AutoWeek articles from February 2001

AutoWeek archives from February 2001

Car Board.
February 5, 2001... You're in your mid-40s; maybe your car should be, too. Lincoln CONTINENTAL Price: $43,390 Engine: 4.6-liter V8, 275 hp, 275 lb-ft Curb weight: 3848 lbs Drivetrain: fwd four-speed automatic If you're ready for luxury, look no further...

Letters.
February 5, 2001... Our kind of ``New Urbanist'' In Steve Thompson's column (AW, At Large, Jan. 8), he suggests that ``New Urbanists'' and others ``scheme for a world apparently devoid of nearly all automobiles.'' As an urban planner and an automotive...

Ponies as promised; Ford SVT rolls out two familiar faces and one hot new hatch-all with power to make us forget about 1999.
February 5, 2001... In the wake of the highly publicized, er, ``issue'' over the 1999 Ford SVT Mustang Cobra and its failure to deliver an advertised 320 horses, the folks at Ford's Special Vehicle Team have rebounded with fare aplenty for those in search of...

The News.
February 5, 2001... Tire awareness 101 Audi is offering free replacement tires for TT and S4 buyers, even if the tire damage is due to potholes. An Audi spokeswoman says Audi took the unusual step after receiving complaints from several owners about tire...

Honda's hot hatch.
February 5, 2001... Honda's seventh-generation Civic is likely headed to the United States in 2002 in a three-door hatchback model that, according to Honda sources, will eclipse its five-door counterpart for driving fun. Initially available this summer in...

A Legacy of Car Lust; The clean lines of the 1949 ford inspired generations-now the ford forty-nine wants to carry it forward.
February 5, 2001... When AutoWeek's editors sequestered themselves in a room at the North American International Auto Show, the purpose was clear, if difficult: Identify from the near 700 vehicles displayed those that could win our four editors' choice awards. Of...

2002 Isuzu Axiom ; Another truck from Isuzu? In a word, yes.
February 5, 2001... If you think of trucks as a fad, don't tell that to Isuzu. They're all the Japanese automaker builds, without apology. If it's a car you want, Isuzu will gladly tell you to look elsewhere. Until now, that is. Enter Axiom, Isuzu's answer to...

Bird? Plane? Ferrari?; No, it's a super-Porsche.
February 12, 2001... At first glance, or second or even third glance, this spy shot looks for all the world like a long-tail Ferrari. Sources in Germany tell us they're ``nearly 100 percent sure'' it is instead the first chassis test mule of Porsche's Carrera GT...

Competition This Week.
February 12, 2001... Seeing red Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro is confident of retaining the world championship. That's the message from Maranello at the launch of the new F2001 in which Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello will try to defend the title,...

The News.
February 12, 2001... It's no Mirage Mitsubishi's replacement for the Mirage will debut at the New York auto show in April and go on sale by summer, company officials have confirmed. Although no name for Mitsu's Civic/ Corolla/Jetta-class sedan has been...

A Quick 50; NHRA celebrates five decades of innovation.
February 12, 2001... In a small, nondescript Los Angeles restaurant that's long since faded into obscurity, nestled into a booth at the Tam-O-Shanter on Los Feliz Boulevard in Los Angeles on March 13, 1951, were Ak Miller, Marvin Lee, Wally Parks and ``an...

Likes: Dislikes.
February 12, 2001... Likes Great fuel mileage ``Green'' feeling of ownership Fun video game-like dash Dislikes Fidgety freeway handling Poor throttle response Mushy brake feel @@Volume: 51 Publication number: 7 @@Word Count: 29 words

Views and Reviews.
February 12, 2001... OWNERS I LOVE IT. IT IS EVERYTHING I THOUGHT it would be. The quality has been tops, not one complaint for the dealer. I have not been able to achieve the 52-mpg city fuel efficiency consistently, but it definitely gets higher mpg in city...

Facts.
February 12, 2001... MANUFACTURER'S DATA Toyota Motor Sales USA 19001 S. Western Ave. Torrance CA 90509 Customer assistance: (800) 331-4331 Internet address: www.toyota.com Country of origin: Japan Number of dealers: 1206 ...

Others Considered.
February 12, 2001... VOLKSWAGEN JETTA TDI $19,885 0-60 mph: 14.6 seconds It is not as environmentally clean. ROBERT ABNER PERNEY Salina, Kan. HONDA INSIGHT $20,080 0-60 mph: 11.07 seconds I did not like the fact that it is...

Pricing.
February 12, 2001... Base: $19,995 As tested: $20,855 IntelliChoice target price: $21,609 Rebates: None Destination charge: $455 What owners paid, average: $20,065 to 23,300; $20,836 Options as tested: Single-disc CD player...

Road Test Data.
February 12, 2001... STANDING-START ACCELERATION 0-30 mph: 3.88 sec 0-40 mph: 6.14 sec 0-50 mph: 8.75 sec 0-60 mph: 11.86 sec 0-100 km/h (62.1 mph): 12.61 sec 0-80 mph: N/A 0-quarter-mile: 76.6 mph, 18.57 sec ...

