Car fanatics direct GM’s future products for 2003 and beyond
It took two days for General Motors to display all of its new-for-2003 car and truck models to the North American journalists it had summoned to Ann Arbor, Mich. Splitting the two sessions, GM put on an outdoor walking buffet dinner to accompany a Bring-Your-Own-Baby car show, during which the companyÂ’s executives brought out their own private collectible vehicles.
There were enough new vehicles with new technology to fill a notebook, but the image of that collector car show remains the most riveting memory of the trip.
There was Bob Lutz, GMÂ’s new boss, puffing on a big cigar as he stood proudly next to his own 1953 Cunningham Coupe C3, while motoring journalists stopped by to talk casually to him about his passion for automotives. There were a half-dozen GM-owned historic vehicles, and 47 privately owned classics, ranging from a 1908 Oldsmobile Touring 4-Cylinder to a 1938 Buick Special Model 41 Trunkback, and on up to a 1988 Ferrari Mondial. The winning vote-getter, incidentally, was a sensational 1935 Chevrolet Master Series 2-door sedan owned by Wes Rydell, who is a major GM dealer with franchises in Grand Forks, N.D., where he lives, as well as the Twin Cities and California.
But the indelible feeling about the whole session is that the legendary General Motors bean-counters were nowhere visible, replaced by folks who obviously feel passionately about their cars. It is reassuring to know that finally, people who love cars are making decisions at the worldÂ’s largest car-making company, and there is at least a fighting chance they will also care as passionately about the cars they are building and selling.
“When Bob Lutz came in, he saw where we were taking things with our research, and heÂ’s coached us to be a lot more intuitive,†said Mark Hogan, a design engineer and one of the GM spokesmen. “He course-corrected us to use our abilities along with our market research. IÂ’ve never seen the energy, passion and focused intent in this company. And youÂ’re probably going to see much more reach in our designs under Bob Lutz. When you see concept vehicles like Solstice and Belair, theyÂ’ll sell themselves.Ââ€
It has been easy to be a critic about GM. The corporate giant, for about three decades, has backed off from technology, daring design and fun vehicle development for the sake of not disrupting the bottom line, leading to the feeling that “bean-counters†were making all the decisions, and choosing profit margin over research and development. The company’s new direction may counter that.
Here are the highlights of the 20-some new introductions:
Performance. GM is going to coordinate its high-performance concepts into one unit, although that unit intends to stay subtle, without the flash of Ford’s SVT (Special Vehicle Team) or the Mercedes AMG group. “You won’t read our name on the back of the car,†said Mark Reuss, who runs GM’s performance division. “I have 1,000 workers under me, 800 who are in architectural design and 200 who will specializse in performance, concept and show cars, high-performance operations and design. We haven’t really had all these divisions together at GM – ever.†GM intends to offer small-car, front-wheel-drive high-performance parts such as racing cylinder heads and superchargers for the Ecotec engines in the Cavalier and Sunfire, for example.
Concept cars. One easy new car is the 2003 Corvette 50th anniversary edition, which will come only in a dark, bergundy red. Otherwise, some far-out concept cars are expected to spring to life. Most notable is the Pontiac Solstice, the Chevrolet SSR and Belair, and possibly the Saturn Sky, while Cadillac will follow-up its new-generation CTS sedan with a stunning XLR hardtop/roadster convertible. I got a close-up look at the Solstice and Belair, and I drove a prototype Sky, but there were no XLRs around – until we were being bused out of the Milford Proving Grounds, and I spotted one cruising along on a test track. In a year, the GTO makes a comeback, based on the Holden Monaro from GM’s Australian branch.
Trucks. Naturally, the high profitability of trucks is one of the basic assets of all the new car optimism, but GM is hardly going to pass up the chance to expand its enormous truck outlay. Buick, which got the Rendezvous as a neat version of the controversial Pontiac Aztek for 2002, will add the Ranier, which will be a similar but slightly more luxurious sport-utility vehicle, powered by either the new high-tech in-line 6 or the new Generation III 5.3-liter V8. Also, Chevrolet will bring out the SS – a throwback to the Super Sport days of its hot-rod sporty coupes – as a specialty version of the Silverado pickup truck. Aside from also lengthening the GMC and Cadillac versions of the Chevy Tahoe into a full-fledged version of the Suburban, GM also is introducing a new Hummer H2, a much more manageable version of the militaristic all-terrain vehicle.
