chrysler

Chrysler Surprise: Electric Drive in 2010

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While it’s been nearly impossible to escape the buzz surrounding the Chevy Volt (apologies for the phrase) a great many journalists and bloggers had written off the chances of Chrysler making a splash in the new world of electric cars … a great many, but not this one.

electric chryslers

Just a week after the Volt’s unveiling, Chrysler is playing its trump cards … pulling the curtain on not just one, but three brand new electric vehicles … one for each of its marquees. The iconic Jeep Wrangler and Chrysler minivan will be transformed into electric vehicles, along with a brand new Dodge EV sports car that Left Lane News has pegged as a reworked Lotus Europa.

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Driving Clean Diesels in Las Vegas

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Alternative Fuels and Vehicles 2008 conference attendees were in for a rare treat at the Bosch sponsored a clean diesel ride-n-drive event on Monday evening, May 12th. After opening remarks from diesel hot rodding legend Gale Banks, attention turned to the race course laid out though the parking lots of the Rio Hotel and a … Read more

35 MPG: Why Wait Until 2020?

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One of the keys to restarting the American economy is staring us in the face. While our future hinges on the rapid adoption of fuel-efficient vehicles, our government stands in the way of a rapid free market solution.


35 MPG can be an immediate reality, with one domestic manufacturer, if the United States government would only allow it to happen. Our elected representatives need to be aware of the facts and make the appropriate decisions.

Chrysler is uniquely positioned among the Big Three US automakers. Unlike Ford and General Motors, Chrysler is already building a slew of high-MPG diesel-powered vehicles right here in the United States.

Amazing as it may seem in these difficult times, Chrysler is not allowed to sell those cars domestically, due to recently tightened emissions regulations. With the exception of the domestically-available Jeep Grand Cherokee diesel, all of Chrysler’s North American manufactured high-MPG diesel-equipped vehicles are being shipped abroad.

Each and every one of Chrysler’s European models is available with a diesel engine, with the exception of the Dodge Viper. In fact, a diesel engine can be found under the hood of more than 50% of the vehicles that Chrysler sells in Europe.

All-in-all, a dozen Chrysler, Dodge, and Jeep diesel-engined models are currently available outside of the United States, but are not sold domestically.

Here’s the eye-opener … half of those models currently achieve 35 miles per gallon combined.

That’s 35 MPG … right now.

And what’s even more crazy? All of these 35 MPG cars and SUVs are built in North American plants by North American workers … American citizens cannot buy and drive the fuel-efficient cars they build.

The thriftiest of the bunch delivers nearly 50 MPG on the highway … and it’s no dog off the line, turning in 0-62 mile per hour (MPH) times under nine seconds. The fastest in the pack delivers 7.6 second 0-62 times and 35.6 MPG on the highway.

Needless to say, these are wonderful world-class cars, a world apart from your Uncle’s noisy, slow, smelly 80’s-era diesel.

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Chrysler Sebring Gas Mileage

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The mid-size Sebring has been a fixture in the Chrysler lineup since 1995. Over the run, four-cylinder engine variations of the Sebring have been known to deliver good gas mileage ratings, flirting with a highway range of 30 miles per gallon (MPG). The 2008 Sebring is available as a four-door sedan or two-door convertible. When fitted with the four-cylinder engine, the Sebring convertible is one of the most fuel-efficient ragtops on the market. If fuel-efficient top-down driving’s not your thing, you may be interested to know that the four-door sedan can be equipped with all-wheel-drive (AWD).

The domestic 2008 Chrysler Sebring can be fitted with one of three engines:

  • 2.4 liter DOHC four-cylinder engine, producing 173 horsepower (HP) and 166 foot pounds of torque
  • 2.7 liter DOHC six-cylinder engine, producing 189 HP and 191 foot pounds of torque
  • 3.5 liter high output SOHC V-6 engine with the AutoStick six-speed automatic transmission and duel exhaust, producing 235 HP and 232 foot pounds of torque

Internationally, the Sebring can be ordered with a 2.0 liter Volkswagen common rail turbodiesel producing 138 HP and 229 foot pounds of torque, mated to a six-speed manual transmission. With the turbodiesel and six-speed manual, the European Sebring produces a 0-62 mile per hour time of 12 seconds flat, with 34.4 urban / 55.4 extra urban miles per British gallon … that equates to roughly 28.6 city / 46.1 highway here in the States.

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