2003 Pontiac G6 concept
General Motors is spending the weekend before
Pebble Beach’s concours full-courting the press with background information on
everything from the Cadillac SRX to its new range of concept cars. Inside TCC
today, you can find sketches (and notes from GM) that preview what GM plans to
roll out at international auto shows in the course of 2003. Find out more inside
TCC right now:
GM Sketches Out ’03
Concepts (8/15/2002)
2002 Pontiac Solstice concept
While there are still a number of obstacles to
overcome, there’s a strong and growing likelihood General Motors will put the
well-received Pontiac Solstice into production. If all goes well, “you could see
it 24 months from now,” said Advanced Vehicle Development Director Mark Hogan,
though he stressed, “That’s got a ton of reach in it.” One of the critical goals
is to keep a production version as close as possible in look and feel to the
sporty two-seater that debuted at the Detroit auto show last January. That would
include the futuristic double-bubble fairings and the 240-horsepower,
turbocharged L-850 engine of the concept convertible. “The goal is to bring it
in at under $20,000” for the base model, which would likely be a 160-hp version,
added Hogan. Read TCC Team’s test drive of the Solstice concept inside
TCC today:
We Drive Pontiac’s
Solstice (8/15/2002)
CADILLAC: “V” FOR “VICTORY” AND
“VELOCITY”
Cadillac has given its new, high-performance
brand-within-a-brand a name: the “V-Series.” That’s “V, as in velocity,” General
Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz told TheCarConnection. But it could also stand for
“victory,” if it helps restore the tarnished luster of the automaker’s flagship
brand. As TCC reported earlier this year, Caddy will launch a number of
high-performance models, starting early next year with the CTSi, a 400-hp
version of the new and edgy CTS sedan. It will be powered by a version of the
Corvette’s LS1 V-8. Many, if not most future Cadillacs will be offered in
V-Series trim, a move echoing the strategy of Mercedes-Benz’s AMG-tuned lineup.
Lutz promised Caddy’s performance line “won’t do anything that isn’t up to the
level of the Europeans.” Meanwhile, in a weekend speech at a gathering of
Cadillac aficionados celebrating the brand’s 100th anniversary, the
GM “car czar” revealed that the Detroit automaker is investing about $4.5
billion to revive Cadillac. “If a company like ours can’t even get its flagship
straight,” Lutz asked, “how is it going to get its other divisions fixed?” —TCC Team
Why GM Needs Fiat
Now by John Rettie (7/29/2002)
HEMI BACK AT CHRYSLER

