The TechMobility Podcast
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The TechMobility Podcast
Hemi Engines Return, American Homebodies, Sneaky Pricing Tricks, Chrysler at 100
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When performance is less important than nostalgia, something fascinating happens in consumer behavior. Ram's decision to bring back the Hemi V8 engine for their 2026 trucks perfectly illustrates this trend – customers willing to pay $1,200 extra for an engine that produces less power and torque than the standard Hurricane V6 it replaces. The numbers are clear: 395 horsepower versus 420 horsepower, 410 foot-pounds versus 469 foot-pounds. Yet, the emotional appeal of that V8 rumble proves stronger than cold, hard performance metrics for millions of Ram owners.
Beyond the automotive world, we're seeing a major shift in American behavior that has serious implications for our economy and social fabric. Americans now spend an average of 99 more minutes at home each day than they did in 2003, with young adults staying home an additional 124 minutes daily compared to twenty years ago. This move indoors creates what experts call "quiet pandemics" of social isolation and sedentary living, impacting everything from local businesses to public health outcomes. With less than 2% of metropolitan areas offering truly walkable neighborhoods, our infrastructure might be reinforcing these troubling trends.
Meanwhile, the digital world becomes more problematic as companies use advanced AI tools to maximize their profits from consumers. "Surveillance pricing" – where businesses analyze your personal data to set customized prices – is just one sign of unchecked data collection practices. From ride-sharing apps that charge more when your phone battery is low to airlines using AI-driven pricing algorithms, companies find increasingly invasive ways to boost profits at consumer expense. As laws gradually catch up, the urgent need for strong data privacy protections is clearer than ever. To share your thoughts or recommend future topics, call our hotline at 872-222-9793 or email talk@techmobilityshow.
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Speaker 2:I'm Ken Chester On the docket, a nation of homebodies, a sneaky pricing trick and Chrysler at 100. To add your voice to the conversation, be it to ask questions, share an opinion or even suggest a topic for future consideration, call or text the TechMobility hotline, that number, 872-222-9793. Or you can email the show directly talk at techmobilityshow. Talk at techmobilityshow. Be sure to subscribe, like and follow us on social media, our YouTube channel. I'm also on Substack too and you can find that Ken, the letter C, iowa, that's K-E-N-C-I-O-W-A From the Techmobility News Desk.
Speaker 2:About 20 years ago, at its highlight, where Chrysler was pushing the brotherhood of muscle in the Dodge division and the big question was does that thing have a Hemi? And in case you were wondering what all the big deal is about, it has to do with the type of engine that Chrysler pioneered in the 60s and early 70s. And it has to do that whole thing has to do with the top of the piston being the type of shape Hemi short for hemispherical that it believed that that dome, the way that it's shaped, gave the engine more power. It believed that that dome, the way that it's shaped, gave the engine more power, hence shortened to Hemi. A Hemi. V8 was a more powerful V8 for its displacement and was a big deal and was a big seller when Chrysler brought it back for the Dodge Charger, for the Challenger and for some trucks still a big deal. It was a marketing issue, even down to a model a Hemi 392. It's nothing like the sound of a V8. Any Hemi owner will tell you, particularly a Hemi V8. From the 340s and the 383s back in the day to now, the 5.7 liter and the 6.4 liter that Chrysler had built right up till 2023. And then they didn't. They phased it out. In place of they brought in a twin turbo V6 called a Hurricane. They had a standard output model and a high output model, but people lost their minds and they were up in arms. How dare you take the Hemi away from us? So with Stellantis particularly the Dodge and Chrysler and Jeep brands in the United States getting back to basics, one of the big things that the new sales guy, who is the old sales guy they brought back, is doing is how soon they can bring the Hemi back, particularly for the truck for the half-ton pickup.
Speaker 2:This is from Automotive News. Ram is bringing its vaunted Hemi engine back as an option on the 1500 pickup this summer, after dropping it. I said 2023, I was wrong. They dropped it last year for this year. In other words, at first they were not offering it for 2025, but it looks like it's back on the menu for 2026.
