Re: The Hatch is Back

[farna@xxxxxxx]

Actually, AMC started this trend with the 1963 Classic and 64 American. Those two shared some body parts, and were originally intended to share even more. Doors were supposed to be shared between the two, at least on the four door cars (with different window frames -- they are removeable on the early 60s cars -- and outer skins). I'm not sure the door interchange made it through to the production cars, but they do share as many common components as possible. AMC started sharing components as early as 1958. The suspension arms (at least the lower ones) are the same on all 1958-61 cars (63 American). The only difference between 58 American and 58 Rambler/Rebel lower control arms is the inner bushing (larger center hole for the American than big car because of the way they mount to the body). The upper arms are almost the same as well. The hole for the trunnion is smaller for the American than the big car, so they don't interchange. There aren't many other common parts from 58-!
 62 between the American and bigger cars though, not major ones anyway. But AMC was starting to get on the common parts kick. They had to economize way before everyone else! 

On April 12, 2005 Christopher Ziemnowicz wrote:

> Perhaps this item was mentioned on the AMC-list. However, it is worth repeating how the article below once again identifies that AMC was ahead of the curve. It developed various spin-off body styles from a single vehicle architecture - it started in model year1970 with the many Hornet, Gremlin, Sportabout, Concord, Spirit, and Eagle models and body designs!
> 
> ******************
> 
> Ward's Auto World, ?Feb 1, 2005 ?by Tom Murphy
> 
> April 1, 1970, marks the birth of an infamous segment in the annals of automotive history.
> It was on that day that American Motors Corp. introduced a quirky 2-door flatback coupe known as the Gremlin, which, according to historians, was penned by designer Richard Teague on the back of an air sickness bag 18 months before the car's unveiling.
> With the 6-cyl. Gremlin, priced under $2,000, AMC beat out rivals General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. in a race to introduce a subcompact car at a time when small imports were just surging into the U.S. Both the Ford Pinto and Chevy Vega came months later, in September.
> Gremlin. Pinto. Vega. Hatchback. Few other words in the automotive lexicon instantly conjure up memories of bell-bottom jeans, purple peace signs and Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.
> ..... (snip)
> Hatchbacks are everywhere - and not doing too shabbily, by the way - with GM as the key purveyor of the trend. The No.1 auto maker had a hand in at least seven that have arrived within the past four years, including the Pontiac Vibe, Chevy Malibu Maxx, Suzuki Reno and the Saab 9-2X. Malibu Maxx sales, in fact, are exceeding forecasts.
> Yes, Saab, the keeper of Scandinavian style, proves that "luxury" and "hatchback" need not be mutually exclusive. This summer, Saab introduces a hatchback 9-3, called the SportCombi.
> Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus brand has been selling the 5-door IS 300 SportCross in the U.S. since 2001, and Audi AG brings its similarly bodied A3 to the U.S. this summer, base priced under $25,000.
> Like others, Audi steers clear of the "hatchback" name for the A3, preferring instead to label it a 4-door.
> ..... (snip)
> Today's flexibility in vehicle assembly plants also contributes to the resurgence of hatchbacks, says David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, MI.
> Years ago, auto makers could not cost effectively develop spinoff body styles from a vehicle architecture. "Now, plants are designed to be increasingly flexible, and they're lean so the cost is not as great," Cole says. "Tooling costs are going down dramatically, and mathematical simulations are becoming so good that physical prototypes are down 60%-80% across the industry.."
> In this new product-development environment, a hatchback variant from an existing platform can sell successfully in annual volumes below 30,000 units. "You don't have to embrace it in high volumes," Cole says.
> ..... (snip)
> 
> Source:
> http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3165/is_2_41/ai_n11833824
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