Technology. Cadillac and Corvette will continue to be the test-beds for new technology, from things such as OnStar, Nightvision, through-the-windshield instruments, StabiliTrak, etc. The new Corvette, for example, will have “MagneRide†suspension, which was introduced on the 2002 Cadillac Seville STS and is an electro-magnetic controlled suspension system. Imagine this: inside the struts that cushion all four wheels, instead of the usual pristine fluid, Delphi (a GM affiliate) has come up with a strut filled with fluid that has magnetic particles floating freely around inside, and the normal suspension is very comfortable and compliant. Set on “touring,†the suspension stays that way, but move the console switch to “sport,†and you get a stiffer mode, plus. A severe cornering move causes an electromagnetic coil to suddenly cause all the free-flowing particles to snap together, greatly stiffening the suspension. It acts so quickly that you don’t really feel anything, except when you corner abruptly, the 50th Anniversary Corvette feels like it has race-car suspension. It apparently acts instantaneously, meaning the right side can handle a jolt it just learned from the left side, and it certainly is faster than the driver can discern.
Engines. The old 5.0 and 5.7-liter V8s – the legendary Chevrolet “small-block†V8s – have been replaced by the 5.3, a clean-sheet design instoduced in 1999 as an iron block unit. The new one is all aluminum, and it turns out 290 horsepower. The other significant new engine is the Ecotec, which originated with GM’s German Opel division, which used it in the Astra sedan. It also will be used in the new Saab, a recent GM acquisition. The 2.2 Ecotec is a dual-overhead-camshaft, 16 valve 4-cylinder, and when it came in last year, it became the base engine in Cavalier and Sunfire, and left the 2.4-liter “Quad 4†as an option. The 2.4 has now been dropped altogether from further production, and the Ecotec takes over, supplying 140 horsepower and 150 foot-pounds of torque.
Environment. While GM continued to emphasize more power and performance with almost every introduction, the company is striving to improve its efficiency for ecological and economical reasons. I drove a full-size pickup with engineer Stephen Poulos riding shotgun, and he explained that our vehicle had a combination 5.3-liter V8 and AC induction motor, supplying 20 more horsepower from 42 lead-acid batteries, located under the rear seat. The truck had very good power, and whenever you stop for a red light, the engine stops. The fuel shuts off as soon as you decelerate, and when you take your foot off the brake to step on the gas as the light turns green, the engine restarts and youÂ’re off. Poulos says EPA estimates show 10-15 percent improvement in fuel economy, and the new engine has no alternator or starter, and the pump and power steering are done electrically by the auxiliary motor.
Interestingly enough, the new alternative-energy truck has no special markings, and no high-tech gauges. “WeÂ’re selling a truck here,†said Poulos. “We donÂ’t want to point out how many differences there are, as much as how similar it is to what everybody is used to.Ââ€
Flash, glitz and performance sells, apparently, but GM customers are wary enough about high-tech economy advances that GM wisely figures it better downplay its advances.
Car fanatics take over guidance of GM for 2003, and future
It took two days for General Motors to display all of its new-for-2003 car and truck models to the North American journalists it had summoned to Ann Arbor, Mich. Splitting the two sessions, GM put on an outdoor walking buffet dinner to accompany a Bring-Your-Own-Baby car show, during which the companyÂ’s executives brought out their own private collectible vehicles.
There were enough new vehicles with new technology to fill a notebook, but the image of that collector car show remains the most riveting memory of the trip.
There was Bob Lutz, GMÂ’s new boss, puffing on a big cigar as he stood proudly next to his own 1953 Cunningham Coupe C3, while motoring journalists stopped by to talk casually to him about his passion for automotives. There were a half-dozen GM-owned historic vehicles, and 47 privately owned classics, ranging from a 1908 Oldsmobile Touring 4-Cylinder to a 1938 Buick Special Model 41 Trunkback, and on up to a 1988 Ferrari Mondial. The winning vote-getter, incidentally, was a sensational 1935 Chevrolet Master Series 2-door sedan owned by Wes Rydell, who is a major GM dealer with franchises in Grand Forks, N.D., where he lives, as well as the Twin Cities and California.
But the indelible feeling about the whole session is that the legendary General Motors bean-counters were nowhere visible, replaced by folks who obviously feel passionately about their cars. It is reassuring to know that finally, people who love cars are making decisions at the worldÂ’s largest car-making company, and there is at least a fighting chance they will also care as passionately about the cars they are building and selling.
“When Bob Lutz came in, he saw where we were taking things with our research, and heÂ’s coached us to be a lot more intuitive,†said Mark Hogan, a design engineer and one of the GM spokesmen. “He course-corrected us to use our abilities along with our market research. IÂ’ve never seen the energy, passion and focused intent in this company. And youÂ’re probably going to see much more reach in our designs under Bob Lutz. When you see concept vehicles like Solstice and Belair, theyÂ’ll sell themselves.Ââ€
It has been easy to be a critic about GM. The corporate giant, for about three decades, has backed off from technology, daring design and fun vehicle development for the sake of not disrupting the bottom line, leading to the feeling that “bean-counters†were making all the decisions, and choosing profit margin over research and development. The company’s new direction may counter that.
