Cljarlotte
THURSDAY, September 5. 1996
15BMAUTO SHOWCASE
Mazda has
hit with
new wagon
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
TOKYO - Mazda Motor
Corp. said Tuesday its new
Demio compact wagon, the
struggling automaker’s first
model introduced under new
president Henry Wallace, have
been selling much faster than
expected.
Mazda said it received 7,000
orders during the first week of
sales in Japan for the Demio, a
smaller, cheaper car targeted
at younger drivers. The com
pany had a sales target of
5,000 for the first month of
sales.
The Demio, which is not
being sold in the United
States, is the only new model
launched this year by Mazda.
Its price starts at $8,700.
Wallace, a Scotsman who
took over as president in June,
is the first foreigner to head a
Japanese automaker. He is a ^
former executive of Ford
Motor Co., which owns 33.4
percent of Mazda.
In its latest fiscal year,
Mazda earned $3.3 million to
turn its first annual profit in ^
two years. The automaker has
been dogged by bulging inven
tories, lagging sales and huge
investment costs.
Honda dealers
may file suit
BALTIMORE - A federal
judge has ruled, that Honda
dealers who claim they lost
millions because of a compa
ny-wide bribery scheme can
sue the Japanese automaker
for racketeering and antitrust
violations.
The ruling by U.S. District
Judge J. Frederick Motz clears
the way for the Honda dealers
to pursue lawsuits against the
American Honda Motor ^
Company Co. and its Japanese
parent, Honda Ltd.
In a separate decision relat
ed to the case, the judge ruled
that three high-ranking
Honda executives in Japan
must come to Baltimore and
give the dealers’ lawyers
sworn depositions.
Some 50 Honda dealers
across the country have filed
lawsuits against the carmak
er. The lawsuits were consoli
dated and are being heard in
U.S. District Court in
Baltimore.
T!^e lawsuits claim that
Honda’s officials ignored a $15
million scheme in which its
executives solicited bribes and
kickbacks from some dealers
in the 1970s and 1980s in
return for supplying them
with cars, especially popular
Honda Accords and Civics.
Honda lawyers have filed a
series of motions to dismiss
the case. They said that
Honda executives were not
aware of the scheme, that the
scheme did not amount to
racketeering on the part of the
company and that no antitrust
issues were at stake. ^
“This case is far from con
cluded,” said Jeffrey Smith, a
Honda attorney.
In his decision, Motz ruled
that the plaintiffs’ racketeer
ing case could proceed, and
decided that one claim of
antitrust violations should be
dropped from the case. But he
ruled that the dealers could
proceed under another compli
cated antitrust theory.
More importantly, Motz said
Honda Ltd. and its Japanese
executives should be part of
the case.
“Plaintiffs have stated
claims against Honda Japan,”
Motz wrote in his 73-page rul
ing. “It was Honda Japan who
choose to structure manage
ment as it did, having its exec
utives cross corporate lines
with regular frequency.”
Test Drive
1996 Dodge NEON
Neon has faults, but it’s fun
Nearlv three vears ago
Plymouth used a Super Bowl
ad campaign to introduce the
world to Neon, its replacement
for the aged Shadow and
Sundance twins.
To say that campaign was
successful may be the under
statement of the year. The
commercials were silly, but
that was the intent. Neon was
supposed to be a fun kind of
thing, something different.
After spending a week with
one I’d say both those objec
tives were met splendidly.
The Neon’s look is the first
hint that there is fun to be
had. The exterior has a hint of
Volkswagen Beetle a la the
high, round roof and big head
lights. It’s not as cute as the
IjfcLle, but its spunky, 'fhe big
wheel well openings and the
flared fenders make it sporty
looking.
The exterior dimensions are
tidv but tbc intprinr is far
from being tiny. There is an
abundance of head and leg
room for tall drivers. That has
to do with Chrysler’s use of
cab-forward principles. The
wheels are pushed outward as
far as possible. The cabin gets
the most space while the hood
and trunk are fairly short.
This is Chrysler’s best applica
tion of this technology. It’s also
used on the LH cars (Dodge
Intrepid, Chrysler Concorde,
Eagle Vision), but those cars
are excessively large, not mid
size as the company would like
you to think.
With all that space you can
fit five adults in the Neon
without feeling overcrowded.
The wheel base is a generous
104 inches, which helps a lot.
Bui nuLice 1 didn'L ^ay any
thing about being comlbrtable.
That’s because the seat.s in the
Neon are suspect. They have
precious little padding and sit
very low. The front seats aren’t
really bad, but I wished for
some lower back support. And
no matter how hard I tried, 1
couldn’t adjust the driver’s
seat so I could be comfortable
while being able to see out of
the windshield and the back
light.
