European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - May 7, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Thursday May 7,1987 the stars and stripes Page 13 is fgg0ggbieigghbbhnmmhffbmmtlmbnbisbaibaaidbbhfsksebnibkm&ixf&aimmmim Low Dollar spurs pm sales action in Europe with the Steep decline of the Dollar against most european currencies sales of american made cars arc expected to increase steadily throughout Europe. General motors car sates in Europe arc already on the increase Wilh pm officials expecting 6,000 sales in Europe this year and a doubling or even tripling of thai figure in 1988. During he last Low Dollar Era in 1979,50010 13,000 american cars were sold in Germany alone and 85 percent of these were from pm. Pm officials no cd at a recent press con Ference in Frankfurt thai the higher sales also reflect european acceptance of the More sophisticated technology and expanded equipment in the new pm passenger cars a pm marketing official also noted that pm s car Range is More acceptable to the european buyer Loday because of improved fuel Economy ratings and smaller size not because All of he can Are equipped with catalytic converters for Lead free gasoline use. This is especially pertinent for sales in Germany. Last week general motors Continental with Headquarters in Antwerp Belgium brought Many of its 1987 models to Ger Many 10 introduce them to the motoring press. On the German Market pm will offer cars from All five divisions Buick Cadillac. Chevrolet Oldsmobile and Pontiac with 20 models represented. Among those on the sporty Side Are the Chevrolet Cor Vette convertible Chevrolet Camm Chev Rolet Blazer wheel drive and the Pontiac hero. Grand am be and firebird trans am. During the pm press program we had an Opportunity to drive the Buick Lesa re the Pontiac firebird and the Cadillac de Ville Fleetwood 4-door Sedan. We had the Pon inc grand am on test recently see report below so did not drive it this time around. New Buick Lesa re is among general motors automobiles offered on the european Market. The pm people picked an interesting test route that involved secondary roads Auto Bahns and some twisting narrow roads in the Spessars area where handling was put on the line. The improvements in pm automobile suspensions Over the years have been remarkable and the Days of he old Mush to bile Are Long gone. We were especially impressed by the front wheel drive luxury class bisect Lesa re Sedan which reacted very Well to some fairly stiff driving de mands on twisting Back roads. Powered by a smooth 3,8-Lilcr y6 engine that generates 150 horsepower the Lesa re has a four Speed automatic transmission with overdrive and will run Well Over 115 Miles an hour and is quite stable at High Speed although a bit noisy. The Outing with the pm cars was inter Esting to say the least and these cars should do Well on the european Market although american cars will always remain a Novelty of sorts for the european but something truly different. They also serve in the pres Tige department because the buyer must be in a fairly High income bracket. But even that could change pm officials said at the press showing pointing out thai pm will introduce the Low priced Chevrolet and Corsica models during september s Frankfurt Auto show. For an example on pricing let s use the firebird trans am Coupe Wilh the 5.7-liter avg engine. It costs 52,300 Murks this includes air conditioning and Aboul every thing Els and figuring the Dollar at 1.78 Marks that comes to $29,382. For compari son purposes the new lop of lne line Bow m3 Sells Lor 61,000 Marks while the Bow 32si costs 39,100 Marks both use Lead free Gas. So the pm cars Are in a Tough Market. But they appear to be up to the Challenge. Randy Harriett Pontiac grand am an aggressive sports Coupe today Well make it an All Ameri can car Page with a report on the Pon Tiac grand am be a sleek Froni wheel drive sports Coupe that is one of pm s Best Sellers on the military Market. We enjoyed driving the grand am be and in both appearance and performance it compares favourably with Many euro Pean built models that Cost a great Deal More. In be trim and that s lop level see photo the grand am gels aerodynamic treatment at front Back and Al the sides All making for an aggressive and Tow Slung sporting look. The front end looks especially Sharp with wrap around headlights flanking he Grille and with the parking lights integrated into the bumper and the fog lights into the spoiler a ii til Dass Job All around. The test car was powered by a transversely mounted 3-liter v6 fuel injected engine of 125 he coupled to a three Speed automatic transmission and performance was Strong All around. The All Coil Spring Independent suspension rally tuned proved firm and provided a Good ride. Steering is Power assist rack and Pinion while the Power brakes have vented discs Al front Drums rear. Tires on the grand am lest car were Low profile p2 is/60 Goodyear Eagle its mounted on 14-Inch Alloy wheels each wheel equipped Wilh an anti theft Locking device. The dark Maroon leather and fabric Interior matched the outside color perfectly with the leather wrapped sports steering wheel a Nice touch. The Auto Matic shifter handle is also set Al a "10 o clock o clock Angle thai fits he hand perfectly. The Driver and front scat passenger enjoy comfortable sealing but the two passengers in Back if adults Are lacking for leg room. The scat Bells Are difficult to reach for both Driver and front scat passenger the Glove compartment is Loo Small to be of much use and there Are no grub bars in the 1987 Pontiac grand am be Coupe has a a Lilor v6 engine As Standard equipment. The Bach. These Are the Only complaints we noted in our log Book. Other com ments Are All on he plus Side. Both the trunk a fairly Large one and the fuel Bank filler Cap can be opened from the inside and there arc storage pockets at the Bottom of both doors. On the Road the grand am goes from Zero to 60 Mph in 10 seconds and in Case the Driver gets too enthusiastic there s a fuel Cut off Al 5,000 rpm  prevents engine damage. Redline is 5.500. At 60 Mph in top gear the revs total Only 2,400, while Al 70 Mph it s 3,200 rpm. Our fuel consumption figure came to 20.3 Miles per gallon including City and High Way driving. The grand am is sold in three trim ver Sions and in top level be trim Wilh cruise control till steering wheel Power door locks and Goodyear Eagle tire s As Standard the Cost in the United status is s12.659, options on the test car. Such As air conditioning 6-Way Power seats Power windows and mirrors rear window de Fogger am pm stereo sound system with six speakers plus other items brought the Cost to $14,859. On today s Market thai is not very much Money for a car of Liis Caliper and generally speaking one can say that american cars Are a Good buy right now Detroit s products having improved vastly during the past five years summing up Pontiac says thai the grand am be is a distinctively styled vehicle for the driving Cohu Sias who wants excellent handling performance and a High level of Standard  after putting a lot of Miles on this car we feel that is an accurate statement. Comp club informal Ion and Milila pricing Telma on the pm Mitt grand am be mild Iki Uliet i Ion in i also available m a door Udart Kim May de obtained from general it fwd Mica  at Tho cafes nov car sales polls w the various Taus in eur Ope.