Chrysler has agreed to conduct a "voluntary campaign" to inspect and, if needed, upgrade 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee and 2002-07 Jeep Liberty SUVs to improve rear-collision protection. Chrysler had until today to respond to a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) safety recall request due to fire risk.

The mission: Help me pick a car for a road trip to a human factors conference in the Adirondacks.

Earlier this week, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) requested that Chrysler initiate a safety recall of the 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee and 2002-2007 Jeep Liberty to address a performance and design defect. NHTSA is calling for Chrysler to improve the rear-crash protection in approximately 2.7 million vehicles. In a widely distributed press release, Chrysler gave a rare response and effectively said, "No."

Memorial Day is fast approaching and that means millions of Americans will be hitting the road for a family trip. The roads will be crowded and you should expect lines at gas stations. A car bred for long-haul driving, with bladder-bursting range, can give a distinct advantage, especially on cross-country journeys. To aid travelers, we have compiled a list of the best road-trip friendly cars that can go the distance.

The redesigned Subaru Forester is the only small SUV out of 13 tested to earn a top score of Good in the new small overlap crash test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Both the Forester and the 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport, which received an Acceptable score, earn the Institute's Top Safety Pick+ award.

Over the years, with Consumer Reports' extensive testing, we've found that diesel engines provide a significant fuel economy advantage, typically reducing consumption by 30 percent over a conventional engine in an equivalent model. We're encouraged, since at the New York International Auto Show last week, a few automakers promised more diesel variants.

At the New York International Auto Show (NYIAS), we saw dozens of new and improved cars. To help make sense of it all, Consumer Reports' automotive engineers Tom Mutchler and Gabe Shenhar discuss the highlights in the latest episode of our video podcast called "Talking Cars with Consumer Reports."

The Consumer Reports Annual Autos Issue is a great resource for researching the best cars. Flip through the magazine or tour the website, and it is clear there are many great choices. However, just as there are many good cars available, there are also many that fail miserably. These vehicles fall way below our threshold to be recommended. Take a look at our disappointing dozen—the cars Consumer Reports has recently tested with the lowest test scores.

Well, that was fast. Only two weeks after a white 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee diesel press car visited our track for initial driving impressions, I drove another white 2014 Grand Cherokee off of the dealer's lot to add to our test fleet.

While car brand reputation can be a strong influence on purchase decisions, such perceptions can be misleading. The reality is, every brand offers models that perform across a spectrum, with some are clearly better than others.

It's important, of course, to get a good deal when you buy a car. But it's just as critical to look down the road at how much a vehicle will cost you to own.

For years, the Jeep Grand Cherokee just didn't live up to the model's substantial nameplate equity. A top-to-bottom 2011 redesign set things straight, rewarding the post-bankruptcy Chrysler with strong sales. Now a 2014 mid-cycle update brings more refinements and improvements for the popular and well-rounded Jeep, including a new diesel-engine option.

Set to make its public debut at the New York International Auto Show in March, the polarizing-looking 2014 Jeep Cherokee has been unveiled online.

Sure, a new Corvette is catnip to car journalists. But my interest runs toward new beasts of burden, since I spend most of my weekends towing a 23-foot Airstream trailer behind a 2011 Dodge Durango. So I was rather interested to hear about the 2014 improvements made to the Durango's platform-mate, the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Jeep is giving Grand Cherokee customers some awesome options for the 2014 model year: "Would you like power or fuel economy? Or, perhaps boatloads of torque?"