Chrysler will recall trucks, vans

Chrysler LLC said Friday it is recalling nearly 600,000 Dodge trucks and vans to address concerns that the vehicles could shift out of park without the key in the ignition.

The recall affects 576,417 2001-2002 Dodge Dakota trucks, Dodge Durango sport utility vehicles and Dodge Ram vans and the 2002 Dodge Ram pickup.

Chrysler spokesman Max Gates said there have been nine incidents involving injuries connected to the issue. No fatalities have been reported, he said in an e-mail.

Owners will be notified beginning in January 2008 and dealers will replace the gearshift blocker and bracket assembly. In the interim, vehicle owners are advised to use the parking brake at all times when the vehicle is not in use, Gates said.

The Hershey Co. said Friday it is considering changes to the design of a mint that Philadelphia police say looks nearly identical to a tiny heat-sealed bag used to sell powdered street drugs.

The revelation by the nation’s largest candy maker came a week after the criticism surfaced about Ice Breakers Pacs, although a Hershey spokesman would not specify the exact concerns that prompted the company to act.

Ice Breakers Pacs, which first hit store shelves last month, are nickel-sized dissolvable pouches with a powdered sweetener inside. The pouches come in blue or orange and bear the Ice Breakers logo.

Hershey has said that the mints were never intended to resemble anything – but the similarity was so striking that longtime veterans of Philadelphia’s police narcotics squad were fooled when they saw the mints.

McDonald’s Corp. has agreed to pay its franchisees 40 percent of the expense of outfitting U.S. restaurants to serve specialty coffees after the restaurant owners resisted the hefty new costs.

The fast-food chain acknowledged its commitment Friday in releasing a statement of support from a group representing franchisees, who own a majority of its restaurants.

McDonald’s announced last month that it will add espresso coffee drinks, now being tested in more than 800 restaurants, in its 13,800 U.S. outlets starting next year.

But its owner-operators balked at the steep required expenditures. McDonald’s USA President Don Thompson told analysts last month they could run as high as $75,000 per restaurant for remodeling and about $25,000 for initial equipment costs.