2002 Chrysler Sebring Lx Convertible 2-door 2.7l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Ferrari, Fiat, McLaren, Nissan join coronavirus ventilator efforts

Siare Engineering, Italy's largest manufacturer of hospital ventilators, has turned to Italian automakers Ferrari and Fiat to investigate the possibility that the automakers might help produce more of the live-saving machines that are urgently needed to fight the coronavirus pandemic. The Italian government has asked Siare to increase ventilator production from 160 per month to 500 as the country's death toll has surpassed 3,400 and is climbing rapidly.  "We're talking to Fiat Chrysler, Ferrari and Marelli to try to understand if they can lend us a hand in this process for the electronics part," Gianluca Preziosa, Siare's chief executive said in an interview quoted by Reuters, adding that the car companies' expertise in electronics and pneumatics could make them ideal partners. Preziosa said that another advantage of partnering with carmakers was their purchasing power, making them more likely to obtain parts that his small firm was struggling to secure amid coronavirus-related disruption to global supply chains. A spokesman for Exor, parent of both FCA and Ferrari, said that meetings with Siare had taken place on Thursday to study the feasibility of the idea and that a decision was expected in the coming hours. Two main options were being considered: either to help Siare engineer a capacity increase at its plant, with the support of technicians provided by FCA and Ferrari, or outsource production of ventilator parts to the carmakers' facilities. A source familiar with the matter told Reuters that Ferrari would be ready to start manufacturing ventilator parts in its famous Maranello headquarters, which lies close to the Siare factory, but that the luxury carmaker had yet to make a final decision. Automakers worldwide are being drafted for ventilator duty. In addition to Ford and GM making plans with the U.S. government; British Prime Minister Boris Johnson reaching out to Ford, Honda and Rolls-Royce; and an Elon Musk tweeted offer to build ventilators "if there is a shortage," other automakers and aerospace companies are joining in. In Europe, three groups have formed. Meggitt, which builds components including oxygen systems for civil aerospace and military fighter programs, is leading one consortium alongside engineers GKN, Thales and Renishaw. The other two teams are being led by carmakers McLaren, which is looking at how to design a simple version of a ventilator, and Nissan, which is working with others to support existing ventilator producers.

Junkyard Gem: 1954 Plymouth Savoy Sedan

American car shoppers bought many millions of the four-door sedans that flew off Detroit's assembly lines in the decade after World War II, and so plenty of them still remain in barns, garages, driveways and yards today, awaiting loving owners who will put them back on the road. Unfortunately, those with the time and money to take on challenging vintage automotive projects tend to prefer coupes and convertibles, especially those made by the higher-prestige marques. That means that many of these cars continue to run out of time with each passing day, taking that final tow-truck ride to their very last parking spaces. Today's Junkyard Gem is one of those cars: a 1954 Plymouth Savoy four-door painted in Piedmont Maroon, found in a Denver self-service yard recently. As an example of how many of these cars still get crushed each year, here's a partial list of some of the 1946-1956 American four-door sedans I've personally documented in car graveyards over the last decade or so: 1947 Dodge Custom, 1947 Frazer Manhattan, 1948 Plymouth Special Deluxe, 1949 Dodge Coronet, 1949 Kaiser Special, 1949 Oldsmobile 88, 1949 Plymouth Special Deluxe, 1950 Cadillac Sixty-One, 1950 Chrysler Royal, 1950 Studebaker Commander, 1951 Chevrolet Styleline, 1951 Frazer, 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan, 1951 Plymouth Cranbrook, another 1951 Plymouth Cranbrook, 1952 Kaiser, 1952 Buick Special, 1952 Mercury Custom, 1953 Packard Clipper, 1953 Plymouth Special, 1953 Pontiac Chieftain, 1955 Studebaker Commander, 1956 DeSoto Fireflite and a 1956 Mercury Montclair. It's especially tough for the 1946-1954 Plymouths, because those cars were seen as stodgy transportation appliances for cheapskates when they were new. As the 1940s became the 1950s, most American cars became longer, sleeker and flashier-looking, but Plymouths seemed to stay the same. For the 1955 model year, Plymouths got a clean-sheet redesign and caught up with current styling trends well enough (probably not coincidentally, Plymouths finally got their own dealerships in late 1954, rather than just being sold out of Chrysler, DeSoto and Dodge showrooms). But for 1954, the best Chrysler could do with the looks of the increasingly aged-looking Plymouth was give it a new grille and some body chrome. Bumpers were made to stick out a few extra inches to cheat on the overall length a bit.

FCA joins BMW, Intel and Mobileye on autonomous car project

Today, BMW, Intel and Mobileye announced that FCA would be joining their effort to build a sharable and scalable platform for autonomous cars. This project has been moving ahead full steam, with Intel purchasing Mobileye earlier this year, not long after Tesla and Mobileye parted ways. Not long after that, parts supplier Delphi joined the autonomous effort. The group's current goal is to have 40 autonomous test vehicles on the road by the end of 2017. The eventual end game is to create a new architecture that each partner can use and adapt to its needs. The platform will support level 3 to level 4/5 automated driving, and can be adapted to suit brand identity. The main headquarters for the effort will be in Germany. FCA staff will join the already established group of engineers from BMW, Intel and Mobileye. The group expects this new platform to hit the streets by 2021. It's unclear how this will affect FCA's relationship with Waymo, Alphabet's autonomous vehicle project. Waymo currently uses modified Chrysler Pacificas for its fleet. In addition to FCA, the trio of BMW, Intel and Mobileye have extended an invitation to any other automakers and suppliers that want to join the project. Related Video: News Source: BMW/Intel Green BMW Chrysler Fiat Autonomous Vehicles mobileye