Motorweek; 2202

Cars Cars and more cars. That's the new Z an H2 home bigger but oh boy this scene so comes right with most of the week. Will. TV's original automotive magazine will be Pep Boys who are con people. That motor week my favorite one great show 30 quality minutes show you can watch with your friends. You getting excited know there are cars involved. Of course I am. And by. With. What are you looking for. Your host for Motor Week. John Davis. Well hello and welcome again to motor week we're glad to have you with us and say hello to the 2003 Nissan 350 Z and the rebirth of the legendary Z car. Now you

can forgive us for thinking that when the 300 C-x was canceled in 1996 that the Z car was gone for good. At that point Z car stood more for luxury touring than sports car excitement. But this car draws its inspiration from the 1970 Datsun 240 S. Probably the first sports car that was exhilarating to drive easy to own and then spend half its life in the repair shop. So what about the 350 is the legend secure. It. Well let's take a hard and fast look and see if the 2003 Nissan 350 Z. Has what it takes to live up to the formidable reputation of the original Z car. When the 240 Z arrived thirty two years ago it was styling that first drew us to it. It was a Japanese sports car that wasn't peculiar. It was slick and more eye catching than Europe's best. The new Z with its 21st century aerodynamics isn't quite the pure looker that its ancestor was but it's still handsome if a lot

more serious where the old Z look slim and light the newsy stand solid. As if to say I can take on any road you can throw at me. And indeed the 350 Z is built for hard driving with a super stiff rear drive platform and a long one hundred four point three inch wheel base. That platform is shared with the actual infinity e.g. 35 and powered by the same 3.5 leader jewel overhead can be six that in see tune spurts out two hundred eighty seven horsepower and two hundred seventy four pound feet of torque. Those ponies galloped to either a 5 speed automatic or a 6 speed manual are top drawer track addition test car appropriately comes with the six speed. We found the shifter action to be light and crisp with just the right throws. Which went wrong really and again allowed the 352 to sprint the 60 and on. Five point seven second. Quarter mile ran out in a quick fourteen point four seconds at 99 mph.

It lacks some of the low down grunt of later twin turbo Z's but makes up for it with a smooth delivery and a robust mid range from. The original Z was also known for how it handled the asphalt. So where better to take our track 350 easy than the challenging corners of the completely rebuilt and beautifully maintained Virginia International Raceway near Danville. All Z's come with front and rear multi link suspension heavy with lightweight forged aluminum components. Add to that 18 inch Ford alloy wheels and brakes from Brembo and our track model have the extra hardware needed to tackle vr being the first car riders to track test the newsy. We were delighted to confirm that the new 350 follows wind in the tire tracks the. Original with short and nimble handling that allies it's thirty two hundred twenty five pound weight. The front end will push a bit as Corners tighten up but a touch of throttle induces a gentle predictable rear end drill. The sonnes of vehicle dynamic control traction control and a limited slip differential all work together to keep busy in

the groove. It's an extremely well-balanced and quite forgiving package. Not quite neutral but darn close. He's on mounted the engine fully behind the front axle for a near perfect 53 percent front. 37 percent of your weight distribution breaking was also excellent thanks to the healthy power and feel from the full even a disc in ABS aged calipers stability in all conditions was top notch. Whether or not standard 60 mph test which average one hundred one thousand feet or from triple digit track speeds but whether you choose the standard enthusiast performance touring or our track model you will find yourself in a cockpit with a sterile old business look. It's a far cry from the classic British sports car style of the 240 C but it's much roomier with more efficient controls and a much wider range of amenities including Main gauges that move up and down with the adjustable steering wheel. A hidden storage space behind the passenger seat substitutes for normal desk love bugs. Open the

big rear hatch and you'll find that luggage space has been compromised for the sake of body stiffness and handling a thick strut bar makes for a tight six point eight cubic feet of cargo space. Pricing for the 2003 piece on 350 Z starts at a bargain twenty six thousand eight hundred nine dollars for the very well-equipped standard model and tops out at thirty four thousand six hundred nineteen dollars for a track model with five more variations in between. In other words a C for every taste. With the arrival of the new 350 Z Nissan is legendary Z car has gone back to its roots with a vengeance. The legend is not only secure it's accessible affordable and more exciting than ever before. And that's the truth. Do antilock brakes always reduce your stopping distance in emergency situations. A new government study concludes that except on loose surfaces like sand and snow all panic stops can be shorter which will anti-lock brakes than without.

