Motorweek; 933

Yes. This time on Motor Week 90 we try for important new Escort. We support three Turbo's Morten's barge to Roebling road Raceway for an on track comparison. Lisa Barrow's sees what new products are on track for the automotive future. And Greg Singh Haas looks at a gathering of cars from the past to come drive with us next. Over. My TVs automotive magazine with your host John Davis. Hello and welcome again to motor week 90. We're glad to have you with us. It seems to be a rule of the car industry that nothing fluctuates faster than sales figures.

One year a model can be rushing out of the showrooms and then next year the dealers can't give them away. But like any rule this one has its exception. The past seven years Ford's escort subcompact has been the best selling nameplate in the world. This despite some stiff competition from a host of strong and sometimes more advanced competitors. Well Ford would like to keep it that way. So it's gotten together with its Japanese partner Mazda to produce a new Escort. This combination has already produced a highly successful program. But can they repeat that success before its important new small car. In a word yes. The 1991 escort is the most impressive small car we've driven since the monster protege and we voted that car our best small car for 1990. It's no surprise then to learn that the escort's shares its platform with the cost of product but curiously it's not the Mazda parts in this escort that impress us most. First there's styling the escorts baby Taurus look sets it apart from other small cars

and won't scare away those buyers already in the Ford fold. The interior is also impressive. Plastics or low luster and color match from panel to panel is good. The dash when compared to that of the previous escort looks rich enough to adorn a more expensive car. Gauges are clear and not blocked by the steering wheel rim. The tack ometer is optional. Then there's the engine. This is not a Japanese. But. An improvement on the previous Estcourt four cylinder. It's quieter livelier and much smoother than before. The block has been redesigned for improved strength. The ignition and fuel injection systems are new and there are four engine mounts now instead of three. Which helps to eliminate vibration. Ford even repositioned the oil filter to make do it yourself changes easier. Horsepower is rated at 88 torque 108. In front dimension's leg room head room and shoulder room increases are minimal but appreciated. No one on our staff complained about seat comfort. Only the garish shade of the red upholstery

a tilt steering wheel is optional and has plenty of travel shoulder belts or motorized controls are all well marked and sensibly placed. While the logic and operation of the heat and air conditioning controls remind us of Mazda the graphics and look are definitely for. This and that 10 percent is optional and so isn't a premium sound system. The Ford or elex has generously wide rear doors rear shoulder belts are standard and Ford sized the escort has plenty of head and leg room elex great for it's come with a split folding rear seat which is also standard and oh yes the Ford or escort is still a hatchback even though it doesn't look like one. Cargo unloading and loading is easy. The room is outstanding. Measuring seventeen point three cubic feet with the seat back up. To door hatchback and a wagon are also available. Here's something else we appreciate. Ford even included an arrow on the dash to remind drivers of the side where the fuel door is located. A feature that will surely

save some frustration at the pumps. The clear coat finish on our car was also good but we do have one complaint. The fit of the front fender was not correct. We hope this is just a fluke. As for acceleration the escort's engine. Easily overcome the tiny 175 70 or Atherton's Myers power is most impressive. 30 miles per hour. Ten point four seconds zero to 60 is still very impressive. A quarter mile took seventeen point six seconds ending at seventy eight miles per hour. As we said power comes from Ford but it's transmitted by Mazda. There's five speed manual and it's Schefter are excellent. A Mazda 4 speed automatic is optional. Brakes on yes. Just from say. Stopping distances from 60 mph average to 138 feet. That's a respectable number but not an outstanding one. The pedal in our test car had a slightly mushy feel but stability was good. The escort's suspension like it's brakes is shared with the Mazda Protege platform 91 Estcourt is far more enjoyable to drive than

