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The fix is in. I agree that a diesel powered Dakota could be one terrific vehicle! Hard to imagine the number of business that would leap into line to buy. Dakota size, 3/4 ton capacity and utility/toolside bed would be one heck of a vehicle. Great ride, handling, payload and excellent fuel economy in a mid-size truck is just the ticket to success for Chrysler Corp. It could even have potential as a camper-van platform, similar to some of the Toyota Class C campers now available but with real performance.
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Good quote... Seeing as he came from Toyota, I used to drive a base model Tercel (got great gas mileage driving back & forth to college). I used to rib my Mom all the time that the controls in my cheapo Toyota were better made and better operating than the ones in her luxury Oldsmobile. I always felt like I was breaking something plastic using the turn signals in her car, where in the Tercel they were silky smooth. That car did have its faults though, like a dark gray vinyl interior that got really, really hot in the summer (and no A/C!) -- actually melted the plastic of an old computer monitor I had on the back seat once.Originally posted by MoparNorm View Post
Hmmm, trade the Renegade for a diesel Gladiator.... Maybe if they make a quad cab version.
AndyComment
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Update!
The head of Chryslers bio diesel program blogs today!
blog.chryslerllc.com
Go and post your support!Comment
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For those of you interested in new Jeep Pickups and diesels, or anything Dodge, go to the Chrysler LLC website, Click here
and then click on the "Chrysler Listens" ribbon in the upper right hand corner. You will be given a questionnaire to fill out with your concerns, complaints and wants.
Give them feedback!Comment
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missing ribbon...
duh... when i click on... no ribbon ...no quizComment
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Give it a second, first the blogs pop up, then it settles down and loads to the NEW DAY sketch. I've been there 100 times and didn't "see" the "ribbon" until this morning, it is in the upper right corner of the sketch, and says' "tell us what you think"Comment
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chrysler ribbon
MN... the NEW DAY page never popped up thursday morning...
but i was having all sorts of compuker problems, i didn't know it existed...
my oldest son, JEFF, spent 4 hrs thursday night, reconstructing my dated
compuker with newer software, spyware, clean underware so i am back in cyberspace... all that $$$ at MICHIGAN did work out after all.
so i TOLD chrysler to just listen to MOPARNORM...Comment
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Ha! Ha!
The New Day page loads slow on a "fast" computer too....= )Comment
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I gave them an earful, Norm!Comment
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Jim Press Speaks Out
As reported by Allpar.com
James Press, Chrysler’s Vice Chairman and President, talked to reporters Friday after speaking at a forum at the State University of New York. In his remarks, he defended the company's financial strength and repeated his assertions that Chrysler is on track to meet its goals.
"We've been in sort of a recession a little longer than we've known. It's probably better for us to get through it, to get to the other side quicker, than to fool ourselves into thinking everything's OK," Press told the media.
Management at Chrysler and Cerberus have been doing damage control following the financial statement filed by Daimler AG which said Chrysler lost $2.7 billion between August 4 and September 30, 2007.
Two months ago, Robert Nardelli, Chrysler’s CEO, said the automaker expected to see a $1.6 billion loss for all of 2007. Since it is now a private company, Chrysler does not have to disclose its financials and rarely comments on them.
Speaking of the Daimler report, Press said, "There's no news and no impact on our operations." Press stated that Chrysler has made an "operating profit" since Cerberus bought a controlling interest last August Both Chrysler and Cerberus says the differences in the figures are due to differences between the accounting methods used in the U.S. and Europe.
Press dismissed talk of any secret Cerberus plan to bring in new investors or try to structure an IPO. "The marching orders we have are to make this a financially successful company," Press told reporters. He added that improving Chrysler’s performance works in Cerberus’ favor whatever course the private equity fund decides to take.
Speaking of the prospects for this year, Press also said he doesn’t expect to see improvements in the U.S. light vehicle market to improve until early next year and that predictions of a rebound in the second half of 2008 are "wishful thinking." He admitted Chrysler's own estimate of 15.5 million total U.S. auto sales in 2008 might be too high, adding, "This year is going to be a pretty severe year."
According to Press, Chrysler will continue to reduce its domestic product lineup while looking for growth overseas. Press believes it is reasonable to see Chrysler selling one-third, and perhaps as many as half, of its vehicles outside the North American market.
