Chrysler News

The renewal work makes it more elegant and stylish, including a considerable quality tweak in the cabin, but it still has the chunky body and hunkered-down look which has made it a global winner for Chrysler. But don't expect the all-new 300C in Australia any time soon, even though Carparazzi has caught three production-ready cars with its cameras.  A production switch for the new 300C means there will be no right-hand drive cars until 2012. Chrysler Australia has stocked-up on the existing model, with around 400 cars in the pipeline, to carry it through the drought but is not making any promises on the sales start for the new model.  It could have trouble clearing the backlog, based on the latest Carparazzi pictures. They show a car which looks a little shorter than the current 300C with styling taken from the 200C motor show concept car.  The shape of the new-look headlamps is obvious and so is the front fascia, including LED daytime running lamps. Cut-outs in the Chrysler camouflage along the front bumper and mudguard reveal a new sensor that Carparazzi sources say is for a frontal-collision warning system, adaptive cruise control and a blind spot/side assist system. On the sides, the 300C shows new rocker panels, a body crease that sweeps downwards toward the nose and new chrome-capped side mirrors.  The rear doors have also had the black plastic square at the rear swapped out in favor of more glass. In the rear there are LED tail lamps and a bumper with integrated chrome exhaust tips.  There are huge changes inside, with the test cars revealing a solid, leather-stitched dash top similar to the one in the all-new Jeep Grand Cherokee now in production. There is also a large analogue clock for a bit more class and a massive navigation and entertainment screen. Carparazzi sources say there will be lots of LED lighting and a 500- watt Alpine premium audio system.  The new 300C rides on an updated version of Chrysler's LX chassis and comes with the new Pentastar 3.6-litre V6, also fitted to the new Grand Cherokee. There are also 5.7-litre and 6.4-litre Hemi petrol V8s and a diesel engine. Chrysler is aiming to start production at it's Canadian factory in Ontario during the last week of December, 2010, pointing to an official unveiling at the Los Angeles Auto Show in late November.

Just a brief look into any junior sports club shows fewer people now do more to keep such clubs and teams afloat.

But peak motoring body the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries believes consumers are confused enough to warrant a broad-ranging education program about what ESC is and what it does.The Transport Accident Commission has already been running an ad highlighting the merits of curtain airbags and ESC. It has been endeavouring to lift awareness among buyers about what they do, via websites like howsafeisyourcar.com.au.But with Victoria moving ahead for the compulsory fitting of ESC to all passenger cars from January, the FCAI believes now is the time to increase awareness among car buyers.Despite TAC's efforts some carmakers like Honda believe consumers are still confused by the different acronyms used to describe the various systems. However, FCAI spokesman, James Goodwin, believes it will be difficult to mandate a single naming strategy."It comes down to marketing," he says. "All systems are different to some degree."Goodwin also believes it would cost too much to standardise the terminology on imported cars because the volumes are relatively small. Carmakers use different terms for the proprietary electronic stability program invented by Bosch and co-developed with Mercedes-Benz.Subaru Australia spokesman, David Rowley, says Subaru's own research shows a higher awareness among buyers of its own electronic stability control system, called vehicle dynamic control."Our customers tend to look in depth at the features of our cars," Rowley says. He backs an education program as “something worth considering" but balks at a name change. "A lot a brands have invested a lot of intellectual time in creating a point of difference with their various stability systems," he says.What they call it -Electronic Stability Control (ESC) - Holden, HSV, JeepElectronic Stability Program (ESP) - Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes Benz, Renault, Chrysler, Citroen, Dodge, Skoda, Peugeot, SuzukiDynamic Stability Control (DSC) - Ford, FPV, BMW, Mazda, Land Rover, Aston Martin, JaguarVehicle Dynamic Integrated Management (VDIM) - ToyotaVehicle Stability Control (VSC) - LexusVehicle Dynamic Control (VDC) - Nissan, SubaruDynamic Stability and Traction Control (DSTC) - VolvoElectronic Stabilisation Program (ESP) - Audi, VolkswagenActive Stability Control (ASC) - MitsubishiVehicle Stability Assist (VSA)- HondaAutomatic Stability Control + Traction (ASC+T)  MiniMaserati Stability Program (MSP) - MaseratiPorsche Stability Management (PSM) - PorscheStability and Traction Control - FiatStabiliTrak -Hummer

