Chrysler Announces Prices on New 2012 SRT8 Models Including the 300, Charger, Grand Cherokee and Challenger

The Chrysler Group’s newly formed Street and Racing Technology (SRT) brand has released pricing on its latest crop of models, which include the 2012 Chrysler 300 SRT8, the 2012 Dodge Charger SRT8, the 2012 Dodge Challenger SRT8 392 and the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8.

Prices together with an $825 destination fee start at $47,995 for the Chrysler 300 SRT8, $46,660 for the Dodge Charger SRT8, $44,077 for the Challenger SRT8 and $55,295 for the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8.

All four SRT8 models are powered by the Chrysler Group’s new 6.4-liter HEMI V8 with Fuel Saver Technology that cranks out 470 horsepower (351kW) and 470 lb-ft (637Nm) of peak torque (465 lb.-ft. / 630 Nm in the Grand Cherokee SRT8).

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Report: New Alfa Romeo-Derived / U.S. Made Dodge Compact Sedan to Debut at 2012 Detroit Show

A new U.S. market compact sedan to be developed by Fiat and built by Chrysler is set to make its debut appearance at the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit in the beginning of next year, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

The as-of-yet unnamed model will be badged as Dodge and powered by a Fiat-derived 1.4-liter turbocharged gasoline engine. It’ll also do 40 mpg combined, or at least it will if Fiat wants to net itself a further 5% of Chrysler from Mr. Monopoly Uncle Sam.

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Ford and Dodge Flop, Lexus and Honda Top JD Power’s 2011 U.S. Initial Quality Study

The results are in for JD Power’s latest 2011 U.S. Initial Quality study that looks at the first 90 days of ownership and the news is not good for Ford Motor Company. The Dearborn-based company tumbled from fifth place and highest-ranking non-luxury automaker last year to 23rd in 2011 with 116 problems per 100 vehicles. Analysts claim that Ford’s freefall is due to complaints related to the company’s onboard MyFord Touch infotainment systems.

Even worse, Dodge was placed last in the list with 137 problems per 100 cars. Scion, MINI, Volkswagen, Mitsubishi and Suzuki didn’t fare well either occupying the last places in the study.

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Multiple 2011MY Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep Vehicles Recalled to Fix Steering Columns

A dozen vehicles from the three core Chrysler brands covering more than half of the company’s 2011 models are being recalled in the United States to fix a potential problem with the steering column.

The recall covers 11,351 vehicles and affects certain 2011 model year Dodge Journey crossovers, Jeep Wranglers, Chrysler 200s, Chrysler 200 Convertibles, Dodge Avengers, Dodge Nitros, Jeep Liberty SUVs, Dodge Calibers, Jeep Compass crossovers, Jeep Patriots, Dodge Grand Caravans and Chrysler Town & Country minivans.

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Chrysler’s SRT Team Teases…Next Dodge Viper SRT10 on Facebook

In a very…tongue-in-cheek move, Chrysler’s newly formed Street and Racing Technology (SRT) brand responded to fans asking them on various social media sites what future products are in development by posting this…revealing sketch on its dedicated Facebook page. Here is what Chrysler’s SRT team wrote:

“Like many of you, Twitter user @DaveOrrSales asked for a taste of what's to come at SRT. We dodged death to sneak you this top-secret photo. That's all you get, crew.”

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Chrysler Group Repays US and Canadian Government Loans in Full

The Chrysler Group announced the repay of U.S. and Canadian government loans totaling $7.6 billion (€5.39 billion), more than six years ahead of schedule. More specifically, the Detroit automaker made a payment of $5.9 billion to the U.S. Treasury (UST) and $1.7 billion to Export Development Canada (EDC) to retire the loans granted in June 2009. EDC is the holding company through which the Canadian federal and Ontario provincial governments provided loans to Chrysler Group. Read more »

Real Life Grand Theft Auto with Man Stealing Police Car and Crashing it into a Truck

Today's video find contains three things: a police vehicle, a dangerous individual and a high-speed run that could answer the question what would Grand Theft Auto look in real life. It all started on Friday, March 13 when 38-year-old Arthur Lee Thompson allegedly attempted to steal a computer from a Walmart store in Summerville, South Carolina. According to the report, when faced by the store manager, he purportedly punched him in the mouth and took off in a green Jeep Grand Cherokee.

