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New Barracuda, Grand Cherokee Trackhawk coming soon

As we write this, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is conducting a major dealership event in sunny Las Vegas. New vehicles are being announced, redesigned offerings are being teased, and promises are being made to the sprawling company's dealer body. And, as all these announcements are meant to be tip-top secret, they're leaking out left, right, and center. Naturally. FCA is telling its dealers all of the vehicles shown at the Vegas gala will be in showrooms within 12 to 24 months, and that the product offensive will include at least 30 new or significantly refreshed models. Some of those we've known about since FCA boss Sergio Marchionne unveiled his highly ambitious five-year plan in May 2014, while we're hearing about others for the very first time. We've reached out to our sources within FCA, and will update this post as we learn more. It should be noted that while we've tried to rely on concrete sources or corroborations from multiple sources, some of the news here comes from people claiming to have been in attendance and posting in forums like Allpar and Jalopnik's Opposite Lock. Unless corroborated by a mainstream source or confirmed by our own sources within FCA, we're listing each item that comes from a forum. Have those grains of salt at the ready. Chrysler Dodge Durango-sized SUV with stow-and-go was shown. A poster on Allpar Forums claims it had a Durango's interior. New Aspen? Town and Country PHEV confirmed (again). A plug-in minivan was originally announced as part of five-year plan. No news on 200 or 300. Dodge The redesigned Charger will use the Alfa Romeo Giulia's rear-drive platform and, according Automotive News, draw inspiration from 1999's Charger concept car. We're wagering the 24-month time frame specified to dealers will move the new sedan's arrival up from 2018 to mid-2017. Jalopnik's Opposite Lock claims two new Challenger models are coming. Challenger ADR (American Drag Racer) and T/A. ADR should appeal to bracket racers and is more powerful than the SRT Hellcat, while T/A is for track rats, just like Viper T/A. Automotive News claims the legendary Barracuda nameplate will be revived as a Dodge. The Barracuda will be smaller than Challenger, offered as both a coupe and a convertible. Allpar claims it will feature modern styling. A Dodge Durango SRT was announced with 6.4-liter Hemi V8 and rear-drive. Sources within FCA confirmed its arrival with Autoblog. Apparently, dealers were shown an example in B5 Blue.

2015 Ram ProMaster City Tradesman First Drive [w/video]

From the perspective of a reviewer, there's a refreshing clarity to be hand when approaching a vehicle like a small commercial van. Where the inherent value equation for most vehicles is composed of both objective facts (price, fuel economy), and subjective opinions (looks, emotional response while driving), the reckoning of something like the new Ram ProMaster City is more straightforward. The light commercial van segment in the US has seen a remodel over the last half-decade, moving from paneled-over minivans to the versatile, economical, European-style boxes on wheels you see with increasing frequency today. Ford, Nissan and Chevrolet are all players here (though Chevy's City Express is essentially a rebadged version of Nissan's NV200), and though Ram's entry could be seen as late to the party, it also matches up very nicely in many of those straightforward areas of measure. Kindly, Ram brought along both the Nissan and the Ford for us to test alongside its new product, so we could get firsthand comparative impressions. The 2015 ProMaster City is roomier, more powerful and more maneuverable than its competition, though it trades those advantages for a higher price and a thirstier engine around town. We headed down to Texas where, between breaks for tacos and Topo Chicos, our goal was to see if Ram had created the new best box van in the US. Based on the already successful Fiat Doblo van from Europe, the baby ProMaster's visual transformation after its continental hop isn't radical. Ram has fitted a crosshair grille, new headlights and taillights, but largely the curvaceous, nose-forward styling remains the same. As we mentioned at the top: style is going to be very low on this list of priorities for a buyer of light commercial vans. Still, we'd rate the City as mid-pack for the options in the US; more attractive than the Nissan/Chevy twins and less so than the crisp Ford Transit Connect. (Though the optional five-spoke wheels of our test vehicle make it seem downright sporty in this group). Open the driver's side door and slide into the almost totally flat front seat, and any notion of "style" goes right out the window. Surfaces are almost exclusively black and gray, with workaday textures and frustratingly easy-to-scratch-plastics. This is a functional space though; trays, cubbies, cupholders and bins are far more numerous than you'd expect from a compact, two-seat cabin.

2015 Ram ProMaster City Wagon [w/video]

At the tail end of 2014, I brought you a First Drive feature on the new Ram ProMaster City cargo van, a remarkably solid entry into the exploding light-commercial segment. While I was down in Austin, TX playing with those box vans, I also had time to sample Ram's slightly more civilized version, the ProMaster City Wagon. From the driver's seat forward, the Wagon and Tradesman (Ram's name for the cargo version) are practically the same, but the former trim is a lot different in the back section. The rear gets a folding, three-passenger-wide bench seat in the middle, and a carpeted cargo area behind that. This isn't exactly a new formula for the market; Ford has been selling a passenger-friendly five-seat version of its Transit Connect for a few years now. But the baby Ram is another competitor for small business owners in need of shuttles and such, or individuals who place a premium on interior space over creature comforts. Drive Notes Just as with the cargo version, the 178 horsepower and 174 pound-feet of torque from the 2.4-liter four-cylinder makes the City Wagon feel ably fast in urban traffic. Our short driving loop (along with the dozens of extra miles I logged around Austin), didn't offer much in the way of high-speed cruising, but I did dice with other city drivers confidently. The engine pulls adroitly if you really trample the throttle, though it certainly won't tempt you to race that punk kid at the red light. Handling is nippy relative to the size of this small van, with a tight turning circle and quick turn-in around town. The added weight in the back offered by the seats and trim – not quite 200 pounds – also helps to dampen the ride and improve smoothness over the road. The Short Cut video at the bottom of the page was shot with a cargo version of the City, but it should give you the general idea about the nimbleness herein. The extra seats, carpeting and stuff found inside the wagon also do a successful job of masking the strained sound of the engine and exhaust when you do rip through those nine gears. The ProMaster City Wagon is a significant number of decibels quieter than the Tradesman always. That said, no one will ever mistake this Ram for a Lexus; wind and road noise can be heard at all speeds. Ram has effectively cut the cargo area in half compared to the box van version; though bias seems to have been given to cargo over passengers.