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7 months later, Jeep 'trailer hitch' recall still stalled

For the past few years, Chrysler and its CEO, Sergio Marchionne, have gone head-to-head with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and its boss, David Strickland, over the government safety agency's request for Chrysler to recall almost three-million Jeep vehicles due to what NHTSA says is a safety issue that has caused at least 51 deaths. After a three-year investigation and Chrysler's initial refusal to issue a recall because it deemed the vehicles safe and built to the day's federal requirements, last summer, the two parties compromised on a "voluntary campaign" to inspect 1.56 million vehicles, those being the 1992 to 1998 Grand Cherokee and 2002 to 2007 Liberty.
Those vehicles were designed with their gas tanks between the rear axle and the bumper, and NHTSA says that in rear-end collisions, damage to the fuel tank has caused fires responsible for those 51 deaths. The compromise reached last summer was that Chrysler would inspect 1.56 million vehicles and, "if necessary, provide an upgrade to the rear structure of the vehicle." Practically speaking, that meant Chrysler would replace aftermarket trailer hitches, but would take no action if a vehicle had a factory-installed hitch or an aftermarket hitch from Mopar.
A report in The Detroit News says the "voluntary campaign" is just now getting under way, with Chrysler saying last week that the design of the replacement part had been finalized and it was tooling up "to deliver the required volume." Seven months later, still in question is whether NHTSA will crash-test the fix engineered by Chrysler, noteworthy because not only did the vehicles in question pass every safety standard necessary to be cleared for sale at the time, there are still questions (to those of us on the outside) as to how the Jeeps at issue fare among their peers in such incidents. Either way, Chrysler and NHTSA apparently still disagree on the efficacy of the remedy itself: the carmaker says it might help in low-speed crashes but not high-speed collisions, a position the NHTSA is at odds with. All of this means the campaign doesn't yet have an end in sight.

2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Diesel and SRT climb onto stage

This is indeed a case of not knowing how much we wanted something until it arrived. We've been big fans of the Jeep Grand Cherokee ever since the new model arrived a couple of years ago, and while the update you see here might seem just a slight refresh, it's actually much more than that.
For starters, the 2014 Grand Cherokee marks the return of a diesel model here in the States, with Chrysler's new 3.0-liter EcoDiesel V6 under the hood, churning out 240 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque, mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission. Of course, all of the Grand Cherokee's usual off-road goodies are on hand, with moderate tweaks to make it an even more capable vehicle when the going gets rough. Both the gasoline-fed 3.6-liter V6 and 5.7-liter V8 get the new eight-speed auto, as well.
The high-performance Grand Cherokee SRT also trudges on into the new model year, with very subtle tweaks found underneath the aggressive, slightly redesigned sheetmetal. The 6.4-liter Hemi V8 also gets eight-speed gearing, which Chrysler says will improve not only 0-60 times, but mid-range performance as well. Bring it on, we say.

Jeep and Alfa Romeo join the already exotic Italian police force

Police departments in Italy are blessed with some of the most iconic cop cars on the planet. Where else will you see a pale blue Lamborghini Huracan LP 610-4 emblazoned with "Polizia" on the road? FCA decided they couldn't let Lamborghini steal the show and have handed over the first Jeep Renegade and Alfa Romeo Giulietta to the Police Academy in Rome. FCA is also loaning two Alfa Romeo Giulia Veloces that will join the two Giulia Quadrifoglios medical cars that are already in service. The Renegade is an four-wheel drive Italian-spec model with a 2.0-liter, 120 horsepower inline four-cylinder engine that we don't get in the United States. The current Giulietta is a small-hatchback that isn't sold in America. On the other hand, the new Giulia and its 280 horsepower turbocharged inline-four and the Q4 all-wheel drive system goes on sale next month. In polizia guise, it's one of the most formidable and beautiful pursuit vehicles on the road. FCA is no stranger to police cars and supplies Dodge Charger Pursuits to fleets all across the US. We spent some time in one a while back and learned all the pros and cons of driving a black and white cruiser. Related Video: Featured Gallery FCA Italian Polizia Cars View 10 Photos News Source: FCA Alfa Romeo Jeep SUV Off-Road Vehicles Police/Emergency Performance Sedan police car alfa romeo giulia jeep renegade