Primed For Personalization: Mopar Products Available To Customize The 2015 Chrysler 200 Shown At NAIAS

AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Jan. 13, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

• Modified 2015 Chrysler 200 on display at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) demonstrates how Mopar products can personalize the beautiful all-new mid-size sedan
• Mopar parts and accessories will be available at launch to complement the exhilarating driving experience of the all-new 2015 Chrysler 200
• Mopar products, including wheels, graphics packages, Wi-Fi, in-vehicle wireless charging and more, available for the 2015 Chrysler 200
• Owners can customize the beautifully crafted sedan right at the factory, thanks to the Mopar Custom Shop

The all-new 2015 Chrysler 200 transforms what customers expect in a mid-size sedan. Thanks to Mopar, customers will have the power to transform the Chrysler 200 even more – right when it arrives in showrooms. To highlight a few of the more than 45 Mopar parts and accessories available right at launch to enhance the sedan, the Mopar brand will showcase a modified 2015 Chrysler 200 in its expanded display at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, Mich., January 13–26.

"The all-new 2015 Chrysler 200 is a revolutionary vehicle for Chrysler Group, and for the segment as well, so we created a vehicle that complements the soul of the 2015 Chrysler 200, while also showcasing how Mopar parts and accessories can help owners personalize and customize the new sedan to truly make it their own," said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO — Mopar, Chrysler Group LLC's service, parts and customer-care brand. "The modified 2015 Chrysler 200 on exhibit in the Mopar NAIAS display demonstrates our commitment to working with all Chrysler Group brands to offer Mopar products that let customers personalize their ride right when it arrives in the showroom, or even before through the Mopar Custom Shop."

The Mopar-modified 2015 Chrysler 200 exhibited at the NAIAS uses the Chrysler 200S as its starting point, then adds from there to make the vehicle even more original and unique. The exterior of the modified Chrysler 200 stands out and shines bright, thanks to a striking Lunar White Pearl Tri-coat color. The customized Chrysler 200 on display is powered by a 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 engine that puts best-in-class 295 horsepower as well as 262 lb.-ft. of torque to the satin carbon, 19-inch multi-spoke wheels.

Heading inside the Mopar-modified 2015 Chrysler 200, the interior is enriched with premium white leather seats accented with bronze stitching, with bronze accents also highlighting the bezels and the steering wheel. Mopar floor mats also augment the interior.

In addition to the Mopar products featured on the customized 2015 Chrysler 200 displayed at the NAIAS, a menu of additional Mopar parts and accessories will be available for the all-new Chrysler 200 upon launch, with nearly 90 products available by the end of the calendar year.

Available products include:

EXTERIOR

• Mopar Electronic Vehicle Tracking System
• Wheels 
• Wheel locks
• Locking fuel cap
• Graphics Package
• Bicycle hitch receiver
• Mopar wheel center caps
• Emblem Kits
• Vehicle covers
• Production turn signal mirrors
• Engine block heater, 2.4-liter
• Master shield

INTERIOR

• Ambient lighting
• Autonet Wi-Fi
• Roadside Safety Kit
• Emergency Kit/Tire repair
• Collapsible tote
• Cargo trunk net
• Molded cargo tray
• Door sill guards
• In-Vehicle wireless charging
• Premium floor mats
• Slush floor mats
• Rear backup camera/mirror
   

Customers will have the option of personalizing the all-new 2015 Chrysler 200 right at the factory. Through the Mopar Custom Shop, parts and accessories requested by the customer during the order process are added at the factory before the vehicle arrives at the dealership, with the installed Mopar products listed on the vehicle's Monroney sticker.

Quenching The Thirst, part of the five-part ebook series, Restore The Roar: Manufacturing Renaissance by Rod Kackley, tells the story of the creation of the Grand Rapids and Detroit craft brewing industries. Buy now through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes and Vook.

Last Chance Mile: The Reinvention of an American Community by Rod Kackley, tells the story of how the people of Grand Rapids changed the way the world sees their community, and the way they see the world. 

Last Chance Mile is available wherever books are sold including Amazon, Abbott Press, Barnes & Noble and iTunes.

Chrysler Looks at Human Biology In Design of New CNG Vehicles

 

• Patent-pending technology mimics human lungs to benefit CNG-tank capacity, formability

• Technology development supported by grant from Michigan Economic Development Council’s Technology Innovation Challenge

• Chrysler Group builds the industry’s only mass-production CNG-powered pickup, a Ram 2500

Chrysler Group is looking inward – to the human body – for inspiration to design the next generation of fuel tanks powering compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles.

“Within the human lung are countless individual sacks called alveoli,” says Enrico Pisino, Chrysler Group’s Senior Manager-Innovation. “These sacks combine to expand the lung’s total air capacity. We are using this same approach to improve the packaging of CNG tanks.”