last year's car. The power steering is quick and it communicates well. Body roll is controlled. But when pushed to the limit the rear end does get very light and starts to slide around. We'd applaud this characteristic in the sport. But it seems out of place in the family oriented elex. On the other hand the escort's ride is almost Tarra smooth. This is the best riding subcompact available today. The base price for the next four door is eight thousand six hundred two dollars. Our car also had option packages which added cruise control air conditioning power mirrors and more. The total was ten thousand three hundred twenty one dollars and the Escort elex should be an expensive to operate to with an EPA rating of 29 city 36 highway we recorded 34 miles per gallon in typical driving interior sound measured 69 decibels a reasonable number for small cars. In our safety check. The court like most small cars fails to offer airbags. It does have rear shoulder belts but does not offer anti-lock brakes. Topping our list

of hits is the escort's low price we like its styling interior quality interior room and trunk room. We also appreciate its lively feel and superior right Mrs. include poor Fender fit on our test car and tail happy handling that while entertaining for us is not ideal for a family car. For comparison the Mazda 323 protege elex offers more power and 4 wheel disc brakes but equipped like our test Estcourt it would cost about $1000 more and it doesn't have as much cargo room or the convenience of a rear hatch. There's no doubt about it. Ford small car is in the class with the best imports. And it has a price advantage. Those factors should make this new Estcourt a top seller and keep it that way for years to come. We like to hear your suggestions about cars you'd like to see tested. We get a lot of letters like that. We also get letters about automotive products that you'd like to know more about. In response Lisa Barrow has reported on new products a couple of times and since

new devices keep coming out. Lisa Kafe reporting. She's here with her latest installment of new gadgets for your car. This is the specialty equipment Market Association. Or see Michelle the largest automotive trade show in the country once a year. Companies from all over the world come here to display their newest products. This is a life family and if you're ever in an accident you get trapped inside your car. You can cut yourself out of the seat belt with it or can break open the window. The life hammer is easy to install in your vehicles interior and it sells for twenty nine ninety five. If you've ever had your license plates don't you might find this new product interesting. It's called the auto license plate security bar. You can pick one up for about nine ninety five. We found another new product here at show it's considered quite a scientific advancement. It's called the trackback format and we have the president and the company here to tell us a little bit more about it and what's new about that.

Well what's the biggest problem with Corman's say slipping and sliding. Right. And this product it's a banking system that we developed in conjunction with Dow Chemical Company. And as you feel it has attacked the field of your take. What's so interesting about it of course is that when this product gets dirty you can clean it off with water and of course once once it comes in contact with water it will become very slippery when the air dries which takes roughly. A couple of minutes. We're. Just getting it up here. It'll come back to its original type time after time after time. Formats. Don't move. When they have to happen. Now what can I keep these up for. The range and retail price anywhere from four ninety nine point nine. Around the corner from tack bag we found another new product that just might solve an age old problem. How many times have you sat on your sunglasses in the car. Now you have a place to put them. Really more towards the conservative side of things you might like this Ford Mustang holder but if you want things a little bit

different this one is more your style. The sunglasses Holder started 498. The show is a perfect opportunity to see a lot of the new products out on the market but manufacturers also send their products right here to motor week. If they ever changed your antifreeze You probably found it to be a pretty dirty job. Not to mention difficult. This is the isn't change or change is all that you simply attach the danger to your garden hose. Remove the radiator cap and insert the yellow tube into the radiator until it touches bottom. Put the clear hose in a bucket once everything's in place. Easy change works like a Sanken allowing you to change your antifreeze quickly and easily. You no longer have to crawl into your car to open and close radiator drains and hoses. With easy change. All the old antifreeze goes in his pocket which makes it easy to dispose of properly keeping the environment clean. Is it dangerous sells for 1995. With some are almost here. He received a new product that's perfect for watersports enthusiasts. These discoveries are called wet seats. We make it possible for you to jump right into your car soaking wet and

