GM TO
DEBUT MAJOR V-8 IN FRANKFURT
TheCarConnection.com has already
given an extensive preview of the highlights of the upcoming Frankfurt auto
show, including the Opel Signum II, a General Motors concept car based on GM’s
Epsilon architecture. And it is relatively common knowledge that the Epsilon
platform will be shared by the next generations of the Chevrolet Malibu, Pontiac
Grand Am, Saab 9-3 and Opel Vectra. Digging a bit deeper into the story,
however, TheCarConnection.com has unearthed some significant details about the
all-new 4.3-liter V-8 that gets its first showing under the hood of the Signum
II in Frankfurt. The 75-degree-vee pushrod V-8 is a world-market-ready
direct-injection gasoline engine. It features three valves per cylinder and GM’s
cylinder deactivation system. The engine uses the gas/pneumatic direct-injection
setup developed by Orbital Engine and Siemens. And while the V-8 is mounted
transversely in the Signum II, its design allows for longitudinal placement as
well.
'01 Frankfurt Show
Preview by Henny Hemmes
(8/13/2001)
Frankfurt Show Preview II by Ian Norris (8/27/2001)
MORE DETAILS ON THE
CADILLAC XLR
The Cadillac XLR roadster—the
production version of the Evoq showcar—will be appearing late next year or early
in 2003 as a 2003 model. General Motors has confirmed that the two-seat XLR will
be powered by GM’s venerable 4.6-liter Northstar V-8 driving the rear wheels via
a 5-speed automatic transmission. The General hopes that the XLR will bring
Cadillac back into favor with affluent U.S. buyers who have of late been leaning
toward sporty luxury cars from Europe and Japan. In 1997, Cadillac was the top
luxury brand in America; today, it is struggling to make the first-tier cut. The
2003 Cadillac XLR roadster will be built at the same Bowling Green, Kentucky
facility that produces the Chevrolet Corvette.
Preview: 2003 Cadillac
CTS by TCC Team (8/20/2001)
2002 HONDA
ODYSSEY: WATCH OUT, CHRYSLER
Almost as a calculated response to
Chrysler’s recent model and pricing announcements for its fleet of 2002
minivans, Honda’s recent launch of its 2002 Odyssey van appears destined to add
fire to an already competitive fray in family haulers. Already recognized as a
smart buy by industry watchers like J.D. Power and Associates and IntelliChoice,
and by publications that range from Car and Driver to Consumer
Reports, the Honda Odyssey is already a solid household name. For 2002,
Honda comes to the competition with a 240-horsepower V-6, a standard 5-speed
automatic transmission, and front and side airbags for the driver and front-seat
passenger. Honda also reports that the 2002 Odyssey is the first minivan
available with a factory-installed DVD player.
2001 Honda
Odyssey by Dan Carney
(6/18/2001)
MERCEDES-BENZ MAYBACH:
ULTRA-LUXURY TRADITION BREAKER
Consider this: The Mercedes-Benz
three-pointed-star logo doesn’t carry enough cache to do the company’s new
Maybach model justice. According to a report in Automotive News, Mercedes
plans to launch the Maybach—a largely hand-built, no-expense-too-great,
uber-luxury sedan along the lines of Rolls-Royces and Bentleys (and then
some)—as a brand unto itself. Not even the three-pointed star hood ornament of
Mercedes-Benz—after Coca Cola logo, probably one of the most recognizable
symbols in the universe—will appear on the car. Instead, the company has chosen
to adorn the Maybach hood with a double-M logo inside of a triangle, a
historical reference to Maybach Motorenbau, a small carmaker from the early part
of the 20th century with deep ties to Mercedes. The Maybach, due for
launch in 2003, will feature a 500-plus-horsepower V-12 inspired by two
turbochargers. It will ride on a new type of adaptive, electronically controlled
air suspension. Stopping power will be provided by a quick-response
brake-by-wire system. And the price? Mercedes-Benz spokesman Fred Heiler
speculated, "…double, triple, I don’t know how much more it’s going to be over a
current Mercedes product, even a high-end Mercedes product." Thus the need,
according to Heiler, for giving the Maybach a brand all its own.
Benz: What's In A
Brand? by TCC Team (3/12/2001)
HONDA
FIELDS A HYBRID CIVIC
In Tokyo yesterday,
Honda Motor Company introduced a hybrid-power Civic sedan. The new subcompact
uses a small-displacement gasoline engine and an electric motor which work
together to optimize fuel economy. Honda says that the hybrid Civic should get
around 68 miles per gallon of gas. It is scheduled to go on sale in Japan later
this year, followed by a spring introduction into the U.S. market. No price has
yet been announced.
