Production was discontinued after Chrysler's acquisition of AMC in 1987. The story would be similar for the high-performance version of the Alliance introduced for 1987, the GTA. Consequences: I’ve owned it for over 5 years. In the context of the ’80s, these were great cars: virtually bulletproof, precise and predictable handling that couldn’t be beat and faster than you think. What’s more, the new Alliance made the Car & Driver 10-Best list and was also named Motor Trend’s Car of the Year. The problem is that most people who bought a cheapo car like the Alliance did not do routine maintenance and the dealer mechanics knew little about them. Except for the front wheel bearings and front motor mounts. The only memorable part of the experience was driving with the “pedal to the metal” on the way to the airport and not going very fast. [16], The Alliance was launched into the U.S. subcompact market segment against the Chevrolet Chevette/Pontiac 1000, Ford Escort/Mercury Lynx, Toyota Corolla E70, Volkswagen "Rabbit", Chrysler twins Dodge Omni and Plymouth Horizon, Nissan Sentra, and Honda Civic.[17]. At 4900 rpm with premium U.S. gasoline, this engine developed 95 hp (71 kW; 96 PS). Certainly, a high asking price didn’t help: The base model coupe went for $9,000 before the addition of common options like A/C. It was a seriously comfortable car – as long as you were in the front seat. The Renault GTA, introduced in 1987, offered performance that matched the brand’s renowned interior comfort. I’m sure the honor made owners feel better about their purchase but that decal became a cruel joke (or maybe a taunt) 3-4 years later when these things starting falling apart as they did in the DC area when I was there – hey, there’s another broken down Renault Alliance, Motor Trend’s Car of the Year! They were everywhere in the 80s, but by the time I was in high school, they were all gone. Whatever cars are purchased for in the Continent, they aren’t, or weren’t, bought to be relied upon. Just love the car! The GTA was available in 2-door sedan or convertible versions, with a single powerplant: a 2.0 L fuel-injected 4-cylinder engine. [4] Renault's objective was to build its newer models at AMC's existing manufacturing plants, thus avoiding the problems Volkswagen encountered with its "Rabbit" version of the Mk1 Golf assembled in its new factory in Westmoreland, Pennsylvania. I grew up with my first car a 72 Vette, then a 73 Z-28..Now, It was not a V8 growler but, it introduced me to a small car that would hang a corner, run 100 MPH for 30 miles on I-75 and get 35 MPH..One night I was following my wife home, she was driving her new 94 Jeep. I have a restored 1987 GTA for sale if anyone is interested, its a red convertible. As you can see, AMC converted some Alliance four-doors into limousines as a publicity stunt. [15][4] The European Car of the Year for 1982 was described as "the bargain of the year in the U.S." for 1983. "[42] They noted, "if we were some other magazine, this would be our car of the year."[42]. Not entirely because of traffic but the car would just about keep up with traffic. While on the engine subject, the heat shield on the exhaust manifold cracked and rattled. The Chevette was no-frills basic and crude. They were slow in an era when there was no excuse. Consequences: I am 6’5″ tall and almost hurt myself trying to drive a coworkers Alliance sedan. Here’s a shot of the 52nd street facility from awhile back, looking east on 52nd street at 30th avenue: …and here’s what the area once occupied by the Lakefront Plant looks like today: Ooh! Alliance, a state of the art front drive", Renault Owners Club of North America - support, parts, and resources, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Renault_Alliance&oldid=971018865, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 3 August 2020, at 18:25. Recall Date: 1992-04-10 They did a customer survey and Renault rated just above AMC so they went with that. !. Remedy: The Renault Alliance is a subcompact automobile manufactured and marketed in North America by American Motors Corporation (AMC) for model years 1983-1987. mass-market. Maybe the GTS driver left his parking brake on (or granny-shifted), since it finished faster in contemporary road tests. 1999 Jeep Cherokee with a notable exception, starter motors that are next to the exhaust manifold, no biggie, just push start it and get home. So I read up a little (on the “Alliance” anyway) and found that: a) AMC had a record profit in ’79, but Jeep sales crashed in the oil crunch and they had little else still worth selling, so cash flow crunched. It developed 96 pound-feet (130 N⋅m) of torque at 3000 rpm and 77.5 hp (58 kW; 79 PS) at 5000 rpm. By the end of 1980, Renault held a controlling interest of AMC. Don’t tell me it was bad maintenance! And surprisingly no one removed the decal, ever, maybe it was embedded in the glass. I wouldn’t even bother to mention that trivial detail except that it brings back a funny memory — the first owner of my white GTA had debadged it entirely, no doubt in hopes that it would pass for a BMW 3-series. Combine those three elements and you have tough competition for the Escort, Chevette and Horizon and the imports, and a product that comes close to being the best in its class. It had to be the most forgettable car I’ve ever driven. $ 11K or more for a little car like that in 1987 would be a hard sell. "[45] The