The fact GM is suffering from a monstrous hangover evidently hasn’t filtered down to the troops. I visited the Auto Show (Business, Feb. 15) with friends, one of whom is a Buick fan who asked the representative in the display a question. The Buick representative directed him to “the man in the red coat” for an answer, only to find that the man in the red coat was a fire marshal. R.K., East Moline
Must have been a hot question. Not only did Buick have a booth in the exhibit staffed by people answering questions, but a variety of personnel also were walking the floor to assist consumers.
Regarding your comments about the gowns worn by our narrators at the auto show, I’m sorry you didn’t feel the gowns were appropriate but they were purchased at one of the finest retail fashion stores in the country and were designer gowns by couturier Bob Mackie. These gowns have been worn in auto shows since last October with only positive comments. Stephen Lyons,
general marketing manager,
Lincoln-Mercury
The gowns were fine-if you attend auto shows to ogle decolletage. Next time, we suggest you try that other couturier, Eddie Bauer.
No wonder people seemed lethargic at the auto show. I paid $7 to park my car, then walked six blocks so I could pay $5 to get into the show, maneuver up nonworking escalators and eat dried out junk food only to find the cars I wanted to see were filled with kids playing so that I couldn’t even sit inside them. T.J., Riverside
You mean you didn’t get to see the Bob Mackie gowns?
The rear windows on my 1989 Caprice roll down only half way. The dealer said this is so kids won’t fall out. I have no kids. Can this be fixed? A.T., Chicago
The windows don’t go down all the way primarily because with downsizing the doors were made thinner, and there isn’t room to allow the glass all the way inside.
In your column regarding people being charged $3,000 over sticker for a Dodge Intrepid (Letters, Jan. 31), I was in California recently and saw some GM cars for $2,000 to $3,000 over sticker. This tells me that even if they reduce the price by $2,000 to $3,000, they’ll still be getting full sticker. M.D., Skokie.
Typically when a dealer adds a second sticker advising that you’ll have to pay $2,000 to $3,000 more to get a hot car, the dealer has no intention of coming down from that. A caller told us of finding a 1993 Cutlass Supreme convertible with two stickers, one the Monroney label with the manufacturer’s suggested list and the second added by the dealer charging $2,000 for “dealer price adjustment” plus $900 for rustproofing.
We have an older 1975 Pontiac Trans Am as a collectible, which has been passing emissions tests for years. Once again it passed but it failed to get a sticker on the basis of a visual check, when it was discovered the car had no catalytic converter. Now, if it sniffs clean it must be running clean, yet we face an out-of-pocket cost of compliance for no apparent reason other than to line someone’s pockets. Is there an alternative for those of us who are preserving the older cars that add less than 100 miles to the odometer between emissions tests? E.D., Beach Park
Yes, quit your bellyaching and buy a converter to replace the one you took off to reduce back pressure and gain performance. A car must pass the test based on what the emissions level was for that car’s model year. Your 1975 car may be emitting more pollution over 100 miles than a ’93 model in a month.
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Send your questions about cars and trucks to Jim Mateja, Chicago Tribune, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60611.