Here are the highlights of the 20-some new introductions:
Performance. GM is going to coordinate its high-performance concepts into one unit, although that unit intends to stay subtle, without the flash of Ford’s SVT (Special Vehicle Team) or the Mercedes AMG group. “You won’t read our name on the back of the car,†said Mark Reuss, who runs GM’s performance division. “I have 1,000 workers under me, 800 who are in architectural design and 200 who will specializse in performance, concept and show cars, high-performance operations and design. We haven’t really had all these divisions together at GM – ever.†GM intends to offer small-car, front-wheel-drive high-performance parts such as racing cylinder heads and superchargers for the Ecotec engines in the Cavalier and Sunfire, for example.
Concept cars. One easy new car is the 2003 Corvette 50th anniversary edition, which will come only in a dark, bergundy red. Otherwise, some far-out concept cars are expected to spring to life. Most notable is the Pontiac Solstice, the Chevrolet SSR and Belair, and possibly the Saturn Sky, while Cadillac will follow-up its new-generation CTS sedan with a stunning XLR hardtop/roadster convertible. I got a close-up look at the Solstice and Belair, and I drove a prototype Sky, but there were no XLRs around – until we were being bused out of the Milford Proving Grounds, and I spotted one cruising along on a test track. In a year, the GTO makes a comeback, based on the Holden Monaro from GM’s Australian branch.
Trucks. Naturally, the high profitability of trucks is one of the basic assets of all the new car optimism, but GM is hardly going to pass up the chance to expand its enormous truck outlay. Buick, which got the Rendezvous as a neat version of the controversial Pontiac Aztek for 2002, will add the Ranier, which will be a similar but slightly more luxurious sport-utility vehicle, powered by either the new high-tech in-line 6 or the new Generation III 5.3-liter V8. Also, Chevrolet will bring out the SS – a throwback to the Super Sport days of its hot-rod sporty coupes – as a specialty version of the Silverado pickup truck. Aside from also lengthening the GMC and Cadillac versions of the Chevy Tahoe into a full-fledged version of the Suburban, GM also is introducing a new Hummer H2, a much more manageable version of the militaristic all-terrain vehicle.
Technology. Cadillac and Corvette will continue to be the test-beds for new technology, from things such as OnStar, Nightvision, through-the-windshield instruments, StabiliTrak, etc. The new Corvette, for example, will have “MagneRide†suspension, which was introduced on the 2002 Cadillac Seville STS and is an electro-magnetic controlled suspension system. Imagine this: inside the struts that cushion all four wheels, instead of the usual pristine fluid, Delphi (a GM affiliate) has come up with a strut filled with fluid that has magnetic particles floating freely around inside, and the normal suspension is very comfortable and compliant. Set on “touring,†the suspension stays that way, but move the console switch to “sport,†and you get a stiffer mode, plus. A severe cornering move causes an electromagnetic coil to suddenly cause all the free-flowing particles to snap together, greatly stiffening the suspension. It acts so quickly that you don’t really feel anything, except when you corner abruptly, the 50th Anniversary Corvette feels like it has race-car suspension. It apparently acts instantaneously, meaning the right side can handle a jolt it just learned from the left side, and it certainly is faster than the driver can discern.
Engines. The old 5.0 and 5.7-liter V8s – the legendary Chevrolet “small-block†V8s – have been replaced by the 5.3, a clean-sheet design instoduced in 1999 as an iron block unit. The new one is all aluminum, and it turns out 290 horsepower. The other significant new engine is the Ecotec, which originated with GM’s German Opel division, which used it in the Astra sedan. It also will be used in the new Saab, a recent GM acquisition. The 2.2 Ecotec is a dual-overhead-camshaft, 16 valve 4-cylinder, and when it came in last year, it became the base engine in Cavalier and Sunfire, and left the 2.4-liter “Quad 4†as an option. The 2.4 has now been dropped altogether from further production, and the Ecotec takes over, supplying 140 horsepower and 150 foot-pounds of torque.
Environment. While GM continued to emphasize more power and performance with almost every introduction, the company is striving to improve its efficiency for ecological and economical reasons. I drove a full-size pickup with engineer Stephen Poulos riding shotgun, and he explained that our vehicle had a combination 5.3-liter V8 and AC induction motor, supplying 20 more horsepower from 42 lead-acid batteries, located under the rear seat. The truck had very good power, and whenever you stop for a red light, the engine stops. The fuel shuts off as soon as you decelerate, and when you take your foot off the brake to step on the gas as the light turns green, the engine restarts and youÂ’re off. Poulos says EPA estimates show 10-15 percent improvement in fuel economy, and the new engine has no alternator or starter, and the pump and power steering are done electrically by the auxiliary motor.
