Automotive Trucks information on net.

Buyer cross over to spur '89 sales Model year '89 will be another banner year in the U.S. light-truck market as more buyers than ever before - over 1 million, according to some analysts-switch from cars to trucks as a primary or secondary vehicle.

Overall truck sales, including the big medium- and heavy-duty rigs, are forecast in the 5.0- to 5.2-million range for 1989, following retail delivery of nearly that number in '88.

Ford Motor CO. Vice President and Ford Div. General Manager Thomas J. Wagner says for the first time that '89 car and truck sales will tie at 1.6-million units each. General Motors Corp. Vice President and Chevrolet Motor Div. General Manager Robert D. Burger also sees trucks eventually outselling cars at his dealerships.

The surge in cross buyers has been most acutely felt in the compact market, particularly passenger vans and sport/ utility vehicles (SUVs), where most manufacturers, domestic and foreign, are directing massive new model programs.

Mazda Motor Corp. for '89 is the first Japanese manufacturer to offer a car-like van and Chevy will launch its plastic-body front-drive Lumina APV (also destined for Pontiac) in June 1989. Ford and Nissan Motor Corp. will commence joint output of a small front-drive passenger van in the United States in 1991. Toyota Motor Corp. and other offshore producers also are developing carlike minivans for U.S. introduction by the carly 1990s, and GM-Suzuki Motors Corp. next April begins production of a hot new mini SUV at a j oint-venture plant in Canada.

With all the action in light trucks producing a wide variety of new models, here's how Ward's Auto World scores the newest of the '89s: CHEVROLET/GMC

While Chevy dealers await arrival of the new Lumina APV next June, and a short-bed version of the full-size stretchcab C/K pickup in January, they'lllikely have to fight off hordes of customers anxious to buy one of a limited 9,000 to 10,000 new Geo Trackers that Chevy is making available in select markets until production at a new Canadian plant gets rolling next year,

The all-new mini sport/utility vehicle, along with twin Suzuki Sidekick imported from Japan's Suzuki Motor Co. Ltd., wins WA W's Crowd Pleaser award.

Tracker/ Sidekick, with a wheelbase of 86.6 ins. (220 cm) and overall length of 142.5 ins. (366 cm), is positioned in the market between the much-maligned Suzuki Samurai, with a 79.9-in. (203-cm) wheelbase and 135-in. (343-cm) overall length, and Chevy's popular S-10 Blazer at 100.5 ins. (255 cm) and 170.3 ins. (433 cm), respectively. A 4-in. (10-cm) increase in tread width, coupled with a near 200-lb. (91-kg) weight increase over Samurai, sharply improve Tracker's ride and driveability. An ultra-lightweight 1.6L engine powers Tracker and upscale Sidekicks, although base Suzuki models retain the 1.3L job. GM's influence, said to be considerable in Tracker/Sidekick engineering, is most visible in luxury options such as power steering, power locks and windows, and tilt steering column.

Although Suzuki offers four versions of the Sidekick - base and up-level convertible and hardtop models, Tracker is available only in standard, LSi hardtop trim or as a single convertible model.

Chevy initially plans to sell Tracker only on the east and west coasts where import truck penetration is high, and in selected Midwest "snowbelt" states.

Domestically, GM tops rival Ford by extending the rear-wheel antilock brake system (ABS) to Chevy Astro/GMC Safari compact passenger vans and cargo models destined for aftermarket conversion. Compact S-series pickups and Blazer/Jimmy models also acquire standard rear ABS along with a new electronic speedometer and power brakes as part of the ABS package. An electronic gauge cluster is optional.

Astro/Safari offers a smoother ride, thanks to a revised rear suspension featuring new front-spring hangers with a onepiece, mold-bonded bushing that, in conjunction with revised upper and lower hangers, eliminates sharp josts that result from the suspension bottoming out.

Venerable R/V-series full-size Blazer/Jimmy, Suburban and Crew Cab pickups get updated new grilles and trim to match the look of the high-tech C/K pickups, but retain archaic underpinnings and lack ABS, as do the full-size G-vans.

GM earns praise for answering a former WA W criticism: C/K pickups have a redesigned instrument cluster that dramatically improves readability under all light conditions. C/K 2500-series now has a "heavy-duty" model with GVW over 8,500-lbs. (3,856 kg). The last remaining carbureted 5.7L V-8, over 8,500-lbs. GVW, has been dropped.