The police were called in to investigate and it didn’t take long for an officer to locate Thompson and pull him over. From there on, the entire incident was caught on film by the police cruiser’s inboard camera.

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Insane! Swedes Turn a Dodge Viper into the Saab 9-3 SRT10 MegaPower

Proving once again that there is no limit to what one can build when you let your imagination take over, a team of Swedes transformed a Dodge Viper into the menacing Saab 9-3 SRT10 MegaPower you see in these pictures.

It all started when a man bought a wrecked Dodge Viper SRT-10 with the intention of rebuilding it. However, it soon became obvious that task was far more difficult than he originally thought due to the extent of the damages and the lack of parts. It didn’t take long to come up with a fresh idea: strip the Viper’s body clean and use the mechanical hardware and parts of the chassis on a Saab 9-3 Sport Combi.

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Hennessey’s Tire-Shredding HPE500 Supercharged Ram Truck on Film

The tuners over at Hennessey Performance have always had a thing for boosting anything that rides on four wheels. More recently, the Texas-based tuning firm applied its technical wizardry on the Ram Truck. The result is the Hennessey HPE500 Supercharged Ram, which as implied by its name, features a supercharged version of the Chrysler Group’s 5.7-liter Hemi V8 producing 505-horsepower at 5,400 rpm.

The tune include numerous standard upgrades such as a sport exhaust and Hennessey embroidered seats, along with various optional parts like different alloy wheel and tire combos and suspension systems. While we’re waiting for Hennessey to pit the HPE500 Supercharged Ram against a stock Nissan GT-R or a Porsche 911 Turbo, you can watch the powerful pickup truck in some tire shredding action in the video after the break.

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Zagato’s Dodge Viper-Based Alfa Romeo TZ3 Stradale Smiles at the Camera

Thanks to the interwebs, we now have the first video clip of Zagato’s spanking new Alfa Romeo TZ3 Stradale that was introduced to the world just last week. Hiding underneath the Italian suit are the platform and the mechanical hardware of the now-obsolete Dodge Viper ACR including the 8.4-liter V10 engine. Zagato has not yet given information regarding output and performance numbers.

The Italian coachbuilder plans to build only 9 examples of the Alfa Romeo TZ3 Stradale with the American heart, with the first three cars having already been spoken for. To get a look of the new coachbuilt Alfa in the flesh and on the road, just hit the jump below.

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Chrysler Reports Net Profits for the First Time Since Emerging from Bankruptcy

On Monday, the Chrysler Group LLC reported its first quarter gains since exiting bankruptcy almost two years ago in June 2009. The Auburn Hills-based automaker, which is now operated by Fiat S.p.A., said net income totaled $116 million in the first quarter of 2011 compared to a net loss of $197 million in the same period last year.

At the same time, the company’s revenues grew 35 percent from $9.7 billion in Q1 2010 to $13.1 billion in Q1 2011. In addition, the automaker said it had $9.9 billion in cash reserves at the end of the first quarter compares to 2.5 billion in December 31, 2010.

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Take that Google: Dodge Rebels Against Robots in New 2011 Charger Commercial

The future, as we imagine it now, may be full of robots doing all kinds of things for us humans, including driving our cars. As some scientists over at Google recently proved, driver-less vehicles may become a reality sooner than we expect, so here's what an automaker that produces cars for drivers has to say about this issue.

In the Chrysler Group’s latest commercial for the 2011 Dodge Charger called “The Future of Driving”, we are presented with a gloomy future, in which robots control all aspects of our lives, from choosing our diet and wardrobe to even walking our pet dogs. The hero of the commercial has nothing to say about all these things, but when a robot invites him to sit on the passenger seat of his own car, things get a little bit out of control...

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Chrysler Group to Repay $7.5 Billion of Government Loans by the End of June

In order to pave the way for Fiat to reach 51 percent ownership of the Chrysler Group, the Auburn Hills-based automaker announced today that it intends to repay in full the loans provided by the U.S. and Canadian governments back in 2009 ($7.53 billion in total).

The Chrysler Group said it plans to complete the repayment during the second quarter of 2011 (ending in June). The company will use money from a new term loan facility plus a new issue of debt securities that will be sold to institutional investors in a private offering along with proceeds from Fiat’s recent cash infusion to increase its stake in Chrysler.

