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Junkyard Gem: 2002 Chrysler PT Cruiser with 5-speed manual transmission

Before we get started on today's Junkyard Gem, let's talk about what I mean by the word "Gem" in this context, because I've been getting a lot of hate mail from readers foaming at the mouth with rage because I dared to refer to such cars as the Pontiac Sunfire or Subaru Tribeca by that name. When I say "Gem" I mean it in the historical sense, not because I think a particular vehicle is a generally superior machine. OK? Now we can talk about a real junkyard rarity: a PT Cruiser with a manual transmission. Chrysler sold PT Cruisers in Europe and Japan, where manual transmissions are preferred, and the 5-speed manual was the base transmission in the North American-market PT Cruiser all the way up until the 2009 model year. However, most American and Canadian PT Cruiser buyers proved willing to spend the extra money to get an automatic transmission, because... well, PT Cruiser. I found this car in a wrecking yard in the San Francisco Bay Area, which is such a hotbed of amateur racing and restoration of old British and Italian sports cars that perhaps residents have a slightly greater appreciation for three-pedal cars than Americans in general. With 150 horsepower moving 3,123 pounds— essentially a slightly bigger Neon — this car would have been more fun to drive than most minivans. Later on, Chrysler dropped Neon SRT4 drivetrains into PT Cruisers, creating the 215-horse GT Turbo PT Cruiser. We think a bustleback body kit would go well with one of those cars. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. "Take it easy, Mr. Satan!"

Waymo’s autonomous vehicles are driving 25,000 miles every day

Waymo, the former Google self-driving project that spun out to become a business under Alphabet, has driven 8 million miles on public roads using its autonomous vehicles. Waymo CEO John Krafcik shared the company's milestone Friday while onstage with Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval at the National Governors Association conference in Santa Fe, N.M. The figure is notable when compared to where Waymo was less than a year ago. In November, the company announced it had reached 4 million miles, meaning the company has been able to double the number of autonomous miles driven on public roads in just eight months. Waymo's fleet of self-driving vehicles is now logging 25,000 miles every day on public roads, Krafcik said. He later tweeted out the stats along with a graphic. Waymo has 600 self-driving Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans on the road in 25 cities. It's also adding 20,000 Jaguar I-Pace crossovers and has plans for another 62,000 Pacificas. The company also relies on simulation as it works to build an AI-based self-driving system that performs better than a human. In the past nine years, Waymo has "driven" more than 5 billion miles in its simulation, according to the company. That's the equivalent to 25,000 virtual cars driving all day, everyday, the company says. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js This newly shared goal signals Waymo is getting closer to launching a commercial driverless transportation service later this year. More than 400 residents in Phoenix have been trialing Waymo's technology by using an app to hail self-driving Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans. The company says it plans to launch its service later this year. Waymo's driverless ride-hailing service has received the most attention. But the company is also working to apply its self-driving system to three other areas, including logistics (so trucking), making public transportation more accessible and, further off, plans to work with automakers to make personally owned vehicles. Waymo, and more specifically Krafcik, has never provided much detail about how its self-driving system would make public transportation more accessible. On Thursday, Krafcik teased a future announcement.

Why Chrysler didn't send off 300 with Hellcat-powered model

Chrysler is sending off the 300 with a limited-edition model powered by the mighty 6.4-liter (392-cubic-inch) Hemi V8. Earlier rumors claimed that the 2023 300C could get the supercharged, 6.2-liter Hellcat V8, but a new report suggests there aren't enough engines to go around. Quoting unnamed inside sources, The Drive wrote that the available supply of Hellcat engines is already spoken for. Sister company Dodge uses the eight-cylinder in several models, including the Challenger, the Charger, and the Durango, and Ram needs it for the 1500 TRX. Enthusiasts can also buy the V8 as a crate engine. Hellcat production is coming to an end with no successor in sight so demand is high. Another issue brought up by the publication is that stuffing the Hellcat between the 300C's fenders didn't necessarily make sense from a business point of view. The big sedan shares its basic platform with the Charger, which is offered with Hellcat power, but engineers would have needed to make at least a handful of modifications to install the engine. On the other hand, Chrysler sold the 300 with the 6.4-liter Hemi V8 until the 2014 model year so the engineering work has already been completed; put simply, this is the simpler and cheaper solution. Muscle car fans hoping for a 700-plus-horsepower Chrysler sedan will need to build it themselves; like we mentioned, the Hellcat is offered as a crate engine. Buyers who score one of the 2,000 units of the 300C earmarked for our market likely won't be disappointed by its performance, however. The V8 sends 485 horsepower (up from 470 in the 300 SRT) and 470 pound-feet of torque to the rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission. Chrysler quotes a 0-60-mph time of 4.3 seconds and a quarter-mile time of 12.4 seconds. Pricing for the 2023 Chrysler 300C starts at $56,595 including destination. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.