Speaker 2:The 5.7 liter Hemi V8 with the mild hybrid e-torque technology will be offered on the 2026, ram 1500, tradesman, bighorn, express, warlock, laramie, rebel Limited and Longhorn trims. But don't think you're getting it for free, though people. The engine, available as a $1,200 upgrade, delivers 395 horsepower and 410 foot-pounds of torque, which is pretty decent. However and I want to skip to this because this is just to give you an idea just how things are what people perceive Would you believe that the V6, the turbo V6 they replaced it with Actually the standard V6 they replaced it with actually the standard V6. Hurricane, twin turbo Hurricane they replaced it with comes in at 420 horsepower and 469 foot-pounds of torque, and the high-output V6 twin turbo Hurricane came in at 540 horsepower and 521 foot pounds of torque Way more than the V8 did. But people want the V8.
Speaker 2:The automakers saw an opportunity to make some money and they figured out how to do it. Originally, they thought it was going to take 18 months engineering. And why so long because, in launching a new truck from then to now, it had a different electrical setup architecture which did not support the engine, and they were trying to figure out how they were going to make this work. Long story short, it so happened that over in the jeep they had a version of it that would work for the truck, so they were able to take what they thought was going to take 18 months, shorten it to six months and put it in RAM.
Speaker 2:The funny thing of it is people are paying $1,200 for worse performance, willingly, willingly. $1,200 for worse performance Willingly. Ram estimates there's 3.6 million people driving a Hemi right now and they did not want to alienate that group. They wanted them to come back. What blows my mind is are you in it for the sound? Are you in it for the performance? Because the engine they replaced with is actually more powerful? If you opted for the high-performance version which, by the way, was the standard engine in some of the upscale trim levels that I just mentioned you were getting something that was over 100 horsepower more and at least 70, 80 foot-pounds more torque Standard and you're going to pay $1,200 for less just because you wanted a Hemi on the side and a V8.
Speaker 2:And oh, by the way, I should add this the Hemi logo is not coming back. They've got something called. Let me see if I can get this right. They've got an actual name for it. They call it the symbol. I'll find it.
Speaker 2:I thought that was kind of interesting, but what a way to make money and, trust me, automakers never want to miss an opportunity to make money. I'm trying to find this right here because I saw it and I was like, okay, they've got a little, a little different logo with it. Oh, here it is the symbol of protest, which is basically a ram head on a Hemi engine, and that will be your new symbol to know you've got a Hemi, to know that you spent $1,200 for worse performance. I can't, I can't. I'm just trying to figure that one out and they're willingly going to give it to you, because this is a case where the customer is actually shooting themselves in the foot.
Speaker 2:If you don't believe me and I'm talking to you Ram owners out there, that said, you would never drive anything other than a V8. And oh, by the way, while we're on that subject, there is no announcement or plan right now to bring back the 6.4 liter Hemi V8, which really, if you're going to do it, that's the one I want, because that one does have some serious performance to it. If they tweaked it a little bit it'd be just a monster. And actually the 6.4 actually develops more horsepower and torque than either the standard output or high output Hurricane engine. The 5.7 liter Hemi, which is the one you're going to get to pay $1,200 for in the 2026 model year, just so you said you could have a Hemi produces less power than either engine, either standard engine. I don't get it. So you're going to hand them money. I don't know about you, my money comes hard and I'm not trying to give my money away. But yeah, yeah, this is one case where people said they wanted it. They said fine, they were worried that people would actually leave the brand because they couldn't get a V8 in their pickup Quick story. Their pickup Quick story About oh, 15 years ago, when Chrysler developed their new family of the 3.6 liter six cylinders and their eight speed automatics and I was driving a Ram pickup and the performance was so good I just swore up and down.
