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Chrysler Reveals Product Future To Journalists, We Reveal Plans To You [Detroit Auto Show]

Thanks to not being invited to today's secret Chrysler future product event, we're not covered by any embargoes. Good. Because that means we're able to tell you all about Chrysler's future product plans...today! Yay!

Don't call it a death rattle because it's obviously too early for that, however this product plan Chrysler unveiled today was termed by some as smoke and mirrors and others as "lipstick on a foam pig" — especially if they're unable to land the billions in funding right-quick.

Be that as it may, this is what we've learned so far from a handful of journalists in attendance (Remember to thank Chrysler PR man Rick Deneau for all this information! It's his continually shortsighted approach to the internet and a lack of desire to reach out to our readership — by specifically excluding us and Autoblog from embargo access — that made this post possible. Give Rick a big hand folks!):

Detroit Auto Show:
There's a new conceptual member of the smoke & mirrors EV family to be revealed at Detroit, the second Jeep in the bunch — a Jeep Patriot EV!

Chicago Auto Show:
Expect to see the next generation of the chassis cab trucks Americans want to buy but Congress doesn't want Chrysler to make.

New York Auto Show:
For some reason the NY show's been all about the Jeeps. This year's no different, with the Pentastar brand showing off an all-new 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee, complete with a 7,700 lb tow rating, an aluminum front axle and low-rolling-resistance tires. Just what every Jeep buyer ever wanted — fiction and uselessness rolled into one package (though we do hear the exterior looks pretty darn good)!

Da Future!
• Journalists were also shown a set of all-new and refreshed RWD sedans — a 2011 Chrysler 300 and 2011 Dodge Charger. The Charger was supposedly showing off design cues from the late 60s ( can someone say Challenger-like? ). Both will get all-new interiors (shown off later in the interior design studio with five other interior mock-ups). Everyone who saw the mock-ups of the exteriors said they looked "very retro" and "very cool."
• A new Dodge Durango was shown made out of foam with what was termed as a "horrible paint job" (Covered in dinoc film perhaps?).
• Some kind of new and cool internet feature allowing for everything from streaming internet access to streaming internet radio, and you can tag songs and download it later (maybe through iTunes?) and all of it on a cool tablet PC that will let you use maps and stuff. The best part? It may even let you go to shady sites like Jalopnik (unless Ricky D's got anything to say about it)!



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The World's 18 Worst Intersections And Interchanges [Highways]

A collection of 18 of the world's worst intersections and interchanges. Bonus Google Earth contest inside to see if you can name four of them. The prize? A 2010 Ford Mustang model! Oh Boy!

The odds are good you've battled your way through some version of hell on this morning's roadways on the way to your cubicle. But maybe you don't have it so bad; unless you're unfortunate enough to live near one of these monstrosities. Partake in some delicious schadenfreude as you look down upon these poor commuting schmucks.

Now, you're probably asking, "Hey Andy, where's that Mustang model you promised?" Well, it ain't gonna be that easy. The Rules start below:

The Concept: You're given four wacky intersections below under the cleverly named "Contest Intersections" heading. Your job is to scan Google Earth and find exactly where these places are located.

The Submission Format: Your entry must be emailed to Didorosi@Jalopnik.com before December 15th at 11:59PM. Contained within the email must be four working Google Earth links to each of the four locations. Subject line on the email must be, "Worst Intersection Contest Submission: I Love El Caminos" Any deviation from this format or late entry will not be accepted. Any attempts at RickRolling will result in a swift kick to the man vegetables.

Winning: Prize is one 2010 Ford Mustang toy model. Standard contest rules apply.

Best of luck.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot:

Special Disqualification: Dearthair is disqualified from this contest simply because I don't like the cut of his jib. Just kidding. Have at it.

[DarkRoast]



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Spoon Honda NSX-R GT, First Drive [Jalopnik Reviews]

They say you should never meet your heroes. For the most part that’s true, I’ve never been more disappointed than after my first drive in a DeLorean DMC-12, childhood dreams of time travel completely squashed. When I was eleven I picked out the colors for a friend’s dad’s new NSX — red with a black top — and even though I’ve never driven one, it’s been on top of my supercar wish list ever since. So when the guys from 0-60 Magazine called and said they wanted to fly me out to Infineon to drive not just any NSX, but the Spoon Honda NSX-R GT, a tuned version of the rarest NSX ever made, I didn’t hesitate.

