Review

Introduction
Through its first six years, Chevrolet's Lumina was a half-step behind the midsize sedan establishment-Ford Taurus, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, Mazda 626, Nissan Altima and Mitsubishi Galant.

But with its first major redesign, the Lumina has closed the gap. The '95 Lumina employs the same basic chassis as its predecessor-in fact, the wheelbase is identical-but it sports all-new sheet metal, a redesigned interior and extensive suspension revisions.

The net is a car that's much more in step with its competitors, and perhaps even ahead in a couple of important areas-particularly the all-important dollar-value category.

The new line of Lumina sedans starts at $15,995, a price that includes a $525 destination charge. Compare that with a Camry, for example, and Lumina's got the advantage by a substantial margin. The Lumina's base price also undercuts the basic Ford Taurus', though not by as much.

And that basic Lumina. is no stripped down loss-leader. All Luminas include air conditioning, an AM/FM radio, power locks, automatic transmission and an anti-theft system as standard equipment.

We test-drove a Lumina LS, which is the upscale trim level for the sedan portion of the family. (Chevrolet has revived the Monte Carlo name for the Lumina coupes: the Monte Carlo LS and the hot-rod Monte Carlo Z34.)

In addition to the standard features of the basic Lurnina, our LS included anti-lock brakes (ABS), low-speed traction control, power windows, power mirrors, a remote keyless entry system and a premium CD system.

Our LS was powered by General Motors' corporate 3100 3. 1 -liter V6, which replaces the previous 3.1-liter V6 and puts an additional 20 hp under the hood. This is now the base Lumina engine there are no four-cylinder engines left in the line-up and the most powerful Lumina engine continues to be the 210-hp, 3.4-liter V6, a $960 option.

All Luminas include a four-speed automatic transmission with overdrive as standard equipment, the latest generation of GM's computer-controlled automatics that coordinate engine and shift management for nearly seamless operation.

Walk Around
There's a lot of generic GM in the Lumina's new look, but it's hard not to see this as an improvement. Chevrolet designers have rounded off the Lurnina's hard edges, giving it a smoother, more contemporary appearance all around.

There's also more Lumina in general. The new sedan is longer, which means there's more of it protruding beyond the front and rear axles. Even though most of the increased length is at the rear of the car, this sense of excess overhang is most apparent up front.

The new Lumina is also a tad wider than the old, with a wider track, so the wheels extend to the edges of the wheel wells. This gives the car a more aggressive stance than some current GM products, and also adds a subtle improvement to straight-line stability.

Besides helping to bring the Lumina's styling up-to-date, the flowing lines, flush-mounted glass and sloping hood line conspire to provide improved aerodynamic efficiency. Although this isn't measurable in terms of fuel economy-EPA projections are a respectable 19 mpg in the city, 29 on the highway, same as the previous Lumina-it does contribute to the new Lumina's most striking improvement: reduced interior noise.

Interior
Elegant, functional simplicity sums up the Lumina's new dashboard and controls. In addition to incorporating dual air bags, an installation that brings the Lumina up-to-date in terms of passive safety features, Chevy's design team has worked hard to make secondary controls easy to find and operate.

The most welcome example is the climate controls, which are mounted high in the center of the dash so the driver can locate them with scarcely a glance away from the road. The switches are rotary knobs, rather than push-buttons or slides, making them easy to operate even if you're wearing gloves.

Audio controls are backlit for easy operation after dark, and also sized quite generously, again anticipating gloved fingers.

The king-size theme carries through to the instrumentation panels, which have large numbers that are readable at a glance through the nicely padded tilt steering wheel.

Still another plus is the Lumina's collection of storage bins and cubbyholes: map pockets molded into the door panels, a large binnacle below the sound system, a deep bin in the center console, a good-sized lockable glove box and a sizable cupholder mounted atop the center console, free from any interference.

About the only puzzling note here is the Lumina's overall interior volume versus its sizable exterior. The new cars extra wi 'dth translates as generous hip and shoulder room, and there's plenty of front-seat legroom. However, rear-seat legroom has actually been reduced by a fraction of an inch. The Ford Taurus, though shorter by some nine inches, manages to offer more rear-seat legroom, as well as a bigger trunk.

Still, no one could call the Lumina cramped. The sum of the interior redesign is improved comfort, and a significant leap forward in operating convenience.

Driving Impressions
The Lumina's biggest-and most welcome improvements snapped into sharp focus the moment we got rolling. The redesigned car was much quieter than the first edition. In most operating situations, hardly a trace of road, wind or engine noise found its way into the passenger compartment.

And ride quality was on a par with anything in the midsize class. This car soaked up small bumps and potholes far more effectively than the old Lumina. Besides enhancing all-around comfort, the retuned suspension also helped keep small road shocks from translating into interior noise.

Chevy's chassis engineers achieved the new Lumina's contemporary ride without compromising handling response. The Lumina isn't a sports car, but we found it capable of making quick avoidance maneuvers without excess body roll or unwanted drama. And its power-assisted, rack-and-pinion steering combined a lighter touch with better road feel, enhancing our driver's sense of control.

Even with its increased horsepower, the Lumina's acceleration was only average. This is a heavy car by current midsize standards. But it was far from sluggish, and we experienced no difficulty in keeping pace with urban traffic or passing on two-lane country highways.

Braking, enhanced by our test car's ABS, was swift and sure in all kinds of conditions. The car's size played a part here, too-the more mass you set in motion, the more difficult it is to stop. But the new Lumina's fatter tires helped in getting braking power onto the pavement, making the system's all-around performance another plus.

Summary
Chevrolet has worked hard to give the new Lumina a more competitive footing among the midsize mainstream. Besides its improved comfort, convenience and appearance, it should hold up better than the original, thanks to a sharp reduction in the number of total parts-fewer things to create buzzes, squeaks and rattles-as well as new assembly techniques.

Add in Chevy's emphasis on value pricing, and you have a car that looks very much like one of the best buys in its class.