Next Jeep Liberty: More Carlike, Front-Drive Based, Fiat Engines, Coming in 2014

November 18, 2011 at 3:03pm by Justin Berkowitz

When Jeep’s next-generation Liberty arrives in 2014, it will be far more carlike and based on a front-wheel-drive platform, we’ve learned from an executive at the company.

Both previous generations of the Liberty (the second-gen 2012 model is pictured above) utilized a carlike unibody with a reinforcing frame underneath; the company refers to this as a “uniframe.” With the comment that the next Liberty will “evolve,” it seems that the reinforcing frame will be abandoned, and that the Liberty is almost definitely going to be based on one of the company’s car platforms. This in turn signals that, like the Patriot/Compass replacement and the upcoming subcompact Jeep, the next Liberty will offer either front- or all-wheel-drive motivation. If you need a simpler way to think about it, consider the next Liberty to be Jeep’s take on the Dodge Journey, even if they don’t actually share anything excepting corporate powertrains.

Softening the Liberty may get a rise from the brand’s faithful, but it will allow the model to compete more directly with segment bestsellers like the Toyota RAV4 and Chevy Equinox. Hard-core off-roaders with a need for more space should continue to flock to the four-door Wrangler.

We’re told that Fiat can supply a number of efficient powertrains for the next Liberty, which may mean Chrysler’s current 2.4-liter four fitted with MultiAir or even a new 1.8-liter turbo four from Italy. The option of a V-6 could hang around, with the current 210-horse 3.7-liter being canned for the stronger and more refined 3.6-liter Pentastar unit.

Tags: Fiat, Jeep, Jeep Liberty |

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Nelson Racing Engines Twin-Turbo 632: The Bugatti Veyron of Crate Motors

Grabbing headlines was easy for the Bugatti Veyron. Sure, there’s the 253-mph top speed, but there are a lot of other stupefying numbers associated with the car. Sixteen cylinders, four turbos, $25,000 tires (that’s a complete set, at least), and $123,200 transmission, not to mention the price tag, which varies based on the strength of the dollar but is reliably around $1.5 million.

Tom Nelson and his company, Nelson Racing Engines, had a sort of Bugatti of crate engines at SEMA. At 632 cubic inches, it’s fairly standard for a mondo motor, but the output is Veyron insane. Running pump gas, the twin-turbo 10.4-liter V-8 will shame the French wonder, with a screaming 1400 horsepower and 1400 lb-ft of torque. Fill the tank with race gas, and output rockets to 2300 hp and 2100 lb-ft, or more than twice what the Bugatti makes. It’s easy to make outrageous claims, but Nelson has the reputation to back them up—and for more than just a few quarter-mile passes. Appropriately, this bruiser carries a Veyron-esque price tag: $52,000.

Tags: 2011 SEMA show |

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