12B
AUTO SHOWCASE/The Charlotte Post
Thursday, January 2 1997
L.A. show steals some of Detroit’s thunder bbihb
C3MCZI (SMCr I C5MC= IC3MC:
Continued From 11B
design is “evolutionar3r” rather
than revolutionary, with famil
iar styling cues from the past
‘Vettes.
General Motors Corp. kept
costs down on the new
Corvette by designing an alu
minum V-8 engine that uses
older push-rod technology
rather than a more expensive
overhead-cam design. But that
could make the new “Vette less
attractive to technology-sawy
sports car buyers with $40,000
or more to spend.
Peterson describes the new
Corvette as “reasonably
priced, gold-chain-and-hair-
on-the-chest sort of trans
portation” that probably won’t
deliver on CM’S hope to attract
younger, import-leaning buy
ers.
“The new Corvette is a better
car than it has been in the
past,” he said. “It’s easier to
get in and out of, it’s faster, but
it’s still a relatively crude,
fiberglass-bodied American
sports car.”
From Germany are two road
sters aimed at cetrving up the
market BMW’s Z3 has tapped.
The mid-engine Boxster is
Porsche’s first all-new model
in 19 years. Its name is
derived from its horizontally
opposed, 2.5-liter, 6-cylinder
“boxer” engine and roadster
chassis. Like the SLK from
Mercedes, its styling is remi
niscent of German roadsters of
the 1950s.
The SLK features an unusu
al automatic retractable hard
top and a supercharged, 2.3-
liter, 4-cylinder engine. But
Mercedes disappointed many
sports car fans by announcing
it doesn’t plan to offer a manu
al transmission - a require
ment for true, high-perfor
mance driving - on the North
American version.
Both the SLK and Boxster
will be priced above the Z3 in
the $40,000 to $50,000 range,
considered “affordable” by
Mercedes or Porsche stan
dards.
For those with even more to
spend, Italian automaker
Ferrari’s F133 will have its
North American debut at
Detroit.
The sport coupe market,
which also has been in a sales
slump, will get some new
entries at the Detroit and L.A.
shows. The 1998 Mercedes
CLK will have its world debut
at Detroit, while the 1998
Volvo CTO will have its North
American debut at Los
Angeles.
Other new-model debuts
include:
-Toyota’s Kentucky-made,
front-drive 1998 Sienna mini-
van, based on the Camry chas
sis, will have its world debut
at Detroit.
-Several new sport utility
vehicles will debut at Detroit:
the midsize ‘98 Dodge
Durango, to be built off the
new Dakota pickup platform;
the full-size ‘98 Lincoln
Navigator, an ultra-luxury
version of the Ford Expedition;
the compact ‘97 Honda CR-V,
which is already a big hit in
Japan; and a new compact,
car-based Forester SUV from
Subaru for 1998. South
Korea’s Kia will unveil its ‘98
Kia Sportage convertible at
Los Angeles.
-Oldsmobile’s new midsize
Intrigue sedan makes its
world debut at Los Angeles.
The ‘98 Intrigue, which will
replace the Gutless Supreme
in mid-1997, takes styling cues
from the Olds Aurora and
Antares concept car.
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