CHRYSLER

Dodge Div. cops a gold medal for excitement with its '89 1/2 Dakota convertible - the first factory-originated ragtop pickup since Ford's Model A of the early 1930s. Actual conversion of 4 x 2 and 4 x 4 models, however, will be done by ASC Inc. at a rate of about 2,000 units in model year '89 and 4,000 to 5,000 in '90. Based on Dakota Sport, the ragtop comes standard with this year's more-powerful 3.9L V-6 mated to a new 5-speed manual (also available on conventional Dakotas) instead of a mandatory automatic box as in the past. The manual operating top can be folded back or removed completely, but allows full use of the pickup box in either configuration.

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After more than 100 years of engineering, you'd think there would be little new under the sun in the world of automotive suspensions. Yet just like powertrains, new developments and refinements continue to surprise, delight, and sometimes amaze consumers and engineers alike.

Two new systems in particular are getting noticed: the four-link front suspension on the '96 Audi AG A4 and the SLA setup on Ford Motor Co.'s new '97 F-series pickup, which went into production last November. While these designs are being lauded for significantly improving the ride and handling of their respective vehicles, a new material -- plastic -- is beginning, to play an important role in a number of new suspension design marking the beginning of a new era this front as well.

Described by some auto critics as "a new benchmark for front-drive suspension engineering," the new A4's four-link front suspension is designed to drastically reduce torque steer and improve road feel for traditionally numb front-drivers. Borrowed from Audi's top-line, aluminum-bodied A8 sedan and returned for the A4, Audi engineers say the new multi-link suspension concept is based on sound physics. It seeks to create a "virtual steering axis" in order to nullify the undesirable effects of driving forces on a vehicle sending power through the front wheels.

In traditional designs, the front wheel is supported by single pivot points at the top and bottom of the wheel carrier. This simple design allows the wheel to be steered, but requires that there be a long offset, or space, between the axis on which the wheels steer and the actual area where the tire makes contact with the ground to turn.

This offset can act as a kind of lever that transmits and amplifies forces such as engine torque back through the steering system. This translates into the tugging at the wheel during hard acceleration known as torque steer and also interferes with feedback from the road surface during normal driving, causing a lack of what driving enthusiasts call "steering feel."

By reducing this offset to only 0.4 ins. (10mm), the four-link design practically eliminates the leverage that transmits undesired forces through to the steering wheel. The "virtual steering axis" is created by the geometry that results from locating individual pivot points at each of the four links, allowing the wheels to be steered almost directly from their center points, rather than at the end of lever arms (see illustration).

Audi claims the advanced suspension all but eliminates torque steer and provides "a very precise steering feel with supreme agility." Although not all test drivers are quite as enthusiastic, most agree the design is a significant breakthrough for front-drive cars.

The twin-forged upper short and long arm (SLA) front suspension design on the new Ford F-150 full-size pickups is not nearly as new or dramatic, yet its painstaking execution deserves much of the credit for the new truck's award-winning ride and handling.

It also may prove to be one of the most durable designs of its kind: nitpicking engineers added a few small touches that promise to greatly reduce wear and tear over the long haul.

Although some marketing folks still are in love with the much-advertised rugged image of the old F-150's "Twin I-beam" front suspension, the new F-150 product team decided early on that the old suspension -- in use since 1965 -- had to go. While it was indeed durable, the Twin I-beam design was difficult to align and provided steering often described as vague and imprecise. Critics say the I-beam setup was notorious for heavy tire wear and continual alignment hassles.

Ford officials acknowledge the trouble in a back-handed way. They say tire life could double with the new suspension.

Besides, the SLA design already is well-proven in numerous cars and trucks and offers several important advantages.

By eliminating the big I-beam cross arms underneath the engine, for instance, designers were able set the engine lower in the chassis. That enabled them to lower the hood and create a more modern, aerodynamic shape -- and a better view of the road for the driver.

"From a technical standpoint, we thought we could execute a little better in tailoring the suspension to the truck," adds Bob Westphal, F-Series chassis manager-Ford Light Truck Vehicle Center Engineering. While Ford's arch-rival Chevrolet uses a similar-type SLA on its C/K pickups, Mr. Westphal and Carl Boyd, leader of the team that developed the F-series steering, suspension, wheel and tire package, say their execution is much different. Steering, for instance, is designed to be faster and more responsive than either the Chevy or the old F-150.

