Front-wheel Drive Did Not Pass Inspection on 2040-cars

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What does Jeep have cooking with this stretched Cherokee?

Chrysler has been spotted testing what appears to be a stretched Jeep Cherokee prototype. Which seems odd, considering that Jeep already makes a Grand Cherokee, and that's an entirely different model. The question then is just what the company has in the works here. We don't know for sure – but we do have some ideas. We're anticipating a new Grand Wagoneer to serve as the brand's flagship model, but stretching the Cherokee's wheelbase to leapfrog the Grand Cherokee's would take more than eight inches – and stretching a "compact" platform to get there wouldn't seem to make a lot of sense. Alternatively Jeep could be looking to wedge a new model into its lineup in between the Cherokee and Grand Cherokee, potentially offering a third row of seats and wearing the Wagoneer name - sans the "Grand" - as part of a new range of seven-seaters. Just what the point would be, however, when the Dodge Durango already offers three rows based on the same platform as the Grand Cherokee, is a bit of a mystery. Another possibility is that it's not a Jeep at all, but rather a Dodge. The brand is in need of a replacement for the current Journey, and we're also waiting to see what FCA does to replace the Grand Cherokee since it unveiled the Chrysler Pacifica to replace the Town and Country. More of a crossover approach could take the Cherokee's Compact US Wide (CUSW) platform as its starting point, but stretched like this prototype to offer more space. Whatever it is, we're sure this won't be the last we'll have seen of it, so watch this space. Related Video:

Dodge Charger R/T NHRA Funny Car is ready to burn rubber at SEMA [w/video]

The Dodge Charger R/T is all set to rocket down the drag strip in NHRA Funny Car competition with a completely redesigned body debuting at this year's SEMA Show. While only the front decal, side scallops and rear logo really signal this racer as a Charger, that doesn't take away from its promise of hitting absolutely ludicrous speeds.
The engineers' biggest tweak to the body was moving the cockpit further back. This created more clearance under the hood, and the change came with added advantage of giving the driver better visibility out of the car. Composites like Kevlar also helped make the one-piece shell even lighter, while not sacrificing strength.
The new design has already undergone extensive time in the wind tunnel and real-world runs to make sure that none of the changes negatively impacted the aerodynamics. With those tests out of the way, the Charger R/T Funny Car will have the first chance to truly prove itself in NHRA competition at the 2015 Winternationals from February 5-9 at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, CA.

Dodge Journey gets new $24,895* SE V6 AWD model

While the Dodge Journey crossover remains largely unchanged for the 2014 model year, there are two new flavors of the seven-passenger CUV on offer: the butch-looking Crossroad, and the SE V6 AWD, pictured right, which makes its debut today. As its name suggests, this new Journey model features the automaker's 3.6-liter Pentastar V6, and offers all-wheel drive, which, with a starting price of $24,895 (*excluding $995 for destination), reduces the cost-of-entry for an AWD-equipped Journey by $1,800 versus the SXT AWD model. Scroll down for the official press blast.