Innehållsförteckning för August 1977 från MotorTrend

DIMENSIONS DOWNSIZE More marketing problems are in store for the big auto makers with their 1978 downsize models. What worries some Ford executives, for example, is that little more than a year after their new 1978 compacts arrive, GM will debut its front-drive downsized compacts. The GM compacts will be much smaller than Ford’s counterparts, perhaps making the latter look big and old-fashioned by comparison. So, it may be OK to downsize according to the beat of your own corporate drummer, but the result is that Detroit’s music may have lost some of its amazing recent harmony. The new compact Ford and the new intermediate GM cars are very nearly the same size. The rub is that they were designed to fit into different market segments and carry different prices.…

There are few automotive journalists who enjoy a first-name relationship with the chiefs of the industry, but even rarer are those who dine with royalty. MT’s European Editor, Bernard Cahier, is one of the latter. Just before the recent Grand Prix of Spain, Cahier and one of our U.S. editors were prowling the pit area doing their journalistic thing when Bernard suddenly glanced at his watch and excused himself. “I’m sorry, but I must leave for a couple of hours. I’m having lunch with King Juan Carlos,” he announced. Our man thought to himself, “Sure he is … probably has a business deal cooking and doesn’t want me to cramp his style.” They went back to their hotel to freshen up, and our man happened to be near the entrance…

As you sit back watching “Kojak,” bemoaning the fact that gas is up to nearly 70¢ a gallon and you’ve gotta take the family hack in for the state inspection, have you ever thought about how lucky you are? On the other side of the world, someone is sitting on the tatami watching Taiyo ni Hoero, griping that a gallon of regular will set him back $1.60, and his Corona is due for the government-required tear-down this Saturday. As bad as things may be for the car owner in the United States, the situation for the Japanese driver is even worse. In spite of government regulation which makes owning a car in Japan about as desirable as a case of swine flu, over 2% million cars were sold in Japan…

Your best friend has an annoying habit of putting his feet up on your dashboard when he gets into your Car. When he leaves, you have a constant reminder of his presence by the heel marks he’s left behind. Every time you give in to your wife’s plea to stop for ice cream, and despite your admonition to the kids about dropping it on the upholstery, the inevitable always happens. You avoid parking under a tree, even though the shade would keep the interior cool. Despite that, the birds seek out your vinyl top with unerring accuracy. Murphy’s Law No. 1: If something can go wrong, it will. What is needed, you say, is a miracle product that will make all these annoyances seem weightless. Something you simply spray on…

He was bound to do it sooner or later. The most oft-heard question uttered by race-goers for a full decade had been, “Do you think A.J. will win his fourth?’ Well, it was met with an affirmative answer at about 2:07 p.m. Sunday afternoon, May 29, 1977. A.J. Foyt had finally succeeded in his longtime quest to become the first four-time winner in the history of the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race classic. There wasn’t a dry eye in the place as the 42-year-old Texan took the slowest “cool-down’” lap in memory and rolled along pit lane to a standing ovation from a third of a million paying spectators and participants alike. Fifteen minutes earlier, Foyt had been chasing (and catching) pacesetter Gordon Johncock, heading for a thrilling cliff-hanger finish. Then Johncock’s…

OFF-ROAD MERCEDES Mercedes-Benz will enter the booming 4-wheel-drive market sometime in late 1978 with a challenger to the British Leyland Land Rover and Range Rover. A wide range of Mercedes vehicles is seen, with a choice of gasoline or diesel engines, and an additional Austrian gasoline powerplant, available in versions of. 65 to 120 bhp. Developed jointly by Daimler-Benz of Stuttgart and Steyr-Daimler-Puch of Austria, the off-road vehicles are expected to begin production in an enlarged Puch factory at Graz-Thondorf in Austria. Prototypes are undergoing rugged testing. FIAT REFINEMENTS Fiat, whose recent internal manipulations have been reported in the Wall Street Journal and others, has announced the first major revision of its 127 sedan lineup since introduction of that model in April 1971. More than 2% million of the popular…