Jeromy Moore, race engineer for Craig Lowndes, said under the new guidelines for the category's Car of the Future, it would be "easier and cheaper" to build a new race car than convert from Ford to Holden as they had done this year."Lexus has several V8 engines available and Chrysler has 5.7 and 6-litre V8s, while Hyundai seems like a company with the drive and enthusiasm to want to take part," he said. "We will probably see the first cars up and running halfway through next year, but I doubt we will see any newcomers on the grid when the rules take effect in 2012. Most will adopt a wait-and-see approach."V8 Supercars "Car of the Future" chief Mark Skaife said he had been contacted by several interested manufacturers since the plan was launched last month. But the five-time Bathurst champion says even if no other manufacturers end up joining Holden and Ford in the championship it won't dent its future. Skaife says the plan, which is to be implemented by the start of the 2012 season and aims to dramatically reduce the cost of the race cars, will work with or without the support of new manufacturers."If in five years down the track no other manufacturer has joined Ford or Holden the whole plan is a better car for us over the next 10 years," he said. Moore said the introduction of the new guidelines could shake up the series. "I think we'll see a lot of surprising results and a big separation in the field until they all come back together, a bit like F1 last year," he said. "You might see big teams struggle and small teams do well if they strike it lucky with set-up."Regardless of whether other manufacturers join the championship, Skaife said Holden and Ford would remain key partners in the V8 program. "Ford and Holden are the absolute foundation of where we are today," he said. "They don't really feel endangered by this in a competitive sense because they've got their own factory teams already. If those teams weren't good enough they wouldn't be the factory teams. If another manufacturer came in they're not going to be able to acquire Holden Racing Team for instance, so that part of their feeling is desensitised because of already having factory racing outfits."Skaife also emphasised the sport's commitment to using a V8 engine as the power-plant for any future cars competing in the championship."For us the mandate of being a V8 power plant is crucial to the sound, the vibe and the atmosphere that we're able to deliver as an entertainment package," he said. "That part of it we're pretty strong on. Clearly there are other alternatives from all sorts of V8s. The capacity of the V8, how hard they rev, what weight they are, whether they're all alloy, what sort of specification they are, we've got a very scientific way of analysing that specification and being able to equalise the performance of the engine."

Retired smelter worker Roger Graber, 62, bought his 1973 Valiant VJ Charger 15 years ago for $2000. "It's worth about $30,000-$35,000 now to an enthusiast," he says. "I wouldn't get rid of it, though. My son and grandson will probably fight over it when I fall off the perch." However, the money-making tale ends there."I did have three of these," he says. "One was a drag (racing) project with a Ford 351 engine in it and the other was stripped down. When I moved I didn't  have anywhere to put them so I sold them. I only got $2500 for the drag car and $1500 for the stripper. I regret getting rid of them now."When Graber bought his current Charger it was in "a terrible state", the 265 (4.3-litre) Hemi six-cylinder engine was "knackered" and the car had been off the road for years. "I spent about two years restoring it for the road, not as a show car," he says. "It cost about $5000 for the restoration."Graber claims to be a self-taught mechanic and did all the mechanical, paint and body work on the car. "I'm mechanically minded and can turn my hands to anything," he says. "I rebuilt the engine myself to make sure it was right."However, he put in a non-standard 600 Holly carburettor. "Otherwise the engine is standard," he says. "It has heaps of grunt without having to do much to them. If I checked the economy I wouldn't drive it so much. It gets about five kilometres to the litre (20 litres per 100km) because the carby is too big for it. I have a 350 which I'll put in it and then I might get about 7km/L (14.2L/100km)."Graber totally renovated the front suspension right down to the rubbers, but has done nothing to the rear except replace the brake shoes. The car features a four-speed Borg Warner gearbox with synchro in all but first. "You can't break them and it's as smooth as," he says. "It's 1970s driving. You have to be careful because the back can break out easily.""It's hard to drive, there's so much power you can easily spin the wheels. You have to drive it smoothly. But it's very reliable. I always keep a good check on the engine and recently changed the engine oil, gearbox oil and back axle oil so it's running really smooth now."If it stays in good condition, Graber plans to show it at the MotorMania show and shine at Rockhampton Showgrounds on July 25. The show is part of a 10-day Central Queensland MotorMania festival of motoring that includes cars, karts, drag racers, motorcycles and more."There's a big concentration of petrolheads up here, maybe because it's an industrial town and people have a bit of money," he says. "Our club (Curtis Coast Cruiser Club) has more than 60 members. A lot have joined because they can get concessional rego and it's a lot cheaper, especially for the guys with V8s."

