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http://www.thepost.mindspring.com Cljarlotte THURSDAY, May 1, 1997 ^iSAUTO SHOWCASE Automakers defend use of air bags By Catherine Strong THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON - With a loud blast, twin air bags blew open in a test car outside a congressional office building Monday, shattering the vehi cle’s windshield. ' Automakers who staged the demonstration then went inside to tell lawmakers their concerns about the Clinton administration’s proposal to make it easier for consumers to deactivate air bags. The administration proposed the change this year to allay public fears about air bags, ; which are credited with saving ;1,900 lives but also blamed for >!the deaths of 38 children and adults. But letting emy motorist get air bag disconnected could ^^ead to many more fatalities ’.on the roads, Chrysler Corp.’s ifeusan Cischke told a hearing ^of the House Commerce con sumer protection subcommit tee. “We believe millions (of cus- ’tomers) could be at the deal er’s doorstep asking for deacti vation,” added Lou Camp of J'ord Motor Co. “We don’t have millions of parts.” Domestic and foreign car Jnakers alike said the govern ment should not allow any motorist who wishes it to have an air bag deactivated by a mechanic. They argued instead that the government Should define who is at risk fmd should be allowed to deac tivate the devices. • Phil Recht, associate admin istrator for the National Highway 'Traffic Safety Administration, said a cus tomer would have to sign a 'Jvaiver before requesting a mechanic to deactivate an air bag. • In March, the safety agency allowed automakers to install air bags that deploy with 20 percent to 35 percent less ^rce. ; Government regulators gave wwmakers simple advice about what could be done to protect children and shorter adults from the force of deploying air bags. •“Although the (air bag) has &e power to save lives, we Save seen that when it is used improperly there are tragic See AIR BAGS Page 15B 1997 Lincoln Continental Mark VIII I t’s 12:30 a.m. and I’m fumbling through the parking lot of the local Bi-Lo. For soirie reason I can never make it to the grocery store before the sun sets. Maybe it’s just a habit. Maybe its because I hate grocery stores and I prolong the agony until I absolutely have to go. Anyway, the parking lot is dimly lit and I park in west nowhere, for reasons that escape me. Then I remembered. I’m dri ving Lincoln’s new Mark VIII LSC and it has this neat fea ture I wanted to try. The out side mirrors have LEDs which illuminate the area around the door. I push the remote from across the parking lot and sure enough, it now looks like a Christmas display. Doggone if those security mirrors don’t work after all. That’s just one of the many features found on the ‘97 LSC, Lincoln’s answer to the Lexus SC 400 and Cadillac’s Eldorado STS. It’s a mighty good answer, too. Make my Lincoln Mark VIE black The LSC has gone through mild restyling for ‘97. The grill is much larger, looking much like the thing found on the Mmmtaineer. Only the LSC’s grill is body-colored. My car happened to be black, or mid night black as Ford calls it. The headlights are now huge, giving the front a much more aggressive look. The headlights are also quite bright. High intensity dis charge is what they’re called. These happen to be the biggest ones you’ll find on a domestic car. Turn these puppies on and drivers of o-coming cars blink their lights because they think you have your brights on. The high beams are halogen. The HIDs stay on when the high beams are selected. I’m telling you, it’s real bright. The hood is also new, as are the bumpers and air scoop. The rear end is even more dra matic, featuring neon light technology. The neon tube runs the full width of the 1997 Lincoln Continental Mark VIII trunk and shines down on a reflective surface which illumi nates through a clear lens. The neon light reacts quicker than conventional bulbs. This should help to reduce the chance of a rear-end collision. I’m not sure what I think about the chrome-dipped wheels. They are nearly as bright as the head lights. Funky, but maybe a bit too bright. The interior is lavishly appointed. California Walnut rings the dash and doors and is also around the shift lever. The dash sweeps around the front passengers like a cockpit. All the controls are positioned toward the driver and are arranged logically, according to degree of use. The seats are covered in ultra-soft black leather. The front buckets are Euro-styled and are very comfortable. The driver’s seat automatically slides back to make exiting easier. The seat reverts to its original position once the igni tion key is inserted. The pas sengers seat slides forward electronically once the seat back is pushed forward. It to has a memory. The rear seats? Well, if you’ve got packages that will not fit in the trunk, toss them in the back. People may find the seats too cramped for more than a quick jaunt around town. And it will be quick. The LSC has a 290 horsepower, 32- valve V8. Driving