OMG I want the 500 Bigbody Hp

[Maengelito]

that thing got a hemi?

[Jeff]

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.chrysler.com/aspen/">http://www.chrysler.com/aspen/</a><!-- m --> OMG.... I WILL HAVE 2!!!

[BLINGMW]

lol, Aspen?! Yeah, my friend has one of those, but his looks more like this:

[Jeff]

The old aspens (as seen above) were slant six 225 POSs from the gas crunch....this thing is a pimp-ass SUV

[Mike]

pimp-ass SUV

:roll: those two words and acronym should never be seen together...

[img]http://blogs.ipswitch.com/archives/You're%20Fired.jpg[/img]

[REED]

The old aspens (as seen above) were slant six 225 POSs from the gas crunch....this thing is a pimp-ass potato

thats better

[CaptainHenreh]

The old aspens (as seen above) were slant six 225 POSs from the gas crunch....this thing is a pimp-ass potato

thats better

Naw man, this is a pimp-ass potato:


I don't know WHAT that other thing is. It's like, a phallic extension for soccer moms.

[Jeff]

you are a bunch of worthless haters.

[CaptainHenreh]

you are a bunch of worthless haters.

but, c'mon man. That's a pretty pimp-ass potato.

I'd hit it.

[Jeff]

so would I...

[G.Irish]

you are a bunch of worthless haters.

Come on seriously, do we need anymore SUV's on the road? Especially those that will attract the kind of buyer who likes oversized chrome wheels? I think the answer is a resounding no.

Now if Chrysler announced they were gonna make a producton Copperhead or Firepower, then I'd be doing a whole lotta lovin'.

[Jeff]

true that...this is just something I have been wanting them to do for a long time. I think they should have done it with the old body Durango. I am a sucker for big ballin SUVs because I give not two shits about...well... I won't say it to avoid Jack and other's personal attacks

[Andy]

http://www.chrysler.com/aspen/ OMG.... I WILL HAVE 2!!!

I love it. Chrysler gets lucky with a few successes and thinks it can make money by sticking a Hemi in anything w/four wheels. I can't wait till the bottom drops out, Benz sells them like the cheap 1 night stand they are and they come begging to the gov't for another bail out.

I'm so tired of the big three diluting/abusing/destroying any small success or momentum they built with a nice car model. I wish their business outlook reached 20 years into the future so they can anticipate and not react to trends. Maybe then people will stop losing their jobs. This Hemi craze will die once Chrysler sticks one in everyone of their models and the novelty wears off.

Maybe even sooner if oil prices keep rising. It's already at 70 bucks a barrel during a relatively warm winter.

[G.Irish]

I don't think Chrysler got lucky at all. All of its recent successes have been a result of outstanding design, good content, and correct pricing. Really, of all the mass market manufacturers (lets say GM, Toyota, Ford,Daimler Chrysler, Honda, Nissan, Hyundai) I think Chrysler has had the best new designs for the last 5 years or so.

However, as you pointed out, a significant challenge in the future for them will be how oil prices affect them. They have yet to jump on the hybrid train and they're not really pushing for fuel efficiency in their lineup. Maybe they're putting all their money into fuel cells but if they're not they could be headed for disaster 10-20 years down the line.

But Chrysler has been under the gun before and made it out alive so I wouldn't bet against them. However, I wouldn't be surprised to see Honda and/or Nissan pass them up in the next 5 to 10.

[Andy]

What has Chrysler designed that's been really all that great. The 300C is okay but I think that has more to do with their aggressive marketing campaign which includes giving 50-cent the first model to advertise on Pimp my ride. I think he was paid half a million for associating himself with it.
SRT-4 is nice but only because of it's engine and the same can be said for pretty much every other model they've released. The Commander is an "urbanized" or maybe "hip-hopped" cherokee. No improvement, just a change in marketing.

I don't see any improvement in reliabilty ratings, and just because they see the bar so low in terms of fit and finish with the crapboxes they released earlier doesn't mean their stuff is nice now.