The American maker is now controlled by Fiat, which is helping to develop a fleet of new vehicles which use its engine and chassis technology for sales from 2012. But that has not stopped Chrysler group rushing new features, extra equipment and better quality into 15 re-worked vehicles for 2010."Our local product team is working closer than ever with the factory to come up with revised or all-new models for our market which we're hoping to see in the near future," says Jerry Stamoulis, spokesman for Chrysler in Australia. As the top performing right-hand drive market for Chrysler, there has been a strong emphasis placed on our market to help lift international sales over the next five years."He says the first of the updated models is already in showrooms and the most important, the all-new Grand Cherokee, will be revealed this year ahead of sales in 2010. "The Grand Cherokee will be the first vehicle in Australia to be available with the all-new Pentastar V6 petrol engine," Stamoulis says. The Jeep Patriot has already had an interior update and similar work will be finished soon on the Dodge Caliber, which comes in the third quarter of this year."Other immediate changes to our line-up are that all Dodge Journey models receive, as standard, active head restraints and the 5.7L Hemi V-8 in the Chrysler 300C receives variable valve timing and an additional 15 kiloWatts, which lifts power to 265kW," Stamoulis says.Apart from the Pentastar V6, various Chrysler models will also get a six-speed, Fiat dual-clutch gearbox. It will be seen first in a re-worked Chrysler Sebring, which also gets updated body styling, a new interior and revised suspension for better ride and handling. The Jeep Wrangler also gets a styling tweak this year, as well as stop-start technology on its diesel engines.

And somehow it all makes good sense.  The 45-year-old came to Australia in 1982 when he was 17 to play in our pubs chasing the success of Aussie pub bands Australian Crawl, Men at Work and Mental as Anything."I came out here and joined a rockabilly band in Sydney," he says. "I've earned my living playing music full time ever since."Wilshire also trained as a mechanic, so when the opportunity to "earn some good money" came up maintaining the massive dragline excavators in the North Queensland mine fields, he jumped at it. "I only work three days a week up here and then fly back to Brisbane where I can continue to play my music. "When I get more money up here, I'll be able to whack a great big huge donk in the Valiant."This jumble of jobs and passions seems to fit like a jigsaw puzzle for Wilshire. His day begins at 3am when he starts a 12-hour shift keeping the big excavators running '24/7'. And he's been working on some of the biggest of them all."Dragline 37 at Peak Downs is the largest in the southern hemisphere," he says. "It weighs a couple of million pounds (about 900 tonne) and the bucket alone holds over 1500 cubic metres which is the equivalent of a house. It runs on a 66,000 volt electric motor and plugs into a giant wire about 8 inches (20cm) across."His love of big machinery extends to his passion for Chryslers.  "I bought the Valiant off a guy who worked for Compass airlines and when they went bust he had to sell," he says. "He had done some of the work on it; air shocks, turquoise paint and 1970s Jelly Bean mag wheels. "The car picked me. I had to have it."The car is a 1967 Chrysler Valiant VC Regal powered by a 225 (3.6-litre) six-cylinder Hemi with a single-barrel Carter RBS downdraft carburettor."If I could get my hands on a Special I would. The Regal is the one below," he says. "I got it for just $1500 in 2006. It was a bargain. It only had 6000 miles (9656km) on the clock.   I've redone the trim on the doors, rebuilt the carby, put new valve seats in as it was blowing some smoke, and a bigger exhaust. "I put 225mm tyres on the back and 190s on the front. When I pump up the air shocks the back looks high like a '60s Mopar muscle car.  One day I'll put a 360 (5.9-litre) Hemi in it. It's got the engine bay big enough for it."Wilshire likes old Chryslers because they have "more style than any Ford or Holden". "My dad was a Ford man and my brother was GM man, but not me. "You can always tell a Chrysler product. Even their PT Cruiser and 300C. They have that retro style that I like. "My dream car is an AP1 or AP2 1957-59 Chrysler Royal. I'm looking for one right now. They have the biggest fins in Australia. "Fins should make a comeback."The fins, the retro car ... It all seems to fit with Wilshire's music and his sense of style. "The way I look - tattoos, clothes - it's all retro," he says. "I've been into it since grade 3 when I saw Sha Na Na. They played at Woodstock and I looked at them and I just clicked with that era."Wilshire followed rockabilly band the Stray Cats in the '80s and became good friends with guitarist Brian Setzer, recently playing support in Brisbane on the Stray Cats reunion tour. "He's one of the main reasons I wanted to play guitar. I even have a big Stray Cats tat on my left shoulder."Wilshire will launches his new solo  "rockabilly, roots and blues, and western swing" album, Cuz Of You, with his band the Tailspinners at the 18th annual Brisbane Blues Festival on March 13 at the Jubilee Hotel in Fortitude Valley.Wilshire's music should even score him cheap rego. "I might put this on concessional rego and just use it for club meets. I play a lot of car club gigs, so I can use it a fair bit legally," he says.Visit: www.brisbanebluesfestival.com.

