Chrysler heads to Electric Avenue
Auto Week recently reported on Chrysler's plans for electric vehicles. These plans include the Dodge EV concept, a Lotus Europa-based, all- electric, two-seat sports car that appears to have a good chance of moving from concept to production "sooner rather than later," Auto Week says. The plug-in Dodge EV can run 150 to 200 miles on a charge, Chrysler engineers say. Beyond the EV, the automaker already has the 2009 gas-electric Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen Hybrid SUVs on the market. The gas-electric Dodge Ram Hybrid is coming in 2010. Plus, look for two plug-in electric-series hybrid models based on Chrysler's Town & Country minivan and the four-wheel Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. Finally, someone thought of making a hybrid minivan.
More details on Suzuki's truck
This column has previously reported on early plans by Suzuki to sell a pickup truck in North America. Indeed, as Auto Week reports, Suzuki is now officially entering the pickup arena with a rebadged Nissan Frontier, the Equator. To distinguish it from the Nissan, Suzuki makes its own hood, front fenders, three-bar grille and tailgate. Content and configuration will be Suzuki-specific. The Equator will come in Extended and Crew Cab configurations with two- and four-wheel drive availabilities. The Extended Cab will be available with either an inline four-cylinder or V-6 engine. The Crew Cab gets the V-6. The top model is the RMZ-4 Sport Package. Sales start later this month or early December.
Sunday Cars
Check the Cars sections of the newspaper tomorrow for profiles of several models. On Sunday, look for the 2009 Honda Pilot, the 2009 Nissan Sentra and a feature on a preowned vehicle, the 2006 Ford Ranger.