not worry about ruining the upholstery. They made for neoprene which is the same material that wetsuits are made out of so they're water resistant. They come in a wide variety of colors and they're machine washable. A pair of wet seats sells for a hundred and seventy nine ninety five. That's it for the new products in this show that will keep you posted as we sort through the endless flow of boxes manufacturers send us throughout the year and will go back to the whole system. You never know what new products will uncover next. How to keep your Subaru alive. A step by step manual for the complete idiot is part of the John Muir vidiot book Auto series. Don't buy this book if you're sensitive because there's lots of name calling in it but it does cover repairs from 1975 to 1988 Subaru's excluding justes. It's clear and smartly organized and the illustrations are good to. Any car repair book can help you work on your car motor weeks Pat Goss helps you

understand his problems. He's standing by now to answer more of your letters. Pat. John engines today have really evolved but they're still plagued by an age old demon internal dirt. Our first letter is from Chuck Parvin of Braden's in Florida. He has a starting and stalling problem with his 86 Ford Escort. If he drives for a short distance and shuts the car off it won't restart for several minutes. The car sometimes stalls in traffic and again won't restart for a while. The mechanic can't get the problem to occur for him but he suspects the ignition module ignition module is certainly one possibility but I would suspect something else a lot of these escort's they are fuel injected. And if this happens to be a fuel injected car I would suspect a dirty Vane meter on some other cars the vane meter is referred to as an air flow meter it's part of the fuel injection system and it. Well it tells the computer how much air is moving through it into the

engine and it helps control the fuel injection. Now what goes wrong with this to make it get dirty. Well really nothing goes wrong with the vane meter. It gets dirty and clogged up because of other problems in the engine of the car. Like right here this is a valve cover offer of an escort that has had minimal oil changes. Definitely not enough. We can see that it's all gunk up in here when this occurs. It plugs up the positive crankcase ventilation system and when that happens oil and residue tends to back up into the air intake and it is in turn injected into the vein meter so the vein gets all clogged up. The next thing you know the Estcourt is stalling or hesitating and becoming hard to start. So if this is a fuel injected escort I would check the vane meter to make sure that it isn't all clogged up if it is the vane meter has to be cleaned or replaced and the PCV system and the underside of the valve cover have to be checked to make sure that they're clean and

functioning properly. Second letter this is from Miriam Goldberry of Davenport Iowa. She has a starting problem in her 1986 Volkswagen Jetta. She says she thinks it has to do with carbon buildup on the valves that I described in an earlier segment. She wants to know what sort of gasoline she should use to prevent or reduce the buildup. OK as far as the type of gasoline. You want a high detergent gasoline but more about that in a minute what about the problem itself. Certain types of fuel injection well they add fuel to the cylinder or actually into the intake port while the intake valve is still closed so the fuel sits there for a fraction of a second. And in this situation because it's hot right there the fuel can tend to build deposits on the backs of the intake valves. Now we can see that a little better right here on an actual intake valve. We can see that there is a large deposit on the back of this. This can lead to hard starting

hesitation. Rough Lidell all sorts of problems. Now up until very recently the only way you could really deal with this was to take the cylinder head off of the car disassemble the head clean the valves and in essence do a valve job. But now we have a better quicker easier cheaper way to do it. It's with this tool right here. This is made by Kenmore tool company. It is a carbon Blaster. It's a very simple piece of equipment. What it does is that it connects into the intake port on the cylinder head. Like so now in order to do this of course the intake manifold has to be removed. But the basic parts of the engine stay intact. Right now in this unit there are crushed walnut shells and these walnut shells are blasted into the cylinder and this chips away the carbon that has built up in there and corrects the problem. Now very very simple saves a lot of money. Now that will correct the problem. Now as far as the gasoline is

concerned if you write to us here at motor week we'll send you a list of oil company names and contacts that you can write to to find out if the particular brand of gasoline that you want to use has the necessary additives to prevent this problem. The address is motor week. Owings Mills Maryland 2 1 1 1 7 that's motor week. Owings Mills Maryland 2 1 1 1 7. As we hope you already know the winner of our 1990 driver's choice award for best performance car is the Nissan 306 Turbo. But since our staff voted a new turbocharged challenger has come to market. In 1991 Toyota and our two turbo and Ed. The venerable Mazda r x 7 turbo has more power than it did the last time we sampled one. So in the name of fair play we wanted to see how the new contender and the veteran would stack up against our performance car champ. Besides it sounded like a lot of