And he's certainly caught more than his share.  The Valiant Pacer was the performance version of the Valiant, in the days when the Australian car industry had the Big Three GM with its Holdens and Monaro, Ford with its Falcons and GT and Chrysler with its Valiants.Mr Moularas is pictured with just one of his collection, a 1970 VG Valiant Pacer, an ex-race car.  Chrysler and Valiant fans this year are celebrating the 40th anniversary of the VG model that not only introduced the famous Hemi six-cylinder engine but also stamped the Pacer as a performance and race car.  The Pacer was the first Valiant to be competitive in the Bathurst long distance race and it spawned the Valiant Charger."I've had this Pacer for three years," Mr Moularas says. "It's a late 1970 model and at the moment it's got a higher-spec 265 (cubic inch) engine in it and a four-speed gearbox. They came out with three-speed boxes and many of them have been replaced with four-speeds over the years."It's race history is a bit sketchy; I'm still researching that. But there are indications that Leo Geoghegan drove it, if you look at the shadow lines of the stickers. "I've kept it as original as possible and you can see where it's had a rollcage."Mr Moularas, a member of the Chrysler Car Club, arguably has the biggest collection of top-condition Pacers in Australia.  "It becomes a disease," he says. He says VG Pacers are "fantastic" to drive. They're thirsty on fuel but a good highway car and people are always stopping to talk about them."VG models had rectangular headlights distinguishing them from the previous VF model. But the major change of the VG was the engine: it introduced the Hemi 6, a 245 cubic inch (four-litre) inline six-cylinder engine to replace the earlier Slant Six. The "hemispherical" combustion chambers were claimed to be more efficient and so give better power.Stirling Moss became the brand's ambassador in 1970. Legend in Adelaide has it that when he was flown to do a TV commercial, he bogged a Valiant on a south coast beach, only for a film crew member to slip into the seat and drive it out.  A previous-model Pacer had come 17th at Bathurst in 1969 with former News Ltd motoring writer the late Mike Kable at the wheel but that had a fairly undeveloped engine.The VG model, however, had the Pacer with a 138kW engine as standard but also could be had in E31, E34 and E35 engine options, the top unit having a four-barrel carburettor, performance camshaft, close-ratio gearbox and well over 175kW power.Allan Moffat won the 1970 Bathurst race in a thumping Falcon GT HO but only one lap behind was Doug Chivas in a Valiant Pacer in fourth place. The tortoise-and-the-hare scenario is indicated by the qualifying times, Moffat 11 seconds as lap faster than the lighter Chivas Pacer which nevertheless finished the race on 129 laps to Moffat's 130.Leo Geoghegan was fifth in a Pacer with yet another Pacer in seventh, despite its three-speed gearbox. Chrysler had a local components policy and did not want to use an imported four-speed.  The Hemi engine was developed to the amazing 265 (4340cc) E49 unit of the Charger which really took on the V8s from 1971.Of the more than half a million Valiants built at the now-closed Tonsley Park plant of Chrysler (latterly Mitsubishi) in Adelaide, 46,374 were VG models. Only a small proportion were Pacers. Most were sedans with wagons, utes, two-door hardtops and the quad-round headlight VIP luxury version also in the mix.

