Motorweek; 1235

This time on motor week 93 we bring you the best of today's sports cars. The Sobero settles in with an f y i report on seat design. Cadillacs newest 2 door now features north star power. Great seeing last place with pedal power to come July with us next. Free TV's automotive magazine. Your host for Motor Week 93 Davis. By Hello and welcome again to motor week 93 we're glad to have you with us. Sports car it's a term that means a vehicle that puts the thrills and pleasures of driving

ahead of everything else. Now for some a sports car can have only two seats for all others a sports car must be a convertible. But there are those that think it's OK if a sports car has four wheel drive. Still it's exhilaration behind the wheel that makes a sports car a sports car. And this week we're going to review the core of the sports car market. Six stimulating models all designed where high performance is king. We opened with the newest sports car on the road. The 1904 Toyota Supra. The Super has come a long way since its 1979 debut as an upscale saw Laika the latest super delivers the kind of racy styling not to mention performance that quickly separates sports car lovers from their senses and wallets available as a hard top or with an aluminum lift out roof panel the Supra is based on the Lexus AC 360 and sports the

same three leader inline six cylinder twin turbo chargers for the almost outrageous Super Turbo. You haven't seen a rear wing like this since the Ferrari 40 inside the cabin has a competition air with no nonsense flat surfaces surrounding large legible gauges. But the latest in safety including twin airbags is included and as is the hint of a rear seat with 320 horsepower on tap and a light to get drag design six speed manual in hand. The Super Turbo darts from zero to 60 in five seconds. Lean hard into a corner and you feel both the heft of the Supra and its almost an unyielding grip. It should be for the super estimated thirty two thousand dollar base price or at least thirty eight thousand dollars for the Supra Turbo. But for our money the super is well. When you talk sports car you have to talk Porsche the 968 is Porsche's

latest and probably last run engine rear wheel drive appart. However it still impresses with a near legendary combination of power and handling while available as a pure convertible. We chose to test the lighter Coupe which does let some sunshine in with a lift out roof panel. It tasteful functional cockpit includes a glare free gauges for driving and 20 airbags for safety firm supportive and tiny fold down rear seats are both Porsche trademarks. As is tenacious performance. We love tackling Savannah's Roebling road raceway and a 968. The straight away flies with 0 to 60 runs of six seconds. Two hundred thirty six horsepower in two hundred twenty five pound feet of torque at the. Most big green leader four cylinder. Our car had the optional sports suspension with 17 inch wheels tire it is impressive to the limit. Unless you plan to spend lots of time on a racetrack though the standard thirty nine

thousand nine hundred fifty dollar 968 will do nicely. Our car with the extras came in at forty five thousand eight hundred twenty five dollars. A lot of money sure but no longer a lot more than competitors. The first Japanese car we ever thought came close to Porsche performance was the turbo charged version of the Nissan 300 cx. Four year old styling of Nissan's latest car has worn well a non turbo convertible and two plus two hard top are available while the turbo charge Star Sports glass T-tops the straightforward wrap around cockpit has been copied by many others. Drivers airbags included door mounted seat belts remain gauges around Clear and include turbo boost. But you really don't need it. That's when the twin turbo start to deliver their maximum 300 horsepower and 280 three pound feet of torque. This 3 liter V-6 stands up and seen. 300 smokes its way to 60 in 5.6 seconds.

Wider tires and wheels at the rear. And make sure all that power got to the pavement. Transitions and corners are rapid thanks to Nissans high cast four wheel steering properly handled this 30 500 pound machine flies through corners like a feather weight driver adjustable shocks help make the 300 turbo a pleasant road car as well. You'll need thirty thousand five hundred fifty five dollars for the non turbo Z car. Thirty seven thousand six hundred fifty five for the turbo model. Our car came to thirty eight thousand seven hundred thirty dollars with leather trim. There is a split personality to the Nissan 300 cx Turbo. It performs with the best it can also cobble its customers. However as we noted in our recent drivers choice poll if you want a pure high performance sports car experience try the Mazda r x 7. Most enthusiastic drool over its sexy body work. There is no sunroof no T-tops and don't waste your time waiting for a convertible inside the tight intimate cockpit. There are few concessions to comfort or luxury.