Interestingly enough, the new alternative-energy truck has no special markings, and no high-tech gauges. “WeÂ’re selling a truck here,†said Poulos. “We donÂ’t want to point out how many differences there are, as much as how similar it is to what everybody is used to.Ââ€
Flash, glitz and performance sells, apparently, but GM customers are wary enough about high-tech economy advances that GM wisely figures it better downplay its advances.
Car fanatics provide new guidance for GM in 2003 and future
It took two days for General Motors to display all of its new-for-2003 car and truck models to the North American journalists it had summoned to Ann Arbor, Mich. Splitting the two sessions, GM put on an outdoor walking buffet dinner to accompany a Bring-Your-Own-Baby car show, during which the companyÂ’s executives brought out their own private collectible vehicles.
There were enough new vehicles with new technology to fill a notebook, but the image of that collector car show remains the most riveting memory of the trip.
There was Bob Lutz, GMÂ’s new boss, puffing on a big cigar as he stood proudly next to his own 1953 Cunningham Coupe C3, while motoring journalists stopped by to talk casually to him about his passion for automotives. There were a half-dozen GM-owned historic vehicles, and 47 privately owned classics, ranging from a 1908 Oldsmobile Touring 4-Cylinder to a 1938 Buick Special Model 41 Trunkback, and on up to a 1988 Ferrari Mondial. The winning vote-getter, incidentally, was a sensational 1935 Chevrolet Master Series 2-door sedan owned by Wes Rydell, who is a major GM dealer with franchises in Grand Forks, N.D., where he lives, as well as the Twin Cities and California.
But the indelible feeling about the whole session is that the legendary General Motors bean-counters were nowhere visible, replaced by folks who obviously feel passionately about their cars. It is reassuring to know that finally, people who love cars are making decisions at the worldÂ’s largest car-making company, and there is at least a fighting chance they will also care as passionately about the cars they are building and selling.
“When Bob Lutz came in, he saw where we were taking things with our research, and heÂ’s coached us to be a lot more intuitive,†said Mark Hogan, a design engineer and one of the GM spokesmen. “He course-corrected us to use our abilities along with our market research. IÂ’ve never seen the energy, passion and focused intent in this company. And youÂ’re probably going to see much more reach in our designs under Bob Lutz. When you see concept vehicles like Solstice and Belair, theyÂ’ll sell themselves.Ââ€
It has been easy to be a critic about GM. The corporate giant, for about three decades, has backed off from technology, daring design and fun vehicle development for the sake of not disrupting the bottom line, leading to the feeling that “bean-counters†were making all the decisions, and choosing profit margin over research and development. The company’s new direction may counter that.
Here are the highlights of the 20-some new introductions:
Performance. GM is going to coordinate its high-performance concepts into one unit, although that unit intends to stay subtle, without the flash of Ford’s SVT (Special Vehicle Team) or the Mercedes AMG group. “You won’t read our name on the back of the car,†said Mark Reuss, who runs GM’s performance division. “I have 1,000 workers under me, 800 who are in architectural design and 200 who will specializse in performance, concept and show cars, high-performance operations and design. We haven’t really had all these divisions together at GM – ever.†GM intends to offer small-car, front-wheel-drive high-performance parts such as racing cylinder heads and superchargers for the Ecotec engines in the Cavalier and Sunfire, for example.
Concept cars. One easy new car is the 2003 Corvette 50th anniversary edition, which will come only in a dark, bergundy red. Otherwise, some far-out concept cars are expected to spring to life. Most notable is the Pontiac Solstice, the Chevrolet SSR and Belair, and possibly the Saturn Sky, while Cadillac will follow-up its new-generation CTS sedan with a stunning XLR hardtop/roadster convertible. I got a close-up look at the Solstice and Belair, and I drove a prototype Sky, but there were no XLRs around – until we were being bused out of the Milford Proving Grounds, and I spotted one cruising along on a test track. In a year, the GTO makes a comeback, based on the Holden Monaro from GM’s Australian branch.
Trucks. Naturally, the high profitability of trucks is one of the basic assets of all the new car optimism, but GM is hardly going to pass up the chance to expand its enormous truck outlay. Buick, which got the Rendezvous as a neat version of the controversial Pontiac Aztek for 2002, will add the Ranier, which will be a similar but slightly more luxurious sport-utility vehicle, powered by either the new high-tech in-line 6 or the new Generation III 5.3-liter V8. Also, Chevrolet will bring out the SS – a throwback to the Super Sport days of its hot-rod sporty coupes – as a specialty version of the Silverado pickup truck. Aside from also lengthening the GMC and Cadillac versions of the Chevy Tahoe into a full-fledged version of the Suburban, GM also is introducing a new Hummer H2, a much more manageable version of the militaristic all-terrain vehicle.
