USA - Former Major League Baseball All-Star CJ Wilson has taken on the BAC Dealership in Arizona and North Texas.

Former Major League Baseball All-Star CJ Wilson has announced a multi-level dealership agreement with British car manufacturer Briggs Automotive Company (BAC) and CJ Wilson Racing.

The partnership will see CJ Wilson Racing and Entertainment become the exclusive dealership and service facility for BAC’s Mono supercar in the Arizona and North Texas markets. 

Wilson has been a long-time fan of the 2.5-litre, four-cylinder British single-seater supercar and is delighted to promote this highly acclaimed design in the USA.

“Having spent a significant amount of time with the BAC Mono over the last couple of years, I have really fallen in love with the brand. 

Whether a specialist car for the serious track-day enthusiast, or the ultimate road car, it really creates a feeling unrivalled by any other vehicle, regardless of price,” explained Wilson.

The CJ Wilson Racing founder added that he’s looking forward to building the brand further in the USA: “It’s awesome for CJWR to be able to partner with BAC; the agreement means we can distribute and maintain these amazing cars over two markets in Austin, Texas and Scottsdale, Arizona. Having service locations in each of these markets will allow Mono customers to get together and do what all enthusiasts want to do, namely share their experiences with people of a similar mindset.

“Being able to do group track days, group drives and group events is what we are all about as we begin to foster a 'Mono Culture' in the United States. We are looking forward to developing tours, extended drives, and track day events for our customers and those who want to learn more about the marque.” 

Mark Rayner, BAC USA President said: "We're delighted to enter into this dealership agreement with CJ and CJ Wilson Racing. This partnership provides a solid base from which to deliver the BAC Mono to the North American market. The teams in Scottsdale and Austin are dynamic, brand aware and the right fit for BAC.

“CJ Wilson and his team will work with BAC to elevate a BAC Mono owners' package that creates a one-of-a-kind experience. As we grow our dealership network, this partnership will define our strategy for providing a best-in-class customer service and ownership experience."

Neill Briggs, BAC Co-Founder and Director of Product Development, added: “The BAC Mono is a supercar designed by enthusiasts for enthusiasts, and it’s of vital importance for BAC to partner with dealers who fully understand the ethos of the Mono. CJ Wilson shares our passion for cars, and with his attention to detail and emphasis on exceptional customer care, we can be confident the BAC brand and Mono supercar will be accurately demonstrated to potential clients. We are delighted to announce this partnership and I look forward to a successful future”.

Volvo launches the next stage of it's 90 Series cars, the V90 Cross Country.

Volvo Cars, the premium car maker, has unveiled the eagerly awaited V90 Cross Country, completing its 90 series line-up.

Since the introduction of the first Cross Country almost 20 years ago, Volvo Cars has become synonymous with the rugged all-road, all-weather product category, with a growing stable of Cross Country models.

Volvo Cars’ Cross Country models fulfil an increasingly important part of the Swedish brand’s product portfolio as luxury car buyers seek out a more experienced-based lifestyle that occasionally takes them off the beaten track.

“The V90 Cross Country takes the elegance of the V90 and transforms it into an all-road car that delivers safety, comfort and performance in a capable and adventurous package,” said Håkan Samuelsson, President & CEO, Volvo Car Group.

With some of the harshest winters on the planet and more than 77 per cent of the country covered in forest and lakes, Sweden is the natural place to develop and test extreme durability and all-weather-capable cars. This hard-won expertise represents a large part of Volvo Cars’ heritage, reflected in the company’s Cross Country model line-up.

“Our cars are well known for their safety, strength and durability. With All-Wheel Drive, increased ride height and a chassis optimised for comfort and control in all weather and road conditions, the new V90 Cross Country takes our versatile V90 estate and adds the heart of an explorer,” said Dr Peter Mertens, Senior Vice President Research & Development at Volvo Cars.

With Volvo Cars’ Scalable Product Architecture providing the underpinnings, the V90 Cross Country has undergone rigorous testing to ensure that it can survive the extremes in which it will ultimately find itself.

From secret testing facilities in the frozen north of Sweden, where temperatures regularly hit -40 degrees centigrade, to the searing desert heat of Arizona, where Volvo Cars performs its high-temperature testing program, the V90 Cross Country has been built to last.

With a design that clearly stands out from the crowd, the V90 Cross Country’s rugged character belies a sumptuous interior that delivers a level of luxury uncommon in the segment, combining all the benefits of the connectivity and entertainment features that were launched with the new S90 and V90, including a high-end sound system by Bowers & Wilkins.

The V90 Cross Country’s exterior design cues communicate the powerful and dynamic capability that the car exemplifies, while offering the flexibility to choose from both rugged and elegant expressions.

“Designing a Volvo Cross Country is not a styling exercise, a plastic job. It is based on honest capability. The Volvo V90 Cross Country brings a surprising and intriguing combination of a strong, powerful exterior and a luxurious, Scandinavian interior. It will continue the genuine tradition of the Volvo Cross Country with a new recipe: the blend of powerful off-road capability in a most elegant, sophisticated, tailored wagon suit,” said Thomas Ingenlath, Senior Vice President Design at Volvo Cars.

The new V90 Cross Country takes this well-established segment to a new level of comfort-inspired capability. Production of the car is set to start this autumn at Volvo Cars’ Torslanda plant in Sweden.

UK prices will be announced later this year, and first deliveries are expected in Q1 2017.

The 2017 Chrysler underwent 3.4 million real world driving miles to iron out any possible issues.