Speaker 2:It was a V8 underneath there and I popped the hood. Nope, it was a six and it delivered better power and it delivered a better torque curve with that mating. Unfortunately, you know it was not a V8, but it worked. It took an engine that was ordinarily a dog and made it awesome. With the right pairing and it wouldn't have cost a whole lot of money $1,200 for less performance, $1,200. I'm going to see how the take rate is and see if people actually figure that one out and if they change and say you know, maybe not, maybe. I'm okay with this Hurricane V6 turbo, simply because it would give me more power than I got now. Who knew America's becoming a nation of homebodies? Why that doesn't bode well for the economy.
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Speaker 2:Social media is the main place to be these days, and we are no exception. I'm Ken Chester of the Tech Mobility Show. If you enjoy my program, then you will also enjoy my weekly Facebook videos, from my latest vehicle reviews to timely commentary of a variety of mobility and technology-related topics. These short features are designed to inform and delight you. Be sure to watch, like and follow us on Facebook. You can find us by typing the Tech Mobility Show in the search bar. Be sure to subscribe to our Facebook page. Social media is the place to be these days, and we're no exception. I'm Ken Chester of the Tech Mobility Show. If you enjoy my program, then you will also enjoy my weekly Instagram videos, from the latest vehicle reviews to timely commentary on a variety of mobility and technology-related topics. These short features are designed to inform and delight you. Be sure to watch, like and follow us on Instagram. You can find us by typing the Tech Mobility Show in the search bar.
Speaker 2:For those of you that listen to podcasts, we have just the one for you. Hi, I'm Ken Chester. Tech Mobility Topics is a podcast where I upload topic-specific videos each week. Shorter than a full show. These bite-sized programs are just the thing, particularly if you're interested in a particular topic covered on the weekly radio show. From Apple Podcasts to iHeartRadio and many podcast platforms in between, we got you covered.
Speaker 1:Just enter Tech Mobility Topics in the search bar. Wherever you listen to podcasts, can inspiration be comfortable? Can you navigate the world with ease? Yes. Does the most passenger room in its class make a difference? Yes. Can a boston acoustic sound system create harmony? In a word, absolutely. The totally new chrysler 300, starting at 23 595 chrysler, inspiration comes standard 23 000 the ch Chrysler.
Speaker 2:Inspiration comes standard $23,000. The Chrysler 300, when it was introduced in 2005, was a game changer for the brand and, unfortunately, was really their last full-size sedan. Now they tweaked it over the years and they came out with some special performance items over the years. But a lot of people even called it a Portland, a poor man's Bentley. But it surprised people. It was well running. And here's something you may or may not have known regular listeners if let's see how good you were listening the Chrysler 300 and the Dodge Charger that just recently went out of production they've been in production now almost 20 years rode on a Mercedes E-Class chassis. How did that happen? If you remember, daimler Chrysler, daimler of Daimler Benz, of Mercedes Benz actually owned the company for a minute and in doing that they gave them a generation of the E-Class chassis to use on a full-size car, which is what they built in Canada, and they put the Chrysler 300 on it and they put the Dodge Charger on it, and that's why those two vehicles were so solid and so amazing If you drove them, and why there's still a lot of them around.
Speaker 2:Thought you might want to know that America is becoming a nation of homebodies. Here's some numbers Americans now spent an average of 99 more minutes at home each day than they did in 2003. The current generation of 15 to 24-year-olds spend 124 more minutes at home than their counterparts two decades ago. It's over two hours more. While it's easy to zero in on our cell phones, as the main culprits believe it or not, something else is at play. This is topic A. According to the American Time Use Survey, just 30% of Americans spent time socializing and communicating in person on an average day, and that's down from 38% in 2014.
Speaker 2:And while you might poo-poo, it said you know, I don't want to fool with people. No way, that's okay. There are some very real consequences when that happens. Let's talk about the obvious for a minute. If people are not out socializing, if they're not out in the coffee shops, they're not out in the bars, they're not out in the restaurants, that whole infrastructure shrivels and dies. If you don't have community centers or events or things to do, it tends to give you less of a reason to get out of the house.
