Why The 1975-1980 AMC Pacer Failed
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- Опубліковано 11 вер 2024
- No new car release in the mid-1970s captured the attention and accolades of so many American car consumers and automotive journalists like the 1975 AMC Pacer did. It was so very different than anything else on the road at the time. It was innovative and reliable however the 1975-1980 Pacer's product life cycle was short. Watch this video to find out why the Pacer failed.
My aunt bought one brand new in 1975 or '76. It was a dark metallic brown and she loved it. She had it for years and reluctantly finally sold it. We kids used to tease her about it and asked her things like whether she was planning on driving it on the Moon or something? She was full blooded Sicilian and would laugh and give back as good as she got. RIP Aunt Arlene...
I imagine you woke up with a few horse heads in bed next to you.
My dad used to sell these cars. He really loved his AMC's. Being part owner of a car dealership, he would drive various cars home every night. Everyday it was a different new car or used car whatever he could get his hands on. I remember as a kid that riding in a Pacer was like being inside of an aquarium.
How embarrassed was I in High School in the early-mid 80’s?...I drove a banana yellow Pacer, then a Green Gremlin!!! My step dad worked for an AMC Dealership, and these were his work cars, lol. I was happy to have something to drive, but got laughed at constantly!
Should have gotten it resprayed lol
I drove a '75 Hornet D/L sedan in high school, forest green with gold vinyl top/matching hubcaps, beige velour interior. 258 six under hood. It ran 0-50 in 7 seconds, left all those wheezy late 80's 4 cylinder cars in the dust. It was so fun driving an,old car that was quicker than almost every newer car, but that was life in the late 80"s☺ Dodge Dart SE 318 sedans beating 5.0 Mustangs, 350 powered Novas beating rich dudes in Buick Grand Nationals out of lights. Miss those good old days☺
Ironic how the Chevy Vega was junk, yet the Pacer was comfortable and reasonably powerful/fuel efficient for the time.
I can understand the embarasment part, there's certain cars I wouldn't drive. I don't even like tiny cars they're death traps and they don't suite my personality. Coupes and full-size Sedans are the best, you feel way more safer. More roomy interior and Trunk space. I've owned 2 Hatchbacks a 2006 Toyota Matrix XRS and a Yellow 2003 Suzuki Aerio SX Hatchback, that was a weird looking car and it turned out to be a trash can after 2 years of ownership it started to have serious mechanical problems. I decided it was time to part ways and move on. I would never buy a Hatchback ever again.
@@static_Tricolor_camry The best car I ever owned was a 2008 Tahoe. I had the “new” RX8” in 2004, but the engine was trash. We had an old Taurus station wagon in the 90s, which was great, but the Tahoe was the best.
it's nice to know the Pacer is not forgotten. I had one in the early 90s. it was a fun cheap car and always easy to find in a parking lot! :)
glad that you mentioned the rotary engine fiasco that GM caused. always thought that GM did that to cripple potential competition from AMC.
I LOVE AMC Cars, my grandfather (1908-2000) owned several AMC models. Pacer, Gremlin, Rambler, Hornet, AMX, Matador...etc, all gorgeous cars.
I always am happy to see a new video from this channel.
I third that
@@michaelmason6210 and forth !
Quality content 👍
and fifth
This is one of the few channels where I watch the videos more than once while waiting for new content to appear.
Odd car. But solid, and powered by a bulletproof cast iron straight six. Amazing visibility out of the Human Terrarium. It never deserved the hate.
The Plymouth Horizon/Dodge Omni came out in 1978 or so, and it helped end the Pacer. The L Cars of Chrysler had 4 cylinder engines and front wheel drive, leaving them fairly roomy. It was also available with four doors as well as a rear hatchback. 1000 lbs lighter than a Pacer, too.
In the mid 70s LA traffic scene, I used to make pick ups and some deliveries in my boss's Pacer. I loved it. sight lines were great and it drove real nice.
Cars today are excellent but they are not unique and distinctive the pacer deserves credit for its out of the box style .
Except cars today are not excellent. They're both ugly to look at and ugly to work on.
anything today looks the same...cheap plastic bubble with zero visibility.
Glam Stachee
True but cars today are incredibly reliable to drive 174,000 miles with no major repairs is amazing but you rightfully point out the down side .
