Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - November 10, 2000, Winnipeg, Manitoba F2 automotive Winnipeg free november 2000 t fordf150supercrew massive pickups May Herald end of sport Ute craze eve larger trucks could become the next must have vehicle class by David Booth As a few pundits the Peak of the sport Utility craze is upon or soon to then the big question whats next looking i see nothing in the Sedan Market that makes me think that the traditional four door family car is mounting a comeback any time and though coupes and roadsters Are making something of a there hardly going to generate the seismological numbers that the popularity of the Sun wrought on the automotive my guess is that the next big thing is that not much of a risk on my As the groundswell of interest in the previously stereotyped pickup is already Well we have and four door models with both regular and Back Ward opening not to mention Long and Short Beds As Well As two and Fourshee drive the one thing the pickup Market shares with its Sun siblings is that there Doest seem to be any limitations to How big they should like the expedition and excursion pick ups seem to be getting take the new f150 its not really meant As a full time work its bed is too Short and payload too Small to make its everyday living hauling Concrete and plasterboard though it can do the bloody thing is make that it sits on a 139inch wheelbase and is the same length As the workaday super cab Model the difference Between the two is that the super cabs smaller rear doors open Forward while the super Crew has traditional open Complete with a separate bail Lar despite its Shorter rear cargo that Means theres 12 More inches of making it the stretch Limo of in the super Crew feels As Roomy As Many full size luxury that illusion May not be As strained in other areas As you the version i drove was the towline Lar Complete with Many bringing the entire package to a whop Ping Srp of that Means the Cabin is attired in leather rather than theres a cd audio system theres also an optional 6 disc cd changer rather than a cassette version and various other upgrades like a Power Drivers seat and Remote key less you wont Ever mistake the super Crew for a luxury Sedan while trying to climb up into the Drivers Fords f1so super Crew is the stretch Limo of pickups for not but once situated in the Plush you could easily forget that youre rid ing in a pickup Ford Hast completely forgotten about regular pickup duties those worried that the Small bed May detract from the super Crews hauling abilities will find the optional bed extender its a curved tubular steel Cage unit that pivots from its stowed position to extend the effective length of the bed to seven at least with the tailgate with the Tail Gate in it flips Back into the bed and acts As a constrained stowage space for groceries and other perhaps not an Ideal but Inge Nious besides the successful construction company owners that Ford sees As its base the super Crew is also being targeted at moms who might otherwise ferry their Little Darlings around in the ubiquitous the super Crew is loaded with child Friendly like three child safety seat tethers in the Back seat and an option Al entertainment system with Var to keep the Little dears occupied on Long even mom has been catered for the super Crew is the first pickup with Standard Power adjustable press a Button and the Brake and accelerator pedals can be adjusted up to three inches closer to the of the two engines i heartily recommend the larger the version May boast 220 but the f150 4x4 testers pounds needed All of the 260 Actu it needs the 60 More Foo pounds of torque that the bigger motor even cruising at 125 there was always the sensation that the bigger v8 had plenty in it also feels pretty because it uses a single overhead camshaft valve train rather than the push rods that pm pickup engines its a Little it must be How that Gas recent versions of its aging ohm family of engines Are More powerful than Fords super Crews Start at for the base 4x2 Alt and extends substantially beyond the asked for the Topo theline 4x4 i find it hard to imagine anyone forking Over for a pickup and then subject ing it to the Rigours of traditional pick up on the other its huge to drive and for anyone not used to Dri ving something this big More than a Little an explorer sport trac also offers four a luxurious Interior and a Small cargo but is much i must admit that the pickup Seg ments demographics have changed so much that previous suppositions Juffy dont construction company owners and others with like Mats find that a super Crew Mit leather is just the thing they need to announce that Treyve just signed the contract to build a new office think of it As the Blu Collar brits offer fuel critics sniff London the British hoping to head off a repetition of sep members countrywide fuel announced this week it would Cut taxes on trucks and some grades of Treasury chief Gordon Brown said his package of tax effective in was equivalent to a reduction of eight Pence a litre 44 cents a gallon of diesel for truckers and four Pence 22 cents us a gallon for gasoline powered the direct Cut in fuel tax was three effective in but the reduced tax on gasoline was offered Only on Ultra Low Sulphur which is scarce in one Concession to motorists was to make More cars eligible for the 55 pounds us reduction in the annual vehicle now offered on cars with engines up to Brown raised the threshold to some protesters said the government should do More and said they would sup port further fuel should be Down 15 Pence at said Ken who owns 22 trucks and was involved in picketing a refinery in i think the fight should go Brynole the Welsh Farmer who led the first protests in described concessions As an insult but he did not advocate a revival of the Block he has tried to seduce us with tokens like three Pence off a but it is not going to Williams loosely organized groups of truckers and Farmers caught the government by Surprise in september when they blockaded refineries around within gasoline stations shut Down for Lack of despite the opinion polls indicated that Large majorities of the Public resented fuel the highest in Europe and supported the the average Price of the lower Grade of unleaded gasoline in Britain was 81 Pence a litre us per gallon in according to the automobile taxes