Paul Holter, 54, of North Arm on the Sunshine Coast got his nickname from years of converting American cars, mainly Pontiacs, to right-hand drive.Over the years he claims he has restored, converted, traded and owned as many as 600 cars and now has a dozen in his backyard and shed as well as a few restoration projects belonging to mates.  "I've been collecting cars all my life," he says  "When I got married 35 years ago my wife threatened that if I got any more cars she would leave me. She's still here."Holter got his first car when he was 11 years old.  "My dad bought a Mk V Jag and sold off the tyres and battery and gave me the rest," he says.  "I sold it and bought a '48 Ford Prefect for $40."His daily drivers are a 2005 CVZ Monaro, a 2007 Holden Rodeo and a 2008 Honda Civic, while his collectible cars include a 1976 Chrysler VK Valiant Hemi, a 1968 Pontiac Firebird Convertible, a 1959 Plymouth Suburban sports wagon, a 1960 Pontiac Ventura, a 1962 S Series Chrysler Valiant and a 1983 Pontiac Trans Am race car.He bought the Trans Am for $2000 and converted it into a race car by pulling out the 305 Chevy engine and four-speed auto box and replacing them with a Gen III Commodore 5.7-litre V8, six-speed Tremec gearbox and adding GT-R Skyline rear suspension and brakes.  He claims it gets about 350hp (260kW) at the rear wheels and propelled him to 77th out of 185 cars at last year's Noosa Hillclimb.His current project is the Plymouth he bought for $8500 two years ago. It features nine seats, including a rear-facing row in the back.  He's leaving it in left-hand drive, but is replacing the engine with a 440 V8 he bought online.  "I don't know what it will all cost," he says. "I'd prefer not to know as it could get expensive."It's all the little bits and pieces you have to buy that add up."  Over the past six years he has spent up to $40,000 in a loving restoration of the Ventura he bought for $11,000 and plans to spend about $30,000 _ "or something stupid like that" _ on the S Series Valiant.  "When you do it a bit at a time it doesn't seem so expensive," he says.He plans to fuel-inject and turbo-charge the Valiant's 225 slant-six engine.  "It's rated at 145bhp (108kW), but I reckon I can get it up to the middle 300s," he says.  "I do all my own mechanical work, but I get interiors, paint and body done by experts."Holter is a qualified train driver who moved from Victoria to Queensland 21 years ago and started his right-hand-drive conversion business.  He also had a business importing Nissan Laurel four-door, rear-wheel-drive pillarless sedans but found compliance laws kept changing too often. He bought an Autobarn franchise six years ago and another a year later.Business must be good because Holter has been able to indulge his interest in American cars, travelling several times to the US to buy cars and ship them home for conversion and restoration.And Holter is always looking toward his next project.  He's currently considering trading his Firebird for a Grand Prix and he's always had a soft spot for a Valiant Charger although he reckons they cost too much these days, some fetching as much as $300,000.

It will also challenge your skills against the car's autonomous drive systems. Its designers say the concept will actually teach a beginner to drive or challenge the experienced driver to improve their skills. Getting started is easy.Drivers can enter their destination into the navigation application on a smart phone and the car takes care of the rest. It will let you ‘play along’ and try to match the skill level of the system. As you become more proficient, the Car Hero ‘unlocks’ vehicle controls to the point where the autonomous system is overridden and the driver is in complete control.This is where things start to get interesting. As the Car Hero gamer demonstrates skill and mastery, the car's ‘transmorphable’ architecture turns up the intensity by creating a more challenging driving experience.Car Hero's configuration will reward a driver's increasing skills by gradually changing from a four seater, to three seats and then the ultimate challenge, a single-wheeler. Car Hero also has peer-to-peer applications like ‘friends drive’ where anyone can come along for a digital joyride.GM likens the experience to having a Twitter with wheels. For those bored and stuck in peak hour traffic, ‘fantasy drive’ gives the driver access to insane environments such as running with the bulls in Pamplona or taking on ace US rally driver Ken Block in a drifting contest.