Their "Is it Hemi?" campaign, though effective, bothers my own sensibilities. The last thing people need is an overpowered car, with shitty reliabilty and driveability. All I'm saying is that Chrysler should focus on overall company health instead of hype. Their gimmickry will only last so long before folks start demanding reliability and real world functionality. According to Business Week, Benz diverted over 3 billion dollars to pull Chrysler out of the crapper and Dieter is already under some heat to sell of Chrysler in order to bring Benz back to health and once that capital flow dries up, what next?

German cars sacrifice reliability for innovation, styling, and flair. What is the big 3 sacrificing for their lack of reliability?

[HAULN-SS]

Haha..you're all such domestic haters. I've had 3 different cars that went over 150k miles just fine. If you maintain them or any other car, they will last just fine. The only rust I've had on any of my cars is on my blazer, which just showed up last year when it had 148k miles on it and was 11 years old. The big 3 sacrifice having a 40,000$ sticker, that's what they sacrifice.

[ScottyB]

Their gimmickry will only last so long before folks start demanding reliability and real world functionality.

i think you're missing alot of what they've done in the past that has constantly shown they can be on the forefront when they want to: hell, just take a look at when they redesigned the minivan (which they invented) with dual sliding doors and removable seats. that was practically a revolution in that market segment. they heavily played the Cummins diesel card after the wildly successful Ram redesign came out and it is still regarded as one of the best diesel trucks. and who can argue that the awkwardly truck engined, ill handling viper has been a success despite it's flaws.

things like displacement on demand and the hemi craze are indeed gimicky, i'll give you that. but alot of what Chrysler does outside of the spotlight is genuinely innovative. all they need is some solid quality ratings to go with it for a good while.

and to prove i'm unbiased, this week my family traded in our old '96 dodge grand caravan with 105k on it.....for.....wait for it.....800 dollars. i don't miss that piece of shit at all, even though we couldn't kill it.

[G.Irish]

What has Chrysler designed that's been really all that great. The 300C is okay but I think that has more to do with their aggressive marketing campaign which includes giving 50-cent the first model to advertise on Pimp my ride. I think he was paid half a million for associating himself with it.
SRT-4 is nice but only because of it's engine and the same can be said for pretty much every other model they've released. The Commander is an "urbanized" or maybe "hip-hopped" cherokee. No improvement, just a change in marketing.

:?: How about the Viper, Gen I and Gen II? How about the PT Cruiser? 300C, Magnum, Crossfire, Pacifica and now even the Charger (which I don't particularly like but many of the older folks love).

The 300C's success is not simply because of Pimp My Ride or 50 Cent. The 300C is successful because it is big, bold, has good feature content, and looks a lot more expensive than it is. I like to call it the People's Bentley. Whether some rapper liked it or not a lot of people would have bought it anyway.

As for the SRT4, sure its popular because of its engine but you fail to mention that it offers a honking motor for an excellent price. It is the best bargain in the sport compact market right now for pure straightline stomp. Is it the best all around car? No. Best on track? Probably not. But Dodge succeeded in making a fun and fast car with great value, no arguing with that.

Chrysler hasn't done anything particularly noteworthy in terms of engineering and that is a long term weakness. You can legitimately criticize them for reliability and build quality but they're hovering right around average right now. It will take a lot for them to improve to the level of of the top quality brands but they improved from 04 to 05. Ultimately that kind of thing doesn't happen overnight.

Their "Is it Hemi?" campaign, though effective, bothers my own sensibilities. The last thing people need is an overpowered car, with shitty reliabilty and driveability.

Who says their reliability is shitty? And how is it that they have shitty driveability? Having a car with a more flexible powerband makes it more driveable. Their gas mileage is indeed a weak point and they will pay dearly for it if gas prices spike. But bottom line is that people want to buy their cars. Of the big three brands I think Chrysler and Dodge is doing the most to actually make people want their cars, with the exception of Cadillac.

You may not like the cars Chrysler is making but it doesn't mean they're doing terrible or they are the antichrist somehow. Again, long term I think they're vulnerable in a lot of ways but so is pretty much everyone else in some way or another other than Toyota really.

German cars sacrifice reliability for innovation, styling, and flair. What is the big 3 sacrificing for their lack of reliability?

Come on that's just flamebait.

Number 1, that's suggesting that the Germans are making a conscious decision to sacrifice reliability. Number 2 there is a pretty significant difference in reliability between Porsche or BMW and Mercedes or VW.

