Power for the new GP comes from GM's 3800 3.8L OHV V-6 in either normally aspirated or supercharged form. The air breather makes the same 200 hp as the '03 version of the engine, while the blown motor's output swells from 240- to 255 hp thanks to a new, more efficient, fifth-generation Eaton supercharger. The only transmission offered will be a four-speed automatic that, as part of a "Competition Group" package that also includes 17-inch wheels and tires and a stiffer suspension, will be available with a new "Formula One-style" TAPshift shifting system that allows upshifts and downshifts to be manually controlled from paddles on the steering wheel.
The '04 Grand Prix goes on sale early in 2003 and is offered in GT, GTP, and GTP with Competition Group trim.
Forced Focus[Photo 116-0301.SCUP 7A and 7B on CD]Of the twerp-sized front-drivers, the least objectionable is Ford's SVT Focus. With 170 hp and a sublime suspension, it's easily the best front-drive small car for sale in America right now. But don't expect Ford to rest on those laurels.
In Europe, Ford launched the new, turbocharged Focus RS. Knocking out about 218 hp, the turbocharged Duratec RS 2.0L DOHC four is basically similar to the SVT Focus' motor with a lower 8.0:1 compression, a Garrett GT2560LS turbo, and an intercooler plumbed into it. Surprisingly, the Focus RS doesn't use the six-speed manual trans used in the SVT Focus (or Europe's Focus ST170) but reverts back to a five-speed manual feeding a Quaife torque-biasing differential. Ford claims the RS will scoot to 60 in just 6.4 seconds and max out at 144 mph.
To make use of the power, the RS gets a widened front track, is lowered almost an inch, has Sachs Racing shocks, and is shod with 18x8-inch O.Z. wheels wearing Michelin P225/40R18 tires. Bringing the hyperactive three-door to a stop are Brembo four-piston calipers and vented discs up front and solid discs grabbed by two-piston calipers out back.
Foci with big hoodscoops and other apparent modifications have been seen racing around SVT's headquarters, and we fully expect something along the lines of the RS to make it here by 2004 (though it may have an Eaton supercharger instead of a turbo).
A Very Slow Month[Photo 116-0301.SCUP 16 on CD]Hokget, a terrier rescued from a burned-out tanker last May, was released from a 120-day Hawaiian Humane Society quarantine to her awaiting adoptive family and a lifetime supply of Iams dog food. Iams spokesperson Bill Creighton (left) gave the Kuo family the first bag in a lifetime supply of Eukanuba Dog Food. The Iams corporate headquarters are in Dayton, Ohio, but of course it was critical that Creighton fly to Hawaii to present the Kuo family a bag of dog food.
We're still trying to figure out how to move the Car Craft All-Star Drag Racing Team banquet from Indianapolis to Tahiti.
First Drive: '03 Dodge Ram Heavy Duty Hemi[Photo 116-0211.SCUP 4A through 4D]Dodge wants you to know all about the new Heavy Duty 31/44- and 1-ton Dodge Ram pickups. But the big news is really that they're the first vehicles to feature the all-new, 5.7L Hemi V-8-an engine destined to find its way into a bunch of upcoming rear-drive Chrysler and Dodge cars where it will, hopefully, spark a revival of the Mopar-muscle heritage.
So how's the engine? Dang wonderful.