Ford To Sell Hot Rod To Vie Against Prowler

DETROIT - Two dozen Ford dealers will begin selling a limited-production hot rod next year in what appears to be the No. 2 automaker's response to Chrysler Plymouth Prowler.

The Panoz AIV roadster is an all-aluminum convertible built by Panoz Automotive Development of Brazelton, Ga. AIV stands for Aluminum Intensive Vehicle.

The $56,750 car will compete with the flashy Prowler, billed as the first production hot rod by a Big Three automaker.

Ford hopes the Panoz will give it a showroom head-turner until it can roll out the next-generation Thunderbird at decade's end. The new, smaller and sportier T-Bird is expected to be designed with styling cues from the original 1950s roadster.

Chrysler spent $75 million to develop the Prowler, but Ford will get the image boost from the Panoz virtually for free. It just agreed to let Panoz Automotive sell the cars through select dealers.

"Our idea is to start with a small number of dealers," said Danny Panoz, who developed the car. "There is an area of auto manufacturing that hasn't been touched in this country, and that's small-volume manufacturing."

Panoz is one of a few limited-production automakers based in the United States. The company was started by the Panoz family, which owns a resort and winery north of Atlanta.

Unlike the Prowler, which will be offered only in purple at first, the Panoz will come in a variety of colors.

Ford dealers will sell and service about 200 of the roadsters next year, compared with the 3,000 Prowlers that Chrysler will begin building in Detroit next spring. Panoz plans to advertise the car in auto-enthusiast magazines.

The Panoz uses Ford's new V-8 engine and brakes from the Mustang Cobra. The rear suspension was borrowed from the Thunderbird coupe.

It's more expensive than the $35,000 Prowler and 10 inches shorter. Both rear-wheel-drive vehicles have aluminum engines, body panels and frames.

The Panoz weighs 2,000 pounds, and with its 4.6-liter, four-cam, 32-valve, 305 hp V-8, the roadster goes from zero to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds. That gives it a distinct power advantage over the Prowler's V-6.

CHRYSLER ENGINE GOAL: 100,000-MILE ALUMINUM

DETROIT - Chrysler is spending $625 million to develop three new aluminum engines designed to run a minimum of 100,000 miles in its midsize 1998 cars. The automaker has added a production line to build an all-aluminum, 2.7-liter, 6-cylinder engine. The company's Trenton, Mich., engine plant will build 3.2- and 3.5-liter, 6-cylinder engines. Production will begin in August.

- Seattle Times news services