Innehållsförteckning för July 1989 från MotorTrend

I didn’t do well in high school physics class at first, something to do with it being all too abstract, perhaps. But when I found I could relate the laws of physics to actual occurrences in areas I understood, such as automobiles, it began to make some sense. I really understood the theory of mass and acceleration one afternoon when the axle on Alan’s ’37 Ford pickup truck broke as we were styling past the local hamburger stand. There were no safety retainers on those models, so the tire, wheel, brake drum, and a short piece of the splined axle took off. This rolling mass of energy jumped up onto the sidewalk and seemed to accelerate as we hobbled to the side of the road. A friend named Coaster, walking…

BUGATTI SUPER CAR TAKING SHAPE The revival of Bugatti, the world’s most coveted automotive marque, is progressing well. Technical drawings have been completed for an all-new Bugatti supercar, discussions with stylists are at an advanced stage, a new powerplant is running on the test bench, impressive office and factory buildings are under construction near Modena in Italy, and the company’s chief executive and technical director, Paolo Stanzani, tells us the first prototype should be on the road by the middle of next year. Stanzani, who fathered Lamborghini’s innovative mid-engined Miura and the still-sensational Countach before establishing his own engineering consultancy business in 1974, says candidly that the new Bugatti “will continue in some ways, with Lamborghini philosophy. We will use fresh and exciting technical solutions, but not unrealistic or fanciful…

A company didn’t build this car; people did To make much sense out of the Lotus Turbo Esprit SE, you need to realize a few things. Lotus is, above all, a firm of enthusiasts. They’re a resourceful gang of high-level tinkerers with a get-it-done attitude built into the company DNA by the late Colin Chapman. Despite ownership by GM since early 1986, there are no great cash reserves at the Hethel, England, Lotus offices that can be applied like some engineering poultice to any technical flare-up that should develop. And the Lotus men like it that way. The logic runs like this: Don’t ask any favors of GM, and GM won’t ask any favors of Lotus. The result is a scrappy, comparatively lean organization that meets engineering challenges with ingenuity,…

Cars are getting so good you wouldn’t believe it. As a perfect example, here’s the Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX/Eagle Talon TSi awd. A mouthful of two names, but just one car. To keep the nametags straight, the Mitsubishi and Chrysler makeup artists have given each car a slightly different look, but otherwise they are one. This/these car/cars is/are the product ‘products of Diamond-Star Motors. Mitsubishi and Chrysler’s joint venture deal located in Normal, Illinois. Normal’s where they’re built, but normal has nothing to do with how they work. At first glance, they look like high-zoot versions of the Eclipse, Talon, and Plymouth Laser. Closer inspection reveals more. Instead of front drive, there’s now full-time all-wheel drive, the newsworthy reason for this test. Getting nearly 200 hp to the pavement without childish…

I suspected we were getting near the track when I saw the headlights. They were the only things that had matched the helicopter’s ground speed since we’d left Phoenix’s Sky Harbor airport 45 minutes before. When I picked out the headlights from the third Legacy, I figured we were going to get a closer look at Subaru’s latest test: a world endurance record, FIA certified at better than 138 mph. In a basically stock RS 4WD. The company is serious about the potential of the Legacy. Enough to combine its reputation for reliability with a newfound performance image and put them both on the line. The effort we witnessed saw a Legacy RS 4WD cover 100,000 km in 447 hr/44 min/9.887 sec. The clock kept running the entire time, through…

The turbo is dead. Long live the atmo. It hardly seems possible that the modern turbocharged era in Grand Prix competition is over. Save for a few grizzled veterans, a handful of pure rookies, and those less fortunates who’ve spent the last decade driving for the have-nots, most of the pilots of these sleek, ground-bound rockets have never known anything else. But change is now. For the first time since 1977, the entire field is once again powered by naturally aspirated engines, all displacing 3.5 liters. The new edict has produced the desired effect. By cutting development, operating, and maintenance costs from the absolutely ungodly to the merely absurd, the Federation Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) has paved the way for several new teams and engine manufacturers to roll into…

There ought to be more American cars as generally delightful as Pontiac’s 6000 STE AWD. In fact, there ought to be more than just the estimated 1300 copies Pontiac says it will build as ’89s. The awd aspect made it a perfect long-term test vehicle in Motown, but the winter was mild and we didn’t get much snow. It doesn’t matter. Snow and ice really aren’t what the car is about, anyway. The improved overall performance balance of the awd STE versus its front-drive predecessor is profound. This is a given on surfaces with marginal traction, of course, but the sedan is remarkable in the dry as well. The front-drive ’88 STE gleefully surrendered to understeer in hard cornering. The awd ’89 STE still understeers noticeably (though the front/rear torque…

