Grand Cherokee takes giant step for 2011
Frontal area and styling contours aid aerodynamics.
By John Gilbert
The Wrangler may always be the Jeep company icon, because it has never changed from the basic and rugged all-terrain bulldog it was when supporting troops in World War II. But it will have to at least share the podium with the 2011 Grand Cherokee, which has become something of an icon on its own after serving for 20 years as a durable and tough family hauler, to say nothing of being primarily responsible for starting the whole SUV trend.
For 2011, the Grand Cherokee takes its historic capability to an unprecedented level of class and sophistication. It isn’t just an upgrade; the 2011 Grand Cherokee is a completely new vehicle that crosses “t’s” and dots “i’s” on words that were never before in the vehicle’s vocabulary.
As a reward for its surprising scale of its improvement, the Grand Cherokee was voted along with the Ford Explorer and the Dodge Durango as the three finalists for 2011 North American Truck of the Year. It’s an award that is greatly coveted, and the Grand Cherokee finished second to the Explorer this year, but just reaching the final three is a tremendous compliment to its improvement.
My biggest curiosity at the Grand Cherokee’s introduction was how much influence on its revision came from Fiat, the new corporate owner of Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep. Turns out, the vehicle was completed by the time of the takeover, and credit instead should go to Mercedes, the previous owner, which left behind some of the more sophisticated elements of its superb off-road vehicles to underpin the Grand Cherokee.
It looks better on the outside and interior, boasts 146 percent improvement in torsional stiffness, bristles with high-tech refinements, and adds a new and impressive 3.6-liter V6 to the existing Hemi V8 for power. Inside, the Grand Cherokee has controls at your fingertips that might not be familiar to anyone who hasn’t driven a Range Rover — the high-ticket master of the luxury off-road segment. Read more
Sonata challenges electric duo for Car of the Year
Style, technology make the new Sonata a world sedan standard.
By John Gilbert
The Hyundai Sonata has taken on the automotive world this year, and by some measurements, it has won. Now, however, it is a decisive underdog as one of the three finalists for North American International Car of the Year. The other two finalists are the super-hyped, plug-in electric media darlings — the Chevrolet Volt, and the Nissan Leaf .
Our Car of the Year jury has 49 members, and I am proud to be among them. We are independent, and hopefully independent thinkers, and we are not beholden to any advertisers. In fact, we pay exorbitant dues to cover our very nice trophies and own expenses — unheard of among automotive journalists, who are used to being flown and fed in exotic places while sampling the newest vehicles. A disproportionate number of our jurors come from the Detroit area, where there is vehement support for the struggling domestic nameplates, regardless of where they might make their new cars. We’re all pulling for General Motors to get back to its formal power, and Chrysler too, and we’re impressed at Ford’s advancements without government loans, bailouts, or bankruptcy.
It will be interesting to see if our jury falls into line with assorted magazines in picking the Chevrolet Volt, and we won’t know until after our final revote of the three finalists. The winner will be announced January 10 to kick off the Detroit International Auto Show. Read more
Fiat helps Dodge, Chrysler get new life for 2011
Chrysler revised the Sebring so totally it chose a new name -- the Chrysler 200.
By John Gilbert
What seems like identity-crisis time for Chrysler and Dodge may be the dawn of a promising upside. Getting through the transition of being purchased by Italy’s Fiat conglomerate, Dodge and Chrysler could see immediate benefits, based on the introduction of their revised fleet of vehicles for 2011.
The words style and refinement haven’t often been used favorably to describe Chrysler or Dodge vehicles recently, and, except for minivans, it’s been years since anyone pointed to anything from the corporation as a standard of interior finish and style. But everything in the Chrysler line, and almost everything behind a Dodge nameplate is revised and improved for 2011. Some of the products, such as the Dodge Grand Caravan or the Chrysler Town & Country, don’t look all that different, but whether the sheet metal is changed or not, the engines, drivetrains, structure, and suspension have been changed and vastly improved in every model.