Chrysler Group’s work is supported in part by a $50,000 grant from the Michigan Economic Development Council’s Technology Innovation Challenge, which matches companies with Michigan-based strategic partners to accelerate advanced-technology initiatives.

While CNG has a per-gallon-equivalent cost-advantage of approximately $1 compared with gasoline, its energy density is less by volume. As a result, CNG-powered vehicles require larger fuel tanks to deliver range that is comparable to that of gas- or diesel-powered vehicles.

Current CNG tank designs also are limited to cylindrical shapes to accommodate the pressure at which the gaseous fuel is stored.

Chrysler Group’s patent-pending technology addresses both issues by expanding tank capacity and enabling designs that conform to the vehicle, as do other fuel tanks. The result is a no-compromise solution that preserves space intended for passengers and/or cargo.

Chrysler Group already has a CNG vehicle on the market. The Ram 2500 Compressed Natural Gas truck is the industry’s only factory-built CNG-powered pickup, rolling off the same assembly line as conventionally powered vehicles

Available for retail and fleet sale, the Ram 2500 Compressed Natural Gas truck features a 5.7-liter HEMI® V-8 engine that burns CNG. When that fuel is depleted, it automatically and seamlessly switches to gasoline.

On a single fill-up, the truck can travel 255 miles on CNG and a total of 745 miles when equipped with an available 35-gallon reserve gas tank.

Chrysler Group has a long history with CNG. In the 1990s and early 2000s, the company produced dedicated CNG-powered full-size vans, minivans and pickup trucks.

Chrysler Group’s strategic partner, Fiat S.p.A, is a world leader in CNG-powered vehicle production.

Restore The Roar: Manufacturing Renaissance, a five-part ebook essay series is available anywhere ebooks are sold including Amazon, Barnes & Noble and iTunes. The series begins with the Great Collapse, the story of the fall of the auto industry and how it brought most of Michigan down with it.

Last Chance Mile: The Reinvention of an American Community tells the story of how Grand Rapids, Michigan survived The Great Collapse with the help of scientists, artists, zombies (yes, zombies), and two of the world's richest families.

Last Chance Mile is available wherever books are sold online and on the shelves of Barnes & Noble-Woodland Mall, Schuler Books & Music-28th Street and West Coast Coffee-Monroe Center, Grand Rapids, Michigan.

For more of Rod Kackley's books, articles and essays, go to www.rodkackley.com and download his free app through Google Play and the App Store. 

Restore The Roar: New Car Sales Should Be Up More Than 14 Percent

August 2013 New Car Sales Expected to Be Up 14.4 Percent According to TrueCar; August 2013 SAAR at 15.75M, Highest August SAAR since 2007

TrueCar.com, company that sources, compiles, and analyzes car-buying information, has released its August 2013 sales and incentives forecast. It shows a 14.4 percent increase in new car sales during the month of August.

• For August 2013, new light vehicle sales in the U.S. (including fleet) is expected to be 1,464,214 units, up 14.4 percent from August 2012 and up 11.8% percent from July 2013 (on an unadjusted basis).
• The August 2013 forecast translates into a Seasonally Adjusted Annualized Rate ("SAAR") of 15.75 million new car sales, down less than one percent from July 2013 and up nine percent overAugust 2012.
• Retail sales are up 10.5 percent compared to August 2012 and up 11.7 percent from July 2013.
• Fleet and rental sales are expected to make up 15.0 percent of total industry sales in August 2013.
• The industry average incentive spending per unit will be approximately $2,477 in August 2013, which represents an increase of 0.4 percent from August 2012 and is down 2.6 percent from July 2013. Incentives are at their lowest percentage since January of this year.
• Used car sales* are estimated to be 3,451,179.  The ratio of new to used is estimated to be 1: 3 for August 2013.

Individual Manufacturer highlights:

• General Motors is enjoying its highest sales since Sept. 2008
• Honda's sales are its highest since August 2009
• Chrysler enjoyed its second highest sales month this year

"New vehicle sales defied their typical strong correlation with Wall Street in August and continued to post a healthy increase despite the lackluster performance in financial markets," said Jesse Toprak, senior analyst for TrueCar.com. "Small SUVs became the fastest growing segment this month, with this very functional and affordable vehicle category now making up 15.5% of all sales, up from 13.5% from a year ago."