Spring rates also are softer than the previous generation Ford to provide a more comfortable ride, and a much larger stabilizer bar is used to provide tauter handling. The rear Hotchkiss suspension also has more understeer than the old F-150, and that helps it track better with the front, Mr. Westphal says. Bigger standard tires improve the new truck's ride and handling, too, Mr. Boyd points out.

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Light trucks keep growin'

Distinguishing between what's a car and what's a light truck these days is something perhaps best left to statisticians. If it has wheels and they like it, most Americans could care less.

Minivans, the hottest "trucks' going, seldom are purchased to cart commercial cargoes. Kids, canines and camping gear are more like it--the same as cars and station wagons. Minivans were practically unknown only five years ago, but they are heading for the million mark in annual sales, much of it at the expense of traditional cars.

That's only part of the picture. Sportutility vehicles--SUVs as they now are increasingly and unglamorously called--that are macho in image but yuppie in amenities are becoming as common as mile-markers on the nation's freeways, if not off-road.

With up to a half-million buyers switching annually from cars to light trucks, plus increasing affluence and a trend toward three-vehicle households, the torrid U.S. light-truck market promises to boom along well into the early 1990s.

Chrysler Corp. Chairman Lee A. Iacocca sees 1988 car sales running a flat-to-lower 10-million units, but his crystal ball spots 4.9-million trucks compared to a record 4.8 million for '87.

Rosy short- and longer-term truck sales projections are welcome news for domestic manufacturers because they stand to benefit most, ironically at the expense of the Japanese, who generally are credited with reviving consumer interest in light trucks as a means of offsetting volume restrictions of Japanese car imports.

Overall, U.S. new truck sales--including medium- and heavy-duty rigs--are expected to climb, on a trend-line basis, to a whopping 5.2-million domestic and imported models annually by 1991-92.

Light trucks alone, on a business cycle basis, are pegged for growth by Wharton/ Ward's Automotive Research Group (WWA) to 4.745 million in 1990 from 4.6 million this year. "The lion's share of this North American demand growth (is) expected to be captured by domestic manufacturers, since import sales from Japan are expected to be hampered by continued appreciation of the yen,' the group concludes.

WWA sees imported small pickups-- the most price-sensitive light-truck segment --accounting for a smaller share of what essentially will be a stable market through 1990 as the Japanese begin to move up-market in light trucks to offset their cost disadvantage.

Concurring in that scenario is Jerome B. York, Chrysler Motors Corp. vice president of Truck Operations. He tells Ward's Auto World the small pickup market will remain essentially flat over the next five years at 1.4-million units annually, despite major growth for truck sales overall during the same period.

Chrysler's goal is to increase its share of the total U.S. truck market well past the 20% targeted for model year '88--in itself a hefty 1-million vehicles. Mr. York believes that is achievable now that Chrysler has acquired Jeep along with its American Motors Corp. merger. Chrysler's market share for the '87 model year through August is 19.3% (including Jeep's 4%) vs. 8.7% as recently as model year '83 and 12.5% in 1986. Ford Motor Co.'s share, Mr. York points out, fell to 29.2% from 31.4%, while Chevrolet Div. plummeted to 23.5% from 31.1% in the last five years.

To combat rising prices and a decline in buyers under 35 (prime purchasers of sporty compact pickups), Chrysler sees the Japanese producers beginning to "upsize' their compact pickups to about the same dimensions as the midsize Dodge Dakota. It also appears likely that General Motors Corp. and Ford will be forced to follow suit. But lack of powertrain components, as well as a market for the vehicles outside North America, will keep the Japanese from moving all the way up to full-size pickups, a segment that Mr. York says may stabilize at around 1 million annually vs. 1.2 million to 1.3 million now.

Equally bullish, is Chevrolet Motor Div.'s Sales Manager-Truck John Kelly, who forecasts rising truck sales through at least 1990, reaching a peak of about 5.2 million per year.

Fueling his optimism is a growing segment of the population that has shifted from passenger cars to light trucks, especially compact models, used as either primary or secondary vehicles. Although now 12 months old, Chevy data indicating that about 500,000 buyers are switching from cars to trucks each year probably is still valid, says Mr. Kelly.

Small vans and SUVs are especially attractive as crossovers because "buyers don't perceive these vehicles as trucks,' he suggests. Front-drive "people vans' from GM and Ford, joining pioneer Chrysler, will reinforce that trend among car owners. GM's MPV--multipurpose van--is scheduled for 1989 introduction and Ford, jointly with Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., likely will join the parade by 1991-92.