Shorter on wet pavement. And shorter on dry pavement. Remember ABS works best when you stop the brake pedal stay on the brake pedal and steer where you want to go. Coming up revealing the secrets of a crash. Time now for motor week's top tech Pat Goss and more of his legendary car care advice. John keeping a nice car nice can be a real challenge these days what with air pollution and acid rain and bird droppings and dust and dirt. Well one of the things you might want to consider is a car cover. A lot of ways to buy a car covers you could go down to the local chain store and buy a one size fits all or maybe one size fits nothing and you could probably do some damage to your paint. You see a good car cover is going to be designed for a specific purpose. You have to know whether you're going to keep the car outside or inside are you simply trying to protect it against dust

or dirt or whatever it might be. And there are different products for all of these different circumstances. Starting from a product up here that's made out of a paper like material that actually breathes. It lets condensation come out through the cover yet it keeps dust and dirt out. And there are various types some of them are multilayered and so on and they all serve a specific purpose and in many cases they will meet a specific price point. One of the things that you want to look for when you're looking for your car cover right here you know car covers have plastic grommets in them so that you can tie them to the car so that somebody else doesn't steal it from you. Well cheap car covers the plastic grommets the inside of it isn't covered so the plastic can actually rub against the paint on your car and do damage better once they're built into this pocket that protects them so they won't do any damage to your car.

That's something to look for. You also look for the type of stitching on the cover itself there are various types. OK now you want to keep the car cover on your car. Don't rely on a string. Make sure you use a cable tie. Very difficult to get through and it'll keep the thieves away. Right now on the car itself you need to know some things about it. When you order your cover like for this older Corvette you have to know whether it has one mirror or two. Does it have a fixed antenna or not. It has a fixed intent to. Then you have to order an antenna pocket. By doing your homework spending a few more dollars you'll get a car cover that will actually protect your car and not damage it. If you have a question or comment write to me the address is Motor Week always Mills Maryland 2 1 1 1 7. Hi I'm Craig Singh collector car expert John appen And today on the auction block we got a

1966 Ford Thunderbird. John these birds are getting more and more popular aren't they. Oh yes the first generation two suiter birds of 55 through 57 have always been collectible Then came the square birds part of the bullet birds and now the 66 is their coming into their own as collectibles. And this one's got a lot of desirable options. Craig what makes this 66 a potential collectible is a resale red paint. But more importantly the dealer install roaster Tano top that turns it back into a two state roadster just like the first generation T-Bird. Other options include the attractor Kelty Hayes wire wheels. The Continental kit reclining passenger seat with an adjustable headrest. And a factory installed 8 track on which a bird like this worth. Fully restored maybe 15 to 25 option not like this current could be anywhere from thirty to thirty five thousand dollars. With us roadways becoming more and more congested auto manufacturers are devoting more and more resources to active and passive safety. But no matter how well

equipped your car is with the latest safety advances some accidents just can't be avoided. Or can they. This week out while I Reporter Jennifer because novice looks at a research program that tackles that question head on. Mary Beth billing left 20 minutes early for work on May 23rd 2002 so she could finish up some paperwork before Memorial Day weekend. What she didn't know was in that 20 minutes another driver more concerned about her pet bird than the road was heading. In the opposite direction. There it's kind of windy another going into the first wind the first part also on this car. Shot across from there to Milan and we'll get on. Very best along with the other woman was taken to shock trauma. The other woman managed to escape with minor injuries. Mary Beth billing did not get off so easily. 6:10 sticking out of my foot. I have more inside of it and what they call J bars and I have a full bar down to my foot. Well not only that I dislocated my foot I decided to go one step farther they tell me

and I love my heel. And what that means is I tore off my heel. So what could have been done to minimize Marybeth Billings injuries. Could the car have been designed differently to help reduce or even eliminate this kind of trauma. Well the National siren program not only asked those same questions. They try to come up with some answers. Why would they build in. A ride down feature as part of their safety package siren or the crash injury research and engineering network as an organization comprised of physicians members of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration police and other officials. These individuals get together throughout the year to discuss specific accidents the injuries the victims the stain and how they could be prevented in the future. Currently there are 10 facilities in the United States which participate in the University of Maryland Medical Center is one of them. Dr. Andrew Burgess is head of the group. You can't make big changes in the industry based on a single event at a certain angle of impact at a certain speed with a patient of a certain size restrained or unrestrained and then

make policy for going into the depths. Of how the crash occurred was what contact points within the vehicle the patient struck. You can get a lot of insight and sort of drive the bigger picture issue. During Mary Beth Billings case review pictures of the mangled car gave investigators a chance to compare her injuries with specific damage. This is her foot screwed together. So. My partners have gotten the parts where they belong the group not only analyze the physical aspects they also discussed her emotional state and daily challenges. But I think a little bit of what I bring to it is sort of the human dimension of what happens in the crash to the person and kind of bring that out and bring that alive if you will that we because we're saving more people today. It's really important to find out are they able to get back you know to pre-injury levels of work school whatever and what their life situation is like.