Technology. Cadillac and Corvette will continue to be the test-beds for new technology, from things such as OnStar, Nightvision, through-the-windshield instruments, StabiliTrak, etc. The new Corvette, for example, will have “MagneRide†suspension, which was introduced on the 2002 Cadillac Seville STS and is an electro-magnetic controlled suspension system. Imagine this: inside the struts that cushion all four wheels, instead of the usual pristine fluid, Delphi (a GM affiliate) has come up with a strut filled with fluid that has magnetic particles floating freely around inside, and the normal suspension is very comfortable and compliant. Set on “touring,†the suspension stays that way, but move the console switch to “sport,†and you get a stiffer mode, plus. A severe cornering move causes an electromagnetic coil to suddenly cause all the free-flowing particles to snap together, greatly stiffening the suspension. It acts so quickly that you don’t really feel anything, except when you corner abruptly, the 50th Anniversary Corvette feels like it has race-car suspension. It apparently acts instantaneously, meaning the right side can handle a jolt it just learned from the left side, and it certainly is faster than the driver can discern.
Engines. The old 5.0 and 5.7-liter V8s – the legendary Chevrolet “small-block†V8s – have been replaced by the 5.3, a clean-sheet design instoduced in 1999 as an iron block unit. The new one is all aluminum, and it turns out 290 horsepower. The other significant new engine is the Ecotec, which originated with GM’s German Opel division, which used it in the Astra sedan. It also will be used in the new Saab, a recent GM acquisition. The 2.2 Ecotec is a dual-overhead-camshaft, 16 valve 4-cylinder, and when it came in last year, it became the base engine in Cavalier and Sunfire, and left the 2.4-liter “Quad 4†as an option. The 2.4 has now been dropped altogether from further production, and the Ecotec takes over, supplying 140 horsepower and 150 foot-pounds of torque.
Environment. While GM continued to emphasize more power and performance with almost every introduction, the company is striving to improve its efficiency for ecological and economical reasons. I drove a full-size pickup with engineer Stephen Poulos riding shotgun, and he explained that our vehicle had a combination 5.3-liter V8 and AC induction motor, supplying 20 more horsepower from 42 lead-acid batteries, located under the rear seat. The truck had very good power, and whenever you stop for a red light, the engine stops. The fuel shuts off as soon as you decelerate, and when you take your foot off the brake to step on the gas as the light turns green, the engine restarts and youÂ’re off. Poulos says EPA estimates show 10-15 percent improvement in fuel economy, and the new engine has no alternator or starter, and the pump and power steering are done electrically by the auxiliary motor.
Interestingly enough, the new alternative-energy truck has no special markings, and no high-tech gauges. “WeÂ’re selling a truck here,†said Poulos. “We donÂ’t want to point out how many differences there are, as much as how similar it is to what everybody is used to.Ââ€
Flash, glitz and performance sells, apparently, but GM customers are wary enough about high-tech economy advances that GM wisely figures it better downplay its advances.
Car fanatics guide General Motors in new direction for 2003
It took two days for General Motors to display all of its new-for-2003 car and truck models to the North American journalists it had summoned to Ann Arbor, Mich. Splitting the two sessions, GM put on an outdoor walking buffet dinner to accompany a Bring-Your-Own-Baby car show, during which the companyÂ’s executives brought out their own private collectible vehicles.
There were enough new vehicles with new technology to fill a notebook, but the image of that collector car show remains the most riveting memory of the trip.
There was Bob Lutz, GMÂ’s new boss, puffing on a big cigar as he stood proudly next to his own 1953 Cunningham Coupe C3, while motoring journalists stopped by to talk casually to him about his passion for automotives. There were a half-dozen GM-owned historic vehicles, and 47 privately owned classics, ranging from a 1908 Oldsmobile Touring 4-Cylinder to a 1938 Buick Special Model 41 Trunkback, and on up to a 1988 Ferrari Mondial. The winning vote-getter, incidentally, was a sensational 1935 Chevrolet Master Series 2-door sedan owned by Wes Rydell, who is a major GM dealer with franchises in Grand Forks, N.D., where he lives, as well as the Twin Cities and California.
But the indelible feeling about the whole session is that the legendary General Motors bean-counters were nowhere visible, replaced by folks who obviously feel passionately about their cars. It is reassuring to know that finally, people who love cars are making decisions at the worldÂ’s largest car-making company, and there is at least a fighting chance they will also care as passionately about the cars they are building and selling.