@@GlamStacheessnostalgialounge I'll take the look and quality of today's cars over the 1980's boxy K-Crap that passed as cars.
@@timmmahhhh Yeah sure, good luck fixing your modern Chrysler garbage when it breaks down in the middle of the road.
I loved the Pacer. Country music star Conway Twitty's favorite car he owned was his Pacer.
I had a light blue 1975 Pacer. It was a great car. It was solid and fun to drive and the roominess was off the charts. I ended up selling it and bought a red Mustang II with 4 on the floor.
I had the 77 wagon. I called it a minivan before they existed. Mine was a stick with the straight 6 and it was pretty fast! It was tan with woven Indian pattern seats. I was gonna paint it black and tint the windows, but I wrecked it in 1985. It was my first car.
Thanks for shedding light on this long forgotten gem. But I say that NOW, (at the time I thought they were awful).
I lived about 1.3 miles from the assembly plant for the Pacer. At the time in my area it was also known as the "Garbage can with windows" . Can't say it's not a collectors item today but not back then.
Called them a rolling fishbowl back in the day
Dog bowls from me and my friends.
The cold capsule
larry borkstrom, a neighbor in our block had one of those in the '80s and we called it LA PECERA (THE FISHBOWL). "Not" strange that the colloquial name for it in Spanish was so close to the name of the car... Pretty much all of them sold here RUSTED IN PIECES (particularly on the rear) by the mid '90s.
My father-in-law calls them that
@@syxepop
My father had one and Guess what, it waw nicknamed " l'aquarium"... french for fishbowl.
A nick that carried across all cultures!
Commercially the Pacer failed.
The car has become a collector's item. Right doors longer than the left door. That makes it really rare.
Thanks so much for posting this! Pacer is my all-time fave. Guaranteed--a Pacer going down the road will get far more attention than any Lambo, Ferrari, etc.
My first car!! 1975 AMC Pacer Met brown with tan int. and 33,000 orig miles!! Purchased back in 1987 for $500
It's too bad AMC didn't have the proper capital to fully develop their cars. They were unique cars for their time.
michael tipton Agree wholeheartedly. It would have been really interesting to see what they would have come up with over the past 30 years.
michael tipton
To bad Mark Donohue was killed also, he put AMC on the map in the racing industry at the tail end of the muscle car era.
I had a 68 rambler station wagon with the 327 V8 ,it had good power .nice car.
The 2 seat 69-70 AMX was the AMC car to own!!
My Aunt and Uncle got a Pacer to transport their show dog. My uncle kept it a short period, maybe two years, but got rid of it. The gas mileage was why. What happened was this. The car would not run when the engine was cold. It was one of the six cyl models. What made it worse was they lived in NE Pennsylvania.The dealer fix was to drill out the carb's jets. The gas mileage plummetted. Car then got poor gas mileage. Similar to a GM V8 engine. They ended up buying a Caddilac in 1977.
Although the Pacer did not have a four cylinder option, the AMC two door Spirit did. It was the Pontiac "Iron Duke" (all cast iron head and block) four cylinder engine mated to the Chrysler three speed "Torque flight" automatic transmission, rear wheel drive. My wife drove the 1982 model.
They shoulda made the spirit with a 360 and four barrel that woulda been a badass 🚗
It was actually one of the best re-imaginings of the compact car ever. If they could have pulled off FW and the rotary engine, it would have been revolutionary.
The first car I ever remember riding in was my grandfathers 1962 Rambler! Later He got a 66 Plymouth Fury!
My girl friend had a 1976 Pacer, it was handed down to her from her aunt. She drove that car until 1982, it just would not run any longer. She never took care of it. I remember having to rescue her in the winter because the thing would never start when it was really cold. She always flooded it out trying to start it. I think that was a problem with these cars when it was cold out. But she liked the car, roomy interior, and the great big ashtray in the dash meant she didn't have to empty it as often.
If the car was maintained properly there was no problem starting it in the cold. I lived in Ottawa Canada at the time and mine would start reliably in -30 temperatures even without a block heater or battery warmer.
I can’t imagine how horrible her car must’ve smelled.
I remember reading that the Pacer was like a "rolling green house" with all that glass.
My grandpa LOVED the AMC cars.
