21 - Friday, October 13, 1989 -

AU TOM @ T I

Car makers responding to

SAFETY IS becoming an important issue in the
minds of today’s new car buyers. According to a
recent study by Ford, safety is now one of the
primary consumer considerations when shopping

for a new car.

Carmakers are responding
to this with new technologi-
cal features designed to
make cars stop better, han-
dle better, accelerate better,
and protect occupants in
severe impacts.

Probably the most impor-
tant new safety feature is the
air bag, or supplemental
restraint system. After many
years of testing and con-
troversy, air bags are finally
making their way into ordi-
Nary passenger cars.

Hidden in the hub of the
steering wheel, the air bag is
designed to inflate within
one twenty-fifth of a second
after a severe or moderate
frontal impact.

Air bags are supplemental
because they are not design-
ed to replace three-point
safety belts, only io supple-
ment them. Air bags will not
inflate in a side or rear im-
pact, so passengers must still
wear seatbelts in a _ car
equipped with air bags.

Certain luxury car makers,
such as Mercedes, have been
offering air bags for years.
But among the big three
domestic carmakers, Ford is
taking the lead by providing
air bags in 40 per cent of its

new 1990 mode! cars. Ac-
cording to Ford, air bags are
100 per cent reliable, and
won't blow up in your face
accidently.

To improve protection for
rear seat passengers, many
car makers are now install-
ing three-point safety belts
on the rear seats. Child seat
tether anchors are now
standerd equipment on
many cars as weil,

As of next year, daytime
running lights will be a
mandatory feature of all new
cars. Designed io increase
visibility and reduce the risk
of accidents, daytime runn-
ing lights burn at about 60
per cent of the intensity of
normal low-beam
headlamps.

Anti-lock braking is an

ASK
eo @__

EXPERT

THE 6Y;

DO YOU have any questions concerning your vehicle?

important safety feature that
is becoming common on
sports cars, luxury cars and
pickup trucks.

In a panic braking situa-
tion, an electronic sensor at
each wheel senses when the
wheel is about to lock up,
and ‘pumps’ the brakes
many times per second to
stop them locking. Anti-lock

brakes prevent skidding and
vecring, especialiy on slip-
pery surfaces,

Anti-lock brake systems
are usually accompanied by
disc brakes at all four wheels
which provide significantly
more stopping power than
drum brakes.

Complementing anti-lock
brakes is a very new techno-
logy called ‘traction-con-
trol.’ Traction control pre-
vents the driving wheels
from losing icaction when
accelerating on slippery sur-
faces. Electronic sensors

r=

Since?s26

Chevroiet, Oldsmobile
Cadillac and Trucks

Vy ES

safety concerns

detect wheel spin and
autorpiically cut engine
power by curtailing fuel flow
and spark plug firing. The
result is a car that won’t spin
its driving wheels during ac-
celeration. This prevents loss
of control and possible acci-
dents.

Traction contro! is cur-?
rently available on the
Cadillac Allante and the up-
coming Acura NS-X mid-
engine sports car.

All-wheel-drive is now
available on such inexpen-
sive cars as the Toyota Cor-
olla and Ford Tempo. It dif-
fers from four-wheel drive in
that all four wheels drive the
car all the time. As a general
rule, four-wheel-drive is used
only on loose, slippery sur-
faces.

All-wheel-drive systems
solit the engine’s torque (the
twisting force applied to the
drivetrain) via a center dif-
ferentia! between the front
and rear wheels. Some
systems vary the torque from
front to back and from side
to side depending on which
wheels have the most trac-

tion.

All-wheel-drive is most
useful on wet, snowy or
gravel surfaces. For skiers cr
people who live on the upper
reaches of the North Shore
mountains, all-wheel-drive

OD MUM VE

should prove very useful in
scrambling up steep inclines.

Four-wheel-steering vas
developed to improve a car’s
Straight-line tracking and
high speed stability when
changing lanes. It also helps
when manceuvring into a
tight parking spot.

At slow speeds, the rear
wheels turn a very small
amount in the opposiie di-
rection to the front wheels.
At high speeds, the rear
wheels turn in the same di-
rection as the front wheels.

There are currently three
cars available with four-
wheel-steering: the Honda
Prelude, Mazda 626 Turbo,
and Nissan 300ZX Turbo.
Unfortunately, four-wheel-
steering systems are usually
an expensive option, and
haven’t proven as popular as
expected.

There was a typesetting
error in the third paragraph
of sast week's column. It
should have read ‘‘To decide
whether you need new anti-
freeze, take the cap off the
radiator when the engine is
cold and check the color of
the coolant. (Don’t check
the coolant in the catch-tank
because it may not be recir-
cuisting into the coolant
system.)

The North Shore News
apologizes for the error.

You are invited to visit our
600 car indoor showroom — view the

North Shore News

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mag wheels, specially
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1983 HONDA CIVIC
3 DOOR

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Reduced to sell

1986 DODGE CARAVAR

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70,000 km, 5 spd.,
sunroof, silver

i
'

Chances are we can have them answered by an expert.
Send us any eutomotive-related questions and we'll do our
best to provide you with helpful and informative answers.
You could even wi one of five pairs of CN IMAX theatre

1990 Chevrolet, Oldsmobile, Cadillac & Trucks $41,995

tickets for your efforts.

Write or drop off your questions to ‘“‘Ask The Expert,” 1986 SUZUKI
North Shore News, 1139 Lonsdale Avenue, North Van- ° SAMURAY 4x4
couver, B.C. V7M 2H4. Eilack, 36,000 km., 5 spd.,

50 ft. top

$7,295
1987 MAZDA RX7
TURBO

85,000 km., sunroof, PW,
mags, reasonably priced

*18,995

1987 MAZDA RX7 GXL
Red, 46,000 km., 5 spd.,
sunroof, mag wheels,
PAW, burglar proof

$19,900

A special invitation is extended to all previous
Royal GM customers to call us for
your service requirements:

Service Administration Dennis Elgie 324-7222

i989 Cadillac Demo Sale

89 Sedan DeVilie

FRONT DISC REAR DRUM

Turn 2 rotors $ 95 Rear drum $ 95 :
benings 4 Tum aus AMIFM cassette , with Dolby sound, Luxury options include leather 1988 JEEP CHEROKEE
Install pads shoes sunroof, leather interior, mer vinyl top, power options LTD 4x4

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2 door, sunroof, feather,
30,000 km. Clearance
priced

Anti-locking brakes

Special Sale Price Sale Priced

$35,998

Stk.» #268116

*43,989

Stk, #617612

90 Fleetwocd A Deor

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DUEL EXHAUSTS, CUSTOM WELDING

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AUT OMATIC TRANSMISSION SAFEGUARD SERVICE

“oe $9 495

975 MARINE DRIVE 984-6561
NORTH VAN (next To AAMC TRANSHISSION)

90 Seville 4 Door Sedan

Anti-iock brakes, sunroof, special
susperision. Loaged with tuxury

options. Special $49,995
9

Introduction Price
Stk, #800639

Rear wheel drive, sunroof,
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’

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&00 CARS
ON DISPLAY
INDOORS

7 CALL COLLECT
a 324-7222

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