If you want a real look at what really happens in the real world you have to have a program like Cyrus where we have you know crash investigations of real crashes and we have evaluations of these injuries are produced in the long term outcome as well. As Mary Beth billing remains on the road to recovery the syren group will evaluate her progress and continue to utilize the information after the information is gathered. Being the liaison relates all the findings to the auto manufacturers so they too can understand what might improve safety with their cars. Mary Beth billing is more than happy she's part of this program hoping that her unfortunate incident will help prevent someone else from a lifetime of suffering. What a dilemma. So many new car kiddies so little time. So what are we waiting for. If it is possible imperfect human beings to build a perfect car the

2003 Mercedes-Benz SL 55 you see is the most worthy candidate we've ever seen to support our case we offer this evidence. Yes well 55 offers timeless styling blends elements from its historic past into a look that will be equally desirable in the future. Our Tom Foreman handles. When five leaders super charged V8 that produces a stunning four hundred ninety three horse power. Bill for the 60 in just four and a half seconds this is the fastest production Mercedes ever built. Yet this potent power plant qualifies the SL 55 AMG it's a low emission vehicle. Capable of delivering over 20 mpg on the highway. And when it comes to ride and handling the SL 55 is a technological tour de force. It features active body control stability control and race car derived ABS brakes with the auto industry first brake by wire electronic braking system. And then there's a long period leather lined cockpit that offers more

amenities than we have time to mention but take our word for it. Once your bill today you won't want to get out. When I first picked up the SL 55 am curious the president. In Elkhart Lake Wisconsin I fully intended to take a couple days to make my way back to Maryland. But once I started driving I couldn't stop. 16 hours later I pulled into my driveway feeling like I could go for another three or four hours. I can't think of any other car that rocker stuck in the. Data. Plan the performance of the lug for. The 2003 Mercedes-Benz SL 55 AMG carries a pretty intoxicating price too but when compared to other cars in its class at one hundred thirteen thousand two hundred fifty dollars it's actually a bargain. Now if you're looking for something that's extreme in another sense of the word. The 2003 Honda Element is a poxy little SUV designed for the extreme buyer literally. Honda hopes young males that favor more extreme sports like surfing and

mountain biking will flock to the element. It's a vehicle designed to allow them to easily enjoy their hobby. That means the element is more about how much you can carry than how he carries it. And for a vehicle that shorter but wider and taller than the CRV on which it's based. The element can carry a lot of the force side doors open clamshell style and there's no peak filler to get in the way. The cavernous interior has a totally flat vinyl covered floor and water resistant fabrics. Seats can be configured for everything from beds to bikes to longboard. Driving the element is more like riding on a train than motoring. Not that the element isn't very drivable even though Honda makes no pretense about handling the element is point competent. It's still. The drive train includes a $164 key point for leaderboard. The older. Used in the revamped floors with manual and automatic transmission and front or all wheel drawing power is adequate given a 30 400 lb curb weight but

fuel economy is a step down from the CRB. Then there's the elements exteriors. Lots of hit resistant body panels it's an odd looking duck and any fun but this flexible box does grow on you especially with a modest price tag of sixteen to twenty one thousand dollars. When Honda first floated this concept with the Model X show car Mo said it was too extreme and that they would never be crazy enough to build it. Well they did. And something tells us that with the 2003 element Honda is once again crazy like a fox. OK not looking for a car or SUV that can be described with words like crazy or extreme. But one that still delivers a high quotient of driving pleasure. Then take a look at the latest product of infinities ongoing performance revival the all new 2003 40 bodies. While the angular look is not consistent with the latest infinity animalistic styling the

grill is large bold and in your face with Kara Caroline said deliberate very rigid stance. The big news of the 45 is the. 340 horsepower and it's not sedans a lot anyway you look at it got over 3 or 30 pounds of torque. On the chassis can handle it to existing solid feeling. Fast car fast thanks to the say 4.5 leader be a found in the larger 240 fault. In fact both cars are based on the same chassis right down to the all independent suspension with front coils over struts and multi links in the rear. So through borders the M 45 is virtually flat with a very responsive feel and never float. The queue for the phone area he continues inside with many more bits coming directly out of the queue 40 phones and in 45 prices start at around forty two thousand dollars. See anything you like. We thought you would but if not don't worry. There's plenty more news. Parties where these caves.

