quarter-mile in a simply staggering 11.5 seconds.
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The most powerful three-row SUV ever offered with a license plate bracket also happens to be rare. Dodge will build a total of 2,000 units according to the press release at the end of this story, which means that a family-sized utility vehicle is rarer than Mopar’s muscliest muscle car ever, the Demon.
“It’s a single model-year run,” said Dodge head Tim Kuniskis, “ensuring that it will be a very special, sought-after performance SUV for years to come. Based on anticipated demand, all dealer allocations have already been reserved, but there is still some time to secure an unsold dealer order.”
Read that quote again, then remember that you’ll have to place an order at an authorized Dodge dealership nevertheless. The unsold orders, therefore, are likely to be marked up into the stratosphere by dealers who care more about quick money instead of continued patronage from a happy customer.
Excluding $1,495 for the destination charge, the most exciting Durango ever produced can be had from $80,995 before optional extras. There aren’t too many of those, frankly, because the Hellcat is pretty much loaded as standard. There is only one special color for the exterior that costs extra, the stripes will set you back $1,195 or $1,295, three-season Pirelli P-Zero tires add $595 to the tally, and Laguna leather seats are available at $1,595.
Scheduled to end production this June, the Durango’s future is a bit uncertain because Stellantis doesn’t wish to comment on future products. The safest scenario would be for Dodge to continue making it on the same platform, which is underwhelming if you consider the all-new underpinnings of the Jeep Grand Cherokee. The Giorgio Global architecture would be an interesting upgrade, but that doesn’t seem too likely either.
According to hearsay, the next generation of the Durango – codenamed SD – would join the Ram 1500-based Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer for the 2023 model year at the Warren Truck Assembly Plant in Michigan. In this case, Dodge would switch back to body-on-frame construction.

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It’s a Good Time to Reinforce Core Values

In the words of the David Lee Murphy song, “Everything’s going to be alright.” Photo courtesy of Bill Packard. As this pandemic drones on and we find ourselves in the middle of winter it can be tempting to look for something different, something to turn things around. Understandable, and not a bad idea. Before we… Continue reading It’s a Good Time to Reinforce Core Values

Toyota-backed self-driving startup Pony.ai raises $100m Series C+ round

Toyota Motor-backed autonomous driving startup Pony.ai announced on Monday that it has pocketed $100 million in a Series C+ round of financing. The latest fundraising brings the total corpus raised by Pony.ai in its Series C round to $367 million. The US-based startup, founded by Chinese professionals, completed the Series C round fundraising through two… Continue reading Toyota-backed self-driving startup Pony.ai raises $100m Series C+ round

Triton Electric Vehicle inks MoU with BEL for development of EVs and ESS

NEW DELHI: US-based Triton Electric Vehicle has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) for developing electric vehicles and energy storage systems. As per the MoU, BEL will be the exclusive manufacturing partner to Triton in India for identified products, while Triton will provide the know-how and technical documentation required for… Continue reading Triton Electric Vehicle inks MoU with BEL for development of EVs and ESS

40 lakh two-wheelers, 11 lakh cars in Karnataka are over 15 years old

BENGALURU: Around 63 lakh vehicles in Karnataka, including nearly 22 lakh in Bengaluru, are more than 15 years old, data with transport department reveals. The numbers assume significance in the backdrop of the Centre working on phasing out old and polluting vehicles under its vehicle-scrapping policy.According to the records (till March 2020), the 63 lakh… Continue reading 40 lakh two-wheelers, 11 lakh cars in Karnataka are over 15 years old

Scrappage policy to make India top auto hub in world: Gadkari

The minister emphasised that a policy has to be made to empower the poor. WARDHA: Supporting the scrappage policy announced in the Budget, Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Saturday said it would spur India to become the world’s number one automobile manufacturing hub in next five years. Interacting with the media in Wardha, the Nagpur… Continue reading Scrappage policy to make India top auto hub in world: Gadkari

TikTok ecommerce, Cuba private business, green energy geopolitics

TikTok plans to expand into ecommerce in the US to compete with Facebook, Cuba has announced it will open most of the economy to private business, and Mercedes-Benz says by 2030 it will make as much from its electric cars as it does from its luxury combustion engine models. Plus, the FT’s environment and clean… Continue reading TikTok ecommerce, Cuba private business, green energy geopolitics

Bentley Continental GT Marks 80,000th Production Milestone

Bentley Continental GT Marks 80,000th Production Milestone

27 Jan 2021, 21:53 UTC ·
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Mircea Panait

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After years of crippling losses under the control of the Vickers conglomerate, Volkswagen saved Bentley in 1998. The financial troubles didn’t go away immediately, but with the Continental GT introduction, the British automaker’s fortunes have changed for the better.
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2003 is when the first example of the breed rolled off the assembly line in Crewe, and since then, Bentley produced more than 80,000 units of the ultra-luxurious grand tourer with 2+2 seating and up to 12 cylinders. Over the course of 18 long years, the Continental GT's power ratings have improved by 27 percent while emissions have been reduced by 48 percent.
“I had the pleasure of launching the original,” said chief exec Adrian Hallmark. “Being here for the launch of the latest generation – and the iterations that have followed – has been a source of great pride for me.”
Redesigned from the ground up in 2018 on the MSB vehicle architecture, the Porsche Panamera’s cooler brother is available as a two-door coupe and convertible. The only transmission available is an eight-speed DCT borrowed from the German automaker, and engine options kick off with the twin-turbo V8 that you’ll also find under the hood of the Panamera Turbo.
542 horsepower and 569 pound-feet (770 Nm) of torque isn't too shabby, but the motor the Continental GT deserves is the twin-turbo W12 with 6.0 liters of displacement. The range-topping model belts out 626 horsepower and 664 pound-feet (900 Nm) of torque from 1,350 to 4,500 rpm. In other words, Bentley promises blistering performance despite the generous curb weight of 5,322 pounds (2,414 kilograms) for the convertible body style.
At the time of reporting, the GT V8 Coupe is listed in the United States with a $202,500 starting price. Opt for the GT W12 Convertible, and you’re looking at $240,800 excluding destination charge and optional extras.
As for the competition, only three candidates come to mind. The achingly beautiful and tech-crazy Ferrari Roma is the most obvious, along with the V8-engined Aston Martin DB11 and V12-engined DBS Superleggera.

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