1971 Simca 1204

Simca was Chrysler’s captive import from 1959 to 1978.

Simca was an acronym for  Société Industrielle de Mécanique et Carrosserie Automobile, which translated into English as Mechanical and Automotive Body Manufacturing Company.  Manufacture of automobiles got under way in 1935.  

 The first Simca offered to Canadians was this 1959 model.

Chrysler cozied up to the French automaker in 1959 when it needed a small car in its lineup. Since Chrysler had no European subsidiaries to draw from, it partnered with Simca. From St. John's to Victoria, the ‘Imported from Paris’ car sold a respectable 4,051 units in its maiden year—more than stablemate DeSoto.

The competition offered six-month warranties but Simca was covered for two years.

Created by engineers Philippe Grundeler and Charles Scales, Team Argenteuil began work on Top Secret Project 928 in 1962. The benchmark was the Austin/Morris 1100. Package parameters defined a 99.2 inch wheelbase and a trim 155.3 inches in overall length.  Designed to be a worldwide seller, much attention was paid to building in the comfort, space and handling characteristic of much larger automobiles. 

 The highly popular Simca was assembled in Sweden.

The Simca 1100 was named for its engine size and the car bowed to the public at the Paris Auto Show in  September 1967.  It was immediately the best-selling car in France and saw only running changes during its 15-year run. More than 2.2 million would be built in France, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands, Brazil, Chile, Columbia and Australia.

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On July 1st of 1970, Simca disappeared as an independent auto manufacturer, re-incorporated as Chrysler France. The Simca brand continued, however. It was now billed as 'Built by Chrysler in Europe, Backed by Chrysler in Canada.'  The corporate Pentastar was added to the front fenders.

The Poissy powerplant was tweaked for 1971, giving 15% more torque than previously.

In 1971, a more powerful 1,204-cubic centimetre mill replaced the 1.1-litre version. The 1100 morphed into Model 1204.The engine was a four-cylinder, overhead cam design, transversely mounted and married to front-wheel drive. The four-speed transmission was fully synchronized.

Simca’s overall width was 1587.8 millimetres (62.5 inches;) the front track measured 1336.5 millimetres (53.8 inches).

The front of the car was squarish. The grille was simple: ten slim, recessed horizontal bars bulged forward a wee bit as they approached the headlamps. Long, horizontal turn signals were nestled in a protruding lip beneath the grille, framed by a sleek wrap-around bumper. The bumper was crowned with a pair of vertical, rubberized bumper guards. 

The Simca 1204's wheelbase was  2519. 69 millimetres (99.2 inches)

The flanks reflected the box-like theme. The engine was canted 30°, allowing for a lower hood line.  The windshield was curved. The roofline sloped slightly to the rear. A  flow-through air vent graced the thick, sharply-raked C-pillar. Straight-sided, no-nonsense greenhouse glass melded into a a belt line that gently bowed outward. At mid-point, a chrome slab alleviated the body’s starkness, running from the headlight bezel, completely around the rear of the car. 

Radial-ply tires and an electrically-heated rear window were standard equipment in this year’s Simca.

The box theme was completed at the back. Taillights were simple rectangular affairs located midway between the bumper and a chrome kiss that ran straight across the lower lip of the hatchback door. The door itself was V’d. 

 With the rear seat folded, Simca boasted 1160.99 cubic litres (41-cubic feet) of space.

The 1204 came in three configurarions, including a hatchback version, though not the first of the genre. That honour went to Kaiser with its Traveler, revived in the 1964 Mazda line and the Renault 16. 

Renault 16.

However, the hatchback was no longer a novelty. Coming into its own, Simca capitalized on the practical feature. Sales literature referred to it as ‘the big back door’. When the ‘easy-fold’ rear seat was lowered into place, the cargo area created was a capacious 1160.99 cubic litres  (41 cubic feet). Voila! The versatile sedan quickly converted into a ‘trim wagon’.  Because of its rip-snortin’  1.2-litre four banger, auto journalists dubbed it the ‘hot hatch’.

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Engineers might have skimped on styling but the Simca was a technological marvel. The transverse-mounted engine coupled with front-wheel drive gave a completely flat floor inside. Front brakes were disc and drums were employed aft. Suspension was independent torsion-bar. Steering was rack-and-pinion. 

