| Show D2 The Salt Lake Tribune Friday December 26 1997 AUTOMOTIVE Experimental car has caused single mom all kinds of trouble By Gheg Hardesty mi Rfgisth The Orange Coi Car (J RDI N CJROV E Calit troubles were the last thing single mother Brandt Dobbins needed but with a little that's what she got help lrom Chevrolet a Los Angeles utv agent and a retired pilot from Santa Ana (W Dobbins in March unwittingly Knight a used tar that never was meant to be sold to the public The 9XX Chev y Corsica tine ol only 2i) made has an experimental bn sy stem that allow s the car to run on methanol and gasoline Hie car recently seized up and cash stiapped Dobbins 24 has been without wheels for uNmt a month She can't afford the $15X0 bill to get the car's special fuel system tepl iced and she believes Chevrolet should help pic k up the tab I gist need to get to wotk" said Dobbins a claims pmecssor at a lustm Calif auto insuier 1 Dobbins' dilemma underscotes two miHnlunt lessons uKntt buying a used car: Always having a professional mechanic look at it before the purchase and know what you are buying Don't buy anything weird or unusual unless you know something aKiut it said Alex Maikov tch car expert at Consumer ReHirts magazine in Yonkers N Y As Dobbins and her family figure out what to do the Corsica sits in a repair bay at Nicholas Chevrolet m Garden Grove near the condominium Dobbins shares with her son Asher 2 and her mother Glen- da The car looked clean according to the women It had a nice interior and low mileage of 31322 The seller Jack Gajewski pointed out the car's unique feature a system that had a special display on the dashboard to show the pereentage of methanol in the tank Upton and Glenda Dobbins said they were aware of the odd fuel system when they purchased the car but said they weren't sure what it was We never understixxl the concept of what we were getting into" Glenda Dobbins said More important the women had no idea the car was part of a test fleet of only 20 vehicles Neither did Gajewski Heavens no the retired pilot from Santa Ana said According to the Department of Motor Vehicles the Corsica's first registered owner was the Department of Water and Power on July 18 1989 The DV P received six of the Corstcas from the California this is a business said Ruben Mendoza service manager at Nicholas Chev inlet I can t keep the car for- ever" A Chevrolet spokeswoman said she sympathizes with Dobbins' plight but that the car maker has no contractual obligation to pay for repairs Chevrolet sold the experimental Corneas to the California Energy Commission m 198X The cars came 50000-nul- e warwith three-yea- r ranties Unlike vehicles donated flex-fue- to there were no restrictions on reselling the Corstcas although they never were meant to go beyond the state agency Chevrolet spokeswoman Sharon Sams said The car appears to have been sold without the long-terconsequences being considered" she said Dobbins' mother and aunt Debbie Upton saw the car advertised in a local newspaper They inspected it and Upton plunked down $38(H) for the vehicle schmils The young mother who receives no child support fiom her former boyfriend has some savings She probably can sock enough away to get her ctr btck in aKiut a month she said But with rent and child cue eating e pay up half her monthly oi aNmt $1500 it won't be easy And the dealership isn't thrilled aKiut keeping the Coisna much longer I don t want to be a linid butt but take-hom- l" Accord that steep tag included a lot of stutf including leather Base vehicle f illet engine 6 Coupe drive automatic transmission vanable-assipowei k steering power disc brakes h braking system alloy wheels P20V60R16 tounng tires dual air bags Also included automatic climate contiol power sunroof leather seats d st anti-loc- w dealers for inspection and repairs at no charge dn-ver- mutation wixxi interior tnm power windows power door seat outside power mirrors and 297(H) 1997 Duty trucks Ford said The trucks may have tires that were cut stereoCD cruise control trunk caigo net rear window defroster v unable intermittent wipers lest tm xlel No extras $24545 (me ship- ping) f PA city rating 21 Test mileage 20 VVananty Three years36000 miles bumper to bumper E5E Domestic Cars 9 &UKK 900 Stytatt ChJtQ 4 O' Oil My ucranteed economy equiioed EX V6 coupe offers a comfortable interior and convenient control panel Ford said Domestic Cars 97 BUICK Stylo Sedan V6 BOV ONLY $10400 Sfk1271 JERRY