Feel the Power It was interesting to read for the first time that the previously unpublished horsepower rating of my European-spec Aston Martin Vantage is 403. Even with 103,000 miles on it, I feel the power. There’s something special about cruising at 55 mph in 5th gear, pushing down on the accelerator, and being pushed back in your seat. Phillip Bingham’s description of how the motor ‘‘erupts into life with a rude, metallic clatterin’ ‘n’ clankin’” was totally accurate; it makes one wonder if the 12 quarts of oil will work hard enough. How about this for a bargain: a used V-8 Aston may be had for perhaps $160,000 less than a new one! Paul R. GoldsteinPotomac, Md. Jag Kisses The Jaguar XKE is one of my all-time favorite automobiles…

Get used to the picture. This summer, and probably for many to come, little scenes like this are going to play on every strip of sunny sand accessible by man and machine. Mazda’s MX-5 Miata has arrived, and summer will never be the same. You see, Mazda has a hit on its corporate hands with the Miata. Here’s a car that can relight the fire in an older enthusiast’s heart or just as easily drive a teenage girl to the point of hot flashes. We know. The driver’s seat of the Miata puts you right at ground zero. In our experience, the appeal of the Miata knows no bounds. No Motor Trend test car in memory has gotten the numbers of stares, comments, and questions the Miata has garnered during…

Making a big flap over the world’s newest supercar NEWS AGENCY REPORT, DETROIT: If you think the Corvette ZR-1 finally shows that America can fight the world’s best supercar makers, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Behind a high security fence somewhere in England, loud rumbling noises lend credence to rumors that a revolutionary new supercar is undergoing rigorous development tests. Its financier and designer are both said to be American. HEATHROW AIRPORT, LONDON: Japanese automotive engineers with cameras around their necks have been filing through the arrivals lounge here for days now. Most are later seen climbing a tall fence in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire. After looking through long lenses, they shake their heads in disbelief and run for the nearest phone booth. They’ve spied a prototype supercar that could deal…

Ah, to be a Gringo in Mexico—that is euthanasia.—Ambrose Bierce During our 10-day exposure to the revived Panamerican Road Race, CaboSar we learned all too well that essayist Ambrose Bierce knew what he was talking about. Certainly, our fate wasn’t quite as bad as his. After all, he disappeared in Mexico never to be seen again. But covering this event gave us a renewed appreciation for how the other half exists and a new respect for the power of sheer disorganization, which is not to say that we didn’t have our share of fun along the way. First, though, a bit of background is in order. La Carrera Panamericana was established in 1950 to publicize the opening of Mexico’s Pan American Highway system and enjoyed an immense amount of popularity…

United States automobile manufacturers are cautiously dipping their toes into the 4-wheel-drive waters. Four-wheel, or all-wheel, drive isn’t new, of course, but in the past, it’s been associated mainly with trucks or other utility vehicles. By definition, all-wheel drive is just that; all four wheels driving all the time. The 4-wheel-drive terminology is usually reserved for cars that are normally front or rear drive but by driver option can be switched to 4wd with the flick of a switch or push of a button. Until recently, the banner for awd cars had been carried by Audi in Germany and Subaru in Japan, both companies being so fully dedicated to driving four wheels that their entire car lines offer that option. On this side of the ocean, there are the obvious…

DRIVING IMPRESSION ASIA At the the last Tokyo Motor Show, Nissan debuted two cars, the twinships. One was a sleek, multi-purpose van called the Jura, which became the new Axxess. The second vehicle, the Saurus, was shown as a 2-seat roadster. Nissan’s idea was simple: Buy one car for work and the other for fun. The Saurus, as the fun car, attracted more attention with its roadster design and supercharged March (Micra) engine. The car didn’t make it into production, but the original engine found its way into the March track racer just homologated for street driving in Japan—shades of the Lotus Super Seven. Never ones to waste a good car or the effort that went into it, the people at Nissan Motor Sports International Company Ltd. (NISMO) developed a…

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Remember that old lyric, “Accentuate the positive; eliminate the negative?” Well, that’s a swell idea, but sometimes things just aren’t as they should be, and it drives me nuts. For some reason, the world seems filled with foul-ups, flops, and failures. Concepts that seem at face value so darned easy are, for unknown reasons, impossible to execute. Cheapness, indifference, and apathy rear their ugly heads with uncomfortable regularity, rendering what should be fairly minor conveniences into major annoyances. Let me give you a few examples: Don’t you just hate cars with no coat hooks? Now we don’t often wear jackets and ties around here. My personal yearly dry-cleaning bill wouldn’t buy much more than a large pizza with everything on it, but I’m still not wild about having my few…