Speaker 2:And the problem is, while there are rewarding things to do at home, like gardening and reading and playing with your kids or playing with your grandkids, statistics say that usually it's a more sedentary lifestyle. You're sitting there watching TV, you are not active and you're by yourself. You're sitting there watching TV, you are not active and you're by yourself. And they talk about these two quiet pandemics of social isolation and sedentary living that are creeping up on Americans that nobody's talking about. We make a big deal about folks being on their phones all the time, and surely that is an issue, but have we lost something here? Do we feel that interaction online is enough? Do we feel that, post-pandemic when a lot of people stayed at home, what they're finding is that people are actually staying in at longer periods, at longer times than they did during the pandemic. The numbers are continuing to go in that direction, even as America continues to get older. It's not an okay situation. Situation You've got older folks who feel less inclined to come out, which adds to social isolation, adds to deteriorating health issues, and that ends up costing everybody more all the way around, in ways that are not necessarily money. Let's look at this from a different angle. Let's look at this from a different angle.
Speaker 2:If, as a nation, as a nation getting older, what they found is that if you live in something called a walkable neighborhood we talked about this and we talked about a number of years ago how Zillow actually has, the real estate company actually has something called a walk score and what that means is is that how walkable, how friendly to walking, whether you're going to a restaurant, the cleaners, a grocery store, the bank in your neighborhood, that you can, that you can go to places where you can interact with people If no more than a park or some kind of public space. People if no more than a park or some kind of public space, they find that the more walkable your neighborhood, the more likely you are to go and interact with folks and go outside, even in 2025. Yes, it's a thing, but they also mentioned and this comes from federal statistics that walkable neighborhoods are becoming more rare. Less than 2% of America's metropolitan areas consist of spaces where people easily move their bodies and make or maintain social connections, and for those that want these features, they're often prohibitively expensive. The more affordable X-Burbs or getting to walkable amenities is more difficult and time consuming ie, you need a car are some of the fastest growing parts of the country. Sprawling Sunbelt cities and suburbs, often designed from driving from place to place, are booming.
Speaker 2:We talked about this last week about how the science of latent time, of waiting at a traffic light, is killing neighborhoods, that they are pursuing traffic flow above everything else quality of life, health, neighborhood living and it's been killing neighborhoods for the last 50, 60 years and in some cases, dividing neighborhoods, particularly in lower income. Neighborhoods are getting divided by interstate and infrastructure that tended to work against it and break that down. What do we do? Let's look at some of the things cities have been doing. I know around here and in many cities they've built bike trails and they've built walk trails, trying to encourage people to interact. And in fact there is a move afoot here in Iowa to connect them all together that literally you could go state border to state border. And there's a larger move afoot. You haven't heard much of it in recent years but before the pandemic they were actually talking about building a national coast-to-coast bike trail and part of that would have come through Iowa.
Speaker 2:It is in your best interest, health-wise and mental-wise, to get out the house to interact to. As they used to say, go and smell the roses and, if for no other reason, go out and contemplate a tree. It'll do you some good. Fresh air will do you some good. Being out in nature will actually do you some good. We've reported on that Because we care about you. We want you around a long time. Social isolation and sedentary lifestyle two things that are killing Americans right and left, particularly that against age. It's not okay. Companies are using this sneaky trick to maximize profit at your expense.
Speaker 2:This is the Tech Mobility Show. Do you listen to podcasts? Seems that most people do. Hi, I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. If you've missed any of our weekly episodes on the radio, our podcast is a great way to listen. You can find the Tech Mobility Podcast just about anywhere. You can enjoy podcasts. Be sure to follow us from Apple Podcasts, iheart Radio and many platforms in between. We are there. Just enter the Tech Mobility podcast in the search bar. Wherever you listen to podcasts, social media it's the place to be. We no exception. Hi, I'm ken chester, host the tech mobility show. Several times a week, I post to tiktok several of the topics that I cover on my weekly radio show. It's another way to keep up on mobility, technology news and information. I've built quite a library of short videos for your viewing pleasure, so be sure to watch, like and subscribe. That's the tech mobility show on tiktok. Check it out.