Car Board.
February 12, 2001... In the immortal words of Theodor S. Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss: One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish. Chevrolet CAVALIER Z24 Price: $18,490 Engine: 2.4-liter I4, 150 hp, 155 lb-ft Curb weight: 2676 lbs Drivetrain: fwd, four-speed...

Offside Undo.
February 12, 2001... Got a wonderful e-mail the other day. It prompts me to ask, who says we don't live in a society chock full of O.C.A.E.s-Obsessive Compulsive Automotive Enthusiasts? Lee Butler wants to know what car he should get for his daughter to take...

The 85 Percent Solution; Toyota's Prius is the closest `green machine' yet to being what we'd call a `real' car.
February 12, 2001... We know AutoWeek readers are a savvy bunch of consumers, so it comes as no surprise that many of the respondents to our call for owners of Toyota's hybrid Prius are not only car enthusiasts but techno-geeks as well. Many of the respondents said...

Television Feb. 16-18.
February 12, 2001... Friday, Feb. 16 1995 IROC from Daytona Beach, Fla., 7:30 a.m., ESPN2 (T) 2000 IROC from Indianapolis, 10 a.m., ESPN2 (T) NASCAR Craftsman Series from Daytona Beach, Fla., 11 a.m., ESPN (L) Australian Super Touring Car: Race 1...

2002 Acura 3.2TL Type-S; Technically, perfect.
February 12, 2001... Acura has posed us with a quandary. How do we judge a car that does everything so right, embodies so much of what we as enthusiasts desire and represents the best value in its segment-but still leaves us wanting? And what exactly is it that we...

If It's Too Loud, You're Too Old; Toyota RSC redefines mobility. If you don't understand it, that's okay. Your kids will.
February 12, 2001... We have seen a trend, and we don't understand it. Still, we know a trend when we see one. The feeling: Look at something, or several somethings, and a pattern emerges. If this ``something'' comes as the result of a convergence of disparate...

Chi-town hustle; (Or what to do while Wrigley Field is closed for winter).
February 12, 2001... Judging by the significant vehicles debuting at the 100th Chicago auto show, America's Second City isn't playing second fiddle to anyone. As the biggest consumer show on the circuit, is there a better place to roll out the darlings of the...

Late Racing News.
February 12, 2001... Dalmas runs the Mopar Sports car driver Yannick Dalmas put Chrysler's new Dallara-built LMP car through its first test, in Barcelona. ``My feeling was that we will be at a good level at Le Mans this year,'' he said. ``It's too early to say...

Happy Valentine's Day; Love your car? You're not alone.
February 12, 2001... 12 Percentage of people who plan to buy a gift for their car 17 Percentage of men who plan to buy a gift for their car 22 Percentage of truck owners who plan to buy a gift for their truck 27 Percentage of people who love their car...

Pocket Monsters; Ford readies its SVT Focus to join a pack of eager entry-level rocket rides.
February 19, 2001... Wait till you drive it,'' he says with a grin, a slow Southern burr curling the ends of his words. ``This is a ticket-getter. I guarantee people will be getting tickets left and right in this car.'' Andy Slankard wants to say more, but...

A year's worth of dust and glory: Ford celebrates motorsports centennial.
February 19, 2001... Pink slips, let alone racing for them, hadn't even been invented when 38-year-old automotive entrepreneur Henry Ford put his car-and his future-on the starting line against a heavily favored competitor. But when the dust settled after a 10-lap...

Stealin' wheels.
February 19, 2001... Creating a new Cadillac isn't as easy as putting new sheetmetal on a Corvette chassis, or is it? While General Motors has been careful to distance the upcoming 2003 Caddy two-seater from Chevy's much-loved American icon, GM engineers...

Car Board.(Brief Article)
February 19, 2001... Flip a few pages if you want the motorsports preview. Here, we're previewing the future of the automobile. BMW 330xi Price: $41,335 Engine: 3.0-liter I6, 225 hp, 214 lb-ft Curb weight: 3527 lbs Drivetrain: awd, five-speed manual For...

The Future.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... April 26-29 Pate Swap Meet Fort Worth, Texas Held at Texas Motor Speedway, featuring old cars, parts and related items. Free camping. Call (713) 649-0922. April 29 Pacific Coast Dream Machines Show Half Moon Bay,...

1983 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am ; A special Daytona 500 pace car replica.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... No matter how you judge it, in the early 1980s the American car industry was in rough shape. Performance, economy, build quality, styling-there was little that Detroit seemed capable of doing right. With one of the Big Three bankrupt...

Television March 2-4.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... Friday, March 2 Australian Super Touring Car: Race 1 from Wakefield Park, Australia, noon, Speedvision (T) Australian Super Touring Car: Race 2 from Wakefield Park, Australia, 1 p.m., Speedvision (T) Los Angeles Auto Show, 2 p.m.,...