These new car-like minivans, however, will not have much impact on current rear-drive small vans like the Chevy Astro that are designed for more rugged use such as pulling large loads, he predicts.

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Truck lure sweeps the West

Truck sales are sweeping the country, a trend underscored by the fact that Chevrolet and Ford trucks outsold cars of the same name in 25 states in calendar 1985.

Projected on a map, the sales pattern is a testimony of national interest, with truck leadership over cars sweeping across the West into the Eastern U.S. Not only are 21 of the 25 states linked together geographically, but they also encompass nearly all of the ares west of the Mississippi River.

California barely missed becoming part of the select group of states in 1985 as Ford Div. and General Motors Corp.'s Chevrolet Motor Div. dealers sold 217,244 trucks to 227,092 cars there, but the narrow margin suggests that California could capitulate in 1986.

Indeed, in at least seven more states Chevy/Ford truck sales could exceed cars in 1986, because they came so close to doing so in 1985. Ward's analysis of recently released '85 registration data compiled by R.L. Polk & Co. shows that in Maine, Ford/Chevy cars edged trucks 17,137 to 14,611, in New Hampshire 18,998 to 16,244, in North Carolina 70,589 to 61,716, in South Carolina 34,882 to 30,08, in Tennessee 50,873 to 49,457, in Hawaii 6,179 to 5,123, and in Minnesota 56,958 to 53,370.

Ford Motor Co. makes no bones about the popularity of trucks, saying "the probability that Ford dealers in the U.S. will sell mroe trucks than cars in 1986 only adds further emphasis to this important part of our North American Automotive Operations." Indeed, at a crucial time Executive Vice President Robert A. Lutz last May was appointed head of Ford Truck Operations. He had been chairman and chief executive offficer of Ford of Europe Inc.

During January-April this year, Ford Div. dealers sold 422,229 trucks to 433,288 cars, and Chrysler Corp.'s Dodge Div. dealers posted a 142,740-unit truck count that edged 131,044 for cars. At Chevrolet, car sales of 567,255 easily topped 399,631 trucks. However, there's little doubt that trucks, which include the hot-selling vans, have captured the imagination of the American public and have given Ford dealers some added ammunition to battle Chevrolet dealers.

"The future growth of this major profit center (trucks) for Ford bodes well for the company's success in the basic automotive business that is the cornerstone of the company's strength," says Ford.

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Trucks Turn To High Tech

Manfredi Motor Transit Co. of Newberry, Ohio, owns 101 Freightliners with antilock braking systems (ABS). Since 1986, when the company first bought electronically controlled brakes for its factors, the trucks have tallied 16 million miles, hauling tankers, some containing hazardous liquids. None of the trucks has been in any accident reportable to the Department of Transportation--any accident resulting in personal injury or more than $4,250 in damages--says the company's president, Richard J. Manfredi. "And the cost of maintenance has been zero."

Manfredi says his firm can justify the cost of ABS (listed by the manufacturers at $1,850 for a four-channel system) on the basis of accident reduction. The company's fleet is 45-percent ABS-equipped, and Manfredi plans to make it 100 percent by the end of 1991.

Technological developments such as ABS are making trucks safer, easier to drive, more comfortable to ride in, and more economical to operate.

A 1989 heavy-duty truck typically gets 8 miles per gallon, while a 5-year-old model gets about 4. Truck maintenance cycles are lengthening, and maintenance costs are falling.

Volvo-GM predicts the point at which a first engine overhaul is required on most trucks will rise to 600,000 miles by 1992 from the current average of 300,000 to 400,000. It should be 1 million miles by 2004, when the firm predicts maintenance costs should drop to 70 percent of what they are today.

These improved trucks are going to cost more because of higger costs of engines and other components. Heavy-duty trucks' prices began edging up last fall; increases could average up to $2,200 for some trucks.

Analysts expect that in a few years, light trucks will be brought into compliance with most of the federal emission and safety standards now required of passenger cars, including passive seat belts or air bags. This could add $1,000 or more to the prices of light trucks.

Diesel-powered trucks also will cost more. They must meet tough federal rules on sooty particulate exhaust emissions.

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Plastics use rises

More applications on the way for trucks In the grand scheme of anniversaries -- at least according to etiquette expert Amy Vanderbilt -- plastic (together with paper) usually is associated with first anniversaries. But in 1988 the self-anointed "wonder" material is pushing aside gold and getting chummy with the 50-year-old crowd.

