MotorWeek | Retro Review: 1988 Eagle Premier
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- Опубліковано 23 лют 2016
- "American Motors' last product was one of its best."
Fun fact: the pre-production prototype we tested has Renault badges, instead of the standard Eagle ones. - Авто та транспорт
So...my grandfather bought this car brand spanking new and he was damn proud of that thing. He gifted it to me in 1997 when I turned 16. Along with a personalized airbrushed tag made at Kmart with his nickname for me sprayed across it in big cursive letters. I was proud of that car because my papaw was and I kept it clean and with a sparkling shine just like he did.
This video took me way back. That was one heck of a car!
How was it? The wipers and light set up seems awkward at best.
Premier was an underrated car; it looked and drove better than Taurus.
My parents had one of these, they bought it for half price, HALF Price! It was when they were selling off the remaining 1991 stock, it stickered for $20000, and they got it for $9995. For a brand new loaded car. It was one of the smoothest, roomiest, most comfortable, most refined cars I’ve ever driven. I was a teenager then so I got to drive it and ride in the back of it. They put over 200,000 reliable miles on that thing.
Your parents got LUCKY
@@fredaydaybae8450they sure did my buddies parents had one it fell apart at 40 k what a shit pile
"Most reports called AMC's Jeep division the biggest prize of the merger with Chrysler. But future opinion may focus on this Premier."
Nope, it didn't.
+Jonathan Kleinow Sort of... the cab-forward design (LH cars etc.) was possible thanks to the Premier development and more specifically the designer of the Premier.
That's fair. We had an Eagle Vision TSi when I was growing up, and that was a pretty nice car.
(Did we just have a civil conversation on UA-cam? Is that allowed?)
+Jonathan Kleinow To think the Dodge Intrepid was based off this car, and it soldiered on until 2004 with the same underpinnings. In a strange turn of events as time went on, I think the Renault bits of the AMC buy out was probably very useful for Chrysler at the time, aside from the Encore/Alliance. If the platform survived into the 21st century by sales success, that's a pretty respectable feat on any account.
+Jonathan Kleinow Yep, it did. AMC design team and it's leader Francois Castanng took over Design at Chrysler....the LH series of cars and even to some degree the Charger and 300 are and were all based off this chassis
That's because American consumers can't handle anything firmer than wet-grass suspension, extreme body roll, sagging headliners, minimal instrumentation (Speed/fuel) and millions of buttons stuck seemingly at random onto the "dash".
This car failed because it was made for sensible people, by sensible people and touted in a mouth-breather market.
has anyone in their life ever used a glove box cupholder? I feel like as soon as you hit a bump or corner your drinks flying
They were never intended to be used while you're driving. It was meant for enjoying a snack and a tea or coffee while you're stopped and parked.
It only takes one speed bump or surprise stop, and you'll be off to the auto parts store to buy a console mounted cup holder.
Drive-in movies only!
I had one in my Ford Puma, oddly enough it seemed to work ok on short journeys at least
I had a Grand Am that had one. Hit a bump, spills everywhere!
Lesson learned. QUICKLY!
The Premier looks so bland and unoffensive it could be an unlicensed car in a video game lol
...Theres one that looks like it in the repair shop in GTA 5. It's thrown away though as a prop in the yard. Brown and burnt.
Looks like an up-sized version of Hyundai pony which is also Giugiaro designed. Definitely not his best work. He did no wrong with the Saab 9000 though.
Too bad AMC never sold the original Renault R25 wich the premier is mostly based on (they even got the same doors)
Renault R25 V6 Turbo looks awesome compared to the Premier, what if AMC had sold the Renault Alpine GTA? 1985 Eagle Javlin anyone?
I like this sort of bland design... it sort of sticks out as being 'too normal', which paradoxically gives it some character. Better than being distinctive but ugly, in my opinion.
The incredibly rare Renault emblems on this one, which were quickly replaced by Eagle badges.
They mentioned it was a pilot car. Did any escape into the wild sans Eagle badging?
I owed 2 of these cars in the late 90's early 2000's. They were sloppy handling beasts but they had excellent V-6 engines. Both cars made it over 250,000 miles without any major work. This brought back alot of fond memories MW thanks for the retro reviews.
Was also known as Dodge Monaco. Which Renault does it evolve from?
>Aaron Granda: Medallion.
