Buick Rendezvous Finishes Aggressive Inca Trail 4x4 Adventure Drive Winning A Silver

[BUICK RACER]

December 3,2001 <P><BR>Buick Rendezvous Finishes Aggressive Inca Trail 4x4 Adventure Drive Winning A Silver Medal <P>RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - A 2002 Buick Rendezvous driven by Patrick Brooks of Marshalltown, Iowa, was among the five silver medallists Nov. 29 at the completion of the 15,000 mile, 55-day "Inca Trail 4x4 Adventure Drive." The Rendezvous was the first 4x4 participant to cross the finish line. <P>The adventure drive for classic cars and modern four-wheel-drive vehicles began Oct. 6 at Rio. The vehicles crossed the Andes Mountains and were ferried across Lake Titicaca to Lima, Peru before heading to the southern tip of South America. Then they headed north through Argentina and Uruguay before arriving back in Rio. <P>Brooks and his wife Mary had previously driven a 1949 Buick Super Woody Wagon in the 1997 Peking to Paris Motor Marathon and successfully completed the Around the World in 80 Days Motor Challenge in the same car last year. Pat Brooks was joined by freelance journalist Kevin Clemens on the Inca Trail. <P>"Our goal was not just to finish the rally, but to showcase the versatility of the Buick Rendezvous," Pat Brooks said. "We were very fortunate to have the opportunity to pilot such a functional vehicle in a race like this. Being awarded a silver medal is a great reward after a long rally." <P>The drive took the competitors through Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay. Throughout the drive, the teams encountered varying weather conditions from hot and humid to cold and snowy as they traversed South America. <P>While the trip down the western coast was smooth along the Panamerican Highway, many of the areas traveled were gravel or dirt roads or even flooded pampas. The mountain passes proved to be trouble for many crews as the altitude caused fuel problems for some and others misjudged the angle and drove into ravines. <P>Some of the sights along the way included the world's highest capital city, La Paz, Peru, the lost Inca city of Machu Picchu, crossing on the world's highest main road pass in Ticlio, Peru, and the famous Nasca Lines. The teams also visited Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world and stopped at the Punta Tomba Nature Reserve, home to half a million penguins. The Rendezvous was also chosen as a display vehicle in Buenos Aires, Argentina at a reception given by the British Ambassador, Sir Robin Christopher. <P>During the rally, Brooks and Clemens reported daily on the terrain, scenery and vehicle performance. The updates and pictures were posted on <A HREF="http://media.gm.com" TARGET=_blank>http://media.gm.com</A> and <A HREF="http://www.buick.com." TARGET=_blank>www.buick.com.</A> <P>The Rendezvous entered in the Inca Trail included the optional Versatrak "on-demand" all-wheel-drive system. Versatrak uses front drive under normal road conditions and adds torque to the rear wheels on slippery roads. Rendezvous may also be ordered as a front-wheel-drive model. <P>Rendezvous' 3.4-liter engine, attached to an electronically controlled four-speed automatic transmission, generates 185 horsepower at 5200 rpm and 210 lb-ft of torque at 4000 rpm. It combines power with exceptionally good fuel economy (estimated EPA fuel economy numbers are 18 mpg city and 24 mpg highway for the all-wheel drive version and 19 and 26 for the front-drive version). <P>The 2001 Inca Trail was organized by the Historic Endurance Rallying Organization (HERO) of Worcester, England. The rally included a separate classic reliability trail for vintage automobiles.

[The Old Guy]

With the exception of a couple of protective plates under the vehicle,and some boxes bolted to the floor ,the SUV you are maligning was stock!The Vehicle was shown at the BCA Nationals and The engine sounded stock,but they could have done some work on the PROM to make a little more power.The engine is not a power house,but with the gearing available, I don't see why it should not have functioned as it did,which means doing it's job.

[Reatta Man]

That HAD to be one of the most tricked-out, beefed-up, worked-over SUVs to ever enter any rally anywhere. <P>I'd love to know what they did to get that anemic 3.4L engine to handle real off-road challenges. Bet that engine was more classifed than the cockpit of a stealth fighter!!<P>Hate to bad-mouth the Rendezvous, but I consider it as much of a Buick as a Cimmaron was a Cadillac.

[86 2dr.ltd]

I'm not a fan of this vehical, I saw one at a car show and really felt like crying. However I am really glad to hear that this adventure was sucessful and actually had my fingers crossed, so to speak.<P>I dont believe there is any room for failure in any GM divisions except the one.Because as we know.<BR>"we'll be there"

[Guest]

I wish the Riviera and Roadmaster would return.