Lastly Audi/VW group is not exactly a styling and flair powerhouse, nor is Mercedes particularly innovative. Each German automaker has some strengths and weaknesses, the same as each American automaker has its strengths and weaknesses. Don't be a blind domestic hater.

[Jeff]

Chrysler has come back from the brink of destruction twice. Both time realizing important trends in what people want from a car. In the early 80's the gas crunch about destroyed them as the large car lines were selling poorly and the Aspen and Volare were not doing much for the image or the customer satisfaction. The implementation of FWD and the K-based line up was an innovation not seen before in the automotive industry. They built almost everything from the same, very reliable base. Realizing the failure of the station wagon and the fact that vans too were on the demise they decided to capitalize on the idea of blending the two, making a van that was based from a FWD car. The Car-A-Van was born. It was the new FWD, versatile, handled like a car, and was easy on gas. Fast forward 20 years. They had killed off Eagle and Plymouth to trim up the lineup but the poor performance of the early Neon (similar to the Aspen/Volare) was giving the company a worse reputation. Once again, playing the same cards and not trying to make anything better had shot them in the foot. The second generation (double door) minivan was neat and new but other then that there was the Neon (1 and 2) and the relatively poorly executed LX body cars. So once again the company was not turning any heads and headed down a rocky road. In late 1998 (or there about) the Germans stepped in with the intent to purchase the company to help expand benz into the united states and to give them a value line platform to build more cars. As we have seen Chrysler, not benz, has benefited more from the partnership. All the good things are happening on this side of the pond. It is hard for many to understand the HEMI craze because few of you have really looked into where that comes from. This same campaign was run in the 70's. Although they didn't put it in everything we make (damn the Jeep SRT-8 to hell) it was a big big deal to have a Hemi in your car. They are cheapening the name, yes, but it does sell cars, trucks, SUVs, and anything else they want to stuff it in. They have their moments when bursts of inspiration do good thingsand then it falls flat again. Look at the PT cruiser.

I need to harp on one more interesting thing about ChryslerÔÇÖs past. Nick and I were on our way to Student Org Night the other day. I stopped and was looking at a rather rare 1982-3 Chrysler Lebaron 2-door. Nick as usual remarks ÔÇ£What a flaming pile of shit.ÔÇØ I as usual state the rare nature of an early 2-door k-car. He then asks me ÔÇ£Why the hell do they go out of their way to put FRONT WHEEL DRIVE on the back in huge letters?ÔÇØ The answer is simple, it was something that was pioneered in many ways by the development of the K-car in the late 70ÔÇÖs and it was a major selling point then all the way to now. As much as you hate on FWD it must be realized itÔÇÖs impact on the car buying public during this time period. There are still tons of people who will never own a car that is not FWD. So to say that Chrysler (or any car company really) does not innovate is asinine and stupid.

The Hemi is not a sales gimmick Andyits a good engine. A well executed V8 engine. How about I tell you that VTEC is a gimmick huh? VTEC is a very useful well executed idea, as is the multi-displacement 5.7 and 6.1L Hemi engines. Also, go ahead and call Chrysler unreliable. That just shows how little you really know about the cars they build. My fathers 94 LHS (an awful LX car) has 280,000 miles on it. Never spent more then $800 on a repair, and he has only done that twice, once for fuel rails and some stuff and the other for a water pump and t-belt. My first car was a 91 Lebaron with 180,000 miles on it. Ran like a raped ape. I broke it. It was not the cars fault. My uncles 96 T/C minivan has 190,000ish miles on it. He barely even changes the oil in that and it has never given him a moments problem. 3 examples are good enough for now. Lastly, if you want to give me a line about lacking real world functionality I will call you out as an ignorant hater. I need to stop writing now, the more I re-read your posts the more I want to write, its hard to write this much for a class paper. Im gonna go burn some consumer reports car issues and re read last months Motor Trend about 4,000 times.

[Jeff]

G made a better post then me while I was writing my big useless bandwidth using report there. I think G makes a ton of good points about more recent stuff as I tended to dance around the first crash a bit more. This is my company, its hard to write and come up with good solid argument/support when you are angry...