Speaker 2:It's no secret that companies are collecting data while consumers browse their websites, but some companies are actually adjusting prices for individual customers based on their personal data, known as surveillance pricing. The practice has become more common in recent years. This is topic B, so let me get this straight. The company, if I am looking for a widget and I happen to visit three websites looking for a widget, they're looking at certain information about me personal to adjust the price up or down of what they would charge me to buy that widget. In other words, I could be paying more than my next door neighbor for the same item for no other reason than it's me versus them. Talk about the ultimate in racial profiling. Oh, my goodness. And right now, this moment, right now, this is legal. It's not okay.
Speaker 2:A growing number of companies embracing AI as a tool to make real-time price changes for individual customers. Yeah, I don't like this at all. I mean, I'm looking for the best price based on fair market and I'm going to buy based on the best price, but if you're already reading me and you're trying to get me to spend $3, $5, $10 more for the same item, and then maybe I talk to my neighbor, I don't know three months from now, and we both bought the thing and they tell me from the same store that they paid $10, $15, $20 less than I did. I'm not okay. I am not okay. Last month, representative Greg Cesar of Texas introduced the Stop AI, price Guarding and Waste Fixing Act of 2025. Now there are some states California, colorado, georgia and Illinois they've proposed similar bans, but Cesar's bill is the first one at the federal level. Here's a quote from him Giant corporations should not be allowed to jack up your prices or lower your wages using data they got spying on you.
Speaker 2:Let me stop right there. I said it a million times. Going to say it again Personal data protection against big data, personal privacy Big deal with me, big deal with me, big deal with me. We have no comprehensive federal laws that protect the consumer relative to what data is out there and our control of it. We got piecemeal, we got this, we got that, we got the other, and then we're subject to the whim of whatever administration is in power, whether or not we get protected or not. Some are better than others. Some swing the business way, some swing our way, but it's not consistent.
Speaker 2:This, at best, is just a drop in the bucket, because the issue is not necessarily surveillance pricing. It's. Wait a minute, I'm the data. I want control over what you're doing about what you know about me. You're tracking everything. You're tracking my keystrokes. You're tracking my credit card use. You're tracking where I go, where I buy, what I've bought, what I've looked at. That's not okay and for your benefit, I don't get any benefit. You're using that against me to optimize your profit. That's not okay. You're eliminating my ability to choose and to comparative shop by using AI against me to track me.
Speaker 2:Now add in everything else we've talked about over the years license plate readers, face recognition software, heck ring cameras for Pete's sake. And then using AI on top of that for further analysis. We don't even know, out of all the information that's out there about you floating in the world, who is condensing that, controlling that, packaging it and selling it to somebody else. They're selling you. Are you seeing any of that money? No, are you being impacted by it? Yes, it could be insurance rates. It could be your mortgage rate. It could be the rental property you're looking at renting. It could be the car you're buying, Clothes, where you do business. All of that impact in ways you didn't even realize that you were being manipulated. They got the data on you.
Speaker 2:Did you ever think it was strange that, as your credit line or your FICO number improved, all these offers just flooding, just flooding, and I've noticed that, and they're ridiculous. But here's something else. Have you looked at the rates that they're getting? Good rates are between 13% and 27%, but there are some credit card companies out there right now that will charge you 35.9%, with minimums and late fees. That shouldn't even be legal. But they're paying you and, oh, they want to catch you when you're desperate, when you need to make a move, and they know when that is. That's when they're going to have the offer. That's when they're going to have the hook. That is when they're going to get you while you're down, while you're not paying attention, while you think it's the way out.
Speaker 2:You don't believe me? Let me give an example. Oh, let's just say middle class family. We already know statistically, according to the Federal Reserve, that the average American family does not have enough money to live on for three months in the bank. In case of emergencies Don't have it. So the car breaks down and maybe they're out there either looking at parts to get or shopping maintenance companies.