Led by individual celebrants, such as Du Pont Co. (nylon and Teflon) and Monsanto Chemical Co. (Saflex), many plastics folks mark 1988 as the 50th anniversary of the modern plastics industry.

Throughout the past half-century, of course, the auto industry has been strongly involved with plastics, nurturing the relationship and maturing along with it.

Initial uses included windshields laminated with Saflex and various thermosets -- in applications such as gears, connectors and distributor heads. And by late 1940, Henry Ford could be seen slamming an axe against the deck lid of a new Ford to prove the durability of an experimental soybean-based plastic.

Usage continued to spread, from body panels to interior trim to under-the-hood components. It culminated in 1984, with the advent of General Motors Corp.'s all-plastic skinned Pontiac Fiero, proving that the material could be a feasible alternative in high-production volumes.

Without hesitation, proponents see continued growth in the auto market, claiming the material still is in its infancy.

"There are several areas where plastics haven't been practical in the past," confides Fred E. Schwab, president of Group Four Associates Inc., a Livonia, MI-based manufacturing agent and consulting firm. "But that's today. By tomorrow we might see a scratch-resistant plastic suitable for glazing, or an aerodynamic plastic under panel." says Mr. Schwab, a charter member of the 46-year-old Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE).

Indeed, based on one report the amount of plastics used in North American-built cars and light trucks is forecast to increase 50% over the next decade, from 2.2 billion lbs. (998 million kg) today to 3.3 billion lbs. (1.5 billion kg) in '98. The study, done by Market Search Inc. (MSI), says about 251 million lbs. (114 million kg) more will be used in body panels; 127 million lbs. (58 million kg) more in structural components; 123 million lbs. (56 million kg) more in front-and rear-end components; and 23 million lbs. (10 million kg) more in exterior trim.

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Bargains By The Truckload In New Models

An aircraft-parts manufacturer shopping for 14 medium-duty trucks approaches a truck dealer for Brand A. The dealer works with the customer to determine specifications that would satisfy the parts maker's needs, and then qoutes the lowest price that would allow a reasonable profit.

The parts manufacturer next visits a dealer for Brand B. The second dealer, unable to meet Brand A's price for 14 equivalent trucks, calls the factory's sales department. There, dealers can obtain the truck manufacturer's price assistance to help clinch a tough sale. The dealer for Brand B gets factory money to sweeten the deal and, as a result, gets the sale. The buyer gets a great price.

That's how it is in the medium-duty truck market now. And good values are also available to buyers of light trucks, namely those in weight Classes 1, 2 and 3, which are trucks up to 14,000 pounds gross vehicle weight (GVW).

Automotive analyst Ann Knight, in the New York office of the investment firm of Paine Webber, Inc., estimates that car and light-truck price increases will trail inflation by 2 to 3 percentage points over the next few years. Sales incentives, she predicts, will be needed for a long time to reduce dealer inventories of cars, pickups, vans and some utility vehicles. The incentives may be smaller than those of previous years, but they will still be there for the dealing, particularly late in the model years.

The competition is even stronger for sales of medium-duty and heavy-duty trucks, that is, trucks in Classes 4 through 8, weighing 14,001 pounds GVW or more. Production capacity for trucks in those weight classes exceeds demand. Many companies have merged in recent years, and there are rumors that more mergers are still to come.

In 1987, the makers of medium- and heavy-duty trucks sold a total of only 288,335 vehicles in the United States, down from the peak-year 1979 output of 374,791 vehicles. The manufacturers of Class 8 (33,001 pounds and above) over-the-road vehicles divided up 131,156 sales, down from 173,543 in 1979.

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Freightliner LLC has opened an advanced transportation research facility to study the aerodynamics of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles. Located near the company's headquarters in Portland, Ore., the new Freightliner wind tunnel, which went online in late spring, can accommodate a full-sized heavy-duty truck. Over the coming years, the Freightliner Group will use data and experience from the wind tunnel testing to refine the aerodynamics on its trucks with the overall objective of reducing fuel consumption and emissions.

"The new wind tunnel facility is an example of Freightliner's continuing focus on technological leadership in the truck manufacturing industry," said Rainer Schmueckle, president and CEO of Freightliner LLC. "The wind tunnel will help us make further gains in aerodynamics and fuel efficiency, which will ultimately lower operating costs for our customers.

