With SRT Rebranding, New Engines May Follow

Keen observers have noticed that the updated 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT has dropped its "8" designation in favor of just SRT. We wondered what was behind the change. Chrysler spokesman Dan Reid explained that it's part of a wider effort to rebrand the SRT lineup; the SRT version of the Chrysler 300 will see a similar change for the 2014 model year, for instance. The models, however, won't roll up under the SRT brand as the Viper does, Reid said.

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Besides the rebranding, Reid said the change opens the door for future SRT powertrains. SRT8 has indicated a V-8 engine, and the 2014 Grand Cherokee SRT still comes with a 470-horsepower, 6.4-liter V-8. In a future shaped by stringent federal fuel-economy standards, however, perhaps there's room for a smaller-displacement, more fuel-efficient engine for the brand.

2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee, SRT: Up Close

The Grand Cherokee definitely wasn't broken, and Jeep wisely didn't mess with it too much. Of the exterior changes, the front end looks good overall, though the more squinty headlights come "courtesy" of black plastic inserts that look pretty crappy to me. The chrome grille segments are a bit much, too, but that may depend on trim level and exterior color.

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The new Summit trim level's chrome treatment, which wraps from the low bumper along the rocker panels and around the back, is a sharp addition.

2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee, SRT at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show

• Competes with: Audi Q7, Land Rover Range Rover Sport, Volkswagen Touareg
• Looks like: A bevy of significant upgrades that don't mess with success
• Drivetrain: 290-hp, 3.6-liter V-6; 360-hp, 5.7-liter V-8; 240-hp, 3.0-liter diesel V-6; or 470-hp, 6.4-liter V-8 (SRT); eight-speed automatic; rear- or choice of three 4x4 systems
• Hits dealerships: First quarter 2013

With its most substantial update since this generation's debut for the 2011 model year, the 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee boasts a new transmission, exterior and interior tweaks, an optional diesel engine, much needed tech improvements and a new trim level. The SRT performance model also receives some welcome upgrades.

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The Grand Cherokee's styling has aged well, so the 2014's changes are subtle: The grille is shorter, the headlights slimmer and the bumper has been raised. There are now LED daytime running lights and the fog lights are more prominent. The taillights have gotten larger, and Jeep says it redesigned the liftgate to improve rear visibility.

2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT: First Photos

Jeep is unveiling an update to its Grand Cherokee SUV today at the 2013 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. You can get full details on both the regular Grand Cherokee and the high-powered SRT version here.

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If you just want a lot of photos of the 470-horsepower SUV, you've come to the right place. Twenty-nine photos are below. We’ll have our own from the show floor later today.

Chrysler to Offer Dealer-Activated Navigation Systems

Until now, new-car shoppers who want a navigation system have to pick a more expensive navigation-equipped vehicle at the dealership or have an aftermarket system installed into a lower trim level. At this week's 2013 Consumer Electronics Show, Chrysler announced plans to address that with a dealer-activated navigation system. Basically, the automaker will offer standard — but deactivated — navigation in cars equipped with the Uconnect dashboard screen. Pay for the option and dealers will activate it. It's sort of like how your TV's cable receiver could play a gaggle of premium channels but locks them out until you pay up.

Dealer-activated navigation requires Chrysler's Uconnect Access system, the latest version of Uconnect. It debuts in the 2013 Ram 1500, 2013 SRT Viper and 2014 Fiat 500L, with screen sizes ranging from 6.5 to 8.4 inches. Dealers can activate navigation when you buy the car or if you decide you want it later on. Chrysler spokesman Eric Mayne said dealer-activated navigation will run $595 in the Ram, but there's no pricing on the other two yet.

We'll see if Chrysler finds many takers down the road. A handful of Ford owners are clamoring for a similar post-purchase option on cars that have MyFord Touch and its dashboard screen but not the navigation option. Dealer-activated navigation "is theoretically possible, but we’ve not seen the customer demand for it yet," Ford spokesman Alan Hall said. "Most people purchase navigation up front when they order or choose the car."

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Chrysler Gives Dealers Sneak Peek of 66 Future Cars

Chrysler unveiled 66 cars in its product pipeline at a private dealer meeting Monday in Las Vegas, Reuters reports. One dealer said it "was like a lovefest" as representatives from some 2,600 global dealerships — the vast majority based in the U.S. — beheld a two-tiered stage of future products at the MGM Grand hotel.

