European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 01, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Thursday june 1. 1989 the stars and stripes Page 13 fiesta diesel Mercedes diesel a so Rafe japanese cars tops in reliability in today s car Corner Well touch on a number of subjects and let s Start off with a report on automobile re liability. The Ai Germany s largest Auto Mobile club recently published its an Nual breakdown statistics report and the results show that the Ford fiesta die Sel and Mitsubishi  arc the most reliable cars in the Small and under mid Sie classes respectively while the Tov la Anna and Mercedes 200-100 diesel cars Are lops in the mid sic and Large car categories. The 1 iss reliability statistics Art based on the average occurrence of faults resulting in a breakdown in cars manufactured Horn 1986 to 1988 Only. Total Calls for help during 1488 for cars of All Model years reached 1.3 million the Ciuc said while 104.12 of these Calls involved the i486 to 1988 models. I Eren tages of breakdowns were based in help needed per 1.000 models and Only those that had 10.000 registrations or More per Model year were counted following the most reliable Ford pics la diesel in the Small car class Are the a a Polo and Toyota Starlet. Of the 10 models listed by the adar the Fiat i no had the most breakdowns. In the under Middle class category it was an All japanese affair As usual with Mitsubishi Colt  the most Relia ble As noted followed by Honda civic Mada 323. Tovola Corolla and Nissin sunny if the 12 cars listed in this category the opel Wadett diesel had the most breakdowns. In the Middle class category the Japa Nese again dominated with the Toyota Carina followed by the Mercedes 190 diesel. Then the Mada 626. Honda Accord and Mitsubishi Alanl. The least reliable car in the 13 models listed was the lord Sierra. In the Large car class the winning opel s new Culi Hru entire.   Lascar racer. Mercedes 200-300 diesel series was Fol Lowed by the gasoline fuelled Mercedes 200-300"cars, tiie Bow 7 series cars the Audi 100/200 models and the Bow 5 series cars. Least reliable of the eight models listed was the Ford Scorpio. The Frankfurt Auto show meanwhile held biennially and considered to be the world s largest automotive cd Layagan a will be staged sept. U to 24 Al its usual site the Frankfurt Fairgrounds. Although the new Mercedes Hen is. Series cars made their debuts in Geneva last March they will still draw big crowds at Frankfurt. Another car Guaran teed to attract attention will be Bow s 850i Coupe with its 12-Cylinder engine this car to make its debut at Frankfurt. The 850i will replace the Bow 6 series. Opel too will be making news at the show with its new Coupe a highly aerodynamic creation named the calibre. The new calibre with the stress on pro pc Sivc design elegance. Opel says will he powered by a four Cylinder engine. Opel has just released its first photo of the calibre. And it is shown on this Page. In last week s car in or column we talked about the new Chevrolet Lumina Sedan that is now on the american mar Ket and the Lumina Coupe and m v Van models that will be introduced this  also noted that the Lumina Oupe has been set up for Lascar racing and that it replaces the Monte Carlo. Four Chevrolet  made their debuts at Talladega. And they did Okay for the first Lime out. Parrill Wai trip was the top Lumina Driver with a filth place. Ken Schrader was sixth. Dale Earnhardt eighth and Cinnlt Bod Ine i2lh.in the Lumina brigades second Outing at the Winston in Concord. N c Schrader was second. Earnhardt third. Wall rip seventh and Undine  Hig Day came last sunday Al the  Ola 600, also at Concord when Waltrip drove the Lumina to its first Victory averaging 144 Miles an hour. Schrader took third in his Lumina. Bowline fourth and Earnhardt failed to finish retiring with engine failure. So it s an extremely Strong Start for Chevrolet s new entry on the american Slock ear ovals. Randy Harn Clauto columnist new Nissan Maximo is smoother longer lower by Malcolm Uona Hoomana Ilif edit air comfortable. Capable. Those two words sum up the 1989 Maxima the stylish new Nissan entry in the competitive mid Sie Sedan Market. The angular look of previous models is gone. I his is a smoothly rounded four door Sedan with a sleek Silhouette. It is longer 1h7.6 indies bumper to bumper lower 55.1 inches Road to roof and wider 69.3 inches door to door than its predecessors. And Nissan makes prime use of those generous dimensions. Five adults will fit inside though the rear seat then becomes a bit cramped four adults will ride in Complete Comfort. There Are two versions of the 89 Max Ima the sportier be readily distinguishable by the rear spoiler and the cashier . Both Are powered by a 3.0 Liler. V-6 engine that quietly delivers 160 horsepower at 5,200 rpm. It is the same Basic engine found in Nissan s much admired 300/.x sports car. A five Speed manual transaxle is Stan Dard on the of. The axe s Only Avail Able Gearbox is a four Speed automatic which has a console mounted Button that allows Drivers to switch Between Power and Comfort shift patterns to better suit their driving needs. The St also comes with a suffer sus pension four wheel disc brakes fog lights a Hose stereo system a sliding Glass Sun roof and a rear spoiler. The softer sprung axe makes do with drum brakes in the rear. In both versions most luxury car ame Maxima comes in Guk and sic design Guf. Is Shaun Here. Lilies arc Standard air conditioning Power a windows and door locks cruise control a tilling steering wheel and other goodies. Auto Exchange headquartered in Kronberg West Germany provided an be for testing. Its Price $1 ,426 includes Bremerhaven delivery and ship Ping Back to the states axe models Start at $18,376. Though the Maxima is a hefty ear with a curb weight of 3,200 pounds there s ample Power beneath the Hood enough for an 8.8-second clocking from a dead Slop to 60 Mph. And for a top Speed of about 135 Mph. On the open Road. These cruised easily seemingly endlessly at 100 Mph and 4.000 rpm redline is 5,500. The handling and ride Are in the same category noteworthy though not overwhelming. This i front a Eccl drive Sedan has Power rack and Pinion steer ing and a bar Stabile cd Independent strut suspension to help straighten out the curves and the is mixes responsive Ness and Comfort Well. The instrumentation is attractive and functional Well grouped behind the leather wrapped four spoke wheel. The stalk mounted Light and wiper controls Are conveniently situated and the buttons for the sound system Sun roof and heating and Cooling system Are within easy reach. The steering wheel Boss mounted but tons that operate the cruise control Are not Piile As Handy As stalk mounted controls. Also there s a confusing array of seven buttons on the armrest of the Driver s door they control the Power win Dows and door locks and they can he very difficult to operate without taking your eyes off the Road. The Driver and front seat passenger also must put up with Nissan s infamous automatic shoulder harnesses motor cd belts that trundle across the top of the door. Since the Lap Belt still has to be fastened manually it s hard to say what purpose this system serves. But those irritations Don t spoil the Maxima s Overall impression. The test Model was flawless in the Fil and finish category. These provides an extremely quiet ride holding the hum of the tires and the whistle of the wind to a minimum and the suspension system cushions most Highway imperfections so Well that they Are scarcely noticed. The Interior is Roomy and the seats Are comfortable. The gasoline tank holds is.5 Gallons. With a figure of 26 Miles per gallon on the Highway 20 mpg in City driving that gives the Maxima a cruising Range of about 480 Miles