He had a few sedans with the 258 straight six and my uncle had a Gremlin with a V8 and then a AMC "Eagle" wagon that had the 258 and AWD.
My parents briefly bought a 64 Rambler with the 258 in it. It was so old that it had points distributor, points type voltage regulator and drum brakes on all 4 wheels.
The mid to late 70's AMC cars that my grandpa had used the Ford electronic ignition.
The AMC cars of those years have a mixture of parts from other manufactures.
I believe the transmissions were Dodge 904 autos.
I drove my grandpa's late 70's AMC Concord a few times.
That 258 inline 6 in that relatively small car was actually a bit faster than most of your early 80's GM v6 cars. By a lot in some cases.
I had 2 Pacers. Loved them!!!
Could we get a video on General Motor's mid-60's personal luxury trio? The Cadillac Eldorado, the Oldsmobile Toronado, and the Buick Riviera.
My father and grandfather both owned American Motor products. I personally enjoyed the Concord.
my uncle owned one of those Concords....pretty nice ride as far as I remember because I was only 7 or 8
Yes. The Concord was excellent! It lasted my parents alot of years!
My uncle owned a Concord
Grampa had a Concord as well but we all called it a Hornet
My cousin had a V8 Pacer wagon in HS and I remember with the back seat folded down we could get like 7-8 people in that thing. Great for carload night at our local drive-in
Wayne's World, Wayne's World, Party Time, Excellent!!! Almost bought a 75 Pacer with the 304 in 1993, but went for a rust free 74 Hornet Sportabout 304 instead, as the Sportabout had 40K original miles☺ Able to run 0-60 in 7.9 seconds, with tire burning torque out of the gate, it was a fun sleeper.
One of the 1st cars I remember as a kid. My dad bought a new 75 or 6 Pacer X. It was yellow with black interior. I remember my brother and I rode in the back for 3 days driving from Edmonton Alberta to Lamar Colorado (and back) to visit my Aunty. Seeing that shot of the dashboard in this video is the first time ive seen that since the 70's. Serious time warp.
BTW the leaf springs in those cars always sagged out rapidly.
I love my 1976 amc pacer x . It gets more attention than any other car in my fleet.
In 1977 we had the Matador as transport cars. They had a pretty good kick to them.
My parents had a Matador, too; a dark blue station wagon. One of our neighbors was a salesman at an AMC dealership and a lot of the neighbors bought their cars from him. It had a V-8 under the hood made that thing accelerate faster than just about any other car. I even took (and passed) my initial drivers test in it when I was 16 y.o.!
The rolling fishbowl...the pregnant roller skate...the mobile greenhouse...etc. , etc. I can’t think of another car that had so many derisive nicknames.
AMC was to far ahead ,this was first car with cab forward design ,Power rack and pinion steering ,
R.I.P. Lee Iacocca...
"Old car memories" is my favorite car channel. The narration is smooth and relaxing. I watch it sometimes at night before bed to decompress. Keep up the good work !
I had an AMC 360V8 in my 78 Panther Jet boat. AMC's had very strong motors.
AMC! AMC! AMC! Richard Teague!!
Another great, and histrionically correct video!!!! Happy Independence day!
Yay! I was excited seeing a notification that y'all did another video. :)
100hp from a 5.3l (323 c i) V-8? My 1.6l (97 c i) Ford has 115 hp! I know the authorities strangled motors in the name of "fuel effieciency" but that's crazy.
AMC were stuffed when the rotor-motor was pulled at the last minute but surely there was another 4-pot motor on the market they could've used? Sticking a 5+ litre motor in it surely wasn't someone's brightest idea, but there again, I suppose they knew their market...
Enjoyed the video. Thank you.
Party on Wayne. Party on Garth. 😝
Excellent!!
SHWIIIINNNNG!!
preview of what cars in the 90s would look like... Loved AMC cars.
I was 16 years old in 1975 and I always thought the Pacer looked very cool! It's to bad they didn't survive!
Am 64 years old & think your,re cool too !