I had one that I loved to drive, but mostly only drove it to and from the dealership for repairs. One damn thing after another. Ended up suing Chrysler!
1:52 LMAO wow she is representing the 1980's from her head to her toes. Just love the burned perm, blue Blocker sunglasses and wind pants! Work it honey!
Blanca W I was going to be the fashion police but you beat me. Lol
Those fingernails are just nasty!!
No puffy/padded shoulders?
Blanca
😂
i wish people would dress 1980s again, it looks good
Sometime in the late 80's my parents were trying to decide between one of these and a Honda Accord. (We'd always been AMC fans). They asked my advice and I suggested if they buy the Eagle they get the longest extended warranty they could. They did, and it paid off big time, I'm not sure there was anything on that car that DIDN'T go bad (except the engine).
But the funny thing is about the time the warranty ran out the car stopped having problems and Mom drove it for many more years.
And it was a really nice car, I think it had every option except for leather and a sunroof.
Jeff DeWitt OURS HAD A MOONROOF...IT HONESTLY WAS ONE OF THE BEST CARS MY PARENTS BOUGHT! IT WAS BURGUNDY LIKE THAT LAST ONE WITH TINTED WINDOWS....IT ALSO HAD A EAGLE ON THE GRILL NOT A RENAULT LOGO...OURS WAS SO LUXURIOUS I LOVED IT AS A KID..I WAS 9 YEARS OLD WHEN WE BOUGHT IT IN 1989...THAT CAR I THINK WHOOPED TAURUS IS ASS RIGHT? WAT DO U THINK?
Nationalcitysycho d
I purchased a 1989 ES and drove it to Niagara Falls and to Toronto.
A couple of months later to Minneapolis, after that the problems began, first it was a faulty oil sending unit.
Next, the transmission went out a day or two after I had the fluid changed three years later in 1992.
Somehow, the fluid turned gray the next day and it would only go into reverse.
Finally, I was able to get it go forward long enough to get it home.
It was under warranty so I only had to pay a $100.00 deductible.
After finding out it would have cost 3100 dollars without the warranty, I traded it in on a 4dr 1990 Acura Integra, two days later, the dealer called me back and said the bank wouldn't finance it because I was upside down on the Eagle.
I was stuck with it for 3 more years
and the starter going out (AC Delco) and my coolant oveflow bottle leaking.
On the day after I made my last payment, the brakes went out.
I wound up giving the car to someone I was dating at the time.
Yes, it was a good looking vehicle inside and out with a 7 year 70000 mile warranty but a headache for me.
I should have known since it was a Renault.
Take the red pill
I traded a 1988 Camry for the Eagle.
Today, I have a 2015 RAV 4 and a 2005 Camry LE purchased 4 months ago.
It had 226,000 miles when I bought it but it rides and handles like new.
I had a 1990 model, and aside from the master cylinder, it was a pretty solid car. I liked it because it was comfortable for me (I'm really tall) and it was nice to drive. Never had the electrical drama that everyone was talking about. Looking back, I wish I would have kept it longer.
I remember Wesley's henchmen pulling up in this kind of car in Road House
My first car! Had a 1991 with the same paint scheme as the ES in the video, though it did have motorized seatbelts, different wheels and a floor shift. Bought it back in 2016 after high school graduation for $920. Fun times. Bought an 89 LX almost two and a half years later. Miss them both.
I had a 90 Dodge Monaco, and, to this day, she still ranks at the top of my favorite cars list. She was extremely comfortable and had pretty advanced features, for her time. Unfortunately, I had persistent electrical issues and ultimately she became a bit of a money pit and I had to stop fixing her and just let her go. I would've have loved to have kept her much longer.
I still have my Eagle Premier ES Limited. It's been with me 30 years. Unfortunately I have to let her go because I will be losing the garage space I have.
These were totally misunderstood cars. Very cutting edge, VERY comfortable, bullet-proof V6 engines, let down by ill-educated technicians, and a lazy dealer network. By its name, no one was willing to give it a try. A real tragedy, in my opinion.
Really neat car.
GrotrianSeiler Unfortunately they were sold mostly through Jeep dealerships. The sales people didn't know how to sell a small sedan, and had no incentive to learn. The actual Jeep "jeeps" were too profitable.
Also, I think Chrysler saw them as competition for their own K variants.