Forecasts for the top eight manufacturers for August 2013:

Unit Sales
Manufacturer	August 2013 Forecast	% Change vs. July 2013	% Change vs. Aug. 2012
Chrysler	169,269	22.0%	14.5%
Ford	217,173	15.1%	12.6%
GM	265,369	13.4%	10.3%
Honda	156,371	10.6%	19.1%
Hyundai/Kia	121,462	5.6%	9.3%
Nissan	118,247	8.4%	20.0%
Toyota	215,413	11.4%	14.3%
Volkswagen Group	59,710	13.4%	7.5%
Industry	1,464,214	11.8%	14.4%

Market Share
Manufacturer	August 2013 Forecast	Jul-13	Aug-12
Chrysler	11.6%	10.6%	11.5%
Ford	14.8%	14.4%	15.1%
GM	18.1%	17.9%	18.8%
Honda	10.7%	10.8%	10.3%
Hyundai/Kia	8.3%	8.8%	8.7%
Nissan	8.1%	8.3%	7.7%
Toyota	14.7%	14.8%	14.7%
Volkswagen Group	4.1%	4.0%	4.3%

Incentive Spending
Manufacturer	August 2013 Incentives	% Changevs. July 2013	% Changevs. August 2012	Total Spending
Chrysler	$ 2,987	-0.7%	-8.8%	$  505,588,038
Ford	$ 2,949	-1.2%	12.1%	$  640,336,893
GM	$ 3,469	-3.4%	12.1%	$  920,612,117
Honda	$ 1,498	-15.2%	-38.1%	$  234,287,982
Hyundai/Kia	$ 1,584	-2.2%	33.4%	$  192,433,604
Nissan	$ 2,301	-10.1%	-16.7%	$  272,083,915
Toyota	$ 1,863	4.6%	-0.5%	$  401,334,151
Volkswagen Group	$ 2,461	-3.3%	17.4%	$  146,955,118
Industry	$ 2,477	-2.6%	0.4%	$ 3,622,340,527

"Despite the push to sell down older models, incentive spending has declined for its second consecutive month," said Kristen Andersson, analyst at TrueCar.com. "Chrysler hit its lowest level of incentive spending since May 2011 while also seeing double digit sales increases, as their strong product lineup continues to resonate with buyers. Honda has also slashed its incentive spending, which is down almost 40 percent from last year." 

TrueCar.com bases its forecast on actual transaction data. The transaction data based forecast is refined by other current and historical factors that impact vehicle sales, including  sales, inventory, incentives, fuel prices, and macro economic data (major stock market indexes, consumer confidence, new home starts and CPI).  TrueCar.com does not adjust for selling days in year-over-year percentage change calculations.

*Used car sales figures include sales from franchise dealerships, independent dealerships and private party sales

Restore The Roar: Manufacturing Renaissance, a five-part ebook essay series tells the story of the collapse and rise of Michigan manufacturing. For a preview, please click here.

Five Million And Counting, Chrysler's Jefferson Avenue North Plant Success Story

Five Million And Counting

Chrysler's Jefferson Avenue North Plant

Success Story Continues

By Rod Kackley

A Chrysler assembly plant that became iconic of the problems facing the Detroit auto industry in 2009 when workers were arrested for using drugs on their lunch breaks, and one worker killed another in 2012 before taking his own life, has now become a symbol of the reinvention of auto manufacturing in Michigan.

The five-millionth vehicle rolled off the assembly line inside Chrysler Group’s Jefferson North Assembly Plant in the heart of Detroit, August 13.

The 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland in Billet Silver rolled off the JNAP assembly line on Tuesday, Aug. 13 at 2:30 a.m. 


In addition to the standard Trenton, Mich.-built 3.6-liter Pentastar engine and Kokomo, Ind.-built eight-speed transmission, the vehicle has an 8.4-inch Touch Screen Radio, GPS navigation, Blind Spot and Rear Cross Path Detection, Adaptive Speed Control, leather heated and ventilated seating, Panoramic Sunroof and Quadra-Lift Air Ride Suspension.

Some 50 JNAP employees (pictured above), each with 30 or more years with the plant, were front-and- center as the 5 millionth vehicle, a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland, was driven into the staging area and parked right next to a 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee.


Although the facility was nearly closed in the darkest days of the Great Recession, 1,100 new employees were added to the payroll in the three-million-square-foot factory in October 2012.

Nearly 4,500 people now work inside the plant every day. In 2012, they produced more than 291-thousand vehicles.

In addition to the Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jefferson North also produced the Jeep Commander from 2005-2010 and began production of the Dodge Durango in December 2010.

The former Jefferson Assembly Plant, built in 1907 by Chalmers Motor Car Company, was twice the size of the new plant's original footprint (3.6 million square feet compared to 1.75 million square feet, respectively) and produced a total of 8,310,107 vehicles in its 83-year history.

Restore The Roar: Manufacturing Renaissance is a five-part ebook essay series that tells the story of the fall and rise of the Detroit Three, and the twenty-first century entrepreneurs who are digging new revenue streams.
Restore The Roar: Manufacturing Renaissance is available through Amazon and Vook.com.
For free previews, please go to www.rodkackley.com.

Last Chance Mile: The Reinvention of an American Community tells the story of how the people of Grand Rapids created a new cluster of prosperity, Medical Mile, during the Great Recession. 
For a free previews and to order your autographed edition, please go to www.rodkackley.com