Nation: Big-Car Blues

Nobody loves a gas hog

For years, the great American promise was not a chicken in every pot but a big car in every garage. No more. With fuel prices edging into three digits, buyers have been thinking less about class and more about gas. As a result, car lots are clogged with 2 million unsold autos, many of them yesterday's glamorous giants, and dealers have become desperate.

In Andover, Mass., an agency has been giving free $4,500 Chevettes to buyers of $18,000 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritzes. In San Francisco, a dealer has advertised Dodge vans at a penny above the factory invoice price....

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