I never heard anything good about the PRV V6. Volvo quickly regretted creating them and decided to use turbo 4 cylinder engines instead. Also, a variant of the PRV was used in the Delorian, and it was one reason the car was such a disaster.
The V6 was a complete hunk of crap. My mom had hers replaced under warranty because it threw a rod at less than 12K miles. She drives like a grandma. She traded it for a Plymouth as soon as it came down from the shop.
Papi Uuhmelmehahay
Your mother may drive like a grandma but she did not change the oil at manufacturer intervals. No car throws a rod at 12,000 miles when new.
I saw one at a Costco last week.
I haven't seen one of these on the road in probably 15+ years. Like most typical 80's and early to mid 90's cars, they're becoming extinct. It's a shame that most of our automotive history is vanishing to the recycling centers.
+Tommy TwoGun IKR? It's fucking bullshit. But it also means that one day that original survivors will become collectable and thus go up in value.
Imagine a Ford Aspire costing as much as a brand new car...
Cash for Clunkers destroyed a lot of 80's and 90's vehicles.
You could start a museum with these. Since these cars are dirt cheap nowadays it wouldn't even cost much
My neighbor has a mint condition low mileage Eagle Premier with the original clearcoat paint. He only takes it out once per month. That thing is a gem! Luxury at its best.
Ask if he wants to sell it I'd be very interested!
@3:25 Yes!!! I love this lady's style!
Mom jeans oh the 80's
+incyphe Me too!
I rented one of these in '89. I didn't ask for it, but the rental company was out of Chrysler 5th Avenue's, which is what I reserved. I actually liked this better. It handled nicely in the snowstorm that occurred in Buffalo, NY when I had it. I considered buying one, but was concerned about "Renault Reliability", which is an oxymoron. This was confirmed by the abundance of them I saw in junkyards in the early 2000's.
Well the Renault 25, from which the Eagle Premier is based on, had a pretty good reliability in Europe. We still saw them sometimes on the roads and there are a lot of used car on websites with a lot of mileage. The "R25" as we call it here as a good reputation nowadays and considered one of the best car Renault ever made. You should thake a look at the Renault 25 Baccara version (the "luxury" R25) or look at the Renault Safrane which replaced the R25. :)
@@sirius8103 You might be right. Even here in the comments there are Americans reporting that they were able to drive these well over 200,000 miles without any serious problems and with only regular maintenance. I admit that I held these suspect for reliability at the time even though I really liked them quite a bit. They really were pretty nice cars. Also, it should be remembered that Chrysler refined this platform a bit and literally used it for the later LH cars that were sold in the US for well over a decade during the 90's and into the early 00's. They sold well and were nice cars in their own right. I am not sure about the reliability on those.
@@jkeelsnc Thank you for you feedback ! Well now if you want a little of Renault platform, you can buy NISSAN models sold in US, the "CMF" platform are made with Renault.
@@sirius8103 interesting. My first car over here was an R5.
This was a really cool car back in the day. When I was in high school we had a '91 and it was a peach. We drove it I think about 150k miles before my dad traded it in for a '95 Altima SE with a stick shift. But anyway the Premier was a fine family car and only broke down a couple times, I believe it was a faulty fuel pump both times it broke down. Otherwise it was a sweet car to drive around in as a teenager. Glad my sister was OK but if she hadn't totaled the Dodge Dynasty we would have never had the Premier lol! :)
I'm really glad MotorWeek posts such a wide variety of retro reviews. The Premier is a car I know a lot about, yet haven't had the fortune of seeing one in the metal in as long as I can remember. Naturally, the Premier's legacy is in the LX and ultimately, the LX, but it's a shame more wasn't made of the Premier itself during its run. Chrysler didn't know what to make of it and the Eagle brand it created to sell it under. Lack of quality control and meaningful improvements basically sealed the car's fate. Even selling it under the better-known Dodge brand late in its life didn't save it. Too bad, as it was a good looking vehicle.
I have a 1991 Premier that if you are in the Ohio area, come to the Father's Day Car Show at Stan Hywet Hall in Akron on June 20th 9am-3pm. I will be showing off my Premier and though she is not cosmetically perfect, she is still a runner and one I am restoring.
I love how the A/C compressor is attached to the valve cover. LOL. Those valve cover gasket changes will be fun!
LOL @ the idea that Chrysler cared about Eagle at all. The only reason they took it from AMC is because they couldn't get Jeep without taking Eagle in a package deal.
