2011 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport Sport Utility 4-door 3.8l on 2040-cars

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FCA inline-six rumored to be real, headed for Jeep Wagoneer

In September, Allpar reported that that clues being dropped at Fiat- Chrysler headquarters, in the carmaker's factories, and on engineer resumes pointed to the development of an inline six-cylinder engine. The site has just proclaimed the rumor is reality, writing that the straight-six, "turbocharged to meet or beat 5.7 Hemi power ratings, with a smoother torque curve, is on the way." The motor's first outing is expected to be either the next-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee, debuting perhaps next year, or the Jeep Wagoneer, debuting in 2020 or 2021. "Tornado" is the purported codename for the power plant said to be just under three liters in displacement, expanding the family begun with the Global Medium Engine 2.0-liter turbo codenamed Hurricane. Engine bay constraints and a long use horizon mean engineers won't simply add two more cylinders to the GME, however. Allpar says the brief is to keep the Tornado GME-T6 — the alphanumeric for "turbocharged six" — no more than three inches longer than the Tigershark 2.4-liter four-cylinder. That means "major design changes" that could include a space-saving head, more closely spaced cylinders, and no cylinder liners. An FCA division called Comau could be called on for its "SmartSpray" plasma lining technology. Allpar muses that the standard version of the engine for Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram could get a single twin-scroll turbocharger. Performance trims for Alfa Romeo and Maserati could get different heads and maybe twin turbos, an SRT version might also get both those tweaks. History shows that the Italian versions would make changes to the block, as well. Even so, the Tornado would be less expensive than any Ferrari-supplied V6. A straight-six would put FCA in company with current adopters BMW and Mercedes-Benz, future users like Jaguar, and perhaps Aston Martin. The engine would span the widest range of use cases in the U.S. carmaker's portfolio, though. Potential applications include being a base engine for Ram trucks, serving double duty as a base engine and 5.7-liter Hemi replacement for the Dodge Charger and Challenger, working in the high-end Jeeps, and as a properly hot trim — with Ferrari-designed heads — in the luxury Italian sports cars. The Alfa Romeo Giulia begs for just such motivation to fill the gap between the 280-hp, $42,695 Ti Sport RWD and the 505-hp, $73,700 Giulia Quadrifoglio RWD. And a twin-turbo inline-six in a Maserati Alfieri would stack up nicely with the Germans.

Jeep bringing Renegade Hard Steel with adorable matching trailer to Geneva

Trailers are hardly an uncommon site. They can, after all, be an effective way of adding cargo capacity when you need to haul more than you can fit in your car and truck. But there's something that just gets us about trailers made to match the vehicle behind which they're being towed. Like this one, attached to this unique Jeep Renegade. Set to be unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show mere days from now, the Renegade Hard Steel concept is a joint effort between various elements of the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles group, including Jeep, Mopar and the FCA Style Centre. It's based on the Trailhawk off-road model, but is distinguished by its unique metallic finish, offset by matte black trim and a full raft of available and custom Mopar accessories. Though Jeep has yet to show us what it looks like inside, it's said to have a specially coated leather finish. And of course there's that trailer. Designed to mimic the Renegade's rear-end styling, the appendage will be used on the floor of the Geneva Palexpo to showcase the vehicle's Uconnect Live infotainment system through an oversized pop-up touchscreen display that mirrors the new 5- or 6.5-inch display that'll soon be available on the littlest of Jeeps, offering streaming content including music, news, social media and traffic conditions. We have no indication that a similar trailer could be going into production (minus, of course, the infotainment stuff), but it's worth noting that Jeep has indeed done something similar before. Feel free to read more in the press release, below. Related Video: 27 February 2015 Renegade Hard Steel Jeep Showcar The Renegade Hard Steel Jeep showcar, which blends style, off-road vocation, and technology, will be making its debut and the 2015 Geneva International Motor Show. Created by the Jeep brand, in collaboration with the Mopar brand and backed by the FCA Style Centre, the showcar "explores" the potential of a model that provides countless customization options, while also providing an outlook for potential future Mopar accessories dedicated to the new Renegade. Based on the Trailhawk - the off-road version of the range - the prototype is not a simple customisation in aftermarket but a design project that, with due respect to the peculiarities of original models, has led us to the creation of a unique and fascinating article.

Dodge, Jeep and Ram could soon be owned by Chinese automakers

For the past several years, Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne has made it widely known that the automaker he helms is up for grabs. First, he sent an email to GM CEO Mary Barra, who immediately refused to even discuss a merger. Later, Marchionne set his sights on Volkswagen. That too was swiftly rebuffed. It seemed like no global automaker was remotely interested in a partnership. Now, Automotive News reports that several Chinese automakers have come calling, only FCA isn't ready to answer. At least not yet. The news broke this morning that a major Chinese automaker had made an offer to purchase FCA for slightly above market value. FCA refused, saying the offer wasn't quite generous enough. It's unclear which automaker made the offer, but Automotive News says there's more than one interested party. FCA representatives have recently traveled to China to meet with Great Wall Motors, while Chinese representatives were seen at FCA corporate headquarters in Auburn Hills, Mich. The Chinese government has a lot of money invested in local automakers. It's putting pressure on these automakers to expand globally, including to the United States. As it stands, it's a matter of when a Chinese automaker will start selling cars here, not if. Purchasing an established automaker with a wide range of products and a huge dealer network would do wonders in giving the Chinese a foothold here. Sure, Geely owns Volvo, but a luxury automaker doesn't have nearly as much reach as a more mainstream company like FCA. This seems like the best case scenario for both a Chinese automaker looking to move into the U.S. and for FCA, at least from a business standpoint. The latter doesn't seem to have any other interested parties. It will be interesting to see how FCA would sell a deal like this to the public. We're not sure everyone will be happy with Dodge, Jeep and Ram falling under Chinese ownership. FCA didn't turn down the Chinese because they didn't like the idea. It turned down the offer because there wasn't enough money on the table. Related Video: News Source: Automotive News Earnings/Financials Alfa Romeo Chrysler Dodge Fiat Jeep RAM