I have two 😁
I bought a Pacer D/L brand new in 1976. Gas mileage was not my biggest concern; I liked the car because it was so different and futuristic looking. I've always liked different, even outrageous looking cars; I've owned a DeLorean, Porsche 928, Cadillac Eldorado, Dodge Stealth Turbo, Plymouth Prowler, and Cadillac XLR, just to name a few. Like all of these the Pacer had and still has its haters, and yes, even then many people referred to it as a fishbowl, but I can tell you that it was a well-built, attention-getting car with features ahead of its time. Mine was highly optioned and when you got inside the feeling was that of a full size luxury car, very roomy with excellent visibility. It was quiet, rode well, and to consider it competition to a cheap, tinny Pinto or Vega is ludicrous; it was in a completely different class and I really don't believe anyone back then considered them as equivalents. I drove my Pacer for over five years, only selling it for the same reason I ended up selling all my cars beck them; they could only handle so many Chicago winters before they began to show rust.
I agree with your comments.
I had a new 1975 Pacer X, 258, three-on-the-tree with overdrive, p/s, and a/c. Neat car; I liked it. Back then I was driving about 30,000 miles per year, so I changed cars often (also in Chicago) so never encountered the rust problem.
My mother bought a 1975 Pacer when I was in High School. Her Pacer would wear out the front tires every 5 to 6 thousand miles, even though it came with 50,000 radial tires. She kept having to get the front end re-aligned, but they never could get it right. After 4 to 5 thousand miles the inside half of both tires would be showing steel. She only kept it for about 18 months and went through 4 pairs of front tires. I'm was glad she got rid of it because she kept borrowing my 1969 Mercury Montego (351 Cleveland:) because the Pacer was always in the shop for one thing or another.
That is really odd... I bought a Pacer new in 75 and paid a bit extra to get Goodyear polysteel radial tires on it. All but one of the original tires made it to 100,000 miles. The one that failed broke a belt rather than wearing out. There must have been something wrong with how the front end was being aligned.
I remember the AMC Eagle, that was the coolest 4WD car ever at that time, musta been around 79 -83
I thought owning an Eagle would be great! Unfortunately, back then I was just a poor working college student.
@@alvincash3230they were terrible on gas ⛽️
They don't call it the "Malaise Era" for nothing. Cars were so slow, awkwardly styled and low quality in those days. I remember when the Pacer first came out, it looked like a fish bowl. Good video presentation, though.
The malaise era are all works of art compared to the cheap generic plastic bubbles they make now
Never owned a Pacer, but had a girlfriend that had one. I found it to be a dependable, economical car, it drove well and was affordable. It was a mistake to down the vehicle, far better than some on the market at the time.
I enjoyed this and liked your analogy of what AMC could have done to keep marketing the Pacer.
I remember them well. Drove one once. Lots of torque from that engine and it had a smooth, big car feel, running down the road.
They were striking. Looked like a big bubble coming down the street.
I love the design of this car. Its just beautiful and the only reason I found out bout this car was in gta5 months ago. The Declasse Rhapsody is thats the version of this car. And I just love driving it in the game😊 I would defenitly love to own one, one day😍
7:57 I never knew there was a stationwagon Pacer! With fake wood paneling! I actually kinda like this! lol
Great thing about the amc v-8s is they are all based on the same rotating assembly so if you wanted to put a 401 cid amc engine in your pacer or gremlin its w straight bolt in swap. Knew a guy with a supercharged 401 in a gremlin years ago. He surprised a lot of guys with mustangs and camaros...😀😀😀
I remember this car when new and I never knew that about the doors! We laughed at this car when I was in high school when it came out......not any longer as I’ve been to car shows and if any of these are there, they DO have a crowd around them! 👌
I remember seeing these during my high-school days🙄🚗🏡
The greenhouse on these cars was terrible. The reliable 6s were difficult to work on, with the rear 2 plugs nearly impossible to get to. The V8 was worse. What really killed this car was the new FWD cars from Japan and Europe, as well as the Chrysler knock offs, that offered superior mileage, handling, and traction. Also what hurt these cars was trying to source parts. AMC always outsourced parts and never kept 1 as std equipment. 1 model yr might have a Chrysler trans, or Dana rear gear whereas the next might have a Borg/Warner or Spicer. They also used both GM and Ford electrical and fuel system components, which if went out of production, the owner was SOL. Neat but rare to see 1 on the road nowadays.
I find the 1977 AMC Pacer wagon way more attractive than the sedan.
It was slightly more tolerable.
@@rightlanehog3151 Slightly more tolerable?
I also find the straight six Pacers more attractive than the V8 models. I've always hated the more upright grille.