"By designing more fuel-efficient vehicles with the help of this new tool, we will also contribute to the goal of environmental protection."

The 12,000 sq.ft. wind tunnel facility will allow for a uniform, repeatable airflow over the vehicle being tested. This will enable Freightliner engineers to collect comprehensive data on airflow and aerodynamic performance. Sensors provide information regarding wind load and surface pressures on the vehicle as a whole and for specific parts. Non-toxic fog provides airflow visualization and qualitative data regarding localized airflow. A sophisticated instrumentation system is employed to operate the wind tunnel, monitor ambient conditions and record aerodynamic data.

That instrumentation system was an especially challenging aspect of the wind tunnel development for Freightliner. Some of the technical hurdles included:

* The problem of acquiring meaningful, repeatable data about the test subject in the wind runnel including drag measurements and specific pressure measurements. This is a challenge in any wind tunnel because of the requirement to be able to identify and document very small changes in data while making very subtle changes to the test subject.

* The challenge of operating an open circuit wind tunnel that is subject to influence from whatever the outside weather conditions that happen at operating time. This requires the documentation of conditions and the ability to then correlate them with a standard set of conditions.

# posted by Medical Information : 3:20 AM  0 Comments

Three crew cab trucks were recently introduced, starting what may be a new trend toward lightweight trucks with extra seating capacity. Traditionally, crew cabs were reserved for the one-tonners, but Chrysler, Ford and Nissan may change that thinking.

Chrysler Corporation introduced the Dakota Quad Cab, available in the last quarter of 1999 as a model year 2000 vehicle. The new truck features four full-size doors to provide easy backseat access. The slightly shorter bed offsets the larger cab, so the 131-inch wheelbase truck is the same overall length as the Dakota Club Cab. Two-wheel-drive (2WD) and four-wheel-drive (4WD) versions are available, with both part-time and fulltime 4WD system options.

The Magnum 3.9L V-6 and 5.9L V-8 engines are still available, along with an all-new Magnum 235-hp 4.7L V-8 that replaces the old 5.2-liter engine. A new 45RFE four-speed automatic transmission is standard with the 4.7-liter engine, and the truck is rated to tow a maximum of 6,200 pounds.

On the Ford side, the company's popular crew cab option has been added to the light-duty F-150 truck series. Like the Dakota, the F-150 crew cab is the same overall length as the F-150 SuperCab due to the new truck's slightly shorter 5 1/2-foot box. The crew cab features 12 inches more interior space than the current SuperCab model.

Ford offers the new crew cab truck with the standard Triton 4.6L V-8 and optional 5.4L V-8, along with the existing 4R100 automatic transmission, driveline, chassis and braking systems as the company's other models with a gross vehicle weight rating (gvwr) less than 8,500 pounds.

Nissan's Frontier crew cab compact truck is scheduled to go on sale in May 1999 as a 2000 model. The Frontier seats up to five adults, and is powered by a standard 170-hp 3.3LV-6. Both five-speed manual and four-speed automatic transmissions are available, as are 2WD and 4WD versions.

The Frontier crew cab bed is 18 inches shorter than the standard model, and it's rated to tow up to 5,000 pounds.

# posted by Medical Information : 3:20 AM  0 Comments

They're cool, macho and powerful, and even cartoon mom Marge Simpson fell under the empowering spell of a sport/utility vehicle (SUV), her beloved fictitious "Canyonero." But the latest round of compatibility crash tests between cars and SUVs is no laughing matter.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Admin. reports that the probability of fatality is two to four times greater when a car is struck by a larger SUV or other light truck than by another car. The agency discloses its findings at the Society of Automotive Engineers International Congress and Exposition in Detroit in early March.

NHTSA offset-crashed a 1998 Chevrolet S-10 pickup, 1997 Dodge Caravan, 1997 Ford Explorer SUV and 1997 Chevrolet Lumina into a 1997 Honda Accord with both vehicles moving at 35 mph (56 km/h).

The Explorer, the heaviest (4,553 lbs. [2,066 kg]) and highest riding of the vehicles tested, imposed the greatest risk of injury to the Accord driver. Among striking vehicles, the Lumina posed the greatest injury risk to its own driver.

The findings bolster earlier research by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, which found that 2,000 fatalities would have been prevented in 1996 if SUVs and other lights trucks and vans were replaced by same-weight passenger cars.

"The Michigan study is testimony to the fact that many lives can be saved if we can use the tools we are creating to build less-aggressive vehicles," NHTSA Administrator Dr. Ricardo Martinez says.

