Mopar

Mopar ^[1] is the parts, service and customer care organization within Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Mopar also designs and builds a small number of customized vehicles.^[2] The name derives from a combination of letters from the words «MOtor» and «PARts».^[1]

History

The term was first used by Chrysler in the 1920s and was introduced as a brand starting in 1937. Mopar parts are original equipment manufactured parts for Chrysler vehicles. The term «Mopar» has passed into broader usage among car enthusiasts as an unambiguous reference to the parent company Chrysler Group LLC.

The term has thus become an inclusive word for any Chrysler-built vehicle — most any Dodge, Chrysler, Plymouth, Imperial, DeSoto or Dodge Trucks/Ram, plus Jeeps vehicles built after Chrysler's 1987 buyout of American Motors (including the short-lived Eagle brand) and, since 2011, Fiat and Alfa Romeo following Fiat's takeover of Chrysler. In Canada, these were sold under the Chryco and AutoPar brands until the Mopar brand was phased into that nation's market, starting in the late 1970s.

Sponsorship

Mopar has recently become involved in sprint car racing.

In 1996, Mopar sponsored the #30 car of Jimmy Hensley in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. From 2004 to 2007 Mopar sponsored the #9 car driven by Kasey Kahne in the Sprint Cup Series for the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. They also sponsored his sprint car.

In the United States and Canada, Mopar participates in Formula D. Formula Drift drivers are Samuel Hubinette, and in Canadian Drift Championship Vanessa Ozawa, Kevin Huynh, and John Yakomoto. Mopar had sponsored NHRA drag racer Allen Johnson in that series' Pro Stock division for 20 years, but for 2016 season they will sponsor Jegs Coughlin Jr and Erica Enders-Stevens ^[3]