@@jasoncarpp7742 I am a big wagon fan and the proportions on the Pacer wagon were better but it was no beauty queen. In those days, you would have to walk right passed the sensible Hornet wagon on the AMC lot to get to the Pacer. I'd take the Hornet Sportabout any day.
@@rightlanehog3151 I agree. While I like the idea behind the Pacer, I find the Hornet more attractive, and the same goes for the Gremlin. The Pacer was not the most attractive car American Motors produced. I find the Pacer wagon more attractive than the Pacer sedan. I also find the 1975-77 Pacer front end more attractive to look at than later models.
You could put a bangin system in it. Hubcaps would pop off.
Anybody remember the guy that made that big long hoagie in the back of a pacer in the commercial.
In my dad's shop, you never knew who built the engine in an AMC until you opened the hood. VINS rarely matched the engine.
All of that glass, I understand, made for a very hot interior during summer months.
That car needed tinted glass as standard!
Ah.! The AMC 232 cubic in. Ten dollars in the tank and I was gone. Lol.!
I wonder why AMC discontinued both it and the 199?
All that greenhouse is where the added weight comes from. Glass is heavy, & mounted up high, it really affects the handling too...
Pacer wagon with the wood grain v/8 loaded in red or yellow was my choice! I remember looking at a yellow one in 1979 in a wagon but can't remember the engine size. Wish now I would have bought it and kept it for good. It was a beautiful car sitting in the showroom. Very spacious car it was!
Great video as always! I really really like this channel and I always love to see a new video. The Pacer was a truly unique vehicle and I was just graduating high school in 1974 and it was available just after that. I test drove one and really liked it but ended up getting a mint condition Dodge Coronet for really great price and it served me well for many years. A big reason the Pacer failed was that upright grill and hood ornament in the last year or two. Really really ugly. I also am a fan of the AMC Gremlin it was truly superior to the Vega and the Pinto and we all know what happened to the engines in the Vegas (kaboom) and the fire problems with the gas tanks in the Pintos. I had a friend who was given a new Gremlin for graduation in 1974 and we bopped around in it and it was a blast and so easy to take care of and really bulletproof.
The problem with the Vega engine was it was all aluminium. It did not have steel cylinder liners. AS A RESULT IT HAD AN OIL CONSUMPTION PROBLEM. eNGINE COMPANIES SOON BEGAN OFFERING STEEL LINEDcylinders in the aluminum BLOCKS AND THE PROBLEM WAS SOLVED. tHE pinto HAD POOR FUEL TANK LOCATION.
I doubt that the grill was the reason it failed, it was already on the down slide when that was introduced.
My Father John Henry Byrd Owned One Of These AMC Pacers Back In The Late 70s Its Very Sad That They Did Not Last, Myself I Feel If They Are To Be Put Up For Auction And They Are Originals They Should Get A Very Great Price At A Very Great Auction House. I Miss Them Days Too.
Pacer was a smash hit success for American Motors, selling about 235,000 cars in first year of production -almost as many for the entire seven year production of the Javelin.
Only two years later, AMC made public announcement they had turned a profit and were selling more Jeeps than cars.
Therefore it would have been irresponsible to stockholders not to morph the company into Jeep Eagle... so they did.
Pacer was AMC's second car, after 71-4 Javelin to feature non-symmetrical design; no mirror image right and left side interior parts. Moreover, passenger door longer than driver door = shorter driver door easier entry/exit for driver, longer passenger door easier entry/exit for passenger into backseat.
The exterior styling is otherwise actually a pedestrian and motorcyclist collision safety car: two aspects 1) The sloped front hood causes a hit pedestrian to roll onto the hood instead of breaking their spine (certain death) 2) Pacer featured 'aircraft doors' to eliminate traditional 'rain gutters' above the side windows, which became known to bust open motor cycle helmets (certain death) in a side impact collision.
One could not buy 'a lemon' from AMC because all vehicles were covered by their excellent Buyer Protection Plan warranty.
Saw an AMC Eagle in the wild the other day. They were built like tanks. Basically a Jeep with a car body.
The Pacer should, could have the STEP up from the other small compact car made in america. Just needed that kick it never receive.
LOVED the Pacer . It should have gone after Granada and Malibu not Pinto or Vega
I agree. The Pinto had a gas tank problem and the Vega had a rust problem.