The results demonstrate that geometry (or ride height) and stiffness, in addition to the vehicle's weight, contribute to the "aggressivity" of light trucks. Automakers failing to recognize this and integrate it into future vehicle development programs could face government regulation in the future, says William Hollowell, chief of NHTSA's Crashworthiness Research Division.

Industry analysts argue that highway deaths and fatalities from auto crashes have dropped from 47,878 in 1977 to 41,967 in 1997, even as the number of light trucks on the road has increased.

However, once staunch opponents of NHTSA's past findings, automakers seem to be turning the corner.

"This testing once again proves that mass matters," says Terry Rhadigan, manager of safety communication for GM. Automakers such as Ford have already taken steps to address safety concerns.

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DETROIT -- Ten years from now, aluminum will be used in half of all engine blocks produced each year for passenger cars, and 20 percent of all blocks manufactured annually for trucks in North America, according to a new projection.

Currently, no more than 10-11 percent of all engine blocks used each year in North American-built cars are made of aluminum, and the number of aluminum blocks in light-duty truck engines is virtually nil.

The new projection is included in Delphi VIII: Forecast and Analysis of the North American Automotive Industry, from the Office for the Study of Automotive Transportation (OSAT), a division of the Transportation Research Institute at the University of Michigan.

According to a number of automotive and aluminum industry executives, that will add more than 300 million pounds, net, to the yearly market for secondary aluminum casting alloys, such as A319.1 and A380.1, as it exists today.

In its latest Delphi forecast, OSAT points out that cast iron will be victimized by the auto industry's increasing use of aluminum in engine cylinder blocks, but notes that 75 percent of the aluminum blocks produced in the year 2005 are expected to use iron sleeves. Sleeves often represent a 20-25 pound application per engine.

The new Delphi forecast supports what many auto industry analysts and observers have been saying about the growing importance of the block market to the aluminum industry, including smelters and scrap dealers, and makes those observations more credible.

OSAT publishes its Delphi automotive forecasts and analyses biennially, in three volumes covering materials, technology, and marketing.

All three volumes are based on surveys of automotive industry executives, and the eighth editions, Delphi VIII, of the materials and technology volumes are scheduled for release Jan. 8.

An advance 136-page copy of the materials volume in draft form provides the forecast for aluminum blocks noted Above, as well as many more predictions for automotive material applications in the future.

Among the most noteworthy forecasts are these:

* Steel will continue as the dominant material in body and structural applications for North American-built cars and trucks through 2005, at least. Only small gains for aluminum and plastics in the body panel and frame markets are forecast.

* Aluminum will continue to make progress, however, in certain chassis components, such as wheels and suspension system control arms, at the expense of steel.

# posted by Medical Information : 5:57 AM  0 Comments

Nineteen-ninety-nine was a pivotal year for the domestic automobile industry. For the first time in its history the Big 3 sold more light trucks than cars. The future of the large American sedan was looking bleak as more Americans were ditching cars in favor of more versatile SUVs and light trucks. That same year, Ford Motor Company initiated the Tall Sedan Program with the goal of reinventing the American sedan--creating a vehicle for people who needed more than just a car, loved what the minivan did for them but didn't really like the image and found true SUVs a little excessive.

"That's where the concept came from," says Amy Marentic, marketing manager, Ford Freestyle and Five Hundred.

And that concept led to the development of Ford's first true crossover and the off-shoot Ford Five Hundred and Mercury Montego sedans.

In the initial phases of the program, scientific research was used to help Ford define the people who made up this new segment. Ethnography, a descriptive study of human behavior as it pertains to technology, allowed the development team to virtually live with consumers.

"We put cameras in people's cars, we went out and rode with them," Amy says. "We paired them up with psychologists to try to get inside their heads and discover their unanticipated needs."

The team also had the luxury of seeing a lot of competitor's crossover-type vehicles come out before launch. Ray Nicosia, manager, Vehicle Engineering, says that they were able to evaluate some of the early entries to see what worked and what didn't.

"Clearly the Pontiac Aztek didn't do it," Nicosia says. "We saw some good points in the Honda Pilot and we found some things that weren't so great."

Nicosia says that the team saw the compromises that people were making to get the packaging flexibility of an SUV in a car-like product.

"This was our chance," Nicosia says, "to create a vehicle that didn't require compromise. The new vehicle needed to express all of the positive attributes and utility of an SUV with the ride of a large sedan."

