Chrysler to Double Its Model Count with a New EV

Matthew Guy
by Matthew Guy

This is a marque which will celebrate its centenary next year with only a single model on sale in its showrooms, showing up as the Pacifica and its numerous variants. Suits in corner offices seek to right this detail with an electric vehicle they will unveil early next week.

And, no, it’s not likely to be the Airflow – at least not the concept car which was looking all but production-ready over two years ago. It is alleged by some in the industry that certain company leaders wanted a do-over with that model, meaning the vehicle set to drop next Tuesday may not look anything like the handsome show car. There’s every chance in the world it will likely carry a fresh name, as well.


The hero shot at the top of this post doesn’t give us much to go on, though two more photos are promised before the car itself shows up next week. Yes, that means there will be a trio of teasers for a concept car which, by definition, is itself a teaser. Few companies play that particular game like Stellantis, it must be said. Hedging its own bets, Chrysler is calling the concept reveal an “advance look at one potential path” to the brand’s all-electric future.


That’s a heckuva lot of wiggle room for what’s actually in the pipeline. Saul Goodman would be proud. Nevertheless, one of the STLA platforms will surely underpin the forthcoming concept car, though we’d be pleasantly surprised if Chrysler engineers spill any beans about battery size or total driving range at this stage in the car’s development. One can hope. Same goes for the likes of horsepower stats and the like.


After sunsetting the burly 300 sedan, Chrysler showrooms could use an infusion of new product, though it has been some spell since there were any more than three different things on sale at at any one time (200, 300, and minivan variants).


Reaching back a bit further to just the late 2000s in the waning days of Cerberus, we find a variety of products including the Crossfire and PT Cruiser plus the Pacifica when it was a crossover and a Durango-based Aspen SUV. Buyers with families could choose the 300 or Sebring, not to mention the (then) ubiquitous minivans.


[Image: Stellantis]


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Matthew Guy
Matthew Guy

Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.

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  • Geozinger Geozinger on Feb 11, 2024

    "The 3rd option would be a more upscale Outback fighter but cautious because of the failure of the Buick Regal TourX. But that wasn't a bad car it was just priced and promoted wrong."


    What? When was the TourX ever promoted? I live in GM Country and if they ever promoted the TourX, it was very, very, very subtle. Maybe they moved one out of the way to get a better shot of an Enclave for a TV commercial.


    We have all kinds of oddball GM rolling stock around here, but I don't think I have ever seen more than two TourX in the last several years.

  • CanadaCraig CanadaCraig on Feb 15, 2024

    I won't buy an EV Chrysler sedan. But I might if that all-new Chrysler sedan had one of the Hurricane Straight 6 engines under the hood. It's silly of Chrysler to declare itself an EV-ONLY brand. Why box themselves in like that?

  • Joe65688619 Looks like they at least have the same button controls for HVAC and radio as my RDX. Glad to see the've done away with the touchpad. But it's hard to see how the MDX will successfully compete with the Grand Highlander (or the ZDX vs. the Lyric, for that matter, even though they share the drivetrain.) The RDX/ZDX/MDX look too much alike - maybe Mazda can get away with the 50/70/90, but when I drive by an Acura dealership I see too many vehicles that look pretty much the same (and pretty much the same as they have for close to a decade now).
  • Redapple2 F1- crash at tunnel entrance when douche wipes out team mate ? GOLD!
  • Redapple2 I turned off indy after the 7 th yellow (and 2nd or was it the 3rd time they couldnt make it 2 laps laps more before another crash (it was like a demolition derby)). I wanted to tune in the last 20 laps my remote got confiscated. Monaco> why does that Princess look so spaced out all the time?
  • Redapple2 Modern faux retro styling? I m beginning to HATE it. Was the PT Cruiser the first - 20 some years ago. Next, my new Land Rover in 2006 was in the shop 3x in the first year. Almost came to blows with the service manager when they wouldnt admit to a defect and wanted me to pay $1200 on something. (an 8 month old car mind you). 3- what s with the smaller square tail lights next to the bigger square tail lights? Cheap gimmicky styling flair? I truly cant stand Land Rovers any more. I ll buy a Yukon Denali from evil gm Vampire before I buy one of these.
  • 2ACL If you're going to put $13k into a tired Astro van, either finish restoring it, drive it back into the ground, or accept that you're going to take a bath to part ways. As is, this looks like a crusher fugitive and sounds as if itdrives like one, too.
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