I Wednesday, April 26, 2000 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER C3 B By Rob Beintema SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER e s t W h e e l s O a k v i l l e Auto show season winds up in New York TIRES W ith all the glitz and glamour of a Broadway production, the New York Auto Show played encore to another spectacular year of auto motive debuts. The 2000 automo tive show season seemed busier than usual, as if designers had made an extra effort to mark the dawning of a new millennium. As usual, the season opened with early debuts in LA, feature presentations in the automotive capital of Detroit, minor stops in cities like Chicago and Toronto, closing with the grand finale at America's oldest auto show, the New York International Auto Show, which celebrated it's 100th anniversary this year. The New York Auto Show tra ditionally allows manufacturers a chance to review the year's debuts, unveil a few last-minute dream cars and reveal the production versions of earlier concepts for the coming model year. With the culmination of the auto show season, the show floor in New York seemed to be crowded with every kind of car and truck, including 2000 models that are already on sale, 2001 models that will start arriving at dealerships within weeks and 2002 debuts that hint at production vehicles of the future. Pretty confusing for a guy who's still unconsciously writing 1999 on his cheques but here, in no particular order, is a brief look at the debuts of new automotive pipe dreams and the very real products that we'll be seeing in dealer show rooms in the near future. The New York Auto Show start ed with a song-and-dance revue of Chrysler's new 2001 Sebring line up. The Sebring Convertible every vacationer's favorite rental gets a new 2.7L 200 hp V6 and the first makeover since its creation in '96. The Sebring Sedan, with an improved 2.4L 4 cylinder and the optional 2.7L, replaces the Cirrus lineup in Canada. The Sebring Coupe - jointly built with Mitsubishi - offers a torquier 3.0L optional powerplant. All three models are bigger, stronger and Our tires are low right now. Iraad Name Tires %off E x a m p le s : T a u r u s / S a b le ( P 2 0 5 / 7 0 R 1 4 ) S a le P ric e from $ 7 4 7 5 e a c h . M SR P $ 115 .0 0 T em p o /T o p az ( P 18 5 / 7 0 R 14 ) S a le P rice from $ 6 6 . 9 5 e a c h . M S R P $ 1 0 3 .0 0 F -S e rie s / E x p lo r e r ( 2 2 5 / 7 0 R 15 ) S a le P rice from $ 1 0 4 . 9 5 e a c h . M SR P $ 16 1.0 0 F -S e rie s / E x p lo r e r ( 2 3 5 / 7 5 R 1 5 ) S a le P ric e from $ 1 2 0 2 5 e a c h . M SR P $ 18 5 .0 0 manufacturers' suggested retail prices.* Firestone* G oodyear' M ich elin* * All regular tire manufacturer w arranties apply. Installation, balancing, taxes and provincial levies are extra Dealers may sell for less. At participating Ontario Ford d ealers only. All d ealers may not carry the complete line of advertised tire brands. A sk your Service Advisor for full details Offer expires May 30. 2 000 BATTERIES Photo by Rob Beintema General Motors North American Operations President Ron Zarella introduces the 2002 Oldsmobile Bravada - a new mid-size sport utility vehicle -- at the New York International Auto Show. share the wide-mouth grilles and Toyota has responded with a trickle-down design elements of new vehicle in the same class - the larger Chryslers like the 300M and Highlander - a mid-size, compro Concorde. mise sport ute that blends the best Alter this first car debut howev of both car and truck qualities. er, the New York show - like "Because," as Don Esmond, one of Detroit - seemed to be all about Toyota's VPs said, "sometimes you trucks, trucks and more trucks. feel like a truck. Sometimes you Carlos Ghosn, president of Nissan, don't." in a keynote address, announced The Highlander joins a faster, plans for a yet-to-be-named Nissan lighter, funkier-styled RAV4, giv full-size V8-powered pickup, one ing Toyota the only one-two punch of twenty-two future products in of car-based sport utes in