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Wednesday, July 21, 1999 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER C8 Is Your Warranty About to 2345 Fainriew St. 632-8151 4121 Morris Dr. 634-4211 CALL FOR AN APPOINTMENT? DOES YOUR CAR WAX GIVE YOU BETTER PROTECTION THAN YOUR CUT-RATE CAR INSURANCE? Don't trust just anyone to insure your car, see me: John Baum ann 627 Lyons Lane #308, Oakville I 842-2225 845-3824 Fax:337-5567 Pontiac Grand Am: Nothing subtle about this muscle car By Rob Beintema SPECIAL TO T H E BEAVER "I think it's a pretty car," my wife said. We were standing back a bit from the parking space, surveying the new 1999 Pontiac Grand Am GT Coupe. Before I could add my two cents worth, she shook her head. ; "No, not pretty," she countered, chang­ ing her mind. "It's handsome. It's too mas­ culine-looking to be pretty." I agree. * The Grand Am is an icon of what l Pontiac does best. The bulging, muscular lines, the look that embodies classic Pontiac audacity. There's nothing subtle about this car. Check off the features. The cat-eye headlights, twin-port grille, round , driving lamps, bodyclad flanks and kitschy * shark fin spoiler. The Grand Am GT Coupe J boasts an aura of sporty, driver-oriented performance that harkens back to the mus­ cle car era and Pontiac's GTO heritage. But i that's the blatant kind of "in-yer-face" state- ? ment that GM's premier performance divi­ sion has always striven for. For 1999, Pontiac has accentuated the Grand Am's wide track and sporty stance. The 107" (2718 mm) wheelbase is 3.6" (91 1999 Pontiac Grand Am G T Coupe mm) longer than the model it replaces but the overall length is slightly reduced. Front tread has also increased by 3.3" (84 mm) but body width is only up by about l:5" (38 mm). This wheels-to-the-comer treat­ ment not only gives the Grand Am an aggressive look, it also translates into more than a 20 percent increase in passenger room and about 10 percent more cargo space. That aggressive exterior styling carries over inside the Grand Am GT coupe. A shapely interior is blandified somewhat by the uniform gray tones of dark pewter. There's nary a right angle to be found on a dashboard filled with oiganic and oval shapes. The steering wheel and instruments are all big, meaty and user-friendly, com­ plimented by a central module angled towards the driver. Five baseball-sized vents are mounted prominently on the dash. Even more prominent and the first thing to catch your eye is the weird double-bub­ ble binnacle shading the gauges. The redesign of the '99 Grand Am may have been sweated out in the design studios of GM but I get the feeling that the curves of the binnacle probably first took shape on the back of a Hooter's cocktail napkin. (See 'G rand Am ' page C7) F T ! 4 7 -HAM . I Q .E .W . 3 $. SERVICE RDi | K E R R H 3 WYECROFT RD. 'IN D O W D E V I L L E 2 ^ 4 ( Y l s i l Anniversary ~----- T ••' i l l■/i|| ViLJ P E N K t t M tU P C P . 4 8 month lease, \ 2 0 ,0 0 0 kms per year | / m o n t h * $ 4 , 0 0 0 dow n Air conditioning, all wheel drive, power windows & locks, A M /F M cassette, ABS brakes & much more. Based on $4,500 down /m o n t h 4 8 m o n th le a s e 2 0 ,0 0 0 kms per year Air conditioning, all wheel drive, ABS, heated mirrors & seats, driving lights, cruise control, roof rack, keyless remote, auto trans. & much more. (+ •> S U B A R U Ih< K r t n i f t «>/ ill M A v / f V n v . 2412 South Service Rd. W., Oakville O A K V I L L E m v u u<i III 1r>t ll:llll| | H 'rt ?• <11111 * 0 2345 Fainriew St. 632-8151 4121 Morris Dr. 634-4211 845-3824 Fax:337-5567 By Rob Beintema 47-HAM. I Q.E.W. 3 $. SERVICE RDi 'INDOW DEVILLE (+•> SUBARU 2412 South Service Rd. W., Oakville OAKVILLE