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Hellcrate 6.2-liter V8 delivers plug-and-play Hellcat hype to SEMA

SEMA just provided another entry for the folder marked "What A Time To Be Alive," with Mopar's announcement of the "Hellcrate" 6.2-liter supercharged Crate HEMI engine. Enthusiasts have been desperate to upgrade their vintage rides with the woozy thrills provided by Dodge's Hellcat motor, so Mopar answered. The Hellcrate engine assembly ships in plug-and-play configuration, in specially designed packaging with "Hellcrate" logos. The assembly sells separately from the Hellcrate engine kit, the kit adding a powertrain control module, power distribution center, engine wiring harness, chassis harness, accelerator pedal, ground jumper, oxygen sensors, charge air temperature sensors, and fuel pump control module. The PCM comes programmed with the production-car engine's 707 horsepower and 650 pound-feet of torque. An optional front-end accessory drive kit contributes peripherals like alternator, power steering pump, belts, and pulleys. Don't bother trying to lash up a sleeper 1997 Chrysler Sebring, though; Mopar tuned the Hellcrate for pre-1976 vehicles and manual transmissions. The engine assembly retails for an MSRP of $19,530, and the kit wants a further $2,195. Mopar didn't announce pricing for the accessory drive kit. The engine and kit come with a three-year, unlimited-mileage warranty when bought together. The Mopar Hemi Crate website will be happy to take your orders as of now. For help envisioning the possibilities, stop by Fiat Chrysler's 15,345-square-foot SEMA booth to check out the Limelight Green, Hellcrate-powered 1970 Plymouth Superbird clone worked up by Mark Worman of Velocity's " Graveyard Carz." While you're there you might as well peep Worman's encore, a 1968 Plymouth GTX stuffed with Mopar's 392 Crate HEMI in place of the original 440 big block, and the 1937 Dodge pickup that swallowed a Mopar 345 Crate HEMI. Mopar's come a long way from its original product: antifreeze products. Tomorrow it'll be Jeep's turn to ring the SEMA bells, once the noise dies down from the Mopar-jacked Wrangler Switchback, CJ66 and Jeep Shortcut. You can watch the brand's presentation online at 7:26 p.m. ET/4:26 p.m. PT. Until then, we're going to work the angles on a Hellcrate-powered Plymouth Volare. The sedan, naturally. Because we're practical. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

2022 Chrysler Pacifica gets price hike, starts at $38,160

Mopar Insiders says its Chrysler dealer contacts gave the outlet a glimpse at what's coming for the 2022 model year. The most important change to the Pacifica range — we're not including the Voyager and Pacifica Hybrid in this — is the addition of a front-wheel-drive model to the penultimate Limited and top Pinnacle trims. Both are available only with all-wheel drive at the moment, so the change will lower their MSRPs when next year's models arrive on lots. There are a few price increases, however, so the savings won't be as large as one might wish. Pricing for the range based on info from MI's dealer sources, including the $1,495 destination charge, and the increase compared to 2021, is: Pacifica Touring: $38,160 ($845) Pacifica Touring L: $41,785 ($1,170) Pacifica Touring L AWD: $44,780 ($1,170) Pacifica Limited FWD: $49,815 (new for 2022, $495 less expensive than the 2021 Limited AWD) Pacifica Limited AWD: $52,410 ($2,100) Pacifica Pinnacle FWD: $54,270 (new for 2022, $1,320 less expensive than the 2021 Pinnacle AWD) Pacifica Pinnacle AWD: $56,865 ($1,275) Across the range, all the minivans get a rear seat reminder safety alert and the Stellantis Clean Air Filtration System that acts like the minivan's wearing an N95 mask, capturing 95% of particulates in the air including bacteria, allergens, and pollen. Looks like Chrysler's going to start charging for certain exterior colors on a reduced palette. There are ten colors now, all of which are free. Next year there will be seven, and only Bright White, Brilliant Black, and Ceramic Grey will be no charge. Granite Crystal and the new Silver Mist, which replaces Billet Silver, will cost $95. And Fathom Blue and Velvet Red will cost $395.  The entry-level Touring pulls the opposite trick from the Limited and Pinnacle, losing its AWD option. Driving the rear axle cost an extra $2,995 on this trim, perhaps why Chrysler said only 2% of Touring buyers chose the option this year. Next year's Touring gets the Cold Weather Group, with features like heated front seats and a heated steering wheel, as standard equipment. That option cost $495 this year and its inclusion might be responsible for the trim's price increase.  The Touring L gets the makes this year's optional $995 Safety Sphere Group standard equipment for next year. That installs features like ParkSense for front, parallel, and perpendicular parking, and a 360-degree surround view camera.

Lee Iacocca, Chrysler's savior and godfather of the Mustang, dies at 94

Lee Iacocca, a charismatic U.S. auto industry executive and visionary, who gave America the Ford Mustang and Chrysler minivan, and was celebrated for saving Chrysler from going out of business, died at the age of 94, the Washington Post reported. He died Tuesday at his home in Bel-Air, California of complications from Parkinson's disease, his daughter Lia Iacocca Assad told the Post. During a nearly five-decade career in Detroit that began in 1946 at Ford Motor Co, the proud son of Italian immigrants made the covers of Time, Newsweek and the New York Times Sunday Magazine in stories portraying him as the avatar of the American Auto Age. One of the first celebrity U.S. chief executives, his autobiography made best-seller lists in the mid-1980s. Iacocca was a cracker-jack salesman. He encouraged his design teams to be bold, and they responded with sports cars that appealed to baby boomers in the 1960s, fuel-efficient models when gasoline prices soared in the 1970s, and the first-ever, family-oriented minivan in the 1980s that led its segment in sales for 25 years. "I don't know an auto executive that I've ever met who has a feel for the American consumer the way he does," late United Auto Workers Union President Douglas Fraser had said. "He's the greatest communicator who's ever come down the pike in the history of the industry." Iacocca also had some duds, such as the Ford Pinto, an economy car that became notorious for exploding fuel tanks. "You don't win 'em all," he said of the Pinto. Iacocca won a place in business history when he pulled Chrysler, now part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, from the brink of collapse in 1980, rallying support in U.S. Congress for $1.2 billion in federally guaranteed loans and persuading suppliers, dealers and union workers to make sacrifices. He cut his salary to $1 a year. Iacocca was often described as a demanding and volatile boss who sometimes clashed with fellow executives. "He could get mad as hell at you, and once it was done he let it go. He wouldn't stay mad," said Bud Liebler, vice president of communications at Chrysler during the 1980s and 1990s. "He liked to bring an issue to its head, get it resolved. You always knew where you stood with him." Iacocca often spoke of his immigrant roots and how America rewards hard work.