Based on the second generation, 2002 NSX-R, the GT was created specifically to comply with homologation regulations for Japanese Super GT racing. Those regulations stated any car that wanted to compete in the series had to be based on a production car with at least five examples. So Honda made five NSX-R GTs. Honda never stated what, if any, changes they made to GT underneath its wild new bodywork.

We do know what enhancements Spoon made to one of those five cars. Starting with the NSX-R GT’s functional carbon fiber aero aids, flat undertray, non-functional snorkel (there for homologation purposes only), complete absence of sound deadening, single pane rear glass (the only thing separating you from the engine) and carbon/Kevlar Recaros, the Japanese tuner added its own upgraded suspension and brakes as well as a giant turbocharger and remapped ECU to boost the 24-valve 3.2-liter V6’s from 290 to 420 HP.

This isn’t just the car I’ve always lusted after. It’s the single rarest example of that model and not a plain version of that either, but one that’s had the bejesus tuned out of it.

Infineon is an intimidating place to drive any car, in place of run off, concrete walls are installed right next to most of the track, restricting not only your options should something go wrong, but, in a car as low as the NSX, your vision too. What parts of the track are unencumbered by concrete feature huge elevation changes. It’s my first time here and I’m having trouble remember which corners go right and which ones left. The track is especially intimidating given the complete absence of driver aids in this priceless one-of-a-kind car. Sure, there’s ABS, but there isn’t traction control stability control, magnetic suspension or drive-by-wire anything.

Dating from 1990, the NSX hails from a completely different era of car design, one that put emphasis on the fundamental rightness of a low curb weight, lower center-of-gravity, an engine mounted amidships and the kind of subtle control that’s only available in the absence of electronic assistance. The GT’s bodykit also adds down force, lots of it.

Turn six at Infineon is an impossibly fast, downhill, off camber, near 180-degree hairpin. Its exit is bordered by a three-foot high, six-inch thick piece of poured concrete. Taking it fast takes commitment and more than a little faith. Gripping the tiny Momo wheel with white knuckles, it takes all my strength to turn the NSX onto a tighter line. The downforce that kicks in at close to three-figure speeds combined with the huge amount of caster means the steering gets heavier as you go faster, lots heavier. But that’s just a side effect to the reason for those two changes; with them, the NSX-R GT will make it around any corner, at seemingly any speed, with an absolute absence of drama. As long as you keep your right foot planted, just like the 911 before they made it a luxury car, the mantra for any NSX-R GT driver needs to be “Never Lift.”

Oh, and there will be NSX-R GT drivers too. Even though this specific model will remain very special, starting next year Spoon will sell you a brand new one that looks and goes just like this for only $150,000. And yes, it will be road-legal and available in left hand drive. Neither will they be mere replicas, but built using a supply of left over NSX-R chassis Honda has squirreled away somewhere in Japan.

That money won’t buy you a luxury car. While the original equipment carbon/Kevlar Recaros are supportive and comfortable, the air-conditioning cold and the tape player functional, the interior is cramped and difficult to access in a way expensive cars simply aren’t any more. It’s loud in here too; only a single pain of glass separates you from the grumbling tuned engine and its big, popping exhaust. Don’t think of it as Spartan, think of it as purposeful. Decades old design has its benefits; the view out is unencumbered by hood, fenders or power bulges, while the A-pillars are thin, enhancing your vision. The view out of the NSX is unrivalled and uncompromised, allowing you to concentrate on doing nothing but going fast.

And it does go fast too. Weighing just 2,795 Lbs (the 480 HP Nissan GT-R weighs over a thousand pounds more), that 420 HP can propel it to 60 in less than four seconds and on to a top speed somewhere in excess of 186 MPH.

They say never meet your heroes because they won’t live up to your expectations. But, this NSX-R GT doesn’t just feel as good as I expected, but better than I could ever have hoped. Unlike other classic super cars, the passing of time has been kind to the NSX. It suffers from neither high weight nor over complication of modern super cars, but adapts their up-to-date running gear, brakes and tires to give itself modern performance. Classic involvement with modern speed? That’s a fantasy we’re glad came true.

To read more, including a comparison against the 2009 BMW M3, pick up a copy of 0-60 Magazine issue 6, it hits stands nationwide today.

Photography credit: Robert Kerian

Thanks to: Edmun at Spoon Sports



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