GM
MAKES A DEEPER COMMITMENT TO SATELLITE RADIO
Moving technology and profit potential forward
on parallel paths, General Motors Corp. says that it will offer XM Satellite
radio as an option on at least 20 of its 2003-model-year vehicles. GM, which
owns 12% of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc., is already gearing up to put
satellite radio in 2002 Cadillac Seville and DeVille models later this year. The
idea behind satellite radio is that by subscribing to the service, you can
"personalize" your radio programming and get clear reception anywhere you’re
driving. XM Satellite plans to begin beaming 71 music channels (many
commercial-free) and 29 news, talk, sports, comedy and children’s channels
beginning on September 12. The subscription price will be $9.95 per month.
Auto Tech Talk: Satellite
Radio by TCC Team
(4/23/2001)
PORSCHE
SIGNS UP WITH SIRIUS AND XM SATELLITE RADIO
As the industry gears up for the future of
in-car broadcasting, satellite radio deals are gaining momentum with automakers.
A few weeks ago, BMW of North America announced that it was contracting with
Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (which also has Ford and DaimlerChrysler on its
roster). This week, General Motors outlined its plans to offer XM Satellite
Radio as an option on 20 of its 2003 models next fall (along with Honda). Now
Porsche Cars North America has decided that more is better, and has cut a deal
with both Sirius and XM. Satellite radio is a subscription-based option that
allows customers to "personalize" their listening by offering digital-quality
radio playing dozens of channels covering nearly every imaginable style of music
and format. Porsche’s dual-service deal will allow it to offer clients more than
100 channels of music, talk and sports. The company expects to begin offering
satellite radio on all Porsche models in two to three years.
Auto Tech Talk: Satellite
Radio by TCC Team
(4/23/2001)
TOYOTA AND
SONY DEVELOP A CAR WITH A.I. (BUT WITHOUT SPIELBERG)
Toyota Motor Corporation and Sony Corporation
have joined forces to develop a car incorporating "artificial intelligence
capabilities." For its part, Toyota has been pursuing ITS (Intelligent Transport
System) technologies designed to make cars safer and easier to use. Sony brings
lots of experience in robotics to the table, as well as its formidable
electronics expertise. The first fruits of this partnership between the Japanese
giants, a prototype vehicle, will be unveiled at the Tokyo auto show in
October.
2002 Ford Excursion limousine
EXCURSION LIMO? ABSOLUTELY, SAYS FORD
Already dominating the
carriage trade with the Lincoln Town Car, Ford has approved and certified its
Excursion platform for limousine conversions, the first Qualified Vehicle
Modifiers (QVM) conversion for an SUV. Despite some aftermarket modifications of
Expeditions and Navigators (some of these done before the Lincoln was in the
showrooms) the Excursion is ideal for the severe-duty service typical of
limousine operation. "There were a lot of converters in the market doing
non-certified Excursion limos on their own," said Paul Anderson, Excursion Fleet
Marketing Manager. "Our certified package provides Ford Motor Company support to
ensure the finished vehicles are up to customers’ high expectations and safety
standards." Ford has owned the limo market since GM went to less-preferred
front-drive platforms. With both GM and Chrysler going to rear-drive large cars
in the near future, Ford and Lincoln seem to be cementing their stake in the
market, even offering an enlarged trunk in future models to correct an oversight
on the current Town Car.
— Reported by Bob Storck for
TheCarConnection.com.
PEUGEOT
ANTICIPATES A RETURN TO AMERICA
In a remark that could go down as the
understatement of the year, PSA Peugeot-Citroen Chairman Jean-Martin Folz called
the United States a "significant" automotive market. He also intimated that the
French automaker was certainly considering a return to the U.S. market, possibly
as early as 2005. Folz’s comments came at a Paris conference organized on behalf
of French companies by the French securities firm HSBC-CCF. In Western Europe,
only Volkswagen has a bigger piece of the automotive market than PSA, and on a
number of occasions Folz has outlined ambitious plans for further expansion of
PSA’s product lines. "That does not mean we will definitely go [into the U.S.]
in 2005 or 2006," he said coyly, "but perhaps we will." Interestingly, Folz made
his speculations on August 6, 2001, exactly ten years to the day that Peugeot
announced its withdrawal from the U.S. in 1991.
Email This Page