When you consider it, the union of Fiat with ChryslerDodge/Jeep is a natural. Fiat wanted to return to the U.S. market, but lacked a nationwide network. Chrysler needed a truly competitive small car, and Fiat has the 500, a tiny but strong global commuter car. Chrysler, LLC, needed financial backing, and Fiat has money. But nobody anticipated the instant changeover that appears to have taken place. Read more
Why choose one, when hockey and football beckon?
Nearly 4,000 UMD fans braved subzero windchill to urge victory.
By John Gilbert
Football or hockey, what is your preference? And what if very important games are being held in both sports, and in conflict with each other, 150 miles apart? Obviously, you’d have to choose which one to watch. Or, is it possible to have your cake and eat it too?
When the University of Minnesota-Duluth hockey team plays Minnesota, it’s always a huge series, and this year, with UMD recently rated No. 1, it was bigger than ever when they faced the Gophers Friday and Saturday nights, in the final series of the first half of the WCHA race. On Saturday night in Duluth, however, the UMD football Bulldogs — undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the country in Division II — would be at home for a 5 p.m. national semifinal against Northwest Missouri State.
As your intrepid correspondent, I felt a duty to be at both events, to say nothing of a personally strong, emotional pull. For someone who splits time between Duluth and the Twin Cities, logistics helped make my plan. I would be in San Diego test-driving the all-new Nissan Quest, and the all-new Ford Explorer, and I wouldn’t arrive back in Minneapolis until Thursday. Flying into the Twin Cities Thursday, it made good sense to stay over and attend the hockey series Friday night and Saturday night. If UMD’s football team was playing at noon, I’d have driven up for the game, then hustled back to Minneapolis for the second hockey game. My hope was that I could find the obscure channel that would broadcast the football game, which I had named the Hypothermia Bowl, and watch it late Saturday afternoon from Mariucci Arena’s hockey press box.
To complicate matters, a huge blizzard was moving into Minnesota late Friday night, and it would be followed by a cold snap. As yet another complication, my recently published book, “Herb Brooks: The Inside Story of a Hockey Mastermind,” is just coming out in paperback. I could pick up my first batch, and possibly sell them at the Gopher-UMD series as the perfect Christmas gift for any hockey fan. Another good reason to stay in the Twin Cities. However, the well-planned weekend started to come apart when a University of Minnesota official said he didn’t have time to contact the right person to get me permission to sell the book Saturday at Mariucci Arena, and no, although there also was a chance the game wouldn’t be played, because if the impending snowstorm caused a traveler’s advisory, the university would shut down, and no events could be held Saturday. Read more
For Duluth, a top-ranked doubleheader
UMD's Matt Haas leaped to spike away a hurried pass by Augustana's Josh Hanson.
By John Gilbert
The two teams put on an unprecedented doubleheader that will rank with Duluth’s greatest sports attractions to engrave Saturday, December 4, 2010, into history. Ranked No. 1 in the nation as the only undefeated team (13-0) in Division II football, UMD beat Augustana 24-13, as 3,083 hardy souls braved the freezing temperature and chilly wind for a justifiable reward at Malosky Stadium. Five hours later, 5,409 overfilled the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center where UMD, ranked unanimously No. 1 in the nation in Division I hockey, beat Denver in a 2-1 nail-biter to officially end the Bulldogs 45-year residence in the DECC. Read more
About the Author
John Gilbert is a lifetime Minnesotan and career journalist, specializing in cars and sports during and since spending 30 years at the Minneapolis Tribune, now the Star Tribune. More recently, he has continued translating the high-tech world of autos and sharing his passionate insights as a freelance writer/photographer/broadcaster. A member of the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year jury since 1993. John can be heard Monday-Friday from 9-11am on 610 KDAL(www.kdal610.com) on the "John Gilbert Show," and writes a column in the Duluth Reader.
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