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Another one bites the dust, and this time its International, that’s decided to drop its line of non-commercial big rigs. Considering the tough times that automakers have been having moving traditional pickups off dealer lots and into driveways, you can imagine the problems that International must be having with its CXT, MXT and RXT consumer-grade semis. Current fuel prices alone may have been enough to bring the Internationals to a grinding halt, but the faltering economy, which has made luxury toy purchases much harder to justify, may have been the final nail in the XT’s coffin. In any case, this isn’t a death-blow to International, as the company didn’t sell too many of these leviathans anyway, and their demise will allow the company to focus its attention back on the heavy-duty hauler segment that is its bread-and-butter, along with the military segment, which surely is more profitable than the others.

It looks like the Fiat Group isn’t quite done with reviving old nameplates for new models just yet, as its Iveco truck division has launched a new Campagnola. The original Fiat Campagnola – Italian for “country girl” – was a Jeep-style truck made between 1951 through 1988, by which time some 40,000 examples had been produced and deployed around the world. It even served as the basis for the Popemobile until replaced by a Mercedes G-wagen.

The new vehicle, which will wear the Iveco badge, unlike the original Fiat (accept in South America), is based on the Iveco Massif truck and rivals the likes of the Land Rover Defender 90, HUMMER H1 and Jeep JT concept for authentic paramilitary appeal. The minimalist bodywork, believe it or not, was designed by ItalDesign-Giugiaro, together with Fiat’s own Centro Stile. It will only be offered in a three-door, four-seat body style with a 3.0-liter four-cylinder turbodiesel producing 176 hp and 295 lb.-ft. of torque driving through a six-speed gearbox and a selectable four-wheel-drive system. Customers can order one in any color as long as it’s white or sage green, and the fist 499 will be specially-badged “Opening Edition” models. The new Campagnola will be built in Spain by Fiat’s partner Santana and sold at a price of €29,800.

Who doesn’t get the Jeep J8? Um, that would be the United States, Home of Jeep. Hardly seems fair… considering that pretty much every other country in the world gets a crack at the ultra-Wrangler, which comes equipped with a 2.8-liter four-cylinder turbodiesel with 158-horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque mated to a five-speed automatic transmission. Memo to Chrysler: The Wranger is screaming out for a small displacement diesel engine. No? Fine. We can understand the fact that this engine isn’t certified for sale in the States and it would be expensive to make happen. At least the Pentastar brand could offer the J8’s nearly 3,000-pound payload capacity via rear leaf springs and reinforced frame in its home market. Still no dice? Could we at least get the pickup bed as an option on the Unlimited chassis? Not likely, would be our best guess.

The U.S. Navy and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are partnering on a national recruiting program that’ll officially kick off when Junior pilots the above #83 car in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race on May 24. On that very same day, prospective sailors will also be able to visit their local recruiting stations and sign up to be a part of the new “Dale Jr. Division” being formed at the Navy’s Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, IL. We are not making any of this up.

This new boot camp division is limited to 88 slots, a nod to the number worn by Dale Jr.’s NASCAR Sprint Cup ride. The Navy will support the new recruiting effort with a full media offensive, and Earnhardt Jr. will be on hand to christen his namesake division when its recruits report in August. Junior will also make a return trip to visit the group when it completes the basic training course. We eagerly await the logical next step in this high-profile partnership with Dale Jr. — a Navy announcement that funding for a high-banked oval at Great Lakes has been approved.

[Source: Navy NewsStand]