Speaker 2:And then suddenly an offer comes up for a credit card because they know you're short and it would offer you just enough credit to get the vehicle fixed. But here's what they know. They already know your know, they already know your behavior, they already know how you're going to pay and they already know how much money they're going to make from you. But they offered it because they knew you were desperate. They knew you didn't have the cash, they knew you were looking for a lifeline. And here it comes and you think it's the greatest thing. They got the hook. But you didn't see the fact that it was 35.9% and you didn't see the fact that there's a late fee and that late fee kicks in at 25 days, not 30.
Speaker 2:One of the other little tricks the credit card companies like to play on you. Their cycles are shorter than you would think. They're shorter than a month, and they get you in that five days and oh, they will charge you late fee and an interest on the late fee, which triggers an over-limit fee when you go over. Yeah, that thing. They've gotten real sophisticated with this, and this is just one piece of it.
Speaker 2:Companies engaging in surveillance pricing use customer data taken from cookies, text files containing data or tracking pixels that continue to follow you after leaving their websites, which provide information on your online activity preferences, location and device. This data can then be analyzed by AI programs to help companies determine a personalized price for their products or services. The ban would impact the one that the congressman is proposing, that the pricing systems of numerous retailers that reportedly engage in the practice from businesses that increase prices for pickup orders when you are close to a store to ride booking apps to charge more when your phone battery is low. Can you imagine how diabolical that is? They know you got to make a choice and you got to make it before your phone goes dead. So here it comes and it's going to be higher. That ain't right the article talks about. Delta Airlines recently came under fire for plans to expand its use of AI-driven pricing.
Speaker 2:Oh my God, christ on 100. What's next for the story nameplate? We are the Tech Mobility Show. To learn more about the Tech Mobility Show, start by visiting our website. Hi, I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. The website is a treasure trove of information about me and the show, as well as where to find it on the radio across the country. Keep up with the happenings of the Tech Mobility Show by visiting techmobilityshow. That's techmobilityshow. You can also drop us a line at talk at techmobilityshow. You can also drop us a line at talk at techmobilityshow.
Speaker 2:Did you know that Tech Mobility has a YouTube channel? Hi, I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. Each week, I upload a few short videos of some of the hot topics that I cover during my weekly radio program. I've designed these videos to be informative and entertaining. It's another way to keep up on current mobility and technology news and information. Be sure to watch, like and subscribe to my channel. That's the Tech Mobility Show on YouTube. Check it out.
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Speaker 2:Social media is the place to be these days, and we're no exception. I'm Ken Chester of the Tech Mobility Show. If you enjoy my program, then you will also enjoy my weekly Instagram videos From the latest vehicle reviews to timely commentary on a variety of mobility and technology-related topics. These short features are designed to inform and delight you. Be sure to watch, like and follow us on Instagram. You can find us by typing the Tech Mobility Show in the search bar.
Speaker 2:Extra Care and Engineering, the tagline for the Chrysler Corporation back in the day, a big three automaker that was then based in the Highland Park neighborhood of Detroit. Engineering from the beginning is what gave the fledgling company an edge in an otherwise bruising market environment where many of former auto visionaries' dreams never made it past the concept stage. So does the 100-year-old Delantis nameplate have a future? This is Topic C. This is a subject that's near and dear to my heart. I loved the Chrysler Corporation. I wanted to go to work for the Chrysler Corporation when I was in college.
Speaker 2:Back in the day I got into all of this that I'm doing now. I was six years old. I've told this story a million times, but I'm going to tell it to you again because I still remember it. I don't know whatever happened to my first grade friend and his mom. He was being raised by a single mother. They were living in Fitchburg, massachusetts. It was the fall of 1964, and Mark Ronenberger's mom bought a brand new 1964 Plymouth Valiant four-door sedan in medium blue. I got in the backseat of that car and I fell head over heels in love and that started my love affair with the auto industry and everything else I've been doing all these years since. By the time I was a teenager I owned a 1965 Plymouth Valiant 200 four-door sedan. Brilliant 200 four-door sedan. Only mine was red. Love that car.