Finally after years and years of watching car videos on youtube, a finally a car I have never heard of.
I actually liked the looks of these.
Her hairy arms and long, Lee Press-On Nails are fantastic!
I love the "simple" design. Jim Kenzie from Motoring best described the general look of cars in the past 15-20 years as a slightly used bar of soap. I really like the squared design
+Jason In the design world, this is known as the "Blobject" era
That's pretty neat, and is an accurate name
I remember that we tried out one of the Dodge Monaco versions back in the day but skipped over it in the end. Glad to hear that owners out there had some good experiences. Makes one wonder what we missed back in the day.
It was either a Honda Accord or this. I bought an '89 LX in Aug. '90, and had it 13 years for $14,XXX. The sticker was $17,XXX. The dealer couldn't move these. 140,XXX miles when I sold her. Aluminum block and heads. Front wheel drive with the engine facing forward like an American rear wheel drive V8. The driveshaft tunnel was there, but it is front wheel drive. Replaced 2 water pumps, power steering pump, struts, half-shafts, brake master cylinder, a muffler and normal maintenance. That was it. Handled well in 12 MN winters with antilock brakes. A little light in the rear. The interior was plush and unique. The attractive instrument gauges were back-lighted green and red illuminated. Not digital. Climate controls were no problem. The car was very comfortable on trips and 5 adults sat comfortably. Not the HP of today. Don't recall a lot of wind noise. Plenty of room in the trunk. I had the center console with drink holders. The car was wine exterior with a wine interior. It had those automatic shoulder belts that were always annoying. The quality of craftsmanship was superb. Fit and finish fine. I never understood why Consumer Reports would give it a bad review for reliability. Never left me stranded and always started up. Never did see any on the road like her. She was a good car.
i love you guys for uploading these
I was very curious about these cars when i was a teenager searching for my first car. Fun to see this old video.
I had 2 of them. No trouble. Best visibility EVER!
I am now on my 3rd, had one as my first car. Love them!
The Eagle Premier almost looks like a Mazda 929 to me...
+Kevron Harris Yep,it does,but in fact is Renault 21. Even the badge on the steering and above the glove box says...Renault..,and Renault is one of the shittiest brands,together with Citroen in EU :))
S.T T. True. I remember Citroens of the 1970s-1980s is a piece of junk, especially in the ergonomics department. Thanks 4 the info!
+S.T T. That's not true, this was a pre production model and AMC was badging it's cars as Renault....but the only thing Renault about this car is the chassis and suspension.....there's nothing like this ever sold in France. It's an AMC designed car with Ital of Italy. No cars were sold with the Renault emblem on them, it was launched in Jan of 88, a year after Renault sold it's 47% share of AMC to Chrysler
OsbornTramain I know about Eagle perhaps more than the founder of the company himself. I purchased brand new Eagle 2000 GTX 4WD back in 1992,when Emerson Fittipaldi was head of the project " Cars that think" . That was their most successful project,since they used their Mitsubishi shares to basically...rebadge the Galant to Eagle. That Premier has as much to do with Chrysler as Fiat got with Ferrari,although they are in the same family. Knobs,fabrics,ergonomics..,its all Renault. Engines were from Peugeot and Renault..,transmissions were German.. Now tell me,please,what is left in that car,that is made by AMC hands.
Well, was a Chrysler Employee and own a Eagle Premier since 1989. The entire interior is AMC designed in Kenosha by Dick Teague. The exterior of the car was a competition between two designes, Dick Teague of AMC and by Giorgietto Giugiaro of Ital in Italy. The Ital design won out. Again, neither of these people were Renault people. the platform is indeed Renault, the Automatic Transmission is ZF and engine is from PRV, Peugeot/Renault/Volvo, the same engine used in the Gullwing Delorean or the Jeep 4 cylinder Engine. This was AMC engineering department's last design before moving over to Chrysler. The fact that AMC was only owned by Renault 46% doesn't mean that Renault designed the car....AMC had it's own Design and Engineering Departments who also worked on Jeeps too. Renault only provided the parameters of the direction to go in. Nothing in the way of sheet metal or interiors would be transferable to any known Renault.
I rented a 1990 or 1991 from Avis but it was a Monaco. My friend and his father each bought one. I was going to but decided to pass. Good thing I did because they had nothing but trouble with theirs. I remember hearing the gas gauge was reading 1/2, but they ran out of gas on a bridge in NY. I kept my college car for another 8 years, and banked the money. Sad that my friend and his father both passed away at a young age 10 and 20 years ago respectively.