Station wagons have played an important ‘part in the lives of American families for the past quarter-century. But now the station wagon as we know it seems destined for extinction. In its place will be the van wagon, or window van as it’s more commonly called. Seems odd that the station wagon—which was conceived on a truck chassis—should revert to its original self. However, the truck wagons of yesteryear were quite different from the sophisticated, soft-riding vans of today. Why the trend toward trucks? Well, as with most everything happening in the automotive world today, federal regulations governing emissions, safety and fuel economy are reaping a grim harvest. In a short period of time, we have seen the convertible and 4-door hardtop all but disappear. Now, in California—where emissions are…

In my road test of the Datsun 200-SX (April), it is quite possible you got the idea that I didn’t really care for the looks of the Datsun 200-SX. As a matter of fact, I held the opinion that there was nothing that could be done to salvage the appearance of the SX, short of a complete redesign. Well, I was wrong. The 200-SX can be made to look good—real good—and with performance to match the looks. You see, this 200-SX is turbocharged. The car is owned by Richard Yagami, an industrial designer from Westport, Connecticut, who owns five Lotuses (Loti?) in addition to the Datsun. The combination of Lotus and Datsun is rather out of the ordinary. In addition to more mundane aspects of industrial design, Yagami has also…

British Leyland has announced a Be improved version of its TR7 sports car at mid-year, which it is referring to as the 1977 model rather than giving it a halfyear designation. Chief among the new features is a 5-speed transmission of the same type used in the new Rover 3500 (sold in the UK and Europe, but not here). Fourth speed in the transmission is direct, and 5th is overdrive. Other changes in the new model are a lowered rear suspension and a matte black front air dam, both of which give the car somewhat less of a “downhill” look than its predecessor. Larger tires are also fitted to give a better underfooting. In a short get-acquainted session with the car at Sears Point Raceway in Northern California, the first…

Disguised as a Grand Prix driver, harnessed by a 6-strapped full safety belt, I am prostrate in the cockpit of the 6-wheeled Elf Tyrrell P34 of Ronnie Peterson. In front of me, a huge, rectangular rev-counter, set into the mini-dashboard, hides the temperature and pressure gauges: The Tyrrell team is trying out a new ignition system, which explains the intrusion of the instrument installed in a haphazard fashion. Behind me, the pits of the Paul Ricard circuit. On my right, Patrick Depailler throws me a half-mocking, half-reassuring smile. On my left, Ken Tyrrell watches, half-serious, half-jesting: “Ready, Jose?” “Ready. Any orders?” “Only one—don’t shunt it!’ The big moment had arrived. I am fortunate enough to enjoy the confidence of the officials of the Elf-Tyrrell Racing Organization, and even of Ken…

Back in 1973, some of the engineers at Pontiac hit upon a pretty bright idea—build a “European”- style sports sedan in the U.S., using the body of the Le Mans as a base. The thought was that this car, the Grand Am, would offer an American alternative to Mercedes, BMW and Alfa. Three years later, this stroke of genius was quietly laid to rest. Why? Well, the car was introduced just before the 1973-74 oil “shortage,” and the folks who might have been partial to this sort of car could have been swayed by the better economy of the Europeans, and the 212-in. overall length of the Grand Am may have been considered “too big” by members of the same group. Another possibility (the one which I think is the…

UNLIKELY NEIGHBORS Economic variables and the need to build cars can make marketplace bedfellows—which is where Japan and Russia are now. In the Far East they are geographic neighbors. Both, however, have traditionally followed different approaches to the building and selling of passenger cars. There’s an irony in all this. Russia is now involved in its biggest push to date in trying to sell the West on the premise that its cars are as good as anybody’s, and the Soviets are willing to sell at extremely low prices to prove ‘it. The main spear of Russia’s western drive is an obsolete Fiat model called the Lada, and the latest of that model is the 1200 ES with ‘executive equipment.” The Japanese, of course, represent one of the world’s most sophisticated…

In case you haven't had the pleasure of a trip down to your local Ford dealership, and you haven't had the radio or TV on, you might be unaware that Ford Motor Company has introduced the best-selling car in Europe, the Fiesta, to these shores. The German-made, front-drive minicar is Ford’s answer to the Chevette, Rabbit, Civic and Corolla-like cars that may soon be the Carter-decreed American standard. According to the original plan hatched in Dearborn, the Fiesta was scheduled to be introduced last spring. For a variety of reasons, not the least of which was Henry Ford II’s worry at the end of 1976 that the small-car market in the U.S. had gone ‘soft,’ the debut of the Fiesta was postponed until this month. Thanks to President Carter’s springtime…

