FIRESTONE SETTLES WITH STATES
The Associated Press reports that
Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. has reached an agreement under which it will pay as
much as $51.5 million to avoid lawsuits lodged by states over the Firestone tire
recall. The settlement, which could be announced today, will have Firestone pay
$500,000 to each state as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the
U.S. Virgin Islands. The company will also pay $10 million in states’ legal fees
and will spend $5 million in a public-awareness campaign for tire safety, the
news service reports. Last August, Firestone announced that it would recall some
6.5 million tires used on the Ford Explorer and other vehicles, because the
tires were suspected in cases of tread separation that led to more than 200
deaths and hundreds of injuries. Last month, the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration forced Firestone to add more tires to the recall.
Firestone Forced into Recall by Marty Padgett (10/8/2001)
SEMA STAYS THE
COURSE
Call it an automotive extravaganza: the annual
Specialty Equipment Market Association convention is the world’s largest
gathering of auto aftermarket suppliers, and strolling through the wide aisles
of the Las Vegas Convention Center, you could find everything from air
fresheners to high-performance “crate” engines. In all, Americans will spend
more than $25 billion to improve the performance or just dress up their cars
this year. SEMA’s Aftermarket Week traditionally provides a clear sense of
consumer trends—as well as an indication of the overall health of the auto
industry. And this year was no exception, writes TCC publisher TCC Team
in a special report:
SEMA Stays the Course
TOYOTA, FORD BIG POLK/AMES
WINNERS
The 2002 Automotive Market Environmental Sensitivity (AMES)
Awards have been announced, and this year’s big recipients for the green award
include Toyota and Ford. The awards use ratings arrived at from emissions and
fuel-economy numbers to reward environmentally conscious vehicles in 15
categories. Toyota garnered 14 awards, including five for "Best in Class,” while
Ford grabbed 11, including four "Best in Class" awards and General Motors took
home 10. The best-in-class vehicles included the following:
Subcompact Car: Toyota Prius Minivan: Ford Windstar
Compact Car: VW Passat Full-size Van: Ford E150/250
Midsize Car: Toyota Camry Compact Pickup: Mazda B-Series
Full-size Car: Toyota Avalon Full-size Pickup: Ford F150
Premium Car: Lexus ES300 Compact SUV: Honda CR-V
Luxury Car: Mercedes E-Class Midsize SUV: Acura MDX
Sporty Car: Acura RSX Full-size SUV: Mercedes M-Class
Sports Car: Toyota MR2
A complete list of AMES Awards is at http://www.amesaward.com.
2003 Land Rover Range Rover
2002 RANGE ROVER
DETAILED
Land Rover has issued pictures of the new
Range Rover, which it will officially unveil at the Detroit Auto Show in
January. It’s only the third all-new model in the thirty-one year history of the
vehicle that created the sport-ute segment, but this time instead of leading the
trend it’s following, becoming bigger, more luxurious and more expensive, in
line with its younger, brasher competitors from brands like Cadillac. The
styling is not radically changed over that of the current model. Power comes
from a 4.4-liter V-8 or a 3.0-liter turbodiesel six, both sourced from BMW, and
as befits a Land Rover, four-wheel drive is permanent. The interior of the new
version is even more luxurious, with wood and leather trim that would not be out
of place in a car from its fellow Ford family member Jaguar, and the legendary
off-road ability is sure to be maintained. -Ian Norris
Spy Shots: '03 Range Rover by Brenda Priddy (12/27/2000)
PENSKE DONE WITH CART?
The killing blow to CART may come as early as next
week. ESPN.com reported Sunday that racing scion Roger Penske will hold a press
conference in Indianapolis next week to announce his defection from CART, which
he helped found in 1979, to the rival Indy Racing League, which is helmed by
Indianapolis speedway owner Tony George. Penske is quoted by the sports-news
site as declaring, third-person, that he’s “out of CART, period.” Penske and
driver Gil de Ferran defended their FedEx CART championship this year and will
receive the series’ $1 million championship payday Tuesday night in Las
Vegas.
ISUZU GETS ASCENDER UTE VIA GM
Isuzu will replace the Trooper sport-utility
vehicle in 2003 with the Ascender. The new sport-ute is based on GM’s
extended-wheelbase midsize ute platform, which also counts the Chevrolet
Trailblazer EXT and GMC Envoy XL as its spawn. The Isuzu version also receives
the 4.2-liter, 270-hp in-line six-cylinder that powers the other GM midsize
utes, as well as four-wheel disc brakes with anti-lock control, a standard third
row of seats, and dual front airbags as well as dual front and rear side airbags
and OnStar. The Ascender enters production in September 2002.
RAM GETS
FOUR WHEELER AWARD
The 2002
Dodge Ram is Four Wheeler’s "Pickup Truck of the Year,” the magazine announced
Friday. The 1500 model with four-wheel drive and four doors emerged as the
winner in the magazine’s annual race because, as Jon Thompson, the editor of the
magazine says, "the Ram proved to be most adept at showing us all the qualities
enthusiasts look for in a four-wheel-drive pickup." The full competition appears
in the magazine’s January 2002 issue.
2002 Dodge Ram Quad Cab
LIGHTNING STRIKES FORD AGAIN
A leaky supercharger is forcing Ford to recall
about 9000 F-150 Lightning high-performance pickup trucks, the company announced
on Wednesday. The trucks, built at Ford’s Ontario truck plant between December
‘98 and August 2000, were sold in the U.S. and in Canada. The defect could
prevent the trucks from making full power at full throttle. Customers will be
notified by mail, and the repairs will be performed by Ford free of
charge.
2001 Ford F-150 Lightning by Dan Carney
(8/20/2001)
ONE LAST DRIVE
A New
Jersey man who told his family that he’d drive himself to the funeral home did
exactly that, his wife told Reuters on Tuesday. Harold Saber, 80, was found dead
in his car at the Bernheim-Apter-Goldsticker Suburban Funeral Chapel in
Maplewood, N.J., a few miles from his home in nearby Verona. Saber’s wife Sylvia
Robinson said that Saber had told her many times that he would take himself to
the funeral home when it was time. Saber, a diabetic, had recently been
hospitalized for complications from diabetes. Authorities say nothing about the
death appears suspicious.
story posted 11/12/01
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