Chrysler Hemi

Chrysler Hemi

Chrysler Hemi
The Hemi produces 345 hp at 5400 rpm and 375 lb-ft of torque at 4200 rpm. It replaces Chrysler’s ancient 5.9-liter V-8, which produces 245 hp. Chrysler says the more powerful new Hemi will reduce fuel consumption by 8 to 10 percent compared to the 5.9-liter engine.
Chrysler built a wide variety of Hemi engines beginning in 1951. That 331-cid engine was Chrysler’s first V-8, and the first of many engines to use the company’s distinctive hemispherical combustion chamber design. The most celebrated of those Hemis was the 1964 426-cid engine that swept the top three places in the Daytona 500. Street versions of that engine produced 425 hp and 390 lb-ft of torque.
The formula for determining horsepower has changed since the ‘60s, but Chrysler says the new Hemi matches the 1964 engine’s output of one horsepower per cubic inch of displacement. It’s certainly no slouch by current standards, producing 61 hp per liter of displacement. The new Hemi also tops the output of GM and Ford’s high-volume truck V-8s.
The Hemi features two spark plugs per
cylinder. Chrysler says that arrangement combines with the hemispherical
combustion chamber for more efficient combustion, generating plentiful power
while attaining Tier 1 emission status and good fuel economy. Unlike Chrysler’s
most recent V-8, an overhead cam 4.7-liter used in the Dodge Ram and Dakota and
Jeep Grand Cherokee, the 5.7-liter Hemi uses a pushrod and overhead valves.
Chrysler says the design will accommodate cylinder deactivation to improve fuel
economy in future model years. The 2003 Hemi will fire both spark plugs in each
cylinder simultaneously. Chrysler says it will stagger the ignition of the two
plugs for more precise combustion control in future model years. —Mark Phelan
Spy Shots: ‘04 Ram
SRT-10 (8/12/2002)
2003 Chrysler PT Cruiser Dream Cruiser Series 2
Chrysler aims to squeeze a little more juice from
Detroit’s celebration of muscle cars and custom vehicles with a
tangerine-colored turbocharged PT Dream Cruiser Series 2 it unveiled for the
beginning of the Woodward Dream Cruise. Priced at $26,475 with a five-speed
manual transmission and $26,915 with a four-speed automatic, the special-edition
PT Cruiser will go on sale early in 2003. The Dream Cruiser Series 2 gets a host
of exterior tweaks, including its unique tangerine pearl coat paint, chrome
body-side moldings, 17-inch chrome wheels with tangerine center caps and a
tangerine rear spoiler and a plaque with each car’s production number in the
center stack. The interior repeats the tangerine color scheme: door bolsters,
seats and instrument panel. The rest of the interior is a dark-gray slate color.
The Dream Cruiser Series 2’s standard equipment includes the 215-hp/245 lb-ft
turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine, ABS, traction control, a power
sunroof and a factory-installed Sirius satellite radio with a one-year
subscription. Chrysler plans to build 9500 units of the Dream Cruiser Series 2.
About 7000 will be sold in North America, with the remainder exported. Chrysler
will add a convertible version of the PT Cruiser early in the 2004 model year.
–Mark Phelan
Chrysler Turnaround Moving On by Joseph Szczesny (7/29/2002)
PT CRUISER IN RECALL MODE
Chrysler is recalling every 2001 and 2002 PT
Cruiser to install a fuel pump seal. Some 464,315 Cruisers will get the fuel
seal after a federal crash test uncovered a potential fuel leak. No incidents
have been linked to the problem. Additionally, Reuters reports, about a fourth
of the Cruisers will also receive a new clip to adjust the positioning of a fuel
supply line.
FOCUS FIRES UNDER FIRE
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA) is intensifying an investigation of the Ford Focus. NHTSA says it’s
looking into all of the more than 690,000 Focus compacts sold in the U.S. over
the past two years, to find out more about possible engine fires starting near
the battery. The Focus has been involved in nine recalls and is being
investigated for five other complaints, Reuters reports.
PRIUS
FIRST IN LINE FOR TAX BREAK
Toyota’s Prius will be the first vehicle eligible
for the $2000 clean-car tax break promised by the Feds. Reuters says the
Internal Revenue Service has given the go-ahead for owners of the 2001-2003
Prius to apply for the one-time tax credit given to hybrid and other gas-saving
vehicles. The Prius’ hybrid drivetrain uses a gas engine augmented by a battery
pack. Toyota says it has sold more than 32,000 Priuses in the U.S.
Cargirl: Breeding Hybrids by Lesley Hazleton
(1/21/2002)
CADILLAC
XLR IN NEIMAN XMAS CATALOG
General Motors Corp. is teaming up with Neiman
Marcus to promote the new Cadillac XLR as the gift to give and get this coming
Christmas. Cadillac and Neiman Marcus are expected to announce this week that
XLR will be featured in the upcoming edition of the Neiman Marcus Christmas
catalog. GM officials confirmed a version of the XLR also will appear on
Woodward Avenue during the Dream Cruise. The XLR, a two-door, two-seat,
rear-wheel-drive roadster, is expected to go on sale next May. It will be built
alongside the Chevrolet Corvette at the GM assembly plant in Bowling Green, Ky.,
and is expected to retail for around $75,000. Cars featured in the Christmas
catalog will be delivered next spring. —Joe Szczesny
Spy Shots: ‘04 Cadillac XLR by Brenda Priddy
(5/20/2002)
BRIDGESTONE FACING CALIF. TIRE
LAWSUIT
A new lawsuit filed in
California says that Bridgestone/Firestone should recall some 27.5 million tires
somewhat related to the star-crossed Wilderness tires. Attorney Joseph Lisoni
filed the suit in California Superior Court in Riverside County, charging that
some 27.5 million Bridgestone Steeltex tires also suffer from tread separation,
the flaw that led to a massive recall of Firestone tires in 2000.
Bridgestone/Firestone says the tires have been found safe by the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and only one death has occurred in the
tire series from tread separation.
FORD
SETTLES LEASE CLASS-ACTION
Some
recent Ford lease customers will be getting part of an $87 million class-action
lawsuit. The action, filed on behalf of two Mazda lessees in Maryland last year,
says that the company charged more than the 6-percent late payment fee allowed
by law. The action involves some 1.8 million customers of Ford Credit. The
company says at most, it will have to pay about $80 million to those affected by
the lawsuit.
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