“When Bob Lutz came in, he saw where we were taking things with our research, and heÂ’s coached us to be a lot more intuitive,†said Mark Hogan, a design engineer and one of the GM spokesmen. “He course-corrected us to use our abilities along with our market research. IÂ’ve never seen the energy, passion and focused intent in this company. And youÂ’re probably going to see much more reach in our designs under Bob Lutz. When you see concept vehicles like Solstice and Belair, theyÂ’ll sell themselves.Ââ€
It has been easy to be a critic about GM. The corporate giant, for about three decades, has backed off from technology, daring design and fun vehicle development for the sake of not disrupting the bottom line, leading to the feeling that “bean-counters†were making all the decisions, and choosing profit margin over research and development. The company’s new direction may counter that.
Here are the highlights of the 20-some new introductions:
Performance. GM is going to coordinate its high-performance concepts into one unit, although that unit intends to stay subtle, without the flash of Ford’s SVT (Special Vehicle Team) or the Mercedes AMG group. “You won’t read our name on the back of the car,†said Mark Reuss, who runs GM’s performance division. “I have 1,000 workers under me, 800 who are in architectural design and 200 who will specializse in performance, concept and show cars, high-performance operations and design. We haven’t really had all these divisions together at GM – ever.†GM intends to offer small-car, front-wheel-drive high-performance parts such as racing cylinder heads and superchargers for the Ecotec engines in the Cavalier and Sunfire, for example.
Concept cars. One easy new car is the 2003 Corvette 50th anniversary edition, which will come only in a dark, bergundy red. Otherwise, some far-out concept cars are expected to spring to life. Most notable is the Pontiac Solstice, the Chevrolet SSR and Belair, and possibly the Saturn Sky, while Cadillac will follow-up its new-generation CTS sedan with a stunning XLR hardtop/roadster convertible. I got a close-up look at the Solstice and Belair, and I drove a prototype Sky, but there were no XLRs around – until we were being bused out of the Milford Proving Grounds, and I spotted one cruising along on a test track. In a year, the GTO makes a comeback, based on the Holden Monaro from GM’s Australian branch.
Trucks. Naturally, the high profitability of trucks is one of the basic assets of all the new car optimism, but GM is hardly going to pass up the chance to expand its enormous truck outlay. Buick, which got the Rendezvous as a neat version of the controversial Pontiac Aztek for 2002, will add the Ranier, which will be a similar but slightly more luxurious sport-utility vehicle, powered by either the new high-tech in-line 6 or the new Generation III 5.3-liter V8. Also, Chevrolet will bring out the SS – a throwback to the Super Sport days of its hot-rod sporty coupes – as a specialty version of the Silverado pickup truck. Aside from also lengthening the GMC and Cadillac versions of the Chevy Tahoe into a full-fledged version of the Suburban, GM also is introducing a new Hummer H2, a much more manageable version of the militaristic all-terrain vehicle.
Technology. Cadillac and Corvette will continue to be the test-beds for new technology, from things such as OnStar, Nightvision, through-the-windshield instruments, StabiliTrak, etc. The new Corvette, for example, will have “MagneRide†suspension, which was introduced on the 2002 Cadillac Seville STS and is an electro-magnetic controlled suspension system. Imagine this: inside the struts that cushion all four wheels, instead of the usual pristine fluid, Delphi (a GM affiliate) has come up with a strut filled with fluid that has magnetic particles floating freely around inside, and the normal suspension is very comfortable and compliant. Set on “touring,†the suspension stays that way, but move the console switch to “sport,†and you get a stiffer mode, plus. A severe cornering move causes an electromagnetic coil to suddenly cause all the free-flowing particles to snap together, greatly stiffening the suspension. It acts so quickly that you don’t really feel anything, except when you corner abruptly, the 50th Anniversary Corvette feels like it has race-car suspension. It apparently acts instantaneously, meaning the right side can handle a jolt it just learned from the left side, and it certainly is faster than the driver can discern.
Engines. The old 5.0 and 5.7-liter V8s – the legendary Chevrolet “small-block†V8s – have been replaced by the 5.3, a clean-sheet design instoduced in 1999 as an iron block unit. The new one is all aluminum, and it turns out 290 horsepower. The other significant new engine is the Ecotec, which originated with GM’s German Opel division, which used it in the Astra sedan. It also will be used in the new Saab, a recent GM acquisition. The 2.2 Ecotec is a dual-overhead-camshaft, 16 valve 4-cylinder, and when it came in last year, it became the base engine in Cavalier and Sunfire, and left the 2.4-liter “Quad 4†as an option. The 2.4 has now been dropped altogether from further production, and the Ecotec takes over, supplying 140 horsepower and 150 foot-pounds of torque.
Environment. While GM continued to emphasize more power and performance with almost every introduction, the company is striving to improve its efficiency for ecological and economical reasons. I drove a full-size pickup with engineer Stephen Poulos riding shotgun, and he explained that our vehicle had a combination 5.3-liter V8 and AC induction motor, supplying 20 more horsepower from 42 lead-acid batteries, located under the rear seat. The truck had very good power, and whenever you stop for a red light, the engine stops. The fuel shuts off as soon as you decelerate, and when you take your foot off the brake to step on the gas as the light turns green, the engine restarts and youÂ’re off. Poulos says EPA estimates show 10-15 percent improvement in fuel economy, and the new engine has no alternator or starter, and the pump and power steering are done electrically by the auxiliary motor.