@@motorTranz The Pinto's gas tank problem was debunked there was test done after the
lawsuits that was no more fire hazard than any other cars on the road and the Vega's rust issue was fixed during the production run, the only real issue with the Vega was the
aluminum block with no cast iron cylinder sleeves.
@@motorTranz - And the Vega's engine was as durable as a potato chip!
@@jaimegirl59In it's later years the aluminum block Vega engine was improved and turned out to be very reliable.
If I remember correctly, John Denver's character drove one in the movie "Oh God".
i remember people called the amc pacer the bubble
A 1978 Pacer wagon was the first new car I bought. I was reluctant because I didn't like the appearance so much but my wife loved the way it looked. I will have to say, from what I remember, it was comfortable and spacious for a smaller car. It had a straight 6 in it that didn't get that great of gas mileage though.
The things we do for girls. I’ve actually seen Barry Manilow in concert because of a girl.
Great offering here !! The Spacer !!! Call Wayne of Wayne's World !!! Kidding aside, i remember reading about concept cars in the '60s as a grade schooler and one i recall was the Sillohuette (sp). Anyway, may have insprired the Pacer. Jeez, that later grille was sad.
I had a friend who had one of these from his dad we HAD to drive it sometimes. ONLY good thing about it was the AC was like an Icebox inside. And it was hot here in SF Valley
I have to say I always liked the Pacer wagon and the 258 I6. AMC had limited funds but they took risks and created ground breaking designs with the Gremlin and Pacer and toward the end with the Eagle AWD and the Jeep Cherokee although not all were long term successes.
I find it interesting how Subaru claimed to have the first sport ute wagon when amc had one 20 years earlier.
My friend had one.
Not a bad looking car.
But don't be thinking you'll have an easy time changing that valve cover gasket.
The V8 Pacer would be cool. Pull out the 309 and put in a 390 of 401. a bolt in replacement. Put 304 stickers on the air cleaner to make it a sleeper.
Yes. I recently read that the last AMC V-8 lineup [304/360/401] all shared the same block. Just the stroke and/or bore was increased to the larger displacement.
@@EdMan57Externaly the blocks were the same, but the 304-360-401 all had thier own block due to different diameter bores. I believe the 304 & 360 shared the same stroke though.
@@johneckert1365 .Thanks for the info.
AMC! Yes... Larger than a Pinto Or Vega.. But way more safe.. [By The Standard of the Time]. A co worker I worked with in the late 70's 80s', owned a Gremlin ,It had rattles,paint failed ,but,that inline six would not Quit!
Another excellent upload. A pretty majestic ride for me, hitch hiking back in the 1980's. Freezing cold next to the M1 one minute, then in a nice warm fish bowl, the next Happy times = )
I've always liked the way the Pacer looks. AMC had so many cool cars that looked great and were reliable. I've looked into buying a Pacer over the last few years. Everyone I find is junkyard material
My dad picked up a used Pacer for less than $1000. I drove it to school for a couple of years. It was very roomy and quiet on the highway. Also reliable. Never left me stranded.
But it was gas guzzler. I think my dad's Buick Electra got better mpg.
The first time I saw this car was a 1973 even then I thought it has a lot of glass ! But I grew to love it
There was no Pacer in 1973
Me too, I always learn something, the delivery is a little dry but a lot of information at a good pace, Great vids!
One thing that hurt American Motors was the recession my dad bought at gremlin and we drove it it was always in the shop the engine would ping you can always look back but you know if you didn't drive one you didn't have one you don't you don't know what the real history is
My mom had a Pacer, and she never had any problems in it. A friend of mine had a 304 V8 Gremlin X. he dropped a mildly built 401 in it as the 304, 360, and the 401 were dimensionally identical. That Gremlin with the 401 in it was sick. I had a CJ 5 and a CJ7 with the 304 in them. Just a 4 barrel and headers made them dangerous, but fun.
AMC was always the most innovative company.
It basically created the modern SUV craze with the Jeep Cherokee.
It created the crossover with the AMC Eagle.
All of Chrysler’s innovative “cab forward” FWD LH cars of the 1990s? Straight from AMC and its collaboration with Renault.