I only sat in the back seat for
a few minutes. That was long
enough to let me know I could
n’t sit there even on a short
trip. The bottom cushion is too
short and too hard. The seat
back is tilted at an odd angle.
What made matters worse was
that it felt as if I was sitting on
the floor.
By the way, my test car was a
Dodge. There is no distinction
between the Dodge or
Plymouth versions except hood
ornaments and where you buy
them.
With that aside, driving the
Neon was mostly a pleasant
experience. I was surprised at
how peppy the 2.0-liter, 16-
valve engine was, producing
132 horsepower at 6,000 rpm,
more than most engines in its
class. Torque is 129 pounds-
feet at 5000 rpm. This gives
the car a quick feeling. You can
sprint to 60 mph in about 8
seconds, which isn’t bad at all
for an economy car.
If you want even more go-
juice, the Neon Sport coupe
may be what you want. Its
engine is tweaked to make 150
horsepower. It has a firmer
suspension so its handling
moves from good to sparkling.
But that engine revs fairly
high, as does this one. I had to
keep rowing through the
gears. That’s not a bad thing
because the five-speed stick is
fairly slick. It balks a bit in the
first two gears, but afterwards
it’s nearly effortless.
There is a downside to all the
power. It doesn’t come on very
smoothly. In fact, the engine is
a downright boisterous bugger.
It’s not a nice, deep sound, but
a high pitched tinny one. It’s
almost unlivable before you
get to top gear. Once you get
ihcrc its OK. (’hr\-ilur .'.iv.-. it
has added exUa insulation to
quell the noise. If that’s the
case. I'm glad 1 haven’t driven
a Neon before now. I don’t own
ear plugs.
^till. the car’s handling
makes up for the noisy short
coming. It can easily be tossed
into a corner with authority.
Straight line stability is good
as well. The tight suspension
will beg for you to find twisty
roads, but they need to be
smooth twisty road. It doesn’t
seem to like bumps of any
kind. Even small imperfec
tions are transmitted to the
occupants. It wasn’t unbear
able, but it was unpleasant at
times.
Would those things be
enough to keep me from buy
ing a Neon? If the cars faults
stopped there, no. But there is
another big fault - faulty build
quality. Never have I been in a
car that felt as cheap as this.
Every piece of material - from
the sheet metal to the carpet -
felt low-grade. 1 was able to
put my hand under the edge of
the headliner. I also pulled the
front door panels back far
enough to stick a finger in. The
plastic used for the dash felt as
if it belonged in a Yugo. And
yes, there were a few squeaks
and rattles.
That’s probably why
Chrysler can sell the Neon so
cheaply. The base price for my
test sedan was $9,995, which
included dual air bags, power
steering, wheel covers, warn
ing chimes for headlights on,
key in ignition and unfastened
seat belts, tinted glass, child
proof door locks and intermit
tent windshield wipers.
The options list wasn’t very
long, but it was necessary
stuff: rear window defroster
($205), dual manual remote
mirrors ($70), air conditioning
($1,000), premium radio with
cassette ($585) and tilt steer
ing column ($150).
With destination charges,
the as-tested price came to
$12,505. That’s not a bad price
for a car with the Neon’s per
formance numbers. You cannot
buy a Corolla, Civic, Protege or
maybe even an Escort for that
amoui^t of money with those
Tuimbors. However, each one of
tho.se cai'.s are built far l>etti-r
than the Neon.
'fhe Neon’s faults are not
enough to keep a lot of people
from buying. I’ve made a game
of trying to count all the differ
ent Neons I’ve seen since my
test. I’m either seeing the
same people everyday or there
are an awful lot of these crit
ters roaming the prairie. That
tells me either I’m too picky or
people are forgiving when it
comes to this car.
It’s probably a little of both.
It’s easy to see why people
would be so forgiving. The
Neon is fun to drive. Heck, you
can even make some Mustang
and Camaro drives work hard
to keep up. But with all the
faults, I wonder how long the
honeymoon will last?
Home-based auto mechanic
gets $10,000 fine for no-show
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
RACINE, Wis. - A
machinist who repairs
cars as a hobby has been
fined $10,000 for operat
ing an illegal business at
his home.
Municipal Judge Robert
Michelson entered a
default judgement when
Edward C. Smith failed to
attend a court hearing
this week.
Smith says he was
unfairly targeted after a
neighbor complained.
“They have assumed I’m
doing something because
of one person. \^at oper
ation of a business? This
is my garage with my
cars. It’s just a hobby for
extra money,” Smith said Friday. “I think this is crazy. I feel
they’re harassing me. They need to go after the real criminals.”
