As well as the Cadillac Seville luxury saloon, Clyde Glasgow's North American franchise includes the Chevrolet Corvette and Camaro muscle cars, and the Chevrolet Blazer 4x4,

which are likely to appeal

to an entirely different kind

of buyer.

Now in its fifth distinct design generation since the model name was introduced back in 1953, the Corvette has been the world's best selling sports car over those 45 years. It comes in coupe and convertible body styles, both of very striking appearance.

These cars certainly pack some wallop. Their

all-aluminium V8 engines have a capacity of 5.6 litres, the peak power output approaches 350bhp, the six-speed manual transmission types bullet to 60mph in under five seconds, and the test track maximum is on the high side of 170mph.

As well as immensely powerful brakes, three-setting shock absorbers and ingenious, weight-saving construction methods, the Corvette has what might be called negative spare-wheel availability. In other words, there is no spare wheel at all.

The car is fitted with Goodyear F1 extended mobility tyres, which are capable of running for up to 200 miles even when completely deflated - not flat out, of course, but certainly at more than than crawl to the nearest garage, speed.

Unlike the Cadillac, the Corvette comes only with

left-hand drive. The same applies to the older-style muscle car in the Chevrolet line-up. Very keenly priced, the 3.8-litre V6 Camaro is marketed in coupe and convertible styles.

But Chevrolet is also importing the formidable Camaro Z28. It uses the same 5.6-litre V8 engine as the Corvette and, despite its similarity in front-end appearance to the V6 models, is an American high performer of the old school.

The Blazer 4x4 has been restyled for 1998. In North American terms this is a compact sport utility, which means that it is built on a fairly modest scale, certainly not the kind of off-roader which would dominate an ordinary UK traffic queue. With a separate ladder chassis, galvanised steel bodywork, a torquey

iron-block 4.3-litre V6 engine, and an impressive list of standard equipment items, the Blazer is a businesslike addition to its class.

Originally, the word was that it would come in only with left-hand drive.

However, it seems that RHD versions will be arriving in

the autumn.