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2005
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Next
Pontiac GTO revives Delorean's
spirit
Just days after axing the
rear-drive Zeta platform, GM has announced a promising future for the
next generation Pontiac GTO. It will be derived from the next
generation Daewoo Matiz and built in Korea. "This is the best the fans
of GTO can ever dream of," said GM product boss Bob Lutz, "and it shows
our commitment to the future of this legendary muscle car."
The new GTO will measure 370 cm in length, almost doubling the current
car's 190 although the latter is measured in inches. "When it comes to
numbers, nothing compares with our GTO. I can tell you, for example,
our current V8 engine displaces 364 cu. The forthcoming engine will be
an astonishing 700 cc. And most brilliantly, it needs just half the
number of cylinders to achieve that !" Lutz said proudly.
The comparison continues in the seat count (2+2 vs 4) and doors count
(2 vs 5). "In everyway, the next GTO will overwhelm the current car by
a large margin."
AutoZine is the first media invited to see the styling prototype of the
new GTO. However, I am not totally convinced with its new styling,
which looks more fat than muscle. "Come on ! after 40 years, any
musclemen would have become fat guys," said Lutz. "Look at me and you
know !" I can't agree more with this.
As a conclusion to the interview, Lutz said, "I would like to use this
car to pay tribute to the late John Z. Delorean, the creator of GTO who
died last week. The new GTO will follow the spirit of Delorean - wild
numbers, wild claims and full of cheating. We are very proud that it
will be a true Delorean car."
Before ending the interview, I took this chance to ask Lutz about the
new wave of cost cutting measures taken by GM.
"The next stage of cost cut is to get rid of myself - frankly speaking,
I always think I am overpaid !" |
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