Same V6 engine that was used in the DeLorean. You can even tell by the sound of it.
A stylish looking car that would become the basis for the LH cars down the line. Chrysler just didn't know what to do with it.
We never did get that promised coupe, either.
The digital dash looks dim. With the analog dash, it would be alright...if it had rear shoulder belts. Anyone who needed seat belts and airbags know how well they work. What a crazy omission for a later 80s car.
I had one an 88. First car I ever bought on payments. It was roomy and comfortable with lots of power but literally the car from hell mechanically. It left me stranded on the highway once and would stall when it rained,it constantly overheated and it was 50/50 whether it would start on any given day. I tried to trade it many times but no dealer would buy it. I traded it in with 1 payment left!
Neat snapshot of some pre production models. AFAIK no production Premiers ever wore the Renault badge.
This was the first car in the USA to use complex reflector headlights.
+compu85 yes, you're correct which has caused much confusion in the Auto Hack Journalist world.......so many people think this car was marketed by Renault as a Renault and then Eagle........this car was only sold in the USA as an Eagle and not in any other country but Canada. You won't find anything like it in France
I think there was a Renault that was similar... the 25? But it would be like comparing our current USA Passat to the one Europe gets.
actually, they're not even close....really completely different cars....the Premier had a body designed by Ital of italy....so there was really nothing like it, that's why they even say in the video, that it's "all new" by AMC and "AMC's last designed car".
Always loved the design of these cars both exterior & interior. So much more interesting than the current crop of USA built mid-size sedans.
Thanks for posting this video this brings back some memories!
Those were great cars. My father had one and I was only a teenager at the time. I loved it. It was comfortable, gripped the road like an Audi. Its V6 wasn't that fast but it was smooth as hell and the interior was very classy and attractive.
The transmissions in them were a huge pile of junk
@@Toolaholic7 The Chrysler 4-speed ultradrives of this time were far worse.
A 3.0 Fuel Injected V6 running an 18.5 quarter mile! What a pleasant surprise! Haha!!
Fun fact: the plant that built the Premier still exists. It's located in Brampton, Ontario. It moved on to build the "cab forward" Chryslers such as the Intrepid, Concorde, 300M and Eagle Vision. From there it moved on to the LX cars, all of which (except the Magnum, obviously) it still builds today.
My family had a 1988 Eagle Premier. It was the car I learned to drive in. I remember all my friends assumed it was rear wheel drive when they opened the hood LOL!
That turn signal stalk is a trip.
Chrysler later used a similar turn signal stalk in the 1990-1993 LeBaron and Daytona.
The american version of the Renault 25
not really, it shares nothing with the Renault 25, nothing really, only it's suspension
nicolas molli renault 25 was renault medallion
@@engma91477 No, it was the Renault 21, the Eagle Premier was a mix between R25 engines and an extended R21 chassis.
I had an Eagle Premier. I think it was an 89. It was a good car. I'd like to find another one. It was comfortable, decent power, good handling and good looking.
Reminds me of a somewhat similar car that also flopped.. The Merkur Scorpio
These were incredibly good cars for the era. I learned to drive on a '91 as it was our family car at the time and I thrashed it to no end and it was a really unique and fun car to drive! Ours was mostly reliable although a few accessories failed multiple times, the fuel pump and ac compressor, seems like I remember it getting new ones several times at the local Chrysler dealer. I think we put like 150k on it and then I talked my dad into buying a Nissan Altima se stick in the mid 90s.
damn, those seats look comfy
manthony225 Eagle wanted their passengers comfortable while waiting for the tow truck
They are very comfortable--the seat is very long, supports the thighs down to the back of knees.
Very nice car, better than most of the junk we have now in 2016 !
Bender Rodriquez takes one to know one, you piece of shit !!!
Bilal Ahmed LOL, you don't seriously think this piece of shite is better than modern cars? Have you ever seen a modern car? It's way fucking better.
Bender Rodriquez yes. I have and domestic ones, so much low quality material and cost cutting. Cars are falling apart within three years. Go look at a shape of a comparable 3 year old 300c and tell me what you think.
www.carbuzz.com/news/2012/11/15/Rebadged-Disasters-Eagle-Premier-7711623/ Are you talking about this car??