ALFA’S BREATH OF FRESH AIR Sources close to Alfa Romeo say plans are afoot to replace that charming but aged 2-seater, the Spyder. A new-look Alfa convertible has reportedly been drawn by the Pininfarina studio, which may also produce the car. It combines styling elements of the current Alfa family (particularly in its hood, grille, and headlamp treatment) with a long, flat-topped tail deliberately evocative of the ’66 Giulia Spider. That car, commonly called the Duetto, was also shaped by Pininfarina. Our source believes the new Spyder will adopt much of the present droptop’s running gear, although in view of its antiquity, we’d like to think this is unlikely. Probable power source is Alfa’s 2-liter fuel-injected twin-spark engine. When Fiat beat Ford in the fight to buy Alfa Romeo three…

Only a pitiful few cars sold in the United States can lay honest claim to intrinsic, cost-no-object appeal—their charisma, high-performance or otherwise, is self-evident at any price. The Corvettes and BMWs of the world obviously belong in this specialized class. In more affordable price classes, scarcely any domestic cars make the cut. But take a careful peek at the next Taurus sedan stopped beside your BMW at the crosswalk. If its driver is grinning uncontrollably, be respectful as the light changes from red to green. Ford’s hottest domestic sedan is the Taurus SHO. The nation’s hottest domestic sedan is also the Taurus SHO. The fact that the car even exists is cause enough to believe a minor renaissance is underway at domestic auto makers. Cars just haven’t been done this…

Who could ever forget those immortal words: “To the Batmobile, Robin!” Certainly not the millions of fans who checked in at the same Bat time, same Bat channel every Wednesday and Thursday night for two years to see which masquerading villain or villainess was trying to destroy the Dynamic Duo. Pow! But the term Dynamic Duo is really a misnomer; the show had three stars: Adam West, Burt Ward, and the Batmobile. Just as the Caped Crusaders were crime-fighters, so was the Batmobile. An up-close peek at the interior spotlighted some of the Batmobile’s bad guy-busting abilities, like the Bat Eye TV Screen used to stalk Catwoman’s lair or the Bat Ray Beam cracking the hideout of Egghead. Boff! The first Batmobile grew from the minds of Kustom Kar King…

More often than not, when enthusiasts think about 4-wheel-drive sedans, it’s Audi that immediately comes to mind. Since the introduction of the Quattro, the company’s offerings have become the “for instance” of choice when the discussion shifts to all-wheel drive. Which really gives Subaru short shrift, because when it came to introducing 4wd passenger cars to the United States, that technology rolled in behind six stars, not four rings. Needless to say, Fuji Heavy Industries would like to change that situation and is hoping to do so with its newest 4-door, the Legacy. While Subaru’s latest family hauler doesn’t represent an upscale invasion of Audi’s territory, it should place the company a bit closer to the tip of the tongue during those cocktail party discourses. Actually, if you’re talking direct…

Sport/utilities have always had something of an identity crisis. As their compound name implies, these hybrids allegedly fill two distinct roles: as play vehicles and as working trucks. In reality, they’ve become as much fashion statements as transportation, which takes them out of the role of either truck or passenger vehicle. It also makes them a market segment too lucrative to ignore. Yet any Land’s End catalog illustrates that fashionable doesn’t rule out practical, which partially explains the existence of the 4-door 4Runner. As you might expect, the major raison d’etre for this 4wd quattroporte is simple economics. Toyota expects the compact sport/ute segment to hit 750,000 by the ’90s. It’s shooting for 10% of the total S/U market, most of it with the 4Runner, and a 2-door’s appeal is…

With three different naturally aspirated engine types in use this year, it’s clear there’s a lack of consensus in Formula One powerplant design. Packaging plays a key role in determining engine configuration. Honda and Renault feel the V-10 layout offers the best tradeoff between power, fuel efficiency, and space requirements. With more cylinders, the new V-12s of Ferrari and Lamborghini are smoother and have a broader torque band. But they are also thirstier and harder to shoehorn into a chassis. Thus far, they’ve also proved down on power. The tried-and-true V-8 is favored by Judd, Cos-worth, Yamaha, and Ford. The latter, developed in conjunction with Cos-worth, is the lightest, most compact of any F1 engine available this season. Proponents argue the V-8s are more fuel efficient and will happily put…