Interestingly enough, the new alternative-energy truck has no special markings, and no high-tech gauges. “WeÂ’re selling a truck here,†said Poulos. “We donÂ’t want to point out how many differences there are, as much as how similar it is to what everybody is used to.Ââ€
Flash, glitz and performance sells, apparently, but GM customers are wary enough about high-tech economy advances that GM wisely figures it better downplay its advances.
Mercedes SL500 ranks as beautiful coupe AND roadster
ItÂ’s true that the Chrysler Corporation we all grew up with is now, officially, DaimlerChrysler, since Daimler Benz took over the No. 3 U.S. automaker a few years ago. But it will be awhile longer before any cross-pollenating between the two causes anyone to mistake a Mercedes model for anything showing at a Chrysler or Dodge dealership. The best example is the Mercedes SL500, all new for 2003.
It is, arguably, the most beautiful coupe sports car in the world. And itÂ’s also arguably the most beautiful roadster sports car in the world. The metamorphosis occurs at the touch of a console button and takes only a few seconds.
Mercedes faced a tall order when redesigning the SL500, because the car’s predecessor possessed eye-popping looks and performance and luxury to match, and to hoist its price sticker up – way up – into the stratosphere of fantasy cars. The general public will not be interested in considering this car for purchase, but everybody capable of focusing on a fixed object will find their gaze attracted to this vehicle.
There is no question on the mind of any onlooker that the SL500 is expensive, but it STILL staggers them when your answer to their question is: “Eighty-nine thousand, four hundred seventy five dollars.Ââ€
That’s right. A cool $89,475 would get you the car I test-drove. While mostly all of us aren’t about to run out and plunk down a down-payment on a car that costly, the other shocking fact is that if you had the money, the SL500 is probably worth that much – when you combine technology, performance and looks.
KNOCKOUT LOOKS
First, the looks. The previous SL500 and SL600 was a knockout. Mercedes numbers its models by engine size, with the 600 being a 6-liter V12 and the 500 a 5.00-liter V8. Trust me, the V8 is plenty. At any rate, when a company decides to revise a classic, it runs a pretty strong risk of not reaching the pinnacle already established. Not so with the SL500. IÂ’m sure it looks good in any color, but the test car was a glistening black. While I often wash test cars for photo purposes, I found myself hand-washing the SL500 four times in a week because the black continually attracted all sorts of road-construction dust and mud. It still looked good.
The front is slanted back steeply, with high-tech headlights and integrated foglights carved artfully into the slope. The resultant aerodynamic measurement shows 0.29 coefficient of drag, a wind-cheating improvement where anything under 0.32 is considered excellent. The body length is an inch longer, and the wheelbase almost 2 inches. While being slightly larger, the 4,000-pound SL500 kept its weight down by the use of aluminum fenders, doors and trunklid, plastic bumpers, and magnesium and high-tech plastics on other parts.
From the side, the SL500 continues that stylish slope from the nose, up quite steeply along the doors to a high-kick tail. The roofline also is attractively curvaceous, blending in perfectly with that rear deck.
The windshield slopes back at a steep angle too, and the whole package blends together strikingly, with slightly bulging fenders housing 255/45-17-inch low-profile high-performance tires, riding on neat alloy wheels that are 8.5 inches wide. The bodywork rises up higher over the rear wheels, bulging neatly over the car’s hips. Just behind the front wheelwells there is a large vent, covered with two slashes of chrome. It looks neat, and it is wonderfully familiar if you recall seeing them on the original SL sports cars – the 300SL Gullwing coupe and roadster of the 1960s and even the 1950s, which represent the true heritage of the new SL500.
Large, red taillight housings wrap around from the side to the rear, where they flank the side angle of the trunklid. Down below, the chrome trumpets from dual exhaust outlets frames the whole thing. The trunklid pops up to reveal a surprisingly large storage area, and if you didnÂ’t know better, you might be surprised to see a thin but stiff little shroud that can be used to cover your trunk items and shield it from the trunklid.
Later, you find out the real reason for that shield. After gazing at the beautiful silhouette of the SL500 coupe, youÂ’re in for another surprise.
Climb into the driver’s seat, and get the shift lever in park and the emergency brake on, and flip the switch on the console. With a meaningful but unobtrusive whir, a symphony of 11 “electrohydraulic†cylinders and a pump hum to describe an incredible concert of moving parts. A segment you didn’t know was movable on the rear deck tilts open from the front, rises to a certain point, and then the top lifts off the windshield and kinks and folds itself back into itself, before the whole thing settles into a perfectly-formed opening on that rear deck, then the panel folds down and clicks shut.