You get to perm seats into only gauge packages all business. Although we are thankful for the driver's airbag lean and mean come to mind when we dream of car x 7 performance. A 13 B two rotor motor uses twin turbo chargers to reduce lag and deliver 255 horsepower and 217 pound feet of torque. And it's all performance oriented since it's the only car in our group that failed to deliver over 20 mpg on the interstate. But then the rotary engine pulls the light weight twenty eight hundred pound Arik seven to sixty and only five point two seconds. Our cars are one package included all the go fast in corners hardware including zero to tires the ride is stiff the flat cornering surgically precise. This is not a car for anyone with a mind on anything. Driving while not inexpensive. The new Arik 7 is one of the least costly of its breed. Thirty two thousand nine hundred dollars to start and thirty three thousand nine hundred twenty dollars as you see it here

through the seven may laugh at luxury and fuel economy. But if you demand a sports car that envelops you with it's experience. Once your money down for the Mazda Alric 7. Suppose however that you're not into one size must fit all sports cars. Then try the Dodge Dell. The still and very similar Mitsubishi 3000 GTI are available with a wide variety of trim and equipment from a front drive single cam just plain stealth. To this twin turbo Twin Cam four wheel drive and steer Stealth are all Shero flowing along the hood short rear deck muscle car profile. The turbo adds doodads like rear wing and body cladding. The sunroof lifts up and is removable. The cockpit is roomy with a driver's airbag. The gauges are clear but spread out across the dash. The small rear seats fold for more cargo room. The basis for all stealth power is the same three liter V-6 here twin turbo chargers boost output the 300 horsepower and 307 pound feet of torque.

With all wheel drive reducing wheels Benda 0 0 to 60 is a swift five point eight seconds. We all will drive system also make sure power is where it's needed and corners it grabs hold of the pavement and makes the 4 wheel steering system very effective. The adjustable suspension has two modes. Sport and touring. Result of all this mechanical complexity is excellent balance on all types of roadway prices also cover a wide range as little as eighteen thousand five hundred six dollars for the base car. The thirty four thousand eight hundred fifty three dollars as you see this are t Turbo. But then no other sports car offers buyers such a smorgasbord of performance. America's premier sports car the Chevrolet Corvette is celebrating its 40th anniversary. Corvette L.T. one redrew for testing sported the standard suspension while a convertible is offered our coupe comes close with a single piece removable top other standard features include a driver's airbag traction control and a six speed manual transmission connected to this lovely 300

horsepower L.T. one small block V-8. 0 to 60 times our rapid five point three seconds. The Roebling road we found the stock suspension rolls more than the optional adjustable chassis and feels looser and fast. Foreigners. However it's a fair trade off for a highway ride that won't tire you on the longest trip. The 93 core of that is much more refined than when this fourth generation designer right. Ten years ago. Prices have risen 50 percent over that decade with a base of thirty four thousand five hundred ninety five dollars an hour car costing thirty seven thousand eight hundred thirty eight dollars. Still if you're looking for one of the fastest best handling cars in the world love it's made in America heritage and it's near timeless fiberglass styling. The Chevrolet Corvette is your winner. So there you have it six sports cars each designed for somewhat different visions of the breed. Each delivers an outstanding driving experience with varying levels of comfort and civility. If all things in life offered us this

kind of choice we'd probably call it perfect. Before any new car comes to market every component is checked and rechecked. This is to make sure it can withstand the rigors of daily driving. But there's more to building a good car than just making reliable mechanical parts. But then there's the important matter of comfort. Lisa Barrow has the details on what one company is doing to make sure their cars are the most comfortable on the road. Ok we get Louis Martin's in the driver's seat of the 90s for me Roadmaster. Let me try and view this morning. Take the wings on my shoulders Little Big Horn. They're already starting to notice that I will be having jailbirds so I'm going to give it three. Before you sit in a seat with a Buick name on it. Engineers and designers have already racked up thousands of miles testing it in a bad Buick

has one of the most extensive testing programs in the auto industry the biggest challenge is we've got people that are 6 foot 3 and we've got others that are four foot six and a whole range of weights and so trying to find the best balance of compromise throughout the whole seat to satisfy all those people is the real challenge that we're up against. If in fact the car does not give you the company you expect that car you probably not only not repurchase that car but you may not even purchase a Buick. Just once a month. Organizes the development rides that cover up to fifteen hundred miles of highway. On this ride in Charleston West Virginia the objective is to test current production cars future prototypes and competitors models for seat comfort seat evaluators come in all shapes and sizes and represented the owners. Give me a seat I mean that's going to throw you're never really there. You know your legs are going to be a.