You are joking I hope. Cars today are engineered 1000 times better in terms of precision thanks to a quantum leap in computing technologies. I've gone through that era of cars, and I can honestly tell you Japanese cars were the only reliable cars during this era.
Saw one of these for the first (and last) time, last year in Scranton. Had no idea what it was, but I took a bunch of pictures.
U are a strange sort, Eh????
It’s like the car is the embodiment of mid tier cubical workers at the office space. A car that tells others “I have a job but I make enough to get by.”
I had one for my first car back in '95. Mine was an '89 LX it had a lot of electrical problems and I heard a lot of them did. The 3.0 PRV V6 is very similar to the engine in the Delorean and some people even dropped them in.
French electrical problems overshadowed how good they were. Chrysler ditched it's K car based fleet and modified the premier to carry Chrysler throughout the 1990's for it's cab forward cars
I love my 1989 ES model. Leather seats. Very well built car!
DEFINATLY ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL CARS EVER MADE. I AGREE WITH ANY COMMENTS ABOUT THAT
Ive always loved the style of these early premiers. People poke fun of the quirky layout and climate functions... BUT if you have been in any late new car, you find you have to wait 30 seconds for the screen to boot up before you can access your heat and radio stuff THAT is a huge pain in the ass.
Back in 1997 I had a 1992 eagle premier. At that time I got good complaints about the eagle premier. But now it seems almost every body talks down on a eagle premier. I still miss my 1992 white eagle premier.
Was it an ES Limited? The ES Limited was the best. I am finally selling my 1991 ES Limited in Black. Will be putting it on eBay. I will no longer have garage space for it since I will be moving and I have two other cars. I was going to sell it 4 years ago because I thought I would not have garage space for it at that time but ended up with one garage space, which I put it in and my other car outside.
Chrysler sales for the Premier weren't enough to make use of all of the transmissions from Renault that Chrysler obtained when they bought AMC, so the Dodge Monaco was created to use them all up.
To the surprise of absolutely no one, Giorgetto Giugiaro boldly designed yet another box of a car. Sometimes I think the only reason that the wheel wells were round is because no one had perfected a square tire. The Golf and Scirocco looked sporty and fresh in the mid 70's, but this looked like he drew it in his sleep, then gave it some obnoxious front overhang to boot.
It should have had square tires and a square steering wheel as well.
My family owned this car. It was junk, constantly breaking down. However, it was my daily driver in high school and I have many fond memories of it. At the time, believe it or not, it was constantly being mistaken as a mercedes. And we thought it was cool because the nemesis in "road house" had one.
I can't get over that front overhang....the front wheels look like they're halfway down the car.
we were impressed by the good 0-60 time of 11.7 days lol.
That's average for the time. It isnt even that slow it's more than you need
I loved the way these looked back in the day. If nine year-old me could've bought a car, it would've been this one (or its Monaco twin).
It's a beautiful car. I had three, selling the third one now, had it for 30 years.
Good looking car that rode well; it looked better and drove better than the Taurus.
I almost had the Premier mixed up with the Renault/Eagle Medallion. Both cars arrived at the same time. While the Medallion left in 1989, the Premier/Monaco stayed until 1992, as the new LH cars replaced them for 1993.
I purchased a new 1988 Eagle Premier ES that looked identical to the two-to be gray and silver test car in this video. It was a wonderful car! Roomy and luxuriously appointed interior, smooth quiet ride and plenty of power. I put 77,000 trouble free miles on it before having minor issues with the fuel injection system. I decided to trade it in on a smaller, more economical car to better accommodate my longer daily commute. I'll always remember enjoying this car, my first family sedan.
You lucked out. Many were lousy
Rented these and loved them. One of the few FWD cars that really was roomy. Much better than the larger LeSabre/88/ Bonneville.
I am 40 years old and I don't think I've seen one of these in 25 years. this would win Radwood for sure.
I never thought much of them back then, just based on the looks. Honestly this wouldn’t make me want one now either.
Very positive review though, lots of positive comments in here too. One of my High School teachers had one and he raved about it more than once, so seems like it was a legit good car.
I bought one for a few hundred bucks back in 1998. The sheet metal was strong like a Volvo and the paint quality was excellent (metallic gray). Everything else failed, however..
