Automotive Showcase
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Mali-beautiful
WHEN the 2008 Chevrolet Malibu won at North American Car of the Year, few who had driven it were surprised.It's attractive -- unlike its predecessor, responsive -- unlike its predecessor, agile -- unlike its predecessor and built to Japanese standards of fit and finish -- again, unlike its predecessor.
In short, it's everything few General Motors mid-size sedans have ever been -- world class. That it all comes in at about the same price as the previous Malibu is even better.
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Quick Study
Paul Williamson - Willy's Garage In the classic car hobby we often hear stories about guys who build or restore cars in their home garage. Many pride themselves on doing the lion's share of the work themselves, but in most cases it is a collective effort. A machine shop is called upon to look after the engine, a body shop pounds out the dents and applies the paint, and an upholstery shop is commissioned to do the interior. <Continued> -
Murray Group surpasses target
Myron Love The Murray Auto Group, the largest volume General Motors Dealer Group in Canada, set out at the beginning of June to set a new sales record. The goal was to sell 1,500 new and used vehicles among the 20 Murray affiliated dealerships across the country in June. "We asked every one of our dealerships to raise their sales targets in June by 20 per cent," says Dan Murray, president of Murray Chev Hummer and Murray Hyundai, both located at the Manitoba Auto Mall on Waverley near Bishop Grandin. <Continued> -
Compressor the last thing to blame for flaky A/C
Jim Kerr - Backyard Mechanic QUESTION -- Our Camry's air conditioner started "blinking" on and off last year. I took it to the dealership but by this time the air conditioner began working again. The mechanic told me that a component part was not sending the message for the air conditioner to come on but they could not check to see which component it was unless it wasn't working, so I was to bring it back when it quit the next time. It worked fine all the rest of the summer. This spring, the air conditioner blinked a few times and quit totally. I called the dealership and after several calls back and forth we were assured it was the compressor and it had to be replaced - for $500 for a reconditioned one. This was diagnosed on the phone. I was in the car yesterday on a short trip, tried the air conditioner and voila it worked and remained working. We feel there are two totally different explanations here and if the compressor is shot why does it start working again? Is the dealership just guessing? They want to put the compressor in but we are going to postpone this work at least until we get a few more answers. We would appreciate your opinion. <Continued> -
New Dodge Ram to get flex appeal
IF you're looking for more bang for your pickup truck buck, perhaps the powertrain choices available in the all-new 2009 Dodge Ram models may be exactly what your're after. <Continued> -
Watch out for the border patrol!
Garry Sowerby - World Odyssey Six days after the horrific World Trade Center attacks in 2001, my wife and I were scheduled to fly to Miami, Fla., from our home in Canada. We weren't sure about taking a trip in the days following the destruction, but finally agreed to proceed with the plan. <Continued> -
In the lap of luxury
By David Booth WASHINGTON -- It might be an overstatement to say this is the most important car in Lincoln's history, but a lot of pressure rides on the MKS's 20-inch chromed wheels. Ford's travails of late are common knowledge, but its much-publicized turnaround keeps running into roadblocks, the latest being that -- for the first time in 26 years -- Ford's F-Series is no longer the top-selling nameplate in the United States. In F-150 sales alone, Ford is down almost 300,000 units compared with its peak years. <Continued> -
Learning to drive like a real pro
Alan Sidorov - Twists and Turns We recently completed four days of advanced driver training for our volunteer fire departments. These folks go through regular training sessions in every element of the job. We did the first two days in regular road-going vehicles, a mix of vans and pickups, in order to develop the basic skills. The final two days were spent mainly in the big trucks, and finished with the driving portion of the NFPA 1002 exam. That is the National Fire Protection Association's Standard for Fire Apparatus Driver/Operator Professional Qualifications. <Continued> -
Cruisers flock to Pony Corral
Paul Williamson Yahoo, it looks like summer is finally here, and last Sunday at the Grant Park Pony Corral we had an absolute blast. Although we were far too busy to actually count all the cars, it's a sure bet more than 400 of Winnipeg's nicest machines rolled through the parking lot and a crowd of more than 1000 spectators took in the show. <Continued> -
Retro done right
By Clare Dear When it comes to doing a retro model, Ford has nailed it with its limited-edition Mustang Bullitt. <Continued> -
Postwar Playboy
By Bill Vance Early in 1942, North American automobile production stopped and auto manufacturers turned their expertise to the military needs of the Second World War. <Continued> -
Wagon for the upper crust
Larry D'Argis - Classic Cruising When we look around, we see the modern-day people and cargo movers are the popular minivan and the SUV. If you look back a few decades, you'll find the post-war years were boom years for another type of vehicle, namely the family station wagon. While some manufacturers still offer station wagon models, we're nowhere near the sheer volume that was available from the 1950s through the 1970s. Every manufacturer offered buyers a wide variety of station wagon models built on all of their compact mid-size and full-size vehicle platforms. <Continued> -
Cleanest diesel engines yet are on the way
Jim Kerr - Auto Tech Diesel powered vehicles have always been popular in Europe. High fuel prices there have been offset by the 30 per cent better efficiency of the diesel engine. In North America, Canadians have been attracted to diesel powered personal transportation much more than U.S. drivers, but we have been limited in the variety and availability of diesel powered cars by pure economics. We just don't buy enough diesel-powered cars in Canada to justify designing one for North American standards and supporting it with dealer training and parts supplies. It's a sad fact, but unless the U.S. buys more diesel-powered cars, we will see limited models in Canada. <Continued> -
Clarification
Haney Louka's review of the Ford Focus last week unintentionally left the impression that heated seats are only available with leather. Heated seats are available with cloth seats as an option on SE and higher models. <Continued> -
Car Club Calendar
July
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