Little brittle the gills will not. Want to shoulder pain too but. Was ok. If you know if complaints are made about a seat. Engineers are able to do a little on the spot fixing by simply shaving some of the foam to alleviate pressure. We gather information obviously concept seats five or five years down the road. We take that data that we collect on these rides we tweak and we find those seats but in addition. The data that we collect welfare back into production its current production. For. Mining. Yeah existing friends in addition to the seat development rides runs a number of evaluations in their Detroit test facility here Pressure Sensitive pads attached to a seat measure 30 200 pressure points as a person sits. The information is transferred to a computer. The red area indicates high pressure blue and the blue low pressure areas which are memorable. The goal is to have a person's weight evenly distributed on the seat with engineers learn a great deal from this data. Sometimes there's just no

substitute for a long trip behind the wheel. Much better. Much MUCH. More courses. Rearwards your. Chiropractor move that we do through the ovaries and how do you. View it see testing program is currently under consideration by other GM divisions. It's a long and involved process but the engineers are committed to sacrificing themselves so you don't have to. There are plenty of magazines devoted to Mars but never one like this. G.B. wrote yet he has an Italian designed magazine that's devoted an entire issue to the Ferrari Testarossa in 512 TR. The result eclipses conventional automotive magazines and it's now available in limited numbers. Besides a thorough design history the magazine is full of engineering details and rare photographs. Its importance as a reference tool cannot be underestimated.

One of the high points of recent U.S. automotive history has been the return of Cadillac to the ranks of world class luxury car builders. We recently completed a year long test of a 92 Seville touring sedan and rarely have we been so reluctant to return a car for 93 Cadillac added its powerful new North Star V8 to the STDs and to our revised edition of the Eldorado touring coupe. The results are impressive. And impressed we were we first tested the north star power train in Cadillacs a latte luxury convertible a year ago and the STDs last fall. Now that North Star is finally available to Eldorado buyers we think the touring package is complete. Exterior styling changes from 1900 to find redesigned are minimal. The touring group's modern look is still unmistakably Cadillac especially in the rear roofline whose sharp line suggests Cadillacs of an earlier

era. And while this small badge may not make much of a styling statement it's emblematic of the public's return to prominence and V8 engine technology 4.6 leader 32 valve dual overhead cam unit sets a standard for other auto makers to match. And the front wheel drive Eldorado. It delivers 295 horsepower and £290 feet of torque. It propelled our three thousand seven hundred thirty pound Barber of zero to 60 and amazingly quick 6.7. Seconds. That's more than a second faster than last year's car with the four point nine leader pushrod V8 the quarter mile went by and only fourteen point eight seconds ending at 98 mph. Credit. On numbers goes to Cadillacs for speed electronically controlled automatic transmission and sticky to 25 60 series Goodyear Eagle GA tires on 16 inch alloy wheels. They also help give the touring coupe impressive handling. The car went where directed with excellent grip. New rear suspension also tracks with better precision. High test drivers only complaint was that the standard traction control

seemed to quiet him during these maneuvers. He also said he could hardly believe this was a Cadillac. It's considering past luxo boat. I praise him. And he walk breaks on our Eldorado were not worn in so they produced along 16 to zero stopping distance of one hundred forty six feet with noticeable fade. But we know from experience with our longterm STDs that those distances will improve. Plus all of the Eldorado stops are on the straight and narrow. We're also familiar with the Eldorado as well designed in spacious interior. The soft leather and polish wood accents one Kyoto's from our staff. We applaud the modern dash design in well-marked controls but we prefer a more full time gauges to the El Dorados digital engine management display. We've grown quite fond of Cadillacs plush leather bucket seats. Only we're still dubious about the value of the vertically adjustable lumbar support but overall support is quite good and the six way power adjustments make

easy work of finding a comfortable driving position. Our test car had Cadillac's top of the line Delco Bose sound system with both cassette and compact disc player. It sounds great. The automatic climate control is efficient but we would appreciate more manual control. One novel feature is this ignition lockout which prevents accidental engagement of the starter when the engine is running rear seat room is generous by coop standards and the cavernous trunk provides fifteen point three cubic feet of wide flat cargo space. But such an impressive vehicle commands a premium price. The tally starts at thirty three thousand nine hundred ninety dollars for the base Eldorado. The addition of north star to the touring package adds $5000 cars premium sound system and other accessories. Brought it to a final sticker of forty thousand three hundred ninety one dollars. But a comparably equipped Lexus SC 400 will cost you over $5000 more than what handles better and has less standard equipment.

The charing coupe fares very well in the safety department with both driver and passenger air bags and anti-lock brakes. It also meets 1097 federal side impact standards. All in all there's very little to criticize in Cadillacs 93 Eldorado touring coupe. It's an impressive package Indy. Car of the week is a 1940 Ford pickup. It's owned by Jeff Brinkerhoff of Newbury Ohio. If you have a great hope bar you'd like to show off. Why not send us a good colored photo and stamped self-addressed return on below. Well consider it a bar of the week. Our address is Motor Week Owings Mills Maryland 2 1 1 1 7. Now for some great new car information let's turn to Lisa Barrow she has all the latest Motor News.