Among the cars that dealers shared with Reuters:

• A redesigned Chrysler 200 that departs from the current Sebring-derived 200. Dealers said it looks a lot like the 2013 Dodge Dart.
• A subcompact Chrysler 100.
• A subcompact Jeep crossover, plus redesigns of the Compass, Patriot and Liberty that follow styling cues of the current Grand Cherokee.
• Two Alfa Romeo cars that Chrysler will sell in Fiat showrooms.

Chrysler officials wouldn't comment to Reuters on the story, but during the last closed-door dealer meeting about future products — in Florida in 2010 — the automaker unveiled the current 200 and Town & Country, along with the Jeep Patriot and Fiat 500. The reporting on that meeting turned out pretty accurate, so we're inclined to think these products are legit. We'll keep you posted as we learn more.

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SRT Viper Gets Sub-$100,000 Price Tag

After reading Joe Wiesenfelder's spirited First Drive of the 2013 SRT Viper earlier today, the only question left was, "How much?"

Now we know.

The base SRT Viper will command a $99,395 price tag, including $1,995 in destination charges, before any options are added.

This puts it right between Nissan's GT-R at $97,820 and the Corvette ZR1 at $113,575 including destination as well as gas guzzler taxes for the 'Vette. EPA figures and gas guzzler taxes for the Viper have not been determined yet.

The even more extreme, more ready-for-the-track Viper GTS will start at $122,390, including a destination charge.

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2013 SRT Viper: First Drive

If you told me three years ago that I had written my last Dodge Viper review, I wouldn't have blinked. Certainly this noisy, crude, gas-guzzling ode to testosterone wouldn't survive an era defined by hybrids, soaring gas prices and its own manufacturer's bankruptcy.

No one counted on such a quick rebound for the Fiat-owned Chrysler Group or the lunatic vision of Fiat/Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne and designer/gearhead/leadfoot/executive Ralph Gilles, now the CEO of the SRT division. We found out at the New York International Auto Show earlier this year that the Viper would be back as a 2013 model.

As I made clear in what I thought would be my last Viper review, which was of the second-generation model in 2008, I liked the car. I respected it. But a car like that has no place in today's market. To make any sense at all, the 2013 will have to be more grown-up and refined. If my time in two development Vipers at South Haven, Mich.'s GingerMan Raceway is an indication, SRT has nailed it.

Daily News Briefs: Aug. 7, 2012

Chrysler will introduce an upgraded Uconnect system in the 2013 Ram 1500 pickup truck and SRT Viper that connects through an embedded wireless system powered by Sprint, the Detroit News reports. You can make phone calls, compose text messages by voice or find nearby points of interest via Bing. Passengers also can connect smartphones or computers to the system's on-board Wi-Fi. We hope it works faster than Chrysler's existing AutoNet-powered Uconnect Web, which left our iPhones in the slow lane. Like Uconnect Web, the Sprint-powered Uconnect system will require subscription or pay-per-use fees, the Detroit News says, but some of this could offset additional data charges on your own smartphone. Typical multimedia systems — think Ford's Sync AppLink or Toyota's Entune — stream applications off your smartphone's data, and unlimited plans are becoming harder to find. Chrysler will announce pricing closer to the fall launch of the Ram and Viper.

In other news:

Lapping Road America With Chrysler's Design Chief

Ralph Gilles tapped the drivetrain's Sport button and held down an adjacent key to deactivate the electronic stability system. We were in a 470-horsepower Dodge Challenger SRT8 — Gilles at the wheel, me riding shotgun — about to hug the best four miles of asphalt anywhere in the Midwest: Wisconsin's Road America racetrack.

"Now we're in full 'oh s—t' mode," Gilles smiled.

I figured Chrysler's chief designer could careen around a racetrack in his own cars any way he liked, and it seemed like a good way to pass time after the 20-year company veteran spoke to journalists at the Midwest Automotive Media Association's Spring Rally last week. Careen we did, nearing 140 mph down the half-mile Kettle Bottoms, between the 11th and 12th of Road America's 14 turns. Gilles is a better track driver than me, but that's not saying much: My apexes are messy, my drifts fleeting. Any weekend enthusiast would show me taillights.

Gilles has also navigated Chrysler's own twists and turns. The 42-year-old designer jokes of still having nightmares of former CEO Bob Nardelli, whose tenure lasted all of 21 months, and he calls his current boss, Sergio Marchionne, a "globally minded" car guy. Gilles has led the automaker's design for three years, overseeing cars from the Dodge Dart to the SRT Viper. A year ago, Marchionne appointed Gilles the CEO of Chrysler's SRT performance brand.