Listing for $1,965 plus taxes, Chrysler-Plymouth dealers sold 1,464 Simcas in Canada in 1971.

The body shell was of single unit construction welded to a modified permitter frame chassis and the torsion bar suspension. This allowed the frame to carry the stress mounting points of the engine, transmission and suspension. The shell was then welded to the beefed-up frame. 

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Interiors were posh and roomy. Seating was configured for five passengers. Ribbed, loop-pile carpeting ran door-to-door and the cargo area in any of five colours. Door trim matched the breathable vinyl, foam-padded, moulded, coil-spring, countered bucket seats. Stealing a page from Rambler, the comfy seats reclined. 

 Simca owners appreciated the newly redesigned instrument panel that featured  dials.

The instrument panel was in keeping with the angular lines of the vehicle. Completely padded and graced with simulated wood-grain trim, four circular dials were grouped in a linear cluster directly in front of the driver. Rocker switches added to the upscale feel. When so equipped, the radio was located to the left of the driver. Simca boasted not only a large parcel shelf but a locking glove compartment.

 The Simca 1204 weighed in at 918 kilos (2,025 pounds). 

Thoughtful touches were seen throughout. Advertising bragged that the Simca was so fully loaded that only four options could be ordered. Air conditioning, semi-automatic transmission, radio and whitewall tires were the sole extras. 

Front-wheel drive gave superb traction in snow.

The Simca could be clad in Nogaro Red, Estoril Blue Metallic, Antheor Beige, Eiffel Yellow, Lorelei Gold Metallic, Tacoma White, Turquoise Metallic, Beige Gold Metallic and Sarde Orange. 

© James C. Mays 2019. All rights reserved.

1976 Oldsmobile Toronado

The 1976 Oldsmobile Toronado Custom weighed 3 159 kilos (4,761 pounds) and listed for $8,177 f.o.b. Oshawa. 

Oldsmobile was long distinguished as General Motors' avant-garde technical division. It could claim many engineering firsts including the distinction of offering the first front-wheel drive automobile in the United States since the 1937 Cord. The seductive coupe bowed for the 1966 season as a full-sized personal luxury vehicle. The sleek and ritzy two-door Olds  shared components with the rear-wheel drive Buick Riviera. Both were intended to compete with Ford’s Thunderbird.

Finding a name for the car took careful consideration. Raven, Magnum and Scirocco were all considered before settling on Toronado. The name didn’t mean anything but it did have a bit of history; it had appeared on a 1963 Chevrolet concept car.  

Toronado was truly a fortunate series of serendipitous events. In 1962 stylist David North created a design that he called simply “Flame Red Car.” 

North's styling study was of no consequence to anyone but it was suddenly chosen when Oldsmobile staff was informed that it would be allowed to build a car to compete against the  Ford Thunderbird for the 1966 model year. Top brass wanted the vehicle a full-sized model platform. The design team wanted a smaller car. Despite the team’s best efforts to have the posh Olds built on a smaller wheelbase, top brass was adamant that it debut on a full-size wheelbase.

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Oldsmobile's engineers had been working on developing practical front-wheel drive since 1958. The concept was popular in Europe and it was well known that both Ford and Rambler were working on front-wheel drive projects. Ford was rumoured to be readying the 1961 Thunderbird for front-wheel drive and Rambler was said to be introducing the technology on its 1963 or 1964 models. 

1966 Oldsmobile 98

Toronado sales were added together to those of the stately Oldsmobile 98. For the 1966 calendar year, 2,198 units were delivered across the Dominion. The car earned Motor Trend magazine’s Car of the Year Award. In 1967, Toronado sales were broken out from those of the Oldsmobile 98. Records show that 580 of the front-wheel drive beauties were delivered throughout the Dominion. 

The restyled Olds Toronado that bowed for 1971 was more elegant than previously.

A second generation of Toronados arrived for the 1971 selling season. They were among the first cars to use the high-mount third brake light in the rear centre of a vehicle.The 1974 to 1976 models offered driver’s-side airbags. Times and consumer tastes were changing. Oldsmobile needed to redefine itself in a shifting marketplace.