In other comments, Press predicted new fuel economy regulations mean that eventually every new vehicle will use some type of hybrid power system. He also dismissed Consumer Reports’ criticism of Chrysler, saying the magazine was focusing on "a picture of the past" and ignoring more than 250 improvements the company has already made.
"What they haven't been able to do is get their arms around the future of our products and the improvements we're making," Press said. "We're making those in light-speed time."
Reiterating comments he made during the forum, Press told reporters that Chrysler aspires to be a company that excites customers. "We see ourselves as the great American dream machine," he said and added the goal is to make Chrysler "a great little American car company."Comment
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As towards Diesel Vs Gasoline Hybrids, in a magazine I read that VW made a straight diesel to go into their GTIs, I think, that got 20 more MPG at a bit less $$ than the contemporary Gasoline-Hybrid. Funny how that works, ain't it?
This news about the new Chrysler Head Honcho is good to hear. He seems like he has a bit more common sense than addiction to profits and nothing else.Comment
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tangent to the diesel stories...
last week in MICHIGAN gas was hovering around $3.09 gal.
the news stations claimed the price increase was due to the refineries
changing to the more expensive "SUMMER" BLENDS...
last time i looked, snow was still blanketing the midwest, with more storms predicted...
tuesday night, lower MICHIGAN , south of DETROIT, was being blanketted by4-5" of the white stuff and salt supplies are running low...
i didn't realize the refineries had a 60-90 day reserve of refined gas available with "SUMMER" TEMPERATURES 60-90 days away...
also, any REASONABLE explanation why last weekend MI diesel
was $3.69- $3.89 a gal...
i was under the impression ( possibly misguided) that diesel was a useful
waste by-product of the refinery process... like using the squeal of the pig.
if someone wiser, would clear the haze...Comment
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Diesel is not the waste by product of gasoline, in simple terms, it's the first results of the refining process.
However because of the new ultra low sulfur diesel (ULSD) mandated by the EPA, as well as a few other additives for local regions, diesel cost have gone up more than they should.
If the entire country was Diesel fueled, in lieu of gasoline, we would eliminate our need for middle east oil,..COMPLETELY!
Diesel provides 35-40% better fuel economy than gasoline motors moving the same size vehicle. The VW TDI diesel gets over 55 mpg, that's better than a hybrid and a diesel hybrid would get near 75 mpg.
I'm not a believer in conspiracies, but I find it suspicious that diesel prices have risen as fast as they have. Even though demand for diesel fuel is high, it's been two years since diesel prices starting climbing. That's plenty of time for refiners to figure it out and increase supply.
Diesel should cost approx. 30% less than gasoline.Comment
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I'm figuring diesel to be right at $5 per gallon Christmas day this year. I also figure the only way it can get there, or higher in the same time frame, is a clever conspiracy. Let's all hide and watch....
I figure diesel will be around $8 per gallon by Christmas 2010. Seems there's only one way for it to get that high: conspiracy. We will see what we will see, but we WILL see whatever it is as a fact, cold hard fact, right in the back, up to the hilt.
Mark it on your calendars, kiddies, and we will see....Comment
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Product X and product Y both come from raw material Z. Raw material Z has a finite amount of BTU per volume as do product X and Y. Product X has more BTU per volume than product Y. Which product would cost less given similar production costs?
Then add in that product Y formulation allows for 10-20% of its volume come from other non-Z based products, where as product X does not. Should we be surprised that product Y can be cheaper than product X at times, if not all the time? With this in mind I think I might be crying foul if product X cost less. It is more energy dense per gallon.
If some new product Q came along that had twice the energy content per gallon as product X, wouldn't we expect product Q to be more expensive if it was still derived from raw material Z? After all, Z only has so much energy per volume.
Think about it on the level of buying energy not some arbitrary volume. A gallon of diesel has more energy stored in it than a gallon of gasoline, and it all came from the raw material of petroleum oil. Whereas a gallon of gasoline has less energy in it than diesel and some of that energy is from non-petroleum sources or by-products of petroleum that can't be added to the diesel final product.
I realize this is overly simplified but perhaps will help allay some of the "diesel should be cheaper" proclamations that are based solely on the input of refining effort to produce, which is overly simplified as well(not even touching on limitations of refining the raw material into constituent products).
KenComment
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