>From the link
http://www.car-truck.com/chryed/buzz/b061600.htm
The Buzz from Detroit is that DC is considering production
of an ultra high performance Jeep for model year
2004. The
center piece of the Grand Cherokee "Sport"
package will be
DC's hot new 5.7 liter Hemi V8!
The goal is to create a Jeep capable of stomping
ANY
vehicle on the road. Notice that I didn't say
SUV, that's
because the engineers have created a package
that they
believe will be able to whip a Mustang "R" or a
Corvette.
With an estimated 353 horsepower and 353 lb.
ft.of torque
the new Hemi is definitely up to the task (in
comparison, the
LS1 V8 used in the Corvette puts out 345 hp and
350 lb. ft
of torque).The Hemi will be mated to a high
performance
6-speed manual transmission.
The all-wheel-drive system will use
electronically controlled
transfer case teamed with electronically
controlled front and
rear differentials. To ensure that the hot rod
Jeep has World
class handling, the package will include
"adaptive"
suspension dampening (both for front-to-rear and
/side-to-side control). The system should be
similar to the
ESP suspension currently available on Mercedes
Benz cars.
The Sport will ride on eighteen or nineteen inch
wheels shod
with performance rubber. I also expect to see an
aero kit on
the body.
Back in November Car & Truck News broke the
story that
the next generation Jeep Grand Cherokee will be
available
in both short and long wheel base models (I'm
calling them
"standard" and "king-size"). The standard will
be
approximately the same size as the current model
which is
181.5 in (4610cm) long and has a 105.9in
(2691cm)
wheelbase. The king-size will feature a third
row of seats and
is said to be about the same size as a Dodge
Durango (193.3
in (4910cm) long ).
When the Grand Cherokee makes its debut in 2004,
the
Sport package will only be available on the
regular-size
model. The king-sized version should be
available as a mid
year introduction. If it gets the green light
the Grand
Cherokee Sport promises to be one of the hottest
vehicles
DC has ever built. I'll keep you posted as more
information
becomes available.
Copyright Car & Truck News 2000
MAXXCAB BUZZ
In case you missed the update to yesterday's
Pillette item, at
the press conference DC announced the expansion
of the
plant and that the Big Van will be phased out
after 2002.
They did not comment on what product(s) will
replace it.
One of my ace Buzz Patrollers at the Pillette
plant sent me
the following report. "I was in attendance at
the
employees-only meeting held shortly before the
press
conference. Reading between the lines, it was
fairly obvious
that the new product will be the MaxxCab.
Numerous times
"the new product with the giant ram on the
front" was
mentioned."
He adds that "It also has been widely circulated
that the
MaxxCab will be launched first, followed
immediately by
the Jumbo SUV, and finally followed by the
medium duty
pickup"
Interesting stuff. As you probably recall, a
reliable source
told me a few weeks back that Dodge has no plans
to build
the MaxxCab? I guess it's time to do some more
digging.
LAST CHANCE
BLUE FLAME SPECIAL
Mike Thurman from Mike's Collectables has
created
another one-of-a-kind custom Cruiser for this
week's Buzz
Watch contest. The great looking silver GT
Cruiser concept
by Maisto was enhanced with the addition of cool
blue and
white flames on the hood, doors and rear bumper.
Mike also
added a blue strobe stripe on the rocker panes.
The overall
effect is impressive, transforming the already
cool GT
Cruiser, into the awesome Blue Flame Special.
All you have to do to win the one-of-a-kind Blue
Flame
Special GT Cruiser is click here. Don't forget
to include an
address where you would like your prize sent if
you should
be lucky enough to win. I'll announce a randomly
selected
winner next Monday.
DO YOU HAVE A WEBSITE?
We're currently assembling a list of cool Mopar
related web
sites for our updated link page. If you'd like
your site
included, please click here to send the URL to
our feature
editor. Thanks for your help.
June 16th, 2000
________________________________________________________________
YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET!
Juno now offers FREE Internet Access!
Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit:
http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Fri Jun 20 2003 - 11:51:47 EDT