We saw a few weeks back John we promised our viewers a better look at Mazas micro-mini car the easy one its visit here of Motor Week was brief but it attracted lots of attention. Everywhere we went at less than 11 feet long 55 inches wide and forty five inches high. The easy one is the perfect vehicle for maneuvering in traffic especially on crowded Japanese streets where smaller is better. The weather has been on sale since September in Japan where it's Mazda's latest entry in the highly competitive cake class for micro mini cars. The easy ones go wing doors allow parking in closer quarters and contain side impact bars. Other safety features include large side sills and ample crash zone impact absorbing steering wheel and a sturdy upper body structure. The 81 styling is reminiscent of other minute engine cars but all of its body panels are made of recyclable plastics. Power comes from the fuel overhead. And trouble. Right. The cylinder engine with four valve for cylinder Mazas Japan only four door micro-mini the autos and Carol it's 660 CC size and

64 horsepower are the prescribed limits for K Car class power plant. But don't let the easy ones diminutive size for you. It has no trouble keeping up with your passing traffic. Thanks in part to the five speed manual transmission delivering maximum torque to the rear wheels at only 4000 rpm. Well below the engines 9000 are. Redline. Interior space for the driver and one passenger is more generous than you'd expect even for six footers such as our coordinating producer. And though he towers over the A-Z one a non-driving situations it's similar in size to some of his other vehicles and drew admiring glances from drivers of all ages. The clear canopy like Groove created by the gullwing doors ensures a feeling of openness inside the cabin inside the one we had to get comfortable sitting on the right side as in England and Japan. And shifting gears to the left hand. But once we got the hang of it driving the one was easy. It's handling firm and secure. And though we never forgot how really small it was

we always felt in control matter what the driving conditions were. Master brought this Monet's E1 to the New York auto show to get reactions from American drivers. Our drivers thought it very competent. And a lot of fun. The company expects to sell eight hundred per month in Japan. And while there are no current plans to import the car to the U.S. John should demand for really small cars increase. Mazda could be ahead of the competition. The automotive vocabulary is full of wonderful words like oversteer red line and downforce. But a Craig saying hoss the magic car word is horsepower. He's been infatuated with powerful engines since he was a teenager and before that he enjoyed cars with a different kind of power the kind of cars he recently discovered all over again out on the high road. You know when I was little I've never had a problem. No it's good my friends now.

So one guy had a tractor another one had a little coop and we used to ride around there basement. Really got a kick out on that and. I just always wanted one and now I guess I have more than one for pedal car Restorationist and manufacturer. Jay Judd this collection of pedal cars is more than just the result of a childhood wish. I started with the pedal cars because I actually had a collection of real antique cars and the storage was a real problem. So I can store as many panel cars as I can by actually saying this is some of my pedal car collection. This is really I mean bring back a lot of memories out there. Yeah I've been collecting pedal car for about seven years now. These are two champions made by Mari. They were probably the most common car from the 50s. They could come just as plain as a blue car or done up like an FBI cruiser. This is a Hamilton Jeep. And the reason I

bought this it had the original CAD which usually got broke off right around Christmas. Oh yeah. This is pretty typical of how I find their ruff and rusty and the paints all faded but you know that's why I like to pick them up that way I can do the restoration myself. These are probably the four most popular examples if you're collecting. This is a 1948 Murray torpedo thing an old Buick. Yeah. This is a steel craft pursuit plane. Also Mary Mary picked it up after steel craft dropped it and this was being used as a carnival ride when I found it I found it at Carlisle car swap meet and fully restored now. Absolutely gorgeous. This is a garden killer Lac. It's all original I'm not going to restore it because of the condition that it's in. And that is a Jolly Roger Murray fully restored. It

didn't have any of the chrome the motor. Or anything when I got it. A little over a year ago I started getting the idea to make my own cars and I make a boat tail racer which kind of looks like that. The original Duesenberg racer and I also make a little open seated roadster. People must still be interested in pedal cars because mine are selling really well. I think the appeals panel Clark Blackburn is. Chance for someone who lives there Calgary and that's a kind of a family thing and I hope that my son power enjoys the hobby as much as I do. Greg will be back next week with more fun from the highroad also have a report from Pat Goff than our new car road test plus all the latest Motor News. I'm John David. See that. It's going to be. An expanded version of motor week's

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