Bigger Laser unlikely to appear before next year

Press, 28 July 1989, Page 37

Bigger Laser unlikely to appear before next year

Don’t expect to see a new Ford Laser running around in New Zealand until some time in the first quarter of 1990. Although Ford New Zealand is said to have the odd rabbit in its hat, which it will whip out to conceal its battle scars, nothing but a new Laser is likely to revive the one-time market leader’s flagging fortunes. New Zealand’s motoring press corps can expect to receive an invitation from the Manukau City-based car assembler before the year is out, but the Ford people are remaining tight-lipped about

their intentions. It could be that they intend to serve plenty of notice that there is a new Laser in the wings or it could be that they will serve notice of the introduction of a completely new model destined to play a minor role in Ford’s New Zealand sales effort. It could be that Ford wants to show off its Australian Capri convertible, which could drain off some of the glamour from Mazda’s MX-5 sports two-seater. The latter should go into dealers’ showrooms at $30,000 before the year’s end.

In the meantime, if overseas speculation is correct, the new Laser will be cast in the Ford mould, unmistakably. s ■lt will be bigger than the current Lasers, with a more spacious interior, which arises because of its greater over-all length and width, as well as its longer wheelbase. As a car it won’t be just a badge-engineered version of the new Mazda 323. The Laser will have its own distinctive interior. Ford has found that badge engineering is turning off consumers. . It seems likely that high-

performance versions of the Laser won’t be turbo charged, at least initially. Instead they might be fitted with a 1.8-litre twin-over-head camshaft engine. Lesser models will probably be powered by a single over? head cam 16-valve 1600 engine. If the Laser is going to do anything for Ford, it will have to be good, because it is heading into the most competitive class in the motor business, in which there are already some well-proven and highly sophisticated cars selling at competitive prices.