engine was smooth, refined, and built tight, but difficult to "keep on cam" with the automatic transmission. Run-of-the-mill Alliances were known for having a nice interior, but the GTA kicks things up a bit with exclusive sport seats and a steering wheel from the Renault 5 Turbo. Truly astonishing. I do remember riding in a friend’s mother’s car as a kid. While reading this well-written article, I kept wondering why these Kenosha-built cars were branded “Renault” and not “AMC”. This is what I love about this place. I thought they were ugly, and still do. Renault and Peugeot generally had gas station dealers who might occasionally get a car in. There were 8 GTAs at the Import/Kit Car show at Carlisle this year. Renault GTA. In any case, all Alliances were officially classified as domestics whose contents were at least 70% locally-produced. [4], Banks refused to provide AMC further credit to develop new products for the changing marketplace, so AMC turned to Renault for a $90 million loan. At only $5,200, and with seemingly little to do but hop in and cruise, this may be the perfect summertime ride. Not far below Dallas is a place with a batch of “La Casita” fiberglass trailers. At the start of the post I’d never have thought that possible. At the end of the test period, which IIIRC was 50,000 kilometers, they completely disassembled the car. These included the Alliance's less powerful engine whose output was further limited by the more demanding U.S. emission requirements, as well as the popularity of air conditioning in the U.S. when it was seldom ordered by European customers. Specific to the sporting GTA variant, you could have either the coupe or the cabriolet. [4] Moreover, while Georges Besse championed the opportunities in the North American market, Renault executives and labor leaders perceived AMC as a bottomless pit. One of my wife’s cousins drove an Alliance – and drove it for a long, long time. Competition from the "Big Three," the rise of Asian import automobiles, new safety regulations, the 1973 oil crisis, and 1979 energy crisis left American Motors in a weak position in the U.S. marketplace. I would have scooped it up if I had the money. The high beam clicker breaks all the time, finally just put a toggle switch on the dash board. My Alliance absolutely started to fall apart at 75,000 miles. That was the last straw. So to the owner, a big “Bravo” — or perhaps just a simple “Well done”. Let’s start with some history. [21], Bolstered by the additional two- and four-door hatchback models, sales increased to over 208,000 for 1984. With the stiffer sedan, I used to enjoy flicking the car around typical 90-degree turns around town without slowing from the 30 mph speed limit, and had a rude surprise the first time I tried to do the same in a borrowed Civic. Railways, mostly. The more things change the more they stay the same. This cycle happened a half dozen times. [37] It also featured 15-inch aluminum alloy sport wheels with low-profile Michelin Sport XGT 195-VR50 series tires, upgraded suspension with thicker sway bars, vented front disc brakes, larger exhaust pipe, optional driving lights, custom body moldings, a small spoiler on the rear trunk, red inlaid shift knob, close ratio gears on the manual transmission, stiffer engine mounts, larger brake booster, and special bolstered "racing" seats unique to the model. By the way, you can tell this is Southern Alberta–in this case, the PGA vanity plate refers to an association for professional potato growers, not professional golfers. And for some reason I also remember these being a feature of a Jeep model (maybe the Cherokee?) …anyone else can please share a decent picture? The smaller parking light is what did me in, I thought all of these had 4 sealed beams like the regular ones did. I had that done at 50k, again at 100k. I think they used some unconventional engieering (meaning PITA to repair) and as such were junked whenever a seemingly minor repair required removing the engine. The automaker offered zero-interest financing on the Alliance and Encore models in the fall of 1986. This particular example, in outstanding condition, looks like it just rolled right out the 80s. Chrysler inherited all of that for a song and it helped them right up until the Mercedes debacle. Only 150,000 Alliances and Encores were built in 1985, which includes all the available models. I too owned a brand new GTA back in late ’86 and I put 190K on it with no mechanical issues whatsoever except that it ate wheel bearings and motor mounts. Nearly every one that i saw die an early death was for lack of maintenence, they where considered by most to be a disposable car i guess. The red metallic one has been freshly restored, it is the wife’s, i have a black one, its next. I had one just like that as a rental for a couple weeks after my Jetta was totaled by my girlfriend while the driver of the other car was considered at fault. And Renault was in good financial shape – and AMC needed money and a line of credit. Improving economic conditions and lower gasoline prices meant total sales dropped to 65,000 in 1986. The Alliance provided many donor parts (engine and suspension) for the Sports Renault race car, a single make series created by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) in 1984. Color: White. By 85,000 miles, the thing did not start reliably most days.
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