Don’t be fooled.
Chrysler Corp. has unveiled a number of concept cars sporting novel engines that focus on alternative fuels.
But take a closer look at the vehicles in which the engines are stuffed to get a peek at what Chrysler–or do you call it DaimlerChrysler–has in mind for the near future.
Consider the possibilities with the Jeep Commander, Chrysler Citadel, Dodge Charger and Dodge Power Wagon being displayed this week at the Detroit Auto Show.
A brief look at each:
DODGE CHARGER
Imagine a muscle car that barely emits garbage from the exhaust into the atmosphere because it is powered by a 4.7-liter, 325-horsepower, supercharged V-8 that runs on compressed natural gas.
Well, imagine the natural gas for a while but envision a return to the Charger nameplate on a high-performance four-door sedan.
“We originally sketched it with two doors but the more we looked at it, we couldn’t ignore the opportunity it presented for four doors,” said Neil Walling, Chrysler design director.
“Two-door sports coupe sales are shrinking, and we don’t see them rebounding soon. Half the reason for having a two-door has gone away–that a four-door couldn’t look sporty. Besides, anyone under 30 has grown up with four doors and is quite comfortable with them.”
To come up with four doors, Chrysler added a pair of rear access doors with no exterior handles, similar to those found in the Ram pickup truck, which is the same concept used by Saturn in coming up with a three-door coupe for 1999.
Take note that Charger is built off a 15-inch shorter version of the Dodge Intrepid platform, but some say it provides vision as to what Chrysler plans for the next generation Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Avenger coupes now built in Normal, Ill., since Charger is built on just about the same wheelbase but is a little longer.
Charger, a nameplate that bowed at Chrysler in 1966 and was, along with Challenger, synonymous with muscle cars before federal fuel economy mandates dictated otherwise in the ’80s, has some of the Dodge Viper design flavor to it, such as functional side scoops and chrome-plated central-mounted exhaust, plus functional air exhausts sculpted into the rear facia.
The original Charger had two non-functional scoops stamped into the hood, the concept has one functional scoop at the edge of the hood close to the grille.
The original Charger also had high-sweeping rear fenders, a feature incorporated into the concept. Chrysler toyed with adding the “bumble bee stripe” around the rear end but decided against it.
Inside, Charger seats are made of black carbon fiber accented with red leather inserts.
Worth noting: Charger is built on a rear-wheel-drive platform.
JEEP COMMANDER
HOW ABOUT A MORE SOPHISTICATED, EVEN MORE UPSCALE VERSION OF THE JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE, A RETURN OF THE GRAND WAGONEER THAT ONCE WAS A MEMBER OF THE JEEP SUV LINEUP THAT WOULD COMPETE WITH THE LIKES OF THE LINCOLN NAVIGATOR OR CADILLAC ESCALADE SOON?
AND HOW ABOUT A VEHICLE THAT FEATURES A SUSPENSION THAT ALLOWS THE VEHICLE TO SIT 2 INCHES CLOSER TO THE GROUND THAN A GRAND CHEROKEE FOR EASE OF ENTRY OR EXIT, BUT CAN BE SET TO AUTOMATICALLY RISE 4 INCHES FOR OFF-ROADING OR TRAVELING OVER SNOW-PACKED ROADS. SAME SUSPENSION TESTED ON LAST YEAR’S JEEP JEEPSTER CONCEPT SUV.
COMMANDER STANDS THE SAME HEIGHT AS THE GRAND CHEROKEE, BUT IS 7 INCHES WIDER TO NOT ONLY PROVIDE MORE INTERIOR ROOM AND COMFORT BUT ALSO TO GIVE THE VEHICLE MORE STABILITY ON THE ROAD.
THE CONCEPT COMMANDER HAS CARBON FIBER BODY PANELS TO HOLD DOWN THE WEIGHT AFTER A MASSIVE 7-INCH STRETCH IN WIDTH. BUT A PRODUCTION MODEL WOULD OFFER EVEN LIGHTER-WEIGHT INJECTION-MOLDED PLASTIC PANELS, WHICH MEANS A LONG-LIFE, NO-RUST BODY.
INJECTION MOLDING ALSO WOULD ALLOW CHRYSLER TO BRING TO MARKET A SYSTEM IT HAS BEEN TOYING WITH FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS: A VEHICLE WITH THE COLOR MOLDED INTO THE PLASTIC SO THERE WOULD BE NO NEED FOR A PAINT SHOP IN THE FACTORY.
CHRYSLER BOASTS THAT INJECTION MOLDING ALSO WOULD ALLOW IT TO CREATE BODY-PANEL SHAPES NOT PERMITTED WITH STAMPED METAL AND THEREFORE MORE FREQUENT DESIGN CHANGES TO KEEP AHEAD OF THE MARKET.
OTHER NOTEWORTHY FEATURES INCLUDE A REAR SPOILER THAT DEPLOYS FROM THE ROOF AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS TO IMPROVE AERODYNAMICS AND CONTRIBUTE TO BETTER ROAD HOLDING CAPABILITY. AN UNDERBELLY PAN SMOOTHS THE FLOW OF AIR UNDER THE VEHICLE.
ALSO, IN THE INTEREST OF AERODYNAMICS, THE TRADITIONAL LUGGAGE RACK IS SUNKEN INTO THE ROOF AND POPS UP WHEN YOU PUSH A BUTTON.
