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Junkyard Gem: 1983 Chrysler Cordoba

When we think of the Chrysler Cordoba, we think of the bloated, Corinthian Leather-equipped Malaisewagon pitched by Ricardo Montalban during the middle 1970s. That car lived on the Chrysler B platform, making it first cousin to the Duke Boys' 1969 Charger plus countless police vehicles in 1970s television shows. Following the downsizing trend of GM and Ford during the second half of the 1970s — and spurred along by certain geopolitical events plus a "too big to fail" government bailout — Chrysler moved the Cordoba onto the much smaller platform used by the Dodge Aspen and Plymouth Volare for the 1980 model year. Production of the smaller Cordoba continued all the way through 1983; sales of these mini-Cordobas were dismal, but I managed to find this final-year survivor in a junkyard near Pikes Peak. I'm pretty sure you could still get Corinthian Leather in the '83 Cordoba, but this car has the base-grade "Monterey" cloth-and-vinyl interior. Production of more modern cars based on the brand-new, front-wheel-drive K platform was in full swing by 1983, so the rear-wheel-drive Cordoba and its siblings (the Imperial and Dodge Mirada) got the axe after that year. American car shoppers could get the closely-related Chrysler Fifth Avenue, Dodge Diplomat, and Plymouth Gran Fury all the way through 1989, though. The sturdy-but-sluggish Slant-6 engine came as standard equipment in the 1983 Cordoba, but this car has the optional 318-cubic-inch (5.2-liter) V8, rated at 130 horsepower when new. Chrysler continued to put 318s (as the 5.2 Magnum) into new trucks all the way through 2003, and the Viper's V10 was based on this engine's architecture. These American Racing aluminum wheels (and their more prestigious Centerline competitors) were serious stuff back in the 1980s. Nowadays, 15" wheels are considered far too small to be worth grabbing at the junkyard, although I'm sure someone will grab these before the car gets eaten by The Crusher. This factory AM/FM stereo radio cost $109 when the car was new (about $290 in 2020 dollars). If you wanted the radio with cassette deck and digital tuning, the cost rose to $402 ($1,070 today). These days, even the most penny-pinching subcompacts get very nice standard-equipment audio systems with Bluetooth or at least an AUX jack for your phone. The padded landau roof succumbed to the elements years ago. Base price on this car started at $9,805 with the V8, or about $26,100 today.

What we think we know about Chrysler's plug-in hybrid minivan, CUV

When the 2016 Town & Country comes to Chrysler dealerships, it will sport something no production minivan has ever had: a plug. That was on bit of news hidden in the massive Fiat Chrysler (FCA) product preview held in Detroit on Tuesday. All FCA would say about the minivan was that the Town & Country PHEV would get 75 MPGe. We know from the product preview slide (click to enlarge) that there are actually two plug-in hybrids coming from FCA. The minivan and a "full-size crossover," due in 2017. While that could describe the next-gen Dodge Journey, it could also be a brand new peoplemover. All FCA said officially was that it will be a "new vehicle or renewal of existing nameplate," which seems like an awful broad definition. We were curious to know more about these products, so we asked FCA spokesman Eric Mayne. Sadly, he was less than forthcoming, telling AutoblogGreen, "I can only refer you back to the presentations in which the PHEV is mentioned. If the answers aren't there, you'll have to wait." There are actually two plug-in hybrids coming from FCA. Well, sure, for actual facts we'll have to wait, but we can still speculate and look into the archives to see what plug-in vehicle technology FCA has offered in the past. Chrysler had an electric vehicle working group called ENVI that created products like an all-electric minivan for the US Postal Service (pictured). ENVI was disbanded in 2009. At the time, the company said plug-in vehicle work would continue, and since then we saw PHEV minivan and PHEV truck test programs from Chrysler and Ram. In early 2012, Chrysler started testing a small, 25-unit fleet of plug-in hybrid-electric Town & Country minivans with the city of Auburn Hills, MI, where the company is located. The $26-million demonstration project was funded in part by the US Department of Energy, which covered $10 million. The stated plan was for those minivans to each hit at least 16,800 miles over two years, but there were hiccups. In September 2012, for example, the liquid-cooled 12.1-kWh batteries from were found to overheat. Those batteries came from Electrovaya and were mated to a 3.6-liter Pentastar engine that could burn E85. Will any of this make it into the production Town & Country PHEV? No idea, but now we know where the company's coming from. FCA also has some EV experience with the Fiat 500e. Chrysler says electrification has been over-blown by the media.

Dodge Viper production to end after 2017

We can't say we're surprised, but we're still saddened to report that the Dodge Viper will not live on past the 2017 model year. It's had a solid 25-year run, though, and that's worth celebrating. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles does just that for the Viper's final model year, with five special editions (some of which seem less special than others, admittedly): The 1:28 Edition ACR, GTS-R Commemorative Edition ACR, VoooDoo II Edition ACR, Snakeskin Edition GTC, and Dodge Dealer Edition ACR. Instead of running through what makes each of these 2017 Vipers special, we'll direct your attention to the press release below and the images above. All but the Dodge Dealer Edition commemorate memorable Viper models of the past 25 years, and the GTS-R is probably the pick of the litter with its classic blue-on-white paint scheme. Unless you prefer to err on the side of gaudy, in which case Dodge has you (and your car) covered with Snakeskin Green. If none of these special-edition Viper models strikes your fancy but you'd still like to park a 2017 Viper in your garage, fret not. Dodge is still offering its "1 of 1" customization program for the Viper's final year of production. Finally, instead of dwelling on the past, even when that past is as exciting as the Viper's, let's choose to look to the future with the only logical question left unanswered: What's next? Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.