In a way Chrysler has replaced AMC. Chrysler has gone from the very innovative (K car, minivan), to the very bold (Viper, Ram), but also the lacklustre (Caliber, Dart), and the inefficient-and-rapidly-aging-but-we-have-no-money-to-replace-it (Mercedes E Class... I mean, Chrysler LX platform... Charger, 300, Challenger, etc etc).
I was thinking the 4wd Eagle was more in that line, although AMC was already making Cherokees at that time as well
Chrysler's took all the credit that was earned by AMC for that LH platform.
The Pacer was a great idea. But AMC was NOT the company to pull it off. At the time, they lacked a 4-cylinder engine. They lacked a four-speed transmission. They lacked a reliable overdrive.
They completely forgot about parts sharing among body styles. For instance, the Pacer used re-tooled versions of the Javelin's door handle with integrated lock cylinder. However; for whatever reason, they chose to re-imagine the handle with NO provision for a lock cylinder and placed the lock cylinder in the door. So, they created yet another door handle they didn't need to for no real reason. The Pacer could have easily used the Gremlin/Hornet gauge cluster but no, they chose to create yet another bespoke cluster. What I'm getting at is the Pacer Program was wasteful. Instead of using already designed, off-the-shelf parts.... they created all new tooling for parts they really didn't need.
Quite honestly, AMC should have used the 110-million they blew on the Pacer program and put that money towards their already existing small cars and make them BETTER.
Why didn't they create a little 100-horse 2.5 litre 4-cylinder? They could have made a slant 4 out of half a V8 or a real inline by taking two cylinders out of the 232 which they would eventually DO after wasting money on Audi's 2.0 litre four and then the anemic Iron Duke.
What if the Gremlin/Hornet platform had gotten rack & pinion steering? Standard disc brakes and a standard sway bar? They'd have been the best handling, best stopping American made cars of the time.
Why didn't AMC phone up their Argentinian brothers and borrow the tooling for an OHC six? Argentina had a HOT OHC inline six that made almost 300 horsepower. AMC would've been the king of sixes.
Had AMC not wasted all their money, they could have outright PURCHASED Laycock deNormanville; makers of the famous J-type overdrive and installed them on ALL their cars. AMC was actually looking at adapting a J-type to the back of the Chrysler 904.... effectively creating what could have been the first Overdrive-Automatic in the industry but LdN went into receivership and today is known as Gear Vendors.
I had a problem with the automatic transmition selfe destruction two in 6 years.
It not a "sales disaster". It sold well for a while. AMC didn't have the resources to replace it. Would you call the VW Type 1 Beetle a "sales disaster" because people eventually stopped buying it?
Good point
The Pacer failed because it was a small car that got big car mileage. Simple as that.
When discussing corporate successes and failures, nothing is ever that simple.
@@jakekaywell5972
Care to elaborate with regard to the Pacer? Buyers in the '70s didn't seem to have too many other qualms about the car. Had it gotten 30 mpg it likely would have been much more successful.
@@aaroncostello8812 The concern about gas mileage is fair. However, it also failed because AMC spent too much money on developing the thing relative to existing demand. Pair this with an increasingly worsening reputation and you have a bit of a perfect storm on your hands.
@@jakekaywell5972
There was huge demand for small American cars by 1975. Ford's Mustang II sold 386,000 copies in 1974...nearly triple what the Mustang sold in 1973...and cars like the Vega and Pinto were also selling well. You are certainly right about AMC's finances being a stumbling block to the Pacer's success. They just didn't have the money to get the small car formula right, and were forced to stuff an old Rambler engine in a car that was otherwise quite innovative for the time.
@@aaroncostello8812 The OPEC threat scared the automobile consumers, fueled by the media's overly paranoid reporting of the so called oil shortage, which drove the industry to create models that would sell. My parents traded their Cadillac for a Buick Regal with a V6. The solution ? The US should have upped their crude production and watched the OPEC nations ramp up production thus lowering fuel prices. It was all about petroleum supply control.
Gremlins are my favorite, but Pacer is second
The Pacer was 77.3 inches wide. Insane!
The Pacer reminds me of Wayne's World. Had a very obese colleague who had one. The car fit him to a "T"
The word is "FAT", not "obese".
And I would know; or used to, anyway.
Am I the only one that turns the video speed up to 1.25 so it sounds Normal?