fun. What could be better. Great April weather brought sunny skies and 70 degrees to the Roebling road race course while we brought the best array of. High performance sports cars ever offered. Although we do admit that none of our free promos come cheap I screaming yellow Nissan 300 x turbo weighs in with a base price of $33000. This scarlet Mazda Arek 7 turbo 2 takes the middle ground at twenty six thousand five hundred thirty dollars to start. The all new Toyota M-R to Turbo. Looks like a ruby red bargain at eighteen thousand two hundred twenty eight dollars. But such real world issues as price are not what we plan to discuss here. This test is about performance. We've already told you a lot about the 300 GX turbo with its twin turbo B-6 turning out 300 horsepower acceleration is just to say the least. The warmer weather produced slightly slower results than in our initial Turbo's the road test is still 0 to 60 and only five point seven seconds.

From our result of fourteen point four seconds at one hundred. Even such quite a benchmark. As for handling this thirty five hundred pound Nissan takes all your concentration or precise maneuvers are your reward with a high caste board steering system 300 G x Turbo's switches from under to oversteer quickly. You must purpling modular. Expect. And. Do so on the car's road holding prowess is awesome. The only thing that seemed different between this car and our previous Turbo was the drive. The on a desk with any lock system still work without flaw and test stops from 60 were still very short and 100 9 feet on average but coming down from high speeds into sharp turns. Our confidence was shaken by an unexpected. Pedal pressure to control this beast. Our original 300 cx had brakes that seemed to flourish. A race track. It's been five years since the second generation x 7 design came on the scene and is due to be replaced in the near future.

Still Mazda has kept it up to date. The twin rotor engine produces 200 horsepower. That's 10 percent more than the Arek 7 Turbo. We tested two years ago and brakes are now anti-lock wheels are lighter tire stickier even though it has 100. Horsepower than the Nissan. We were still very impressed with our excellent Turbo's acceleration. Next knapping starts at 0 to 60 runs in six seconds flat and the standing quarter mile and fourteen point six seconds at 90 miles per hour. We were even more impressed with its handling the R x 7 doesn't use an active scoring system like the Nissan. But it's done. The. Suspension can change the tire tone angle to improve high speed stability and control. Understeer is predictable and progressive like the noose on the steering is not over boosted. And power can be a fight. With how. Without. Breaking the car loose standard and he locks improve on an already fine all disc brake system on the Orrick seven turbo demand stops from 60 in a very short one hundred feet on the road course. Pedal feel is. Your lap. When.

You first hit the car quickly reduce the speed. And stop. Down as they progress. In three days of this kind of testing it was never. About the only thing that has not changed about the 1991 Toyota Martu is its engine placement. It's still behind the driver. However the old car is supercharged power train has been replaced with a 200 horsepower turbo motor. That means a slower response to the throttle but with a clear weight advantage the M.R. can manage to stay. Close to the Alrich seven. With zero to 60 runs up six point four seconds. Run through the quarter mile takes fourteen point eight seconds. For the record the M.R. to Turbo is faster than last year supercharged car. Well our tools have always been a bit twitchy on a racecourse and. Agility. Great. The one model is no different. Understeer can quickly become oversteer if you lift off the throttle abruptly and turn too much throttle out of the turn and turn your head to master the throttle.

