European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 10, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 8 the stars and stripes automotive monday. January Fri 1994 Ford motor co. Is recalling 1.1 million Ford Taurus Mercury Sable and Lincoln Continental cars because Road Salt might cause parts of the frames to corrode and separate. Ford is mailing notices to owners of 1989-93 models originally sold or on the Road in 14 upper Midwest and northeastern states As Well As six Canadian provinces. In vehicles exposed to Large amounts of Road Salt and moisture Ford said body mounts could corrode and separate dropping the rear of the Frame supporting the engine and transmission and making steering difficult. Ford said it knows of five reports of the condition in the newly recalled vehicles but no accidents or injuries. Ford said it will install a reinforcement plate and replace the attaching bolts without charge. The recall is an Extension of one issued last july covering 500,000 1986 88 models of the same cars. " Chrysler corp s new compact sedans will be the first mass Market cars since the Days of Crank Start engines to come off the Assembly line without an ashtray the third biggest . Automaker plans to offer the ashtray and a cigarette lighter As options on it sedans this year making Way for a Coffee Mug rest and a Hookup for a cellular phone. Research shows that something like 78 percent of people who ride in cars Don t smoke so Why should it be easier for the minority that does said Suzanne Hofmann Interior designer of the Chrysler Cirrus and Dodge stratus. The Cirrus and stratus Are due out this summer. Market research on the cars and the thirty something engineers and designers who developed them led Chrysler a Ajr from the tradition of making smoking convenient. A cup Holder will pop out of the dashboard unless customers ask for an ashtray. The Hole for the lighter will be covered with a rubber plug which can be removed to Hook up a cellular phone or other device needing electrical Power. Chrysler executives said they plan to extend the ashtray optional design to other hew models including a redesigned minivan due out next year. Honda motor co. Ltd. Announced it will design and manufacture an Acura Model in Ohio the first japanese luxury car to be produced in the United states. Honda has yet to name the car which will be introduced for the 1996 Model year and sell in the $23,000-$30,000 Range. It will be built at Honda s Plant in East Liberty Ohio where civic compacts Are currently assembled. Chrysler corp. Said last week it will build a second version of its Viper sports car a hard top Coupe it will Start producing in 1996. We will be building this one Chrysler president Robert a. Lutz said As he climbed out of the Viper its he drove onto a stage at the company s technical Center Ina Burn Hills Mich. The Dodge Viper its Coupe was first shown at last year s Detroit Auto show As a concept car. The Coupe will be faster than the Viper Ragtop which went on Sale two years ago. The original Viper is sold out for 1994. Chrysler will begin taking orders for 1995 models later this month. The its Coupe will have More than 400 horsepower and a top Speed of More than 180 Mph. From wire reports stereo sales cranking up popularity of cd leads to emphasis on travelling sounds by Evan Ramstad a business writer Las vegas once upon a time hot rods were judged by their paint jobs Shock absorbers and Chrome. Now it s their sound systems. While computers and cellular phones have gathered the most attention and dollars in consumer electronics the past few years car stereos have quietly or maybe not so quietly become one of the Industry s fastest growing segments. At last week s Winter consumer electronics show dozens of head popping amplifier and speaker systems were on display including some customized trucks that will blast at Rock concert lev Els. ,. Some of the car stereo systems on exhibit have Remote controls like their cousins on the shelf at Home. Big car cd changers the most popular of which rotate 10 discs require remotes since they Are generally placed out of reach in a trunk. Car systems Are also keeping up with the latest technology. This Spring son will introduce a $1,300 dashboard system that rotates four mini discs the 2-Inch cd Quality format that has been sold for a year on Walkman style machines. Because mini discs Are rugged and can be used for recording Sony and other makers expect people to use them like cassettes recording their favorite songs from cd at Home. Car stereo sales Are surging because people who switched their Home systems to compact discs in the 1980s Are now changing their cars Over. And the clearer sound of cd Means teen agers and Young adults can Crank up the volume. People who used to customize their vehicles with fancy paint jobs bouncing Shock absorbers and tons of Chrome Are instead spending More on sound systems. The Mobile electronic system of today is in essence replacing the hot Rod customization of yesterday said Martin Homlish senior vice president of audio products in the consumer group of Sony electronics inc. Before car stereo used to just been pertaining but now it s crazy said Nis Sim Diz who Sells car stereos at Talli imports in los Angeles. Sales of systems installed by car Mak ers jumped from $2.9 billion in 1991 to $3.2 billion last year according to Esti mates by the electronic industries association which is sponsoring the show. The concept 1, an environmentally Correct Model of the popular Beetle of the 1960s, might be produced As an electric car. Vow could Start bugging . Again Detroit a Volkswagen s Lov Able but hopelessly ugly Beetle could be on the verge of a . Comeback Volkswagen unveiled an updated environmentally Correct version of the 1960s icon wednesday at the North american International Auto show. The new Beetle is Only a prototype and might be produced As an electric car suitable As a second car for Short hop but in constant need of recharging. It is clearly reminiscent of the old Bug but with softer More bulbous lines and Amore arched roof. Unlike the original Beetle which is still built and sold in Mexico and Brazil the concept 1 is designed to accommodate 90s safety musts Antilock Brake Sand dual air bags. It also can hold four passengers comfortably. Volkswagen sold nearly 5 million beetles in the United states from 1949 to1981. I can t Tell you How Many Calls we get for this car Volkswagen of America spokeswoman Sandy Paquette said. But the current Beetle comes nowhere near meeting . Pollution standards which get tougher every year. Because of the emissions control it would just de stroy the whole idea of the cheap Little ugly car Paquette said. Oldsmobile mapping out future options by new Day Detroit Oldsmobile said tues Day it would add a navigational system to the options list of one of its models next Spring becoming the first automaker to do so in the United states. The Oldsmobile navigational information system will Cost about $2,000 and be available Only in California until mapping software becomes available for other parts of the country which company officials said would take about two years. It will be available first in the $22,995 eighty eight less and later in other Olds mobiles company officials said at the North american International Auto show. One customer will be Avis inc., which is beginning this month to place 100 cars equipped with the system into service in the san Francisco Bay area. The rental company had earlier experimented with another navigational system in certain cars rented in Orlando Fla. Systems that help Drivers find their Way through unfamiliar areas have been Avail Able for several years in the aftermarket and have been offered in the Home mar Ket by some japanese car makers. The Oldsmobile system works similarly to several others in use employing Sig nals from Federal global positioning satellites to establish its location. The sys tem s computer then finds the Best route. A unit with a 4-Inch video screen to be mounted in the car s dashboard tells Drivers where to turn with arrows and a human voice or at the Driver s option displays a Street map with a route High lighted. Oldsmobile officials said they expect Many Early buyers to be people who regularly must find addresses on their jobs such As real estate salespeople. The commercial Market we think will be the first adopters said Victor Ide the Divi Sion s manager of advanced concepts