OTHER NOTEWORTHY FEATURES INCLUDE A TOW-HITCH COVER IN BACK THAT FOLDS DOWN AND DOUBLES AS A STEP TO REACH THE TOP OF THE ROOF; OUTSIDE MIRRORS WITH MINI WIPERS; A LAPTOP COMPUTER DOCK IN THE CENTER CONSOLE TO PROVIDE GLOBAL POSITIONING SATELLITE DATA FOR NAVIGATION AS WELL AS INTERNET ACCESS FOR TIME, WEATHER AND TRAFFIC REPORTS, AS WELL AS PHONE, E-MAIL AND VEHICLE DIAGNOSTIC INFORMATION, INCLUDING THE ABILITY TO CALL UP PAGES FROM THE OWNER’S MANUAL ON THE COMPUTER SCREEN FOR STEP-BY-STEP DIRECTIONS ON SUCH FUNCTIONS AS CHANGING A TIRE OR JUMP-STARTING A BATTERY.
A SMALL MICROPHONE IS EMBEDDED INTO THE STEERING COLUMN SO YOU CAN GIVE IT VOICE COMMANDS, SUCH AS TELLING YOUR COMPUTER TO E-MAIL A MESSAGE TO THE OFFICE.
AND COMMANDER BOASTS ONE OF THE MORE NOVEL FEATURES WE’VE ENCOUNTERED IN A CONCEPT–A TINY CAMERA IN THE INSTRUMENT PANEL SO THAT IF SOMEONE STEALS THE VEHICLE, IT WILL TAKE A PICTURE OF THE THIEF THAT CAN BE ELECTRONICALLY SENT TO THE POLICE.
POWER IS PROVIDED BY A FUEL CELL THAT GENERATES ELECTRICITY FROM HYDROGEN, THUS MAKING COMMANDER THE WORLD’S ONLY BATTERY-POWERED FOUR-WHEEL-DRIVE VEHICLE. BUT, AS WE SAID, FOCUS ON THE VEHICLE, NOT THE POWER SOURCE ON THESE CONCEPTS.
CHRYSLER OFFICIALS SAID THAT FOR THE POWER CONVERSION TO TAKE PLACE, YOU SLIP BEHIND THE WHEEL, TURN THE KEY ON AND WAIT 30 MINUTES FOR THE CHEMICAL MAGIC TO TAKE PLACE. HARDLY THE VEHICLE TO BE USED AS A GETAWAY CAR. CHRYSLER HOPES TO GET THE PROCESS DOWN TO 1 MINUTE.
CHRYSLER CITADEL
What if you want the benefits of a sport-utility vehicle–sitting high, four-wheel-drive, lots of cargo space–and the car-like ride and handling and maneuverability, plus the fuel-economy of a luxury sport sedan in the same vehicle.
Enter Citadel, Chrysler’s crossover, or hybrid, that combines the best of both.
Chrysler calls it a hybrid-hybrid between the Chrysler 300M sedan and Grand Cherokee SUV, the next step up from a luxury sedan or luxury SUV.
Citadel also incorporates two power sources: a 3.5-liter, 253-h.p. V-6 gas engine powers the rear wheels, and electric motors add another 70 h.p. in powering the front wheels in this rear-wheel-drive car equipped with all-wheel-drive capability when needed.
Some will see the design resembling an SUV, some a station wagon, some a long and lower-slung mini-van.
Citadel features traditional swing-open driver/passenger doors but adds dual power slide-open rear doors like a mini-van.
Also in back, the rear cargo door flips down and slides under the floor–like a sunroof slides into the roof–to provide wide open access to the cargo hold.
Of note, the “B” pillar, between the front and rear doors, moves out of the way with the rear door when it slides open to allow for wheelchair access.
Citadel is built off the Chrysler Concorde sedan platform but in rear-wheel-drive version and with an extended 125-inch wheelbase (versus 113 inches in Concorde).
Citadel has 2 inches more ground clearance than Concorde and stands 3 inches taller.
It also has 20-cubic-feet of storage room inside, close to the 22.2-cubic-feet in a Plymouth Voyager mini-van behind the rear seat.
Other noteworthy items include folding tray tables in the backs of the front seats, and rear seats that fold flush with the rear floor for more cargo room.
Chrysler officials said Citadel could be ready for market in two years.
DODGE POWER WAGON
What if there were full-size luxury trucks in the future just like there are full-size luxury sport-utility vehicles today?
A recent J.D. Power and Associates survey said 6 out of 10 folks who own a big, luxury SUV buy another–second only to the 8 out of 10 who own a full-size truck and buy another. Hmm.
Power Wagon is an example of a luxury niche truck off the full-size Ram pickup platform.
Like the four-door Ram Quad Cab, the Power Wagon features rear hinged half doors to allow entry in back, though rather than seats, the vehicle is equipped with drawers built into the back of the cab to increase storage capacity. The tailgate is power-actuated for easier loading/unloading.
Inside, brushed aluminum and ash wood are used for decorative trim.
Power wagon is powered by a 7.2-liter, 250-h.p., turbocharged, in-line 6-cylinder diesel engine that Chrysler claims would be 40 percent more fuel efficient than a gas engine, release 50 percent less emissions into the atmosphere and sound almost as quiet at idle as a gasoline engine without the typical diesel ping.
And rather than today’s diesel fuel, it would burn a sulfur free “designer” fuel.
Dodge offered Power Wagon trucks between 1946-1968 that mainly saw duty as school buses, tow trucks, emergency vehicles and farm trucks, vehicles that focused on utility more than comfort.
The Power Wagon for the future would concentrate on utility plus comfort in a luxury package.