However our two guys. With. The. Brakes all disc with optional anti-lock always stopped with security distances from 60 to 120 feet while Faid was never a problem. The pedal lacked the firmness of the Arek 7 that mushy feeling combined with relatively soft springs produced more knowledge died than the other Turbo's rolling around Roebling road. Day in and day out isn't tough to take. We had perfect conditions for seeking our Turbo's sports car winner but it really was no surprise that our staff. On 300 z x Turbo S champ for its price and more. Nothing beats it and sheer performance but not too far behind the turbo Z comes the Mazda 7 turbo 2 arc 7 turbo had the best balance on speed and braking performance of the group. It was also the easiest of the trio to drive close to its limits. While third place went to the new Toyota M.R. to Turbo. There is much more to it story. Toyota clearly made the choice of adapting the M.R.

to Turbo more for the street than the race track. It is the most civilized of the three on our trip south. It provided the best long distance comfort handling rough roads with less job and was. Some fuel economy. Plus you can almost have to him or two turbos for the price of a turbos. They are to Miss Congeniality and ground up. There is something else we learned about this sports car trio. In today's market when it comes to precision turbocharge performance there's a car for almost every budget. And. That's precisely. The way it should. Car of the week is a 1967 lotus land. It belongs to judge Binik La Jolla California. Send us a picture of your lotus or any other car and we'll consider it for car of the week. Well need a good color photo and a self-addressed envelope. Our address is motorway

Owings Mills Maryland 2 1 1 1 7. We know you like to see the cars that will be coming along in the next few years. Well Lisa Barrow is the one with the pictures. Here she is to whet your appetite for futuristic models. Lisa John even though it comes at the end of the car show season this year's International Automobile show of Greater New York style a surprising number of fresh concept vehicles for display the shockwave a sleekly styled personal sports luxury coupe with the near future of even more interest however are the shockwave tires. They're solid rubber and experiment by Goodyear. They could be used as a replacement for low profile tires on today's performance cars. Isuzu has had such good luck with their Amigo's sport utility vehicle that they've gone even further with this styling exercise called Costa. This truncated aerodynamic truck features two plus two seating with the back seats hidden under a canopy on the other hand has stretched the wheelbase and chopped the top off on a caravan minivan to make the DDX. It's supposed to be the perfect motorcycle

hauler. Demo here Axelsson easily handle the weight of the biggest bikes John. Thanks Lisa. Once again we turn from the future to the past. Craig Singh Haas takes us this time to our place on the high road where old cars and old car enthusiast go in droves. Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary defines a flea market as an open air market for secondhand articles or antiques but for automobile restorers there is only one word that describes fleamarket and that person located across the road from the famous Pennsylvania chocolate factory the Hershey flea market is considered by many to be one of the best sources of antique and ordered parts in the world. Janet Stalnaker one of the organizers of the spring event explained the popularity of flea markets. People that come to car flea markets are crazy because they do not care about anything other than getting

their say in the parks. They do not care how hot it is they do not care how cold it is. I have seen the mud up to their knees that he took his shoes right off their feet. They would not do it for anything else other than the love of Christ. This. Is what it looks like. They make something up. Out. Of the bottom. So. You know. What. You want. Your body. To work something like that just don't be ready to go back to God. Now the trouble with doing a feature on all of flea markets is that I really shouldn't spend any more money on car parts. The rents due next week by talk flusters. I've always wanted to sell this. Why not. I am not going to buy it. Now you can find parts for almost any car ever made including some rather unusual accessories. What makes these Mopar apples. Were picked by Levi

right. The fact that. With all the parts available it's almost inevitable you run across a bargain or two. Hey. No no. Of course if you haven't walked your door fine. There's always an incredible collection of antique and collectible cars for sale at the park. Around. Here you'll find the final product of thousands of hours of logging restoration or the potential for thousands of hours of your own time. Either way you're bound to find something that you just can't live without. Force speed. Yeah. JOHN about that raise in salary. Too. Well Cragg will be back next week same salary no car. Lisa Berrow will give us the lowdown on exotic car rentals bad gas will be along with more

maintenance information and will have another new car road test. John Davis will see you that. If you'd like a transcript of this program send four dollars to Motor Week transcripts. Owings Mills Maryland 2 1 1 1 7 residents of Maryland Dec. 20 cents sales tax. Ask for Schoenborn 9:33. Motor Week is a production of Maryland Public Television.

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