• All-new minivan underwent more than 3.4 million miles of testing
• Pacifica has been driven to the moon and back (7 times, to be exact)
• Endured weeks of extreme-weather testing conducted in Arizona, Nevada and Alaska
• Corrosion evaluations simulated a decade in the world’s worst climates for vehicle rust

With an unsurpassed level of attention to detail and quality, the all-new 2017 Chrysler Pacifica is poised to deliver segment-leading durability and reliability as it arrives in dealer showrooms this spring.

Thousands of simulated and laboratory tests conducted on Pacifica set the foundation for the regimented reliability, capability and durability testing that continues at FCA US LLC’s proving grounds around the world.

More Than 3.4 Million Miles … and Counting

Reliability is synonymous with quality and it’s something customers expect from their vehicles. Knowing that, the development team literally went the extra mile to ensure the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica does not disappoint.

With more than 3.4 million real-world miles driven, Pacifica has gone to the moon and back – seven times, to be exact. This distance represents one of the highest pre-production mileage totals of any Chrysler brand vehicle ever.

“The main objective of putting Pacifica through more than 3.4 million miles of real-world driving is to identify and prevent any issues from occurring in the first place,” said Scott Garberding, Head of Quality, FCA - Global. 

“This commitment to quality is just one piece of a comprehensive strategy that focuses on attention to detail, as it represents one of the final steps in a quality process that began with the inception of Pacifica.”

Traversing “The Grand Canyon State”

Extreme-weather testing is a crucial step in vehicle validation and Pacifica was up for the challenge. FCA tested Pacifica day and night, on all kinds of road surfaces, at high and low altitudes and through blizzard conditions, as well as in dry, desert heat.

During numerous 4,000-mile-plus roundtrip drives from Auburn Hills, Mich., to FCA’s Arizona Proving Ground (APG) in Yucca, Ariz., Pacifica was put through the wringer in numerous tests that saw the all-new minivan withstand scorching heat up to 120 degrees Fahrenheit in the arid, dusty desert climate.

Knowing that many customers are focused on local driving, the minivan team took Pacifica to the busy downtowns of Las Vegas and Los Angeles for hours of slow, grueling city traffic in heat up to 110 degrees Fahrenheit.

Pacifica also ventured to Arizona’s Davis Dam for a grueling durability evaluation that’s usually reserved for payload testing of light and heavy-duty pickup trucks.

The notorious Davis Dam grade sits on Highway 68, a punishing hill climb from the Colorado River at its base to a rocky summit nearly 11 miles up. From start to finish, it's an almost 3,000-foot elevation gain, providing Pacifica engineers with one of the steepest continuous incline roads in the U.S. 

With its award-winning Pentastar V-6 gasoline engine under the hood, Pacifica successfully traversed the Davis Dam route with the air conditioning on full blast while towing a 3,600 lb. trailer behind it.

Exploring “The Last Frontier”

In addition to hot weather testing in Yucca, each FCA vehicle goes through extensive cold weather evaluations at the Company’s 740-acre winter test track in Houghton, Mich., located in the state’s Upper Peninsula.

Pacifica received special attention when it came to cold weather evaluations as the minivan was brought to Fort Greely, Alaska, for three weeks of testing in frigid climates that reached temperatures of minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit and below.

In Alaska, the minivan’s quality was put to the test on snow and ice to evaluate a number of critical systems, including traction control, anti-lock brakes, air-induction system, electronic stability control (ESC), driver-assist systems, cold-weather durability and engine cold start.

“The trip allowed our Pacifica engineers an opportunity to refine the minivan for customers as several ESC calibration adjustments were made to improve system smoothness and reduce noise, vibration and harshness,” said Garberding. “ESC enhances driver control and helps maintain directional stability under all conditions. 

The technology provides driver benefits in critical driving situations, such as turns, and is valuable when driving on mixed surface conditions, including snow, ice or gravel.”

Outrunning Rust

Owners can be confident their minivans will outlast almost anything nature throws at them. Through months of accelerated testing, Pacifica withstood a rigorous corrosion evaluation, the equivalent of which is enduring a decade in the worst corrosion climate in the world – an environment that produces significant snow, humidity and salt mist coming off the ocean.

Pacifica also endured corrosion tests on dozens of durability drives and with direct salt applications. To ensure thorough coverage, Pacifica was locked in chambers where salt was sprayed all over the vehicle body and engineers ran the minivan again and again through a salt splash trough. 

The trough exposed Pacifica’s undercarriage to high concentrations of salt, which are normally present on roadways, typically from de-icing salts.

Stretching Out

Quality does not stop with the driver experience, especially in a vehicle like Pacifica, which can seat up to eight people. With the all-new, one-of-a-kind Uconnect Theater rear-seat entertainment system featuring two high-definition 10-inch touchscreens, Pacifica transforms the passenger experience.

While thorough driver-focused testing was conducted during more than 3.4 million miles driven, additional tests were conducted by passengers seated in the second and third rows. Everything from the built-in apps and games on the Uconnect 

Theater to the seat comfort and ride quality were thoroughly exercised. Technicians worked through an extensive checklist to validate the functionality and reliability of the Uconnect system, as well as how compatible it is with a wide variety of mobile phones, music players and other media devices.

The 2017 Chrysler Pacifica is available in five models and the Pacifica Hybrid in two models. The Chrysler Pacifica is now available in dealer showrooms, with the Pacifica Hybrid arriving in the second half of 2016.