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Zagato TZ3 Stradale: A Dodge Viper ACR Dressed as an Alfa Romeo

We don’t know if Fiat and Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne’s future plans for the upcoming, next generation of the Dodge Viper include the development of a corresponding Alfa Romeo model based on the underpinnings of the muscle car, but famed Italian coachbuilder Zagato has given the formula a try with its new TZ3 Stradale.

You see, Zagato’s TZ3 Stradale is an Alfa Romeo bodied sports car based on the platform and mechanical hardware of the track-conquering Dodge Viper ACR, which features the same 600HP 8.4-liter V10 engine as the standard Viper SRT-10 along with a 6-speed manual gearbox and a race-spec suspension. All parts of the TZ3 Stradale’s carbon fiber body are new with the cherry topping being the classic Kamm-tail (K-tail) layout.

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Kowalski Approved: Dodge Dealer Creates Nouveau Vanishing Point Challenger Based On 392 Inaugural Editions

The 1970s spawned some pretty cool car movies. Gone in 60 Seconds, Two-Lane Blacktop and Vanishing Point were all born in the decade of big collars, flared trousers and microwave dinners. The last of these three movies is considered to be somewhat of a classic. In it, a man named Kowalski (Barry Newman) makes a bet that he can drive a white 1970 Dodge Challenger from the dealership in Colorado to a customer in San Francisco in just 15 hours. The inevitable series of street races and confrontations with The Man ensue.

Now, forty years after the film premiered, New Wilmington Dodge dealer and long-time fan Bob Frederick has unveiled a special edition model to celebrate this genre classic. All of the “Kowalski Edition” cars are based on the 2011 392 Inaugural Edition Challenger SRT8, as white was not available for standard SRT8s.

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2012 Dodge Avenger R/T Breaks Cover ahead of NYIAS Debut, Features Styling and Chassis Upgrades

After the introduction of the R/T flavored Challenger, Journey, Durango and Grand Caravan at the Chicago Auto Show this past February, it was only a matter of time before Dodge applied the same sporty treatment to the revised Avenger sedan.

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Next Generation 2013 Dodge Viper Undergoing Testing in the Snow

Although roughly a year away from launch, Chrysler has published the very first official photo of a development mule of the next generation Dodge Viper undergoing testing in the snow. The prototype mule is based on the now obsolete 2010 Viper that was discontinued in the summer of 2010.

Not surprisingly, the Auburn Hills-based automaker released very few details on its upcoming high-performance sports car as the only piece of information we get is that “SRT engineers expanded the development scope for the next generation Dodge Viper to include stability control tuning for the first time.”

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Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR Shatters Corvette ZR1’s Record at Miller Motorsports Park [with Video]

The Dodge Viper SRT10 American Club Racer (ACR) broke the production car lap record at Miller Motorsports Park, dipping below the 2-minute mark for the first time ever at the 3.048-mile Outer Course configuration. Dodge driver Kuno Wittmer stopped the clock at 1:59.995, beating the previous record held by Jan Magnussen in a Corvette ZR1 by almost four seconds (2:03.86).

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2011 Dodge Avenger gets in Rally Guise, but for what? [with Video]

Joining the Mopar ’11 Charger special at the New York International Auto Show next week will be the new Dodge Avenger rally car that heralds the first collaboration in the brand’s newly announced relationship with Fiat Group subsidiary and aftermarket parts specialist, Magneti Marelli. The rally-prepped Avenger was built in cooperation with Chrysler’s in-house tuner Mopar, and while fully functional, there’s no word if the car will actually enter any sort of competition.

“This is a purpose-built vehicle with collaborative parts from Magneti Marelli and Mopar,” said Dino Maggioni, CEO of Magneti Marelli Aftermarket. “We selected Magneti Marelli and Mopar parts, adapted them to the Dodge Avenger and made them unique. The result is a fascinating blend of these two iconic brands.”

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It Came from eBay Hell: Thunder Ranch Riot with Scat Crate Engine

If Geo had asked Isuzu to design them a car that would appeal to California’s surfer crowd in the mid-1990s, chances are it’d look a lot like the Thunder Ranch Riot. A fibreglass bodied, Volkswagen Beetle-based turnkey kit car, the Riot looks like a Geo Storm that’s been cut, shut and had Dodge Viper parts tacked on to its exterior. And it can be all yours for the low, low price of US$12,000.

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