the indus try. the pipeline. GM unveiled four new trucks as I don't know if Ford is resting part of a selection that, this year, for on their Focus laurels or just busy the first time in GM's history, will building production versions of the see more truck sales than car sales. many concepts they debuted last With the Chevy Avalanche just a year, but outside of the Escape, this few months away, GM added to its has been a lackluster season for lineup with the new Yukon Denali Ford concepts - featuring oddball and Denali X L (GMC's version of eccentricities like the internetthe Suburban). These two new happy 24-7 and Think concepts trucks represent the latest step in and a rerun version of the stylish replacing the old GMT400 plat but still-can't-commit-to-it-yet form with the new GMT800 plat Thundeibird. form. Of greater import to minivanAnd the contract to build the crazy Canadians, the unveiled 2001 2001 G M C Sierra represents yet Ford Windstar will probably con another quality kudo for Canada's tinue to be the second-best selling GM Oshawa plant. nameplate in Canada, surpassed Most Canadians are probably only by Ford's F-Series pickups. unfamiliar with the Bravada, a for Another homegrown success story, mer Oldsmobile version of the Ford's Oakville plant has shipped compact Jimmy/Blazer sport ute. more than 1.6 million Windstars to There never seemed to be any point over forty different countries. The in selling an in-house competitor 2001 Ford Windstar, adding new with the Chevy Blazer. But the options like The AdvanceTrac 2002 Olds Bravada - a brand new vehicle dynamics system, a rear mid-size sport ute with car-like seat entertainment system, LED handling - will give Chev/Olds turn signals in the side mirrors, and dealers a new option on the show second-row removable buckets, room floor. (See `2002' page C4) Motorcraft Tested Tough Series (WTBXL) 12 Month Free Replacement/ 72 Month Warranty Motorcraft Silver Series (WTBXT) 24 Month Free Replacement/ 84 Month Warranty 84" 94" * Installation not includ ed . A p p licab le to m ost c a rs an d tru cks. B atteries for v e h ic le s w ith d ie se l e n g in e s are extra W TBXT 6 5 7 5 0 an d W T B X T 6 5 -8 5 0 . are $ 9 9 .9 9 W T B X l-3 3 . W TBXL 49; W TBXL 5 0 are S 1 09 .9 9 Taxes not In clu d ed At particip atin g O nta rio Ford d e a le rs o n ly D ealers m ay s e ll for le s s . A sk your S e rv ic e A d viso r for fu ll d e ta ils O ffer ex p ire s ' M ay 30 . 2 0 0 0 SHOCK ARSORRERS manufacturers' suggested retail prices.* * Taxes not included. At participating Ontario Ford d ealers only. Dealers may sell for less A sk your Service Advisor for full details. Offer expires May 30. 2000. RRAKES Motorcraft' Preferred M m Install Motorcraft Preferred Value front or rear brake pads, on most Ford cars and trucks. 99 In c lu d e s : · P a r t s a n d la b o u r · O u r li f e t im e w a r r a n t y * " Motorcraft Preferred Value Brakes Q ualityG ur s e r v ic e T H E R IG H T P E O P L E . T H E R IG H T P A R T S . A L W A Y S T H E R IG H T P R I C E . * E x clu d e s m achin ing o f ro to rs an d drum s. f G uaranteed a s long a s the o rigina l p u rch a se r o w n s the veh icle. At participating O ntario Ford d e a le rs only. D e a le rs m ay s e ll for less. Taxes not includ ed . Som e co n d itio n s apply. A sk your Service A d viso r for fu ll d e ta ils . O ffer e x p ire s M ay 30 . 2 0 0 0 w w w .f o r d .c a / o f f e r s YOUR O N TA R IO F O R D DEALERS. m u O N T A R IO we- www.HaltonSea An Idea Whose Time Has Come. Telehop · Classifieds · Community News · Horoscopes · Weather Dining Guide · Automotive Directory Real Estate Directory Real Estate Open Houses Community Profiles & Events · Movie Listings · Pud · City Parent · Forever Young · Premier Consumer Shows · The Oakville Beaver · Burlington Post · Canadian Champion · Flamborough Post · Halton Life · Shopping News · Businss Directory · Online Coupons · Media Sponsors · Business & ? 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