AMC Concord - Articles - Zimbio

Welcome to our wikizine called "AMC Concord"

Tue, 22 Aug 2007 21:25:01 GMT

posted by allworld
Wikizines are interactive magazines that anyone can create or edit - and this one is called "AMC Concord". Here you can find fresh voices and respond in real time. Some members write articles about recent news and trends related to the wikizine's topic, others recount relevant personal stories or share their favorite pictures and video clips. Got an interesting idea or story to share with other members of this wikizine? Well, then put on your journalist's cap and add your own article!

1978

Wed, 23 Aug 2007 15:08:43 GMT

posted by allworld
Because of its poor financial situation, AMC was unable to build a completely new car to replace its successful, but aging Hornet. Competition from Ford's all-new Fox platform variants, also introduced for 1978, and GM's still-popular RWD X-cars was stiff, so the struggling fourth American automaker needed something fresh if they wanted to continue competing in a class that had long been their bread-and-butter. The "new" car took the ca. 1970 Hornet body, grafted on the facelifted 1977 Gremlin's front fenders, a new hood, chrome 6-section grille with white rectangular parking lights, new rectangular headlights, bumpers, fiberglass rear fender end caps, rectangular tri-color taillights, and a stand-up hood ornament with a new Concord emblem. Increased sound insulation, suspension upgrades, and a more upscale instrument panel completed the old Hornet's transformation into the new 1978 Concord.
Three models were available: Base, Sport and the top-line D/L. The D/L featured many of the luxury cues that were popular on cars in the 1970s; a landau vinyl roof with opera windows (coupe only), color-keyed wheel covers, reclining seats covered in velveteen cloth, and woodgrain instrument panel overlays. The D/L wagon featured exterior woodgrain trim and reclining seats in a leather-like perforated vinyl. The Sport package included slot-style road wheels and bodyside tape stripes on the lower half of the vehicle, running up around the wheel flares. While one could get options like cruise control and air conditioning, power windows and power door locks were unavailable. A 232 in³ six-cylinder engine was standard, with a 258 in³ six-cylinder and a 304 in³ V8 being optional on the D/L models. American Motors introduced the availability of a Volkswagen/Audi-designed 2.0 L I4 engine which was also available in the Gremlin and later the Spirit. The engine was the same one used in the Porsche 924, although the Porsche was fitted with Bosch fuel injection instead of carburetors on the AMC models. This engine provided improved economy, but was not as powerful as the standard six-cylinder engine. Because of the expense of acquiring the rights to the new 2.0L engine, AMC could not afford to make it standard equipment.
Based on the hatchback model, the AMX was available for 1978, including a different front fascia with single round headlights, a flush blackout grille, round amber parking lights, a brushed aluminum targa band roof, body color trim, the Gremlin's "power bulge" hood, and fiberglass wheel flares. Only the 4.2L I6 and 5.0L V8 engines were available with the AMX, the latter engine available solely with the 3-speed automatic.
American Motors marketed the Concord as a more economical alternative to larger luxury cars. The tag line in the ads at the time of Concord's introduction touted it as the car with "The luxury America wants, the size America needs.". The Concord outsold the Pacer, Matador, and Gremlin combined for its first year.

1980

Wed, 23 Aug 2007 15:09:21 GMT

posted by allworld
The hatchback was dropped for 1980, and the remaining models were given a smoother appearance. The sedan versions of the D/L and Limited were given full vinyl roofs with nearly triangular opera windows embedded in the C-pillars; the coupe versions received squared off opera windows, and revised chrome opera window trim with vertical strakes occupying the space between the window itself and the outer piece of trim. Limited wagons received blackout paint and chrome trim surrounding their rear quarter windows. Base sedans and coupes retained the same rooflines and treatment seen on Hornets since 1970. Taillights were modified and given a wraparound treatment. All Concords received a new horizontal bar grille, with the Concord name in script to the driver's side, and a new, squared-off hood ornament bearing the AMC tri-color logo. That same year, options such as power windows and power seats were also made available. General Motors' Iron Duke I4 engine was also made available for 1980 to replace the rarely ordered VW/Audi four. The 5.0L V8 and 3.8L I6 were dropped outright for 1980, leaving only the outsourced 2.5L I4 and AMC's durable 4.2L I6 engines as the available choices. All AMCs were offered with Ziebart Factory Rust Protection for 1980, which included a new 5-year No Rust Thru warranty in addition to the Buyer Protection Plan 12/12 warranty that AMC introduced for 1972.

1979

Wed, 23 Aug 2007 15:08:58 GMT

posted by allworld
The next model year saw moderate upgrades to keep the car fresh. A "waterfall" grille with a fine chrome vertical bar treatment, quad rectangular headlights atop slim, horizontal rectangular parking lights, and lighter aluminum bumpers were new for 1979. The D/L sedan was given a new vinyl roof design which extended only over the rear passenger compartment was complemented by chrome trim that overlaid the B-pillar and wrapped over the vinyl roof at its leading edge. 1979 also saw the introduction of the Limited model, available on coupe, sedan, and wagon models, and appointed with leather upholstery, thick carpeting, full courtesy lighting, body-colored wheel covers, and a standard AM radio. The Concord Limited was very well equipped for a compact car at the time. The D/L package, now the middle trim level, was extended to the hatchback, which was given a brushed aluminum roof band and a half-vinyl roof to differentiate it from the standard hatchback. The Sport package was dropped, and the AMX moved to the new Spirit liftback body.

Epilogue

Wed, 23 Aug 2007 15:11:03 GMT

posted by allworld
The AMC Eagle remained in production, using the Concord platform until it too was discontinued in the middle of the 1988 model year. For 1987, AMC introduced the imported Renault Medallion to replace the discontinued Concord, as well as the similarly-sized, but poor-selling Renault 18-based 18i/Sportwagon, which had been sold at AMC dealerships from 1981-86. The Medallion, like its 18i/Sportwagon predecessors, also failed to sell in large numbers, and imports were canceled by Chrysler at the end of 1989.
The Mexican government-owned automaker VAM made a vehicle called the VAM Lerma, which was based on the Concord's chassis with the Spirit's body panels.
The Chrysler Corporation which took over AMC in 1987, made a full-size sedan called the Chrysler Concorde from 1993 to 2004.
In The Betsy (1978), 1978 Concords can be seen being completed on the Kenosha assembly line.