Wrong. It was 1992 that I am general role the first civilian version of the Army's Humvee special purpose vehicle off an Indiana assembly line and officially dubbed it the Hummer. Well the Hummer quickly developed a cult following with celebrities and off road fanatics and it achieved such celebrity status itself that in 1999 GM bought the Hummer brand and announced their intentions to build a more family friendly Hummer. The H2. Well the H2 has arrived. But the question is is the son of Hummer as tough as daddy. To answer that question first we have to set some more amateurs for toughness. For instance unlike the military Humvee its appearance favors the new 2003 Hummer H2 is not available with armor plate or machine gun mounts. When it comes to taking on nature's force Hummer engineers claim the new H2 which is actually based on GMC full size truck chassis can handle 80 percent of the abuse of the original 81 and with 10 inches of ground clearance a wide

and stable sixty nine point four inch track at a rugged full time four wheel drive system with five operating modes. We don't doubt them one bit. That poor buy for unit is a borgwarner to speed electronically controlled full time transfer case with a 40 percent profit 60 percent rear torque split when running in poor high open range. When in for a high locked or for low lock mode the Hummer H2 standard electronic traction control system can be recalibrated to allow for more wheel spin by engaging the TC too. Switch. The standard abs boy will disgrace have also been engineered with the hummers penchant for extreme conditions in mind. Separate logic control schemes are used so the ABS system can discern and react to varying road conditions that are more benign Test Track. The Hummer H2 was rained in from 16 an average of 150 feet to build is excellent but after several runs great bait was quite noticeable while the age one sees diesel duty the new Hummer H2 is powered by GM Ford Tech six

thousand six leader gas b eight output is 360 North power at 360 pound feet of torque. The more tech is mated to a mammal a heavy duty for speed electronic transmission. This stout combination gives the H2 a £7000 trailer tow capacity at the track however we weren't too optimistic about the eights to use exhilaration prowess. This 60 400 pound brood surprised us with a fairly strong run to 60 and nine point seven seconds and sprint through the quarter mile trap and seventeen point three seconds with a speed of 81 mph. Another surprise was the H 2s highway ride in terms of comfort. It's right on par with the GMC Yukon Denali soaring all the nasty stuff so you don't have to as an independent front torsion bar suspension with 46 millimeter mano to gas shocks and a 36 millimeter tubular stabilizer bar and the rear our tester came with a standard rigid axle five Li coil spring

setup that features dual stage wearable Ray coil springs 46 millimeter gas shocks and a 30 millimeter stabilizer bar order up the optional off road suspension package and you get a self-leveling air spring suspension. The trip through our low speed slalom delivered predictable results from a heavy seventy nine point two inch tall sport ute shod with massive 315 70 series tires on 17. Real. Estate light on his. Feet. But steering wheel variable ratio always circulating ball steering unit is light and progressive with a good deal of feedback and a good deal of positive feedback was accorded the Hummer H2 surprisingly plush trendy and quiet interior from our staff. Our testers eight way power seats came close to an optional leather with teeth. The driver faces a leather wrap tilt wheel with satellite audio controls that front a full set of bright overlapping gauges. The H2 center Stackhouse is a selection of Bose audio systems. Ours came with a six disk in-dash CD changer

and there's dual zone climate controls rear passengers also get heated seats but leg room is tight for a vehicle with a generous one hundred twenty two point eight inch wheelbase optional as a single folding third row seat right next to a full size spare tire with third seat removed and second row folded. There is a generous eighty six point six cubic feet of cargo space. But for many the H2 will be more about posing than payload. And for the HTC target audience price won't be an issue either. They sticker on the 2003 Hummer H2 is forty eight thousand eight hundred dollars but the chrome appearance package our tester rang up the fifty two thousand eight hundred seventy dollars. That's about the same as a modestly equipped Lincoln Navigator. The Land Cruiser. So they answer our original question is the new Hummer H2 as tough as Teddy. Well we think darn close. And it certainly looks like family and fact most casual observers can't tell the difference and it's way more comfortable

and versatile than the original. So when it's all said and done we can safely say the 2003 Hummer H2 is a great new chip off the old block. I hope you'll join us next week for more motorways when we get down and dirty with Toyotas all new for runner and saddle up for its hottest pony yet the Mustang SVT Cobra. I'm John Davis. Well see that. To learn more about Motor Week TV's original automotive magazine net visit PBS on line at PBS dot org or America Online keyword PBS to order a video cassette of this program. Call 1 800 2 2 3 3 6 7 8 extension sixteen eighty five. Motor Week has been brought to you by capital ice. We're car people. Oh it's that's entertainment. That's better than the smell of new tires. I got angry. Same time next week. You got it.

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