Speaker 2:Chrysler it breaks my heart to see where it is now. They have one product, a minivan, that they have not updated in almost 12 years. I mean seriously updated. Pacifica has been out in the marketplace and honestly, to be blunt with you, has been eclipsed by better. If you've ever driven the Toyota Sienna, which is a hybrid, it's like driving a mini limo. It's amazing. Kia has the Carnival. Honda still builds the Odyssey. They're not building the volume that they used to in the minivan market and when Chrysler owned the minivan market. But here they are Now.
Speaker 2:I thought there were some signs of life with Chrysler. When they came out a few years ago with the airflow concept and it was white and I said, if you build that, I'll buy it. I loved it. Then the next year they come out with a black one which looked totally ugly. I'm like what did you do? And then it just kind of went away.
Speaker 2:I am not convinced, and I'm looking at an automotive news article where they've basically interviewed the chief designer for Chrysler. I'm not convinced in this present world and it breaks my heart to say this, it really does that there's a place for Chrysler. I don't see it. I mean, in the interview they talk at length with the designer and you know what designer stands out to you. What are the most impactful designs in Chrysler's history? Where do we go from here? What was real telling? When the reporter asked the designer which Chrysler designers stand out to you, and the first one he mentioned was Virgil Exner. Virgil Exner coined what they called the forward look. That was back in the 1950s, almost 70 years ago. Then he talked about the period of the 90s and Chrysler was on a roll in the 90s, but guess what? That was 30 years ago. Where is the money, the product and the will to build a brand that has basically been hollowed out.
Speaker 2:Chrysler was created from the ashes of the maxwell motorcar company and they bought dodge in 1925. The chrysler six which 6, which was an engineering marvel in 1924, was actually built by Maxwell. Chrysler brought three young engineers in and they developed a low-cost, high-performance car, the Chrysler 6, which that year, in 1924, outsold the Maxwell 3-1. The Maxwell 3-1. The next year they rolled the name of the company over and the Maxwell Corporation became the Chrysler Corporation of Delaware and they bought Dodge the next year and they brought Plymouth out three years later and they brought DeSoto out about the same time. In the 30s, in the midst of the Depression, they came out with a revolutionary car called the Airflow. It looked like nothing else. It looked like nothing else, it drove like nothing else and it was way, way, way ahead of its time. But they were willing to take a risk. But that's when the company was still independent. Chrysler's had a number of owners in the last shoot 30 years I won't even give you the rundown, including being broke.
Speaker 2:In order for Chrysler, in order for this designer, to even come up with something, some basic questions have to be answered, which was outside the purview of this automotive news article and really I thought I'd take issue even with the headline. The headline is 100 years in Chrysler still striving to innovate. No, they have nothing. And what they need right now is they need some platforms. Okay, solantis has developed a couple of platforms EV and some that can run which are agnostic. You can run gasoline, hybrid, electric.
Speaker 2:Question is now number one what are they going to build on? Number two even if you have a vehicle, the dealer body has been neglected for so long and most Americans now have no knowledge of the heyday and the sophistication that Chrysler name was associated with in its heyday. So, while that represents an opportunity, it could, because now it's a clean slate. You can pretty much define it any way you want to. But do you have the money, the will, the product, the time and the dedication to bring it off?
Speaker 2:Dodge is in the same trouble. Do you have the money? When Carlos Chavarro became head of Stellantis after the merger and he said we've got 14 brands, we're going to support them all and I said no, you lie, you can't. You don't have the managerial talent, you don't have the engineering talent, you don't have the assembly plants, you do not have what you need to do, that You're going to have to make some decisions and pick some winners and losers.
Speaker 2:Nothing in this article gives me hope. It is nice to hear that the chief designer has dreams, but the auto industry is unforgiving and capital intensive, with long lead times. You need to capture the public's fancy and everything needs to be firing the cylinders. You need to get the dealers excited again. You need to get suppliers excited again. You need something that is going to basically catch the interest of everybody and ain't nobody standing still, including a lot of the new EV manufacturers coming in with brand new product and new ideas and not linked to any legacy things at all. Extra care and engineering. That was a sense of pride for the Chrysler Corporation. Even as they had their ups and downs, they could point to a lot of firsts. A lot of them weren't too.