You are strolling slowly down the aisles of the Olympia Motor Show in London. it is October, and the year is 1932. A smiling, well-dressed gentleman approaches, and you recognize him as that genius of Aston Martin, A.C. Bertelli. “I say,” he comments, ‘we're disposing of our prototype Le Mans tourer and I wonder if you would like to have it!”’ Pop! You awake in a cold sweat, staring at the ceiling of your bedroom, and you realize it is all a dream. With apologies to Mr. Bertelli, that’s sort of what it is like to own 2/207, What's an £2/207? Well, it’s an Aston Martin. Not just any Aston, Dut one of the prototype La Mans tourers built in 1932 when Bert Bertelli was still trying to decide whether…

You can sense already that times have changed. Remember the way it was at the dealerships in your town? The windows would be covered for a week with whitewash or brown paper to hide the new models that were being preened and polished inside, and you and your buddies would sneak around the back to try to get a look at the cars that had been covered up when they came into town on the big haulaways. There’d be a preview behind that paper for the leading citizens, and then the covering would be stripped off to reveal the new cars on Introduction Day—one of the really big occasions of the year! It's not like that any more. Then, no car could be sold before the official introduction; now, most…

The famous annual London to Brighton Run is a re-enactment of the original London to Brighton Run. It is a British spectacle viewed annually by millions, most of whom affectionately refer to the participating cars as “old crocks.” The 11th annual Ambassador Invitational Concours presented by Le Cercle Concours d'Elegance, Inc., was a reenactment of prior successful concours, all with a purpose in mind. That primary purpose was to raise funds for the benefit of the Blind Children’s Center, but this year, in addition to the concours, something new was added. A “Bay to L.A. Run’, which was to precede the concours, was planned as a miniature first annual duplication of the duplication London to Brighton Run. Participants would gather one short block from the Pacific Ocean and, leaving at…

Tyrrell still has the Formula 1 6-wheel market all to itself, but competition is en route from the March camp. Although the heralded 6-wheel edition of the March 761 was far from combat-ready when the 1977 World Championship series opened in South America, testing was underway in England with sometime Formula 1 campaigner Howden Ganley handling the driving. After several runs at the Silverstone and Goodwood circuits, all under wet conditions, Ganley feels the March 6-wheeler could become a serious challenger to the supremacy of the McLarens and Ferraris. “It seems a bit early to tell anything for certain,” says Ganley, ‘but it does look quite good. In fact, it feels very much like a conventional Formula 1 car. If you didn’t know that extra set of wheels was there,…

Scarcely hours after Ed Cole’s light plane crashed near Kalamazoo, Michigan, the first copies of the June Motor Trend had left the rail dock for far-flung points of sale. That issue carried a brief look at Cole’s most recent doings, without a word, of course, on his tragic death May 2. To measure a delay in reporting such an auto industry loss is one perspective. Yet, in another sense, if the measure of a man’s worth has anything to do with a larger-than-life image after his death, the former General Motors president will be sorely missed. We will miss him, to be sure, and at the close of these very general notes, MT Detroit Editor Bob Irvin has penned an especially warm testimonial to the man he called, simply, “a…

GET A HANDLE, GOOD BUDDY New from Audiovox Corporation is its 40-channel remote CB transceiver with “full control’? microphone. Model MCB-5000 utilizes existing speakers and features a totally out-of-sight control module. The microphone mounts on the dash and puts virtually all controls, from pushbutton channel selector to scan control switches, in the hand of the user. It is easily detachable for safe storage. For details contact: Audiovox Corporation, Dept. MT, Hauppage, NY 11787. KEYBOARD COMMAND Hy-Gain announces its new 40-channel remote CB transceiver, Model 2716. The unit combines advanced IC chip technology and easy-to-use computer-style keyboard for a wide range of features and simplicity of operation. The keyboard command module is dash-mounted and easily detaches for secure storage. The transceiver may be installed in the trunk or any other protected…