2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited Red on 2040-cars

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Fiat Chrysler recalls 4.8 million U.S. vehicles for cruise control defect

WASHINGTON - Fiat Chrysler said on Friday it is recalling 4.8 million U.S. vehicles over a defect that could prevent drivers from deactivating cruise control and warned owners not to use the function until they get software upgrades. The Italian-American automaker said no injuries or crashes are related to the large recall campaign but said it had one report of a driver of a 2017 Dodge Journey rental car unable to deactivate the cruise control. Fiat Chrysler, which in 2015 was hit with penalties from U.S. regulators totaling $175 million for safety lapses, did not say how much the recalls would cost. The recall addresses what Fiat Chrysler called an "extremely rare" series of events that could lead to drivers being unable to cancel cruise control. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on Friday it "strongly encourages vehicle owners to follow a warning" to stop using cruise control on the recalled vehicles until repaired. NHTSA said drivers could overpower the system by forcefully applying the brakes until the vehicle stopped. Fiat Chrysler also said the vehicle could be stopped by shifting into neutral and braking. Fiat Chrysler shares fell more than 2 percent in premarket trading in New York on the recall. Fiat Chrysler noted that at times cruise control systems automatically initiate acceleration to help vehicles maintain driver-selected speeds, including when going up an incline. If an acceleration occurs simultaneously with a short-circuit in a specific electrical network, a driver could be unable to deactivate the function. Fiat Chrysler said vehicles may be placed in park once stopped, at which point cruise-control is canceled. The recall involves a group of gasoline-powered vehicles with automatic transmissions from various model years built from 2014 through the 2019 model year. Most of the vehicles being recalled cover the 2014-2018 model years. Among the vehicles being recalled are the Chrysler 200, Chrysler 300, Chrysler Pacifica, Dodge Charger, Dodge Challenger, Dodge Journey, Dodge Durango, Jeep Cherokee, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jeep Wrangler and Ram 1500, 2500 and 3500 pickup trucks and Ram 3500/4500/5500 cab chassis trucks. Fiat Chrysler made the announcement going into the busy Memorial Day weekend, which traditionally kicks off the summer driving season.

Jeep Wrangler Copper Crawler is our idea of a restrained Mopar shopping spree

According to a recent report, the Jeep Wrangler is the most popular SUV for customization, and this is backed up by the fact that the iconic off-roader was just named the Hottest 4x4-SUV at SEMA for the fourth year in a row. Looking for ways to keep its customers in-house rather than going aftermarket, Jeep and Mopar are always teaming to offer exciting new parts and pieces for the JK Wrangler.
Compared to most other Wranglers on display at SEMA - as well as other Chrysler Mopar SEMA concepts - the Jeep Wrangler Copper Crawler is surprisingly reserved, but should be no less exciting for owners to give their Wrangler a distinctive look. Starting off with an eye-catching copper paint scheme, the Jeep then goes on a Mopar catalog shopping spree with its matte black grille, black beadlock wheels, two-inch lift, Rubicon bumper (with a winch and aero end caps up front) and rocker panel and taillight guards.
Jeep also upgraded the Wrangler's transfer case for low-speed rock crawling (hence the vehicle's name) and cold-air intake for extra measure.

Watch this 840-hp Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 walk away from GT-Rs and M3s

This last-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 does things that SUVs just shouldn't be able to do, like win drag races against tuned Nissan GT-R and BMW M3 coupes. Granted, the owner isn't coming into this fight with a stock Jeep – far from it. In addition to twin turbos whistling away, he says the engine is a 449-cubic-inch V8, which is nearly 7.4 liters of displacement. As it runs here, the driver claims that the turbos are pumping out around 14 psi of boost to give an estimated 840 horsepower. What's more, he further maintains the powertrain could reach around 1,200 hp with things fully cranked up. Even somewhat dialed back, this Jeep is ready to take on a breadth of formidable challengers, including a couple of Chevrolet Corvette models and a Lamborghini Aventador. Check out the video to see how this menacing Grand Cherokee fares in a day at the races.