the rear wheels, the engine makes the car scoot to 60 mph in less than eight seconds. Top speed is somewhere near 140 miles per hour. The engine makes a glorious snarling sound under hard acceleration. Motivation seems' to 'lib* * impeded by the transmission. It shifts fairly crisply, but slowly. It doesn’t have the smoothness of either the See LINCOLN, PAGE 15B Rumors hurting Alabama’s recruitment MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Alabama is being accused in industry-recruiting circles of breaking promises, and the head of a private group work ing to lure new businesses to the state said the insider talk is hurting. “Our competitors are using the fact that (the) perception (of Alabama) is that it does not keep its commitments,” said Neal Wade, chief executive officer of the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama. Wade oversees the partner ship of the state’s 62 largest corporations. The organization has been at the forefront of Alabama’s successful recruit ment of more than two dozen companies, including Mercedes-Benz. Wade said he was told about the comments by consultants for companies scouting for places to build new plants. “Other states are telling keep their commitments,”’ Wade told The Huntsville Times. Ira Silberman, head of the Alabama Development Office, said he’s not heard any indica tions that the state is getting a bad reputation from any bro ken incentive promises. But Silberman said he’s not sur prised that states would use anything - true or otherwise - to get an edge in recruiting new businesses. “Outside of shooting them in the head, I don’t know how you can stop that,” Silberman said. He said any perception that the state is ignoring its promises is based on false information. “To my knowledge, this administration and the state does everything it can to live up to its obligations - both legally and ethically,” Silberman said. Wade said the allegations may stem from the state’s pub- to persuade Mercedes to build at Vance and the state’s slow ness in keeping promises to the German automeiker. “Enough of the stories that came out about this may lead someone who doesn’t know any more to conclude that Alabama doesn’t keep its com mitments,” Wade said. The 1993 law came under almost immediate question when it was disclosed that incentives would be paid by crediting to a new company part of the state income taxes paid by that company’s employees. The Alabama Education Association threat ened to sue because state income tax revenue pays for education. Gov. Fob James, soon after taking office in 1995, pushed a rewritten incentives bill through the Legislature and renegotiated with Mercedes over how the incentives would See ALABAMA Page 15B Ford to install less forceful air bags in all of its 1998 vehicles By Catherine Strong THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON - Ford Motor Co. announced today it is installing less forceful air bags in all of its 1998 model year vehicles, saying the less power ful devices will better protect children and short-statured adults. Air bags deploying at up to 200 mph have been blamed for the deaths of at least 38 chil dren and 25 adults - mostly shorter women, in lower-speed accidents they should have survived. In response to the public out cry, government regulators gave automakers the go-ahead in March to install air bags in new cars that deploy with up to 35 percent less force than the current air bags. The auto industry, which lobbied hard for the change, said then that some of the first cars with the “depowered” air bags could be on the market by late summer. Ford is the first automaker to announce all its vehicles sold in North America will have less forceful air bags beginning with 1998 models that go into production this summer and fall. General Motors Corp. will install less forceful air bags on one-third to one half of its 1998 model year vehicles, said spokesman Kyle Johnson. Chrysler Corp. will have the new air bags on more than 50 percent of its vehicles, said spokes woman Michele Tinson. Foreign automakers have yet to announce what they will do. A number of foreign automakers will instafl less forceful air bags, but not all air bags need to be made less forceful since their inflation speeds vary, said George Parker of the Association of International Automobile Manufacturers. “Some air bags are already very benign compared to oth ers,” he said. For example, smaller cars, in general, require more forceful air bags as do many vehicles with stiffen body frames such as sport utility vehicles. Ford’s new fidl-size sport utility vehicle, the 1998 Lincoln Navigator, will have the new air bags when it goes on sale in July. But every 1998 Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicle wiU have the new system, including the poptdar Explorer sport utihty vehicles, F-series trucks and Taurus and Escort cars. Ford was the auto industry’s first proponent of less power ful air bags in 1995. In August 1996, American automakers See FORDS Page 15B
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