Absolutely no variation, no hesitation, no bulges and no trace of the previously beautiful coupe roof. While a system similar to this has been used on the smaller CLK Mercedes, that stubbier sports car hides it well, but not this well. If you didnÂ’t know it was a foldaway hardtop, you would never guess from the sleek lines of the roofless roadster SL500 that it was anything but a convertible. Further complementing the look, you can hit another button, and a large and meaningful rollbar rises up behind the front buckets.
With that, the stunning coupe becomes an incredibly stunning roadster. The whole thing is quick and efficient. I managed to pull over and reluctantly put the top up after a few raindrops hit the windshield one time in something under 20 seconds.
PERFORMANCE
The 5-liter V8 is a masterpiece of Mercedes technology. It is a short-stroke engine with three valves per cylinder, two intake and one exhaust. It churns out 302 horsepower at 5,600 RPMs, and a muscular 339 foot-pounds of torque, electronically controlled to be delivered steadily from 2,700-4,250 RPMs.
That engine delivers its power via an electronic 5-speed automatic transmission, which shifts seamlessly. One of the interesting things Mercedes has added since its acquisition of Chrysler is an automanual shift lever much like the Chrysler AutoStick, which allows you to drop the lever down into a small horizontal gate, then achieving upshifts by bumping the spring-loaded lever to the right, or downshifting to the left.
ItÂ’s fun, and it also propels the sleek but hefty SL500 from 0-60 in a reported 6.1 seconds in some tests.
The car rides on revised aluminum suspension parts, but, interestingly, there are no stabilizer bars. Instead, the SL500 deploys the latest Mercedes active body control. Thirteen sensors, collaborating with two computers, operate four hydraulic servos that are fixed between the coil springs and the body. The complex-seeming system works to stiffen or soften each of the four wheelÂ’s suspension demands to counter the tendency to lean to the sides while cornering, to the front when braking or to the rear when accelerating.
So the suspension keeps the SL500 flat and stable, and if itÂ’s not stable enough, you can adjust the body control with a control on the console to make it much firmer and sportier. All of that works with ESP stability control and ASR traction-control, which Mercedes also introduced to the industry years ago.
Mercedes didn’t stop there. While various high-tech sporty cars now use a “drive-by-wire†system of unconnected, electronically controlled acceleration, the SL500 uses a syimilar system of electrohydraulics to command sensors and a microcomputer to deploy the brakes. So each of the four wheels stops independently, via a computer that decides how much braking each is capable of, then orders it. The complex braking system and the futuristic stability and traction systems conspire to keep the front-engine/rear-drive SL500 from venturing off course. In fact, it seems to know what course you should be following better than its driver does.
If thatÂ’s not enough for your technical hunger, the SL500 has a device to wipe the brake discs clear of water in wet driving to enhance stopping.
TECHNOLOGY
Naturally, the hiding roof, the suspension and all the sensor-controlled stuff qualifies as the highest of high-tech, but there is more technology there for the driver to use.
And I don’t just mean the 8-speaker BOSE audio system, or the navigation system – which lacked the proper disc for me to calculate where I was going in Minnesota. Or the high-strength steel cabin with front and rear crumple zones, the two-stage airbags, the side impact airbags or the driver’s knee airbag.
WeÂ’re talking seats, here. The buckets are comfortable and fully supportive, and adjustable in far more ways than anyone could imagine.
You can bolster the back support, tilt and slide the whole thing or different parts fore and aft. The main seat adjustment switch is on the door panel, resembling the seat outline. There also is a little switch for the support bolster located on the outside front corner of the seats. You may overlook it, but you shouldn’t, because one of the controls says “Pulse.†Sure enough, if you activate that switch, a slow and rhythmic undulation passes through the backrest and the seat cushion.
Actually, it is undulating, but not really rhythmic so much as it is irregular. A rhythmic pattern might put you to sleep; the irregular nature of the undulations is just right, so that if you were getting near fatigue-time from driving all day, the little pulsations might be the perfect antidote to getting drowsy.
That is an ingenious invention. And it’s particularly useful in the SL500 – because if ever there was a car that makes you want to drive too much, this is it.
About the Author
John Gilbert is a lifetime Minnesotan and career journalist, specializing in cars and sports during and since spending 30 years at the Minneapolis Tribune, now the Star Tribune. More recently, he has continued translating the high-tech world of autos and sharing his passionate insights as a freelance writer/photographer/broadcaster. A member of the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year jury since 1993. John can be heard Monday-Friday from 9-11am on 610 KDAL(www.kdal610.com) on the "John Gilbert Show," and writes a column in the Duluth Reader.
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