Enlarge / When is a Dodge not a Dodge? When it's also an Alfa Romeo, in this case. (credit: Jonathan Gitlin)

Dodge provided flights from DC to Asheville and back, plus two nights in a hotel, so we could meet the prototype EV9. Ars does not accept paid editorial content.

ASHEVILLE, N.C.—A day after Dodge revealed the last of its Hemi V8-powered muscle cars , the company also lifted the embargo on driving impressions for its next car, the Hornet crossover. It's a far cry from the 1,025-hp Challenger—a much more sensible compact crossover that includes a plug-in hybrid version starting at a competitive $40,000. Ars spent a day driving the Hornet around the outskirts of Asheville and found a lot to like about this handsome crossover.

But first, a few words on its origin story.

Last February, the world got its first look at an attractive new crossover from Alfa Romeo. It was given the unfortunate name of Tonale, and more than a few of us raised an eyebrow thanks to the news that the car would include an NFT that acted as a permanent record for the car, from production through lifetime maintenance.

Enlarge / The Pinnacle of minivans. (credit: Eric Bangeman)

If you're in the market for a battery-electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid, you're increasingly spoiled for choice. Want a two-row BEV SUV? There are plenty of options. Luxury fastbacks? Check. Pickup truck? Ford cannot make the F-150 Lightning fast enough. There's even a fully electric Hummer !

But what of the lowly minivan? One of the most reviled but practical of all form factors, there are no BEV minivans on the market. Even though they're better than SUVs for so many things , we have to wait for the arrival of the Volkswagen ID.Buzz for the first electric minivan to go on sale in the US in 2024. That's a shame because the typical use case for minivans—short trips to school, the store, practices, and rehearsals—is a perfect fit for electrification.

In 2018, the only PHEV minivan option was the Chrysler Pacifica . Five years later, the only PHEV minivan option is the Chrysler Pacifica. We drove it again and came away impressed with the improvements Chrysler has made and saddened that there aren't more models like it on the market.

Enlarge / A 2022 Toyota bZ4X on display at the 43rd Bangkok International Motor Show 2022 in Bangkok, Thailand. (credit: NurPhoto via Getty )

Five months since Toyota started selling its first all-electric car to compete directly with Tesla, hardly any of them have been seen on the road.

The rollout of the bZ4X sport utility vehicle was intended as a watershed moment for the world’s largest carmaker by sales. Its first mass-produced EV was Toyota’s answer to investor criticism that it had been slow to embrace the industry’s transition to electric.

Instead, the long-awaited debut was hampered by a humiliating global recall because of safety problems and supply chain delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic. With the rollout of the bZ4X only just resumed, Toyota has spent much of the year on the defensive and under scrutiny for its lobbying against rules designed to encourage a shift to electric vehicles.

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  The fifth-generation Grand Cherokee. [credit: BradleyWarrenPhotography ]

When Fiat Chrysler America merged with Peugeot , part of the reason was the former's challenges in getting an electric vehicle to market in the US. By the time the merger was finally consummated in early 2021, the plug-in hybrid Chrysler Pacifica minivan was the only electrified vehicle in the US portfolio of Stellantis. Since then, we've seen the launch of two new PHEVs from the company's top US-selling Jeep brand: the Jeep Wrangler 4xe and the Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe.

The PHEV Wrangler has seen strong sales since its introduction, and Jeep hopes it has another winner on its hands with the fifth-generation Grand Cherokee. The two-row Grand Cherokee 4xe uses the same powertrain as the Wrangler 4xe: a turbocharged 2.0 L inline-four engine capable of cranking out 270 hp (199 kW) and 295 lb-ft (400 Nm) of torque is paired with a 134 hp (99 kW) electric motor. The end result is a 375 hp (276 kW) powertrain with 470 lb-ft (639 Nm) of torque, outdoing the 5.7 L V8 (there's also a 293 hp V6 available). All three power plant options are paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission.

There are a few options for configuring the Grand Cherokee 4xe. The base model starts at $60,695, but if you want all the bells and whistles, there's a $76,070 Summit Reserve model. We tested a $71,790 Trailhawk 4xe, which was kitted out with Nappa leather, Jeep's full suite of driver-assist tech, and its Quadra-Drive II 4x4 system with a two-speed transfer case. The Trailhawk also comes with a front-axle disconnect, which will automatically switch the SUV to front-wheel drive if driving conditions don't require both axles.