SEINER MIDVALE 97 BUtCK Rtviera JERRY SEINER CHEV The Honda S C Every Ave green rttv Cettfied Only $9 600 JERRY SEINER MIDVALE cvaK- - $23 JERRY SEINER MIDVALE Domestic Cars 900 92 BUCK LeScPre $5 900 or 0 Down $275 mo with 2 year wcbt OAC Low Book Sales Super oWf 97 BUtfK Century low mi show 293 room cond of only $16200 1337 $6000 281-- x dm muml ALL SLT LA RAMIES ALL 4X4'S ALL ON SALE AT beoutful PARK AVENUE $7 995 wA Budget 281 1364 91 BUCK Le Sabre Seats Pwr oH $5 577 air 6 Clean Tim Dahle Sandy Pott Ave Sunroof oH Options $8995 lany H Miller Ods CodSubaru 87 BUCK Park Ave 4 Jr 6 cyl auto power pkg flit oir cnjlse leather $2995 571 7214 DL1497 72 BUICK Electro 65k original mi 8 cyd runs very good very dean 91 BUCK $600 '98 CADILLACS DeVHte d Elegance ConcoufK EkJorado $ STARTING 1 ssl v BUCK cor only $2500 Below Invoice"! 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1 rw t V5 CADILLAC Sedan DeVHte leather completely loaded $21995 0 SAVE THOUSANDS Custom Express Delivery 9801370 f 900 Domestic Cars Domestic Cars 900 91 Murray owner 92 Sabre Limited every extra 64000 careful mites Dl1481 $8995 BUCK Le 97 BUCK REGAL Better Builder sport-utilit- during the assembly mounting process and could lead to sidewall bulging and eventually flat files Another 3100 1998 Ranger pickups equipped with 4 engines were recalled because problems with the fuel line may cause leaks Basepme $24150 Test model AKiut 83(H) 1998 Mustang GTs with 4 engines were King recalled because of a problem that also could result in a fuel leak There have Ken no reports of fuel leaks in any of the vehicles covered by the recall l ot d said Other recalls announced by Ford include: AKiut 53(H) 1997 and 1998 Villager minivans Some of the vehicles may have fractures where the cap attaches to the negative battery post which could cause battety rupture or fire Fold said it ts unaware of any fires or injuries related to this problem AKiut 11(X) 1998 Eddie Bauer y and Limited Explorer vehicles In some of the vehicles the chime that warns drivers that the key is still in the ignition whdn the door is open may malfunction Owners ot the affected vehicles are King notified by mail and can return the vehicles to dealers for inspection and repairs at no charge Owners of the affected vehicles are being notified by mail and can return the vehicles to and door-paninserts leather-'s tapped steen ng wheel power locks Assuming Dobbins can pay tor repairs he said she may be able Jlo turn around and sell the unique vehicle to a collector for much more than she pumped into the car "She may turn out to be luckier than she thinks Markovich said AKiut 475(H) DETROIT ( AP) vehicles are involved in a voluntary recall by Lord Motor Co although no accidents or miuries were reported from the affected vehicles The largest recall involved aKiut Eront-whe- four-spee- py customer Vigue of the DW P said his agency meant no harm in selling the car "If tins lady's having a problem we'll make it right" he said The DWP may take the Corsica back and give Dobbins a car of similar value according to Vigue Markovich of Consumer Reports pul a bright spin on the story Ford voluntarily recalls about 47500 cars trucks minivans Continued from Page FI Honda Ucord LX exotic fuel system Brandi Dobbins meanwhile just wants her wheels back She said she never would have taken the chance of buying a test car "Heck no" she said Chevrolet should have made it deal that the Corsicas were not to be resold to the public spokeswoman Sarris said It's a good learning experience" she said We never want an unhap- Energy Conuiussion The remaining 14 went to the county of Sacramento and the state Air Resources Board Around March 1996 the DWP auctioned off the Corstcas which had been sitting unused for years DWP fleet manager Jim Vigue said the cars worked fine but had gotten old Dobbins Corsica was snagged for $2900 The buyer was Jack Gajewthe cars second registered ski owner according to DMV records Vigue said there were no restrictions on selling the car But after hearing aKiut Dobbins' woes he questioned the decision to auction olT the Corsicas In retrospect maybe we should have just sent them to the junkyard" Vigue said We were kind of at a loss as to what to do with them" Mendoza of Nicholas Chevrolet said the experimental Corsica's fuel system has to be replaced for $1580 because no parts are available for an easier cheaper fix He blamed the car's engine woes mostly on the No Problem : 9 |