I had an accident with a Toyota Corolla and and Honda Accord with one 10 years ago. The Toyota and Honda got totaled, I had a dented fender, a broken running light lens and a scuffed bumper. The police trooper said my car was built like a tank while the Japanese cars were like paper.
I totaled another one in 1990 in a 70-80 mph spin out on I-95 hitting the highway divider several times in a spin--was avoiding a tailpipe on the road. My mother got a concussion, my dad got a cut on the head from the seat belt anchor, I had bruises--but we survived.
OMG....LMAO.....WE HAD A 1989 EAGLE PREMIER..IT WAS A LUXURIOUS CAR IT WAS BURGUNDY & GREY IT WAS FAST & COMFORTABLE....MISS IT.
My wife had one of these when I met her. The damn thing caught FIRE one day. I signed on a used Sunfire that I knew she could afford and everyone thought I was an idiot for doing it. Well, I'm an idiot but we are still happily married 20 years later.
This was my first car.... Overheating like there is no tomorrow 😂
My dad had one when I was a kid; what memories
I remember these. Didnt see them too much at least around here. Its a ok looking car slightly generic. I like the interior. Im surprised a late 80s car didnt have shoulder seat betls..
Those pods are just like the ones in the Mitsubishi Magna. 🇦🇺
At some angles it even looks like the first Australian Magna.
Mitsubishi had a hand in design as well.
they were like we'll keep half of Renualt badges
He was correct in that this became the basis for the LH chassis that Chrysler transitioned to after the K-Cars. The Dodge Intrepid, Chrysler LHS and New Yorker of the mid-90s were all built on a modified version of this platform.
I love how much of a 'handfull' that car is to handle. Its a rally car. It just is.
I had one of these with the V6 as my second car. It was a nice car, and a bit better looking in production than the one they are showing here. It should have actually been the base of future cars like he mentioned.
It was. The chassis was the foundation of the Chrysler LH series of cars
In fact, it was the entire basis for the LH sedans in the 90's and 00's. Chrysler must have felt they had a good thing going with this platform even though they didn't sell a lot of the premiers and monacos. Or maybe, as it usually goes, they were just being very cheap about it.
Cool, I had a 1988 White Ford Tempo, with blue interior sedan, my co worked had a car like this. At Lowe's Foods, 1995, Cornelius, NC 😀
I got the 1988-1989 Eagle Premier brochure last year...but I like the ES model better.
I have a Jeep Comanche, I'd like to see a review of it from back in the day. Mine is a 1991.
That's funny, I've just realised that the doors of the Renault Eagle Premier are exactly the same as the Renault 25... :) Also the front and rear seats, and the dash board :))))
This car was designed by Renault for the European market.When they aquired AMC, Renault brought it over. When Chrysler bought AMC from Renault,they simply adapted the floor plan and engine layout for the LH cars saving a lot in re-tooling costs.
those Lee Press-Ons on fleek
About 18 years ago someone pulled out in front of me driving one of these. I was going about 45mph and I was in an older Buick at the time and yeah the Premier didn't do so good. I smashed into the left front fender and there was nothing left of the front end of their car. Their car was towed and I was able to drive mine home. Fortunately no one was seriously hurt.
I fancy this one.
I’m impressed, took em 7 minutes to tell us the cars “aight”
got a 87 Acura legend intead, but a nice design that flopped until DNA went into LH cars. Chrysler also got XJ cherokee that had Alliance wheels that was made from 80s to 2000s
...don't forget the Dodge Monoco, LOL!
Yeah, the Monaco that was NOT on a mission from God...
I remember this episode on the premier.
I remember this very well. I always thought it was a nice car. One of our neighbors growing up had one. Even then though I held it suspect for reliability. On the other hand, this car was the basis for the very successful LH sedans of the 90's and into the early 00's.
If Chrysler would have developed Eagle as a mid price luxury brand like Honda's Acura brand or Toyota's Lexus brand; would have helped Chrysler do better in that field.
According to Consumer Reports, this model was plagued with all sort of electronic problems, way more than any of its competitor either import, or domestic.
I owned a Premier ES and I can attest to that. However, I had no complaints or regrets since I paid only $450 for it
They did use this as the the base for the LH platform.
"American Motors' last product was one of its best."
Fun fact: the pre-production prototype we tested has Renault badges, instead of the standard Eagle
ones.
That state of the art Canadian plant currently builds the 300/Charger/Challenger