accounted for per cent of the the a press Jetta continued from Page f1 the inside Story jettas no frills styling theme continues into the passenger where youll find just enough Chrome to add a Little brightness to the otherwise dark Interior for the my test car was Black inside and since the Centre part of the dash is angled slightly towards the everything is within easy i would to see the ventilation and stereo controls a Little higher up in the having said there int a switch or dial Here that would be out of place in a at the Jetta treats its Driver to a display that is Baclit in Bright with red gauge Needles and pretty and surprisingly easy on the the driving experience the driving experience in the Jetta with the Turbo engine is when you release the clutch but it would be better with Shorter travel and step on the a surge of Power comes on that is not at All Glide the precise shifter into and the Power just keeps simply its hard not to Grin when your right foot is planted on the go one of the major contributors to the fun quotient is the Lowed m availability of f As a Turbo lag is surge 01 the second Power contributor is anti slip in Mac in regulation comes which is a speak for that is not traction this go eliminates a problem that plagues Many powerful even More impressive is the fact that the air system works almost the rest of the cars dynamics work Strong four wheel disc brakes inspire and the though still manages to soak up the bumps with Little Drivers seeking an even firmer ride for sportier handling can select the optional sport suspension my biggest problem with this car has to do with its dimensions the wheel base is Only in a Honda civics wheelbase measures Upan Down ride motions Are More abrupt than they otherwise would which can get tiring on Long drives Over bumpy the second Downside of a Short in combination with a sloping is that rear seat Comfort the resulting effect is a tight fit for taller to sum it up put your Money in a Safe place Volvo for life proof thai solely and fun can peacefully a 160hp Turbo changed five Speed automatic dual front and Side Impact air Premium stereo with Anli Tholt inflatable Alloy whiplash Protection seating electronic climate High strength steel safely Side Impact Protection introducing the Volvo s40 Matthon motors mfg us mar we for i id to in Par Mitt vat the Volvo store since the Jetta is aimed at buyers who believe driving enjoyment and style Are More important than space and that int to say that prac tical just that other cars in its Price Range Are considerably the is a great Little car that combines Dri ving fun with a healthy dose of Pratti what it lacks in it More than makes up for in performance and if youre shopping for a car in the mid to and can appreciate a rewarding Drivers you owe it to yourself to look at the Jetta shopping list f although the jettas Price and size make direct comparisons to competitors Here Are three cars any Jetta shopper May also want to look at Subaru Impresa is infinitig20t Nissan Altima be turn with the use them remember sacrifices of reflect on peacetime Highway tragedies twice As Many canadians killed by automobiles in the last 50 years As in All three wars combined tomorrow is remembrance canadians will Wear poppies and gather at War memorials across the country to pay tribute to those who died in at the 11 the hour of the 11th Day of the 11th we will observe two minutes of silence to War is a phenomenon most of us View through the Lens of a television for those of us who were born during War is a surreal remembrance Day breathes life into those blurred photos and tattered letters in the attic it serves to remind us that More than canadians made the ultimate dying so future generations could live in its difficult for younger generations to understand the unwavering commitment that prompted so Many to sacrifice so its even More difficult to picture what life was like for those families affected by world Paul Allen War world War ii and the korean not just for the soldiers but also for those waiting at we simply cant imagine How it Felt to anxiously wait for any word from getting through each Day by praying your loved one did the remembering the War 1 was at a Road safety conference and 1 had the great Fortune of hearing the honourable Barry Shearman Shearman is a member of the Grinsh and was part or the team that fought for and eventually instituted mandatory Seatbelt legislation in great Baity remembered the he knew what it was like to be that family i referred to he explained that everyone deepest fear at the time was the appearance of a government vehicle on the he described How people pulled Back the curtains and held their waiting to see which House the car stopped which family would receive the news that their brother or husband want coming Home he went on to say that an army official on our Doorstep int something we fear what we should and is the police officer burdened with the horrific task of telling us theres been a car and our loved one int coming War deaths Are honoured by hundreds of thousands of from school children struggling to understand what it All meaom0 veterans struggling to maintain their Public figures deliver poignant asking us to remember the sacrifices others have made in the name of to ensure those canadians didst die in and they since other canadians its the number of canadians killed on our roads in the last 50 years More than doubles the number of canadians killed in All three wars no just cause there Are no nationwide memorials for these there is no Day set aside to remember they didst give up their lives willingly for a cause they believed those women and children died for no reason other than they were in a most of us dont think about what we Jiuji happen if the unthinkable did we catch a newscast on yet another crash and yet another but its not real to we that horrible and wait for the weather and As a View these deaths As some sort of acceptable the Price of doing but those families whole had that phone that Knock on the will Tell you its not acceptable that someone left in the morning and never came and that the pain never goes when you attend your remembrance Day service please pay your deepest respects to those you Are there to when youre perhaps you could remember those other their deaths Are a National go to has from we address m room w pea Law Box i t ;