"Aston-Martin expects no problems associated with the Year 2000 to affect any of their vehicles."

"In terms of Y2K, the electronic systems used in all current Audis do not have a year counter and thus they will not be adversely affected. This also applies to diagnostic equipment used by Audi dealers.

"This May the 2000 Audi TT coupe will be introduced. This sports car does have a date display on the dashboard, but it shows the year as four digits and thus will not be adversely affected."

"In-vehicle controllers (engine, transmission, ABS, etc.) of vehicles produced by the former Chrysler Corporation do not use calendar date in control algorithms or on-board storage. Therefore, when the century changes, there will be no vehicle impact. This is valid for past and present vehicles."

The safety and performance of the Ford Motor Company family of vehicles (Aston Martin, Jaguar, Volvo, Lincoln, Mercury, Ford and Mazda) will not be affected by the year 2000 date change. The microprocessors involved with the performance of those vehicles do not use calendar-related functions and, therefore, will not be affected by the so-called Year 2000 Bug.

Ford Motor Company is proud of its Y2K program. In 1996, Ford management put in place a thorough program to ensure Y2K compliance throughout the entire Ford organization. Aggressive targets were set and all compliance goals have been met on schedule. In fact, Ford Motor Company is the first automotive manufacturer to receive the Information Technology Association of America's Year 2000 date-change certification, ITAA 2000.

YEAR 2000 READINESS DISCLOSURE

Q: Is my GM vehicle going to be affected by the year 2000?

A: Among our earliest priorities was the analysis of the electronics in our passenger cars and trucks. GM's passenger cars and trucks have microprocessors which, depending on the vehicle, are used for powertrain management; automatic climate control; antilock braking systems; traction control; stability enhancement; driver-information centers; supplemental inflatable restraint systems; heads-up display; real-time damping; navigation systems; seat, steering column and mirror memory positioning; remote keyless entry; entertainment systems; interior and exterior lighting systems; entry control; cellular communications; and antitheft systems.

GM analyzed the microprocessors in our current and planned models. Additionally, we have checked the processors in past models dating back to when we first started installing "date processing-capable" microchips in our cars and trucks. We found most of the electronic systems have no date related functionality and, therefore, pose no Year 2000-related problems. Those few systems that have date-related functionality were found to be Year 2000 ready.

"Lotus cars will be fine with the Year 2000 thing. Have you tried one of these new V-8s yet? I can get it up to 165 (mph) on the straightaways on Memorial Drive!"

"We have tested everything; we won't have any problems. We even have a car named the Millenia you know, so this is a unique opportunity. Further, we don't expect any problems within our dealerships' service and support networks."

"We have reviewed the Y2K issues with our engineering group and would like to put your mind at ease. All Mitsubishi vehicles have no date-sensitive coding or design issues in either the computer programming or embedded computer chips.

"As such, your vehicle's operation will not be affected by the Y2K computer issues of which you may have heard."

"While Land Rover N.A. is wholly Y2K compliant, due largely to the fact that none of their vehicles are in any way calendar-dependent, and thus Land Rover customers should expect no security, ignition or computer-controlled equipment failures whatsoever. However, Land Rover cannot attest to the readiness of the Land Rover service and support (dealer) network; this is because they are all independent businesses and will be making their own arrangements.

"RoverGroup is part of BMW, which has a comprehensive Y2K-readiness plan, both in Germany and in-house at Rover."

Car Talk has been in touch with Saab, and here's what they had to say:

"We have analysed the electronic systems in our products, Saab 900, 9000,9-3 and 9-5 and have not discovered any indications that the turn of the millennium would create negative consequences referring to date configuration in the computerised systems for originally manufactured Saab vehicles. However, modifications not endorsed by Saab Automobile AB is beyond any control of ours."

"Saturn vehicles are equipped with computer control modules affecting the operation of many electronic and mechanical functions. None of these computers have any calendar date-sensitive programs. Consequently, the transition to year 2000 will have no effect on the operation of any Saturn brand vehicles."

Volvo Cars and Year 2000 Conformity
Year 2000 Readiness Disclosure

• Background
  

  The transition to Year 2000 in computers (including microprocessors), as well as software used by such equipment, is a global problem of great importance. As the use of sophisticated information technology in Volvo cars is widespread, stakeholders have expressed concern about whether the computer systems in the Volvo cars will be affected by the transition.

• Response Policy
  

  Problems in computer systems and software related to the transition to Year 2000--so-called millennium bugs--can occur only when 1) the current date format, yy mm dd, is used (i.e., when the century figures are omitted); and 2) a comparison is made between two dates. When this is the case, "00" will be considered lower than "99," and that is what causes the problem.

Volvo cars are to an increasing extent based on information technology and contain many electronic units and sophisticated software.

For several years, Volvo has maintained a focus on the electronic units and software included in its products in such way as to prevent them from being affected by the millennium date change.

Based on this experience and investigations made, Volvo Car Corporation has concluded that the performance of such systems in its products will not be negatively affected by the millennium date change.

Volvo Car Corporation Corporate Communications

"All VW electronic control modules are Year 2000 compliant, since their software is independent of date.

"The Year 2000 problem is created when the computer date clock changes from 1999 to 2000. Most computers use the last two digits of the date to determine the year. "00" in noncompliant software refers to the year 1900. Since our computers do not have a computer date clock, this phenomenon will not affect our systems.

"We do appreciate your interest!"