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AutoNotes #8, 02/21/93 copr. 1993, Dave Williams
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BIX: 'dave2' CIS: 72571,3542 [email protected]
The Courts of Chaos BBS, (501)985-0059
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I mentioned the Corvette's optional run-flat tires last issue. I
forgot to mention British Leyland offered run-flat Dunlop DeNovos on
the Mini twenty years ago. What goes around, comes around.
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Automotive Industries magazine reports the GM electric car program
(ie Impact) has been canceled.
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Chrysler's performance division has released a retrofit TBI EFI
package for their '89 and earlier Jeep inline sixes. It is EPA
legal and supposedly adds 50hp and 40% more torque.
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The Chrysler Hemis are back - and they're from Chrysler Marine, as
I predicted last year. Now, if they'd only ha' put a sequential
fuel injected, all-aluminum Street Hemi into the Viper instead of
that wuss V-10...
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Speaking of the Viper, I got to examine one at the local Dodge dealer.
The car is easily TWICE as ugly as it looks in the photos, and it's
definitely larger than the Corvette, which in turn is larger than a
3/4 ton long wheelbase Chevy van (and heavier, too!) The interior is,
like, max cheapo, with white faced guages, just like grandma's Rambler.
If you don't like being rained on you can put on the removable
hardtop, just like an X1/9. If you don't care for the rain blowing in
the sides, you add the side curtains, just like an old, old MG or
Spitfire. Uh... since there are no outside door handles, I'm not sure
how you can get back inside once you close the door with the top and
side curtains installed. Ah, well, such is life.
Since there's no way to lock the doors the Vipers ought to be prime targets for the casual car thief.
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It's Baaaack: Nearly twenty years ago British Leyland sold the
MGB GT/V8, basically an MGB with a Rover 3500 engine. Now Leyland
has metamorphosed through Jaguar-Rover-Triumph and is now Rover Cars,
and Rover has resurrected the V8, now called the MG RV8. They've
supposedly tweaked the bodyshell a bit, but it still looks like an
MGB to me. The RV8 uses the Rover 3.9 and five speed manual, and
sells for a cool L26,500 - call it $40,000 or so in US buckaroonies,
depending on which side of the pond you enquire about the exchange
rate. Frankly, if I were an Anglophile with that kind of petty cash
I'd just go for the TVR with the 4.5 liter, turbocharged Rover V8.
You can select the appropriate TVR options and eat ZR-1s and Vipers
for quick snacks while trolling for unwary Porsche owners.
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American Racing takes the Bunghole Award for this issue. Their new
ads have no street address and no regular phone number - just a 900
number at 89 cents per minute. Boo! Hiss!
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Ward's Auto World quoted Bill Mitchell of GM: "When you take the
antlers off a deer, you've got a big rabbit." Ho-kay.
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Ward's Auto World also ran a photo of the Mustang Mach III show car,
saying "Interior is reminescent of the original '65." It's nothing
like the Mach I or Mach II prototypes, nor the '65 Mustang. However,
it bears an astonishing resemblance to the '55 Corvette interior.
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Chrysler is showing off a Viper coupe now. The prototype is painted
in Ford's dark blue with white stripes racing colors. The coupe also
has some ducky little side pipes - does this look like an attempt to
cash in on the Cobra Daytona Coupe? - but sidepipes are not legal in
several states, as Chrysler found out with the original Viper prototype.
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