2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo on 2040-cars

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Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot boards meet to finalize merger

MILAN/PARIS — The boards of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Peugeot will meet separately on Tuesday to discuss finalizing an initial agreement for a $50 billion merger to create the world's number four carmaker, sources said. A source close to FCA said the two companies could announce the signing of a binding memorandum early on Wednesday, followed by a conference call to explain further details later in the day. The two mid-sized carmakers announced plans six weeks ago for a tie-up to help them deal with big challenges in the industry, including a global demand downturn and the need to develop costly cleaner cars to meet looming anti-pollution rules. Ahead of the meetings, entities representing the Peugeot family, Etablissements Peugeot Freres (EPF) and FFP, unanimously approved a proposed memorandum of understanding for the planned merger, a source familiar with the situation said. FCA and PSA have said they would seek to finalize a deal by year-end to create a group with 8.7 million in annual vehicle sales. That would put it fourth globally behind Volkswagen, Toyota and the Renault-Nissan alliance. PSA's Carlos Tavares will be chief executive and FCA's John Elkann — the scion of Italy's Agnelli family, which controls FCA through their holding company Exor — chairman of the combined company. The group will include the Fiat, Jeep, Dodge, Ram, Chrysler, Alfa Romeo, Maserati, Peugeot, DS, Opel and Vauxhall brands, allowing it to serve mass and premium passenger car markets as well as those for trucks and light commercial vehicles. Related Video:       Chrysler Dodge Fiat Jeep RAM Citroen Peugeot

Georgia jury awards $150 million in Jeep fire case

FCA US continues to fight allegations that some Jeep Grand Cherokee and Liberty sport-utility vehicles are unsafe because of the possibility of fires in rear-end collisions. In one recently decided case, a jury in Georgia awarded $150 million in damages to a family whose child died in a blaze in 2012 in a 1999 Grand Cherokee. The jury believed that FCA acted with "reckless and wanton disregard," and didn't do enough to warn owners, according to Reuters. The automaker was found liable for 99 percent of the damages, and the remaining one percent was for the driver who rear-ended the family's SUV. In a statement from FCA US, the company said that it is considering an appeal. Under Georgia law, the automaker was allegedly unable to present a three-year investigation of rear-impact data to jurors. This was the same information the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration used to decide that the '99 Grand Cherokee "did not pose an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety." The original recall for the models covered 1.56 million examples of the 2002-2007 Liberty and 1993-1998 Grand Cherokee. With the fuel tank located between the rear axle and bumper, NHTSA and FCA eventually agreed to install a trailer hitch for extra protection. A further 1.2 million 1999-2004 Grand Cherokees owners received notice of a customer service action to have their vehicles inspected, though no hitch installed. Subsequent tests showed this remedy to be effective for impacts below 40 miles per hour. The automaker has maintained the SUVs met the applicable safety standards of the period when they were built. The company was chastised by NHTSA last year for low repair rates of the problem. FCA US LLC Statement Regarding Walden v Chrysler Group Verdict: April 2, 2015 , Auburn Hills, Mich. - FCA US is disappointed and will consider an appeal of this verdict. It is unfortunate that under Georgia Law the jury was prevented from taking into account extensive data submitted to NHTSA during a three year investigation, which included more than 20 years of rear impact accident data for tens of millions of vehicles. This and other information provided the basis for NHTSA's determination that the 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee did not pose an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety.

Jeep Grand Cherokee, BMW i8, Ford F-150 win 2015 Green Car Awards in DC [w/video]

There were three shiny trophies handed out at the Washington Auto Show last week by Green Car Journal, and they went to three different examples of what "green" means in the automotive industry today. The Jeep Grand Cherokee EcoDiesel won the award for the 2015 Green SUV of the Year, the BMW i8 was named the 2015 Luxury Green Car of the Year and the Ford F-150 took the 2015 Green Car Technology Award honor. There is a case to be made that the aluminum body of the new Ford truck will make a bigger impact in the overall fuel usage in the US than almost any other vehicle, given the numbers of F-150s that Ford sells each year. The B20 biodiesel-capable Jeep gets up to 30 miles per gallon on the highway. And the i8 puts all sorts of new, fuel-saving technologies into an attractive package. Looking over the winners, and the list of finalists you can see in our photo gallery, and you can see that the definition of green is expanding every year. You can watch Green Car Journal editor Ron Cogan hand out the 2015 awards in the video below and we'll for sure be paying attention to what wins next year. 2015 Luxury Green Car of the Year, Green SUV of the Year and Green Car Technology Winners Announced WASHINGTON, Jan. 22, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Green Car Journal has named the Jeep Grand Cherokee EcoDiesel its 2015 Green SUV of the Year™ and the BMW i8 its 2015 Luxury Green Car of the Year™, with the aluminum-bodied Ford F-150 earning the magazine's 2015 Green Car Technology Award™. Winners were determined by a jury of Green Car Journal editors and automotive experts. The prestigious awards were announced in Washington, D.C. today at a Green Car Awards™ press conference held during the Washington Auto Show's Public Policy Day at the Washington Convention Center. "These are truly commendable vehicles representing the 'best-of-the-best' in so many ways," said Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of the Green Car Journal and CarsOfChange.com. "The auto industry's very early focus on small cars and efficiency-for-environment tradeoffs has evolved to now include a more dynamic field of 'greener' models in all vehicle classes. Those wanting greater efficiency or better environmental performance are no longer constrained by limited choices or vehicle types that fall outside their top purchase preferences.