With program approval in the spring of 2001 and with the vehicle's attributes now etched in steel, it was time to find the right architecture.

# posted by Medical Information : 5:56 AM  0 Comments

It is fast closing in on crunch time at General Motors. Later this year GM will change over and launch three plants making its most important vehicle--the 1999 Chevrolet and GMC full-size pickup trucks. No vehicle is more important to GM than the C/K pickup, since it is responsible for 35% of all the automaker's truck sales.

A successful launch is also critical to GM retaining its 31% share of the overall U.S. light truck market, keeping it ahead of Ford (close behind at 30.4%), and Chrysler at 24.2%. GM ultimately has seven major assembly plants in the U.S., Canada and Mexico that will build the new truck and its many iterations, including, sport-utility vehicles. This year three plants--Oshawa, Ontario, Pontiac East in Pontiac, Michigan and Ft. Wayne, Indiana--will lead me changeover from me old pickup to the new.

So far, GM has been totally silent on me planned timetable for me assembly plant changeovers and launches. Nor will it discuss how many vehicles' worm of production will be lost as a result. It is easy to understand the company's silence, since a number of prior launches were far from stellar.

Remember mat the '99 trucks are truly all-new. They've got a completely new body, chassis and trim. The assembly plants require mayor changes for these new products. Each facility will have an all-new body shop mat will be in new space and installed early, to allow for certification of all processes before Job 1 production. The trim and chassis lines must also be changed over to recognize me changes to me assembly sequencing.

The new trucks also feature GM's Gen III ohv V-8 engines, which are redesigned from me block and crank up. This fact, plus many other variables, will complicate me launches, since every supplier is also introducing all-new components and assemblies mat each have to be launched in quantity, with high quality.

Although GM has not commented on the planned changeover and launch times for the plants, they have stated that they will overproduce the present C/K pickup to insure me dealer body does not exhaust its supply. That's really not a bad idea, since me current trucks have been outselling Ford's F-Series mat was launched only last year! Surprisingly, sales through March of the old C/K--183,200 units--outpaced Ford's 177,200 units. That gives GM 40.7% of me U.S. large pickup segment, versus Ford's 39.4% share. During me same period, Chrysler sold 87,000 Dodge Rams (19.3% share).

# posted by Medical Information : 2:20 AM  0 Comments

Autobytel Inc. (Nasdaq:ABTL) today released its Consumer Choice report for the second quarter of 2006, revealing the new vehicle buying decisions made on the company's popular automotive web sites from April through June(a).

Looking at the quarter's big winners (fuel-efficient cars) and losers (pretty much everything else), it's clear that consumers' focus on fuel is continuing to shake up the car market -- even more so online than off.

"It comes as no surprise that the pinch consumers are feeling at the pump is playing out with dramatic increases in the popularity of small cars, but one thing that caught us by surprise was just how steep the drop-off in demand for trucks was in Q2," said Autobytel editor Brian Chee. "Trucks took a hit offline as well, of course, but it wasn't nearly as pronounced, which is typical: online car buyers often lead the trends that become the big industry-wide headlines, which is why our Consumer Choice reports are worth watching."

Truck Demand Finally Doused by High Fuel Prices

While "fuel anxiety" has seriously hurt demand for bigger SUVs for well over a year on Autobytel sites, Q2 was the first quarter where trucks -- generally the most popular vehicles in the U.S. -- suffered a similar fate. Requests plummeted 43% for the outgoing Toyota Tundra vs. a year ago, despite incentives, with equally abrupt nosedives for the Chevy Silverado (also down 43%), Dodge Ram (down 50%), Honda Ridgeline (down 38%) and Nissan Titan (down a titanic 52%). Even the venerable Ford F-150, the perennial top-selling vehicle in America, suffered a 34% drop in requests.

Not surprisingly, Autobytel shoppers hastened their retreat from less fuel-efficient SUVs, with requests falling 56% vs. a year ago for the Hummer H3, for example, and 62% for the Jeep Grand Cherokee, despite a recent redesign. It should be noted, however, that two gas-gulping SUVs managed to buck this trend: the red-hot Toyota FJ Cruiser -- which debuted as the second most requested SUV in Q2, trailing only the extremely popular Toyota RAV4 -- and the incentives-laden Ford Explorer, which generated a 14% boost in requests vs. '05.

# posted by Medical Information : 2:19 AM  1 Comments