The fine against Smith is one of the largest imposed within the
city’s building code, said Bob Jensen, the city’s chief inspector.
The building department has complaints of Smith repairing cars
in the alley dating back to 1986, Jensen said. He was cited for
doing repairs in a residential area.
During the summer there are three or four complaints a week
about illegal auto repair businesses and it is “becoming a problem
in the city,” Jensen said.
Smith said he has bought and restored old cars as a hobby for
more than 20 yc.-irs. On Friday, there wore two car« in Smith’s
back yard _ a 1984 Cavalier and a 1979 Nova. In his garage was a
1983-84 Eagle Concord, a 1970 Cadillac and a 1974 Impala.
“Everything here you see is mine,” he said.' If an individual does
come here to have their brakes fixed and I have no money in my
pocket, I do it. But I am not running a business here.”
Smith said the city has ticketed all the cars in the alley behind
his home and put up a 'No Parking” sign there.
If Smith fails to pay his fine by Oct. 28, he could face 493 days in
jail. But Michelson could reopen the case if Smith petitions the
court by Thursday.
Smith said he was told he could meet with the city attorney to
discuss lowering the fine and arrange for another inspection of his
property by the building department.
“I don’t have any money to give these people,” he said.
Toyota unveils 1997 Camry Sunday
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
GEORGETOWN, Ky. - Industry analysts
and car reviewers say Toyota Motor Corp,
engineers succeeded in their goal for the
restyled 1997 Camry, unveiled Sunday - make
it a better car but cheaper to produce to keep
it competitively priced,
Toyota will begin shipping the new Camry to
dealers Tuesday,
“The best car built in the United States gets
better ,,, a lot better,” Automobile magazine
proclaims in its October issue.
What consumers see is a sharper, sportier-
looking sedan that makes the Camry “distinc
tive from the mass of round-shaped cars on the
road,” Don Esmond, vice president of Toyota
Motor Sales,
Customers also will pay less for the new
model, say central Kentucky Toyota dealers.
The manufacturer’s suggested retail price for
a four-cylinder 1997 Camry LE is $19,688,
$300 less than a ‘96 LE, The price difference is
actually greater when you (jpnsider that the
‘97 model comes standard with anti-lock
brakes, which is an $1,100 option on the ‘96
LE,
The price cut will boost Camry’s chances of
overtaking the Ford Taurus and Honda Accord
in the tight battle for the No, 1-selling car in
America, Taurus has won the title four years
running.
The only way to keep the Camry’s price
down was to cut production costs by taking
content out of it. The industry buzzword for
this is “decontenting.”
The word has a negative connotation because
customers think it means taking out features,
such as air hags or anti-lock brakes.
Automakers say it implies their products are
cheap.
But that’s not the ease, said Ron Harbour of
Harbour & Associates, a manufacturing con
sulting firm based in Troy, Mich,
“Decontenting means coming up with lower-
cost solutions, not taking things away from the
car,” he said.
Case in point: Clips used in a door panel. In
the ‘96 Camry, Toyota used a clip that had a
shiny chrome finish. The clips were redesigned
slightly for the
‘97 model and
came without
the chrome
finish because
customers
can’t see the
clip. This
saved Toyota
10 cents a clip.
There are six
clips in each
door, a savings
of $2,40 a car.
That doesn’t
seem like much, but when you figure the
Georgetown plant makes nearly 300,000
Camrys a year, it’s a savings of $720,000,
Affordability was a priority for Toyota when it
began development of the fourth-generation
Camry four years ago. The car’s upscale fea
tures and performance had pushed its average
price to more than $20,000,
“‘They had gotten to a point where they had
made it a premium car,” Harbour said, “It was a
baby Lexus,”
Customers will notice, however, that Toyota
no longer offers the Camry in a coupe or station
wagon; the ‘97 Camry is available only as a
four-door sedan. This further cuts manufactur
ing costs and helps simplify the assembly
process at the plant - especially when Toyota’s
next - generation mini-van, replacing the
Previa, begins production next summer.
The new Camry features a ,somewhat sportier
■styling to appeal to young('i‘ buyers, but it is not.
a revolutionary change like the new faurus,
with its heavy emphasis on ovals,
“It doesn't stand out from the crowd, but it is
tidy and crisp, not round and boring like the
previous one,” said Barry Winfield of Road &
Track, who tested a five-speed ‘97 Camry last
week.
Both engines are slightly more powerful (up 8
horsepower in the four-cylinder, 6 horsepower
in the V6), The interior has been upgraded to
meet all safety standards scheduled in the next
few years, including the 1997 side-impact and
1999 head-impact requirements.