Re: [Amc-list] Pacer Front End

["Dan Strohl" <DStrohl@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Not to go OT away from AMC, but I'd always read that GM designed the
Monza to take the rotary, then when they couldn't get the rotary
approved, continued on with the Monza just as AMC continued on with the
Pacer, thus the overlap of the Monza and the Vega in the market for a
couple of years. I'd always read that the Citation was always intended
to appear just as it appeared - a FWD, conventional-engined replacement
for the RWD X-body (Nova, Phoenix/Ventura, Apollo, Omega).

dan


Date: Mon, 03 Nov 2008 14:45:43 -0500
From: Frank Swygert <farna@xxxxxxx>
Subject: Re: [Amc-list] Pacer Front End
To: amc-list@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Message-ID: <490F54E7.4030204@xxxxxxx>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

I just got the 401 mixed up between Buick and olds... ;> 

You are correct about the rotary engine. AMC had a license to build them
in North America (Curtiss Wright had all NA rights from the German
firm). I think GM had one too, but may have been using AMCs license. The
story goes that AMC made the deal to get the engines from GM as AMC
wouldn't be able to build enough to make re-tooling cost effective, and
GM had the same problem, so selling to AMC got GMs numbers up -- win-win
situation. 

GMs problem was emissions. They couldn't get the engine clean enough.
Mazda fooled it -- they came up with a "after burner" (they have a name
for it, which eludes me now). An air pump injected some more air in and
hydrocarbons burn in the exhaust system before it got to the cat and
muffler. 

The only way to really capitalize on a rotary was to design a car around
it. It doesn't get any better gas mileage or produce more power than a
piston engine, but it does have fewer moving parts and is smaller and
lighter for the same power output. Sure, it could be plopped in an
existing design, but it would look small in the engine bay and the only
benefit would be losing about 300 pounds. The GM X-car (Citation and
Pontiac Phoenix) were supposed to get the rotary, but were redesigned
for the V-6 and four. Of course GM waited until 79 or 80 to introduce
them, AMC had too much invested in the Pacer to scrap the design or
wait, so had to reengineer it to take the in-line six. It was always
going to be wide and rear wheel drive, many think it was going to be
front wheel drive and was widened for the driveshaft tunnel. I did until
reading a design magazine with an article on the car that had an
interview with Teague and many preliminary design drawings.
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