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Jeep Wrangler’s Future Includes a Hybrid, a Diesel, and a Pickup

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Jeep Gladiator Concept
Jeep Gladiator Concept

Last week on this blog we proposed some of the cars that are worth re-imagining with different bodies. It was fun and included everything from an F-TYPE with a backseat to a hyper-luxury minivan.

Neither of those are safe bets to hit the market anytime soon, but the vehicle that got us thinking about such possibilities is the ubiquitous Jeep Wrangler.

The Wrangler just might be the most famous 4×4 of all time, and the next few years could turn out to be some of the best it has ever seen.

Here’s what’s coming down the road for Wrangler fans.

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Five Tips for Test-Driving a New-to-You Car

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Starting a test drive

In the course of a year, it’s possible to review more than 75 new cars, trucks, and crossovers when you’re an automotive journalist. That’s not put forth as some kind of bragging. It’s just to demonstrate that driving more than 6 new vehicles a month gives one an insider’s view on test-driving new cars.

Let’s look beyond all the things you need to do before going to a dealership. That’s been handled well here in other articles at CarGurus. Instead, here are five insider tips to keep in mind for test-driving a new or new-to-you car.

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Five Biggest Impacts from the 2016 Detroit Auto Show


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Last week I wrote about seven Detroit Auto Show debuts to watch. The only one I got remotely wrong was the 2017 Chrysler Town & Country, but that was only because FCA pulled a fast one and changed that vehicle’s name to the Chrysler Pacifica.

Here are the five vehicles that made the biggest impact at the North American International Auto Show, which runs through Jan. 24 at Detroit’s Cobo Hall.

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Buick’s Terrific Trifecta: Avista, Cascada, and Envision


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buick_avista_concept

In 2008 I thought Buick should be sent to the chopping block. Its vehicles were aged, staid, not exciting, and overly bland for the tastes of most young Americans.

Yet instead of discontinuing the Buick brand, GM thought it would be more beneficial to send Pontiac packing. Pontiac was just beginning to get its chops back thanks to the beautifully crafted G8 GXP, but it died at the hands of a bankrupt GM that desperately needed to reorganize.

And reorganize it did. Here we are in 2016 and Buick is not only still here, it’s becoming a real player in the affordable luxury market.

This year we have three Buicks in particular to thank for that, though only two will likely be available for purchase.

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Chrysler Pacifica Replaces Town & Country, Goes Hybrid


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2017 Chrysler Pacifica

In 2002 Chrysler introduced a vehicle that it thought would be the next big thing in the new crossover SUV market.

The vehicle, a luxury people-mover with three rows of seats, was supposed to offer the capacity of a minivan, the stance of an SUV, and the handling of a sedan. Chrysler expected to unload 100,000 of those vehicles every year.

Problems arose quickly, though. This vehicle, the Chrysler Pacifica, didn’t excel as a minivan, was too expensive to compete with other luxury SUVs, and had an engine that barely gave it enough oomph to pass on the highway.

Chrysler discontinued the Pacifica in 2008. Yesterday the company brought it back, only this time the nameplate will grace the rear hatch of what used to be the Chrysler Town & Country.

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