97 Jeep Wrangler on 2040-cars

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Some Jeep Cherokees and Chrysler 200s to get standard stop-start in 2015

Automakers the world over are striving to find ways to make their models more efficient, and Chrysler has a solution for some versions of the 2015 Chrysler 200 and 2015 Jeep Cherokee (2014 model shown). The Tigershark 2.4-liter four-cylinder in the 200 and the 3.2-liter Pentastar V6 in the Cherokee are getting a slight boost later this year thanks to the addition of Chrysler's Engine Stop-Start system as standard equipment. The company predicts modest gains - a three-percent improvement in fuel economy and a three percent reduction in CO2 emissions with the new tech compared to without it. While it's not much, those who sit in traffic a lot may see a difference.
Chrysler's stop/start system uses a high-speed starter motor to restart the vehicle in a claimed a third of a second. It works by detecting when the vehicle comes to a stop and turning off the engine. A more powerful battery maintains all of the model's accessories while it sits. When the driver lets off the brake, the car starts up again to drive away. There is even a button in the cabin to turn the ESS off, if desired.
The Jeep will be the first to receive ESS in the third quarter of this year to coincide with the start of production of the 2015 model-year version. The 200 will follow in the fourth quarter as a rolling change in production.

Jeep Wrangler diesel likely after 2015 model refresh

We automotive journalists aren't always the right people to ask about whether a US-spec vehicle should or should not be offered with a diesel powertrain (hint: the answer is usually "YES"). But when it comes to the iconic, off-road-ready Jeep Wrangler, we aren't the only ones who have been clamoring for an oil-burning engine behind that famous seven-slat grille. To that end, it appears there's good news on the horizon, as Jeep CEO Mike Manley recently told Ward's Auto that the "Wrangler is on the radar to get (a) diesel."
"I'm confident that the Grand Cherokee will show just how large a demand there is for diesel, and I think what that will do is reinforce the need for us to target Wrangler as a vehicle that can take a diesel," Manley told Ward's. The most rugged of Jeeps is scheduled to get an overhaul around 2015-16, and the diesel powertrain will likely be introduced around that time.
This year alone, Chrysler will be adding a diesel engine to the Grand Cherokee SUV, as well as the Ram 1500 pickup and Promaster utility van.

Chrysler taking big risk snubbing NHTSA

Maker Insists Feds Overstate Risk Of Fires With Grand Cherokee, Liberty Models
It's not often that recall stories make it above the fold, in that old newspaper parlance, but when one shows up as the lead story on the network evening news programs, you know it's something big.
And so it is with Chrysler snubbing its nose at a request by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to recall 2.7 million Jeeps the feds insist are at risk of potentially catastrophic fuel tank fires in a rear-end collision.