A Truly Fat Tuesday; Parading around New Orleans in a Goliath SUV seems just right during the annual carnival of indulgence.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... Customers in the heavy-duty utility segment say they want a vehicle capable of ``doing it all'' with everything and everyone. Ford Excursion press kit New Orleans, Fat Tuesday, 8:20 a.m.-We woke to the sound of brass bands. The Zulu King...

Escape from Your Truck ; Ford's newest SUV is a better alternative.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... Some of our readers have written us with a problem. They've owned and loved Ford trucks: F-150s, Explorers, Rangers, even Broncos. So much so that they've made them their sole means of transport, commuting in them and even buying them for their...

Views and Reviews.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... OWNERS THIS IS AN AWESOME CAR/TRUCK. Overall, I am more comfortable in the Escape than I was in the Explorer. I have more room up front. The moonroof didn't take away that much headroom. It rides great and my five-year-old has plenty of...

Car Board.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... On the rare occasion you don't feel like getting there in record time, you can always take the scenic route. Toyota PRIUS Price: $20,855 Engine: 1.5-liter I4, 70 hp, 82 lb-ft; 25-kW electric motor, 34 hp, 258 lb-ft Curb weight: 2765...

Offside Undo.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... Holier than thou, this may sound, but did you see the crucifixion Fox Sports gave select teams in the network's premier 2001 television coverage at the Daytona 500 qualifying? Talk about pay for play. It started with the $2.8 billion...

Battle for the Beetle.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... You would think there can't be much left to say aboutthe iconic Volks-wagen Beetle. Yet a sizable part of the car's story had never been completely told. From spring of 1938, when the cornerstone was laid for the VW plant, until 1949, when...

Letters.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... Really serious critique In a phrase: The Toyota RSC rocks (AW, Feb. 12)! I have two suggestions for Toyota. Make sure there is an engine that matches the RSC's image-either a turbo/supercharged four or a V6-and make the body panels able to...

Results.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... Daytona International Speedway 2.5-mile oval Feb. 18, 2001 1. Michael Waltrip, Chevrolet, 200 laps at 161.783 mph avg. speed; 2. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 200; 3. Rusty Wallace, Ford, 200; 4. Ricky Rudd, Ford, 200; 5. Bill Elliott,...

Triumph and Tragedy ; Michael Waltrip wins the Daytona 500 in which Dale Earnhardt is killed.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... The images will forever remain haunting. How can they be anything else? The eerie, frightening silence that settled over Daytona International Speedway moments after Michael Waltrip won the Daytona 500. The blue tarpaulin that track workers and...

Fast Poll.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... Consensus among respondents is that Ford's Ranger should be next to receive the high-performance SVT massage. I think the Ford Ranger should be the next SVT vehicle. Ford needs a pickup that will compete with the Chevy Xtreme, Dakota R/T,...

...But Wait, There's More.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... As late afternoon sun warms the office our thoughts turn to... no, not racing: golf. You bet BWTM chips, putts and keeps our head down-some might even say buried in the sand. Scoreboard Who could turn the world on with his smile? ...

Competition This Week.(Brief Article)
February 26, 2001... Ferrari's headache West McLaren Mercedes launched its all-new MP4/16 race car at the Valencia circuit in Spain. ``My first impression is that it has more grip and seems a little easier to drive than last year's car,'' said David Coulthard,...

GM sees future in looking back; Too late for Olds, but other divisions are catching on in a hurry.
February 26, 2001... A mere two months after ditching America's oldest car division, General Motors pulled together an unprecedented gathering of car buffs from across the nation for a little history lesson-and a sneak peek at the corporation's designs for the...

In mid-season form.
February 26, 2001... Mercedes' U.S.-built M-Class sport/utility vehicle is undergoing a major redesign prior to arriving in dealerships in October. Key features of the styling facelift and technical redesign include a revised front bumper with a differently...

Hold your horses.
February 26, 2001... ``Gentlemen, don't start your engines.'' Basically, that was the response from the Department of Transportation for Arizona's Maricopa County two days before what was to have been the inaugural Gila Monster Open Road Rally. When it...

Fox fares well in challenging debut.
February 26, 2001... No matter how good Fox's inaugural broadcast of NASCAR's 2001 Daytona 500 was, the event will forever be linked with the death of one of the sport's superstars. While Michael Waltrip was on his way to ending his 0-462 streak with...

2002 Chevrolet TrailBlazer, GMC Envoy, Oldsmobile Bravada; When three are one.
February 26, 2001... The General has a new midsize SUV, badged as a Chevrolet, GMC or Oldsmobile, and available in both two-wheel- and all-wheel-drive variants. What they share is significant: new aluminum 24-valve, Vortec 4200 inline six-cylinder engines with...

Facts.
February 26, 2001... MANUFACTURER'S DATA Ford Motor Co. The American Road Dearborn MI 48121 Customer assistance: (800) 392-3673 Internet address: www.ford.com Country of origin: United States Number of dealers: 4147 ...