DRAWING BOARD

2013 Nissan Sentra: Appearing soon at Nissan dealers is the latest edition of Nissan's compact sedan.

The Sentra's attractive looks are obviously inspired by the equally new mid-size Altima. The Sentra is slightly larger than the previous model, but it's lighter by 150 pounds. A 130 horsepower 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine connects to a six-speed manual transmission or optional continuously variable unit. Nissan claims the new powerplant will achieve 30 mpg in the city and up to 40 mpg highway.

___________

AUTO TRIVIA

. The Maytag Washing Machine Company that was founded in 1893 also built automobiles from 1910-'12 under the Maytag-Mason label.

. The Nissan Cedric, which was originally produced in Japan in 1960, is named for the title character in Frances Hodgson Burnett's novel, Little Lord Fauntleroy.

___________

Who am I?

To guess his secret identity, read the following clues:

1. He's one of the few men in his sport who raced the cars that he built.

2. His success might not have been realized had it not been for the Can-Am racing series of the 1960s/'70s.

3. There, his bright orange cars finished on top more times than not.

4. At 32, this brilliant driver and engineer, who owned his own racing team, died in a crash while testing.

5. A present-day Formula One racing team still bears his name, as does the F1 supercar.

Still stumped?

Bruce McLaren and his teammate Denis Hulme won all 11 1969 Can-Am races driving McLaren-built cars.

WHAT'S UP, AUTO DOC?

To save interior space, many vehicles (mostly high-riding rides such as sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks) have spare tires located beneath the load floor (outside).

In this case, out of sight does not mean out of mind. After a crummy winter laced with road salt, the attaching hardware for the spare can become corroded, sometimes to the point where you might not be able to pry it from the vehicle.

So, before that happens, put on your grubby clothes, crawl under the vehicle and soak the bolt threads with penetrating oil.

You don't want to risk breaking off the bolts, so let the oil do its job for a couple of hours before attempting to loosen things up.

Once all apart, clean up everything the best you can and apply an anti-seize compound to the threads. Before reassembling, check the spare tire for the proper air pressure, damage and a rusty rim, which, depending on the severity, might need to be replaced.

Share your tips with the Auto Doc at www. shiftweekly.com using the contact form.

___________

Top Gear

Corvette Nomad show-car replica; Superior Glass Works; $60,000 and up; www. Superior54.com:

This Oregon company makes fiberglass replicas of a concept vehicle that never went into production.

The Corvette Nomad station wagon was first displayed at the 1954 General Motors Motorama exhibit in New York City and became the forerunner of the Nomad models built from 1955-'57. The Superior 54 Sport Wagon body package is $60,000, but can be ordering as rolling chassis using fifth-generation (1997-'04) Corvette suspension components for $100,000.

If you want a finished car, expect to shell out $200,000.