The people in marketing knew, “ Oldsmobile buyers are thoughtful shoppers who shop for more than price alone. They look for quality. Careful workmanship. They expect comfort and luxury as part of an automobile’s value. They appreciate excellence and the prestige that goes with it.” 

 The wheelbase of the personal luxury Oldsmobile
Toronado measured 3 098 millimetres ( 122 inches) on the 1976 model.

Wordsmiths used unabashed snob appeal. “Toronado is built on a private production line.”  With soothing words the ad copy continued to purr. “You relax in elegance as Toronado does most of the work. Power steering and brakes plus automatic transmission are standard. Power raises or lowers the windows. A message centre can monitor up to ten operations.” 

The 1976 Toronado was more angular than before. The landau roof came in seven different colour choices. Its face was almost austere and casket-like in appearance. The grille consisted of two very simple, slightly Vee’d horizontal bars and an elongated hood, topped by a standup hood ornament. Rear styling treatment was also angular with thin slits of taillamps at bumper level and massive fender end caps colour-keyed to the body. 

Rear view of the 1976 Oldsmobile Toronado
was seen quite often by drivers of  lesser automobiles.

The Toronado’s base engine was the 7.5-litre (455-cubic inch) Rocket V-8 with a four-barrel carburetor and a high-energy ignition. Also standard was the GM Turbo Hydramatic transmission. 

 Upholstery was a geometric nylon knit weave velour or for a few dollars more, a supple vinyl. Seating boasted centre armrests. The instrument panel was expansive with controls to the left and right of the driver. The clock featured digital quartz movement.

Toronado's instrument was vast, designed around a strip speedometer.

There were a dozen colours for the exterior of a Toronado. Black, Cream, Buckskin, Yellow, Red and White for starters. Metallic colours were popular and in that family one could choose Silver, Light Blue, Dark Blue, Red, Mahogany, Saddle, Dark Green and Lime.

Options for Toronado included an appearance package, an illumination package, Four Season air conditioning, cruise control, tinged glass, six-way power seats power trunk release, power windows, power door locks, a tilt-telescope steering wheel, numerous radios with or without tape player and many other goodies. 

Cutaway of the 1976 Oldsmobile Toronado showcases GM’s front-wheel drive layout.

Sales of Toronado were lumped in with Oldsmobile 98 for the 1976 calendar year. The total for the luxurious pair added up to 4,362 deliveries. That figure was down dramatically from the 5,566 delivered in 1975. There was no need for despair in Oshawa, however. Sales for the 98 and the Toronado would rebound nicely to 7,045 units sold in 1977. 

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Copyright James C. Mays 2007 
All rights reserved.

1978 Plymouth Horizon and Dodge Omni

Chrysler Canada hadn’t offered small four-cylinder cars in decades but what goes around comes around and in the 1970s, small, economical vehicles shone as brightly as the midnight sun over the high Arctic.

Chrysler Canada pulled a rabbit (okay, pun intended when one considers the German competition) out of its corporate hat when it introduced the subcompact L-Body car in November of 1977. This was a no-nonsense, four-door Euro-style sedan with a generous hatchback entry at the rear. Unique grilles and badges would allow the vehicle to be sold as both the Dodge Omni and the Plymouth Horizon. Pundits referred to the look-alike pair as the “Omnirizon.”

Horizon was a box on wheels. It was an attractive little box but it was an econo-box, nonetheless.   The basic package for this vehicle was very similar to that of the ultimate benchmark Euro-sedan, the Volkswagen Rabbit.

1977 Volkswagen Rabbit.

 In fact, Horizon made use of VW mill, bumped up to 1.7-litres, fitted with Chrysler’s Electronic Lean Burn System and then transversely mounted into the engine compartment. It is interesting to note that had the VW power plant not been available, the tiny twins  from Chryco would have been delayed in bowing to consumers for up to another two years. 

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The public would need some education in order to appreciate Horizon. Consumers weren’t particularly familiar with front-wheel drive. As the first of the breed to be built in North America--Belvedere, Illinois USA to be exact--Chrysler dealers would have to get consumers up to speed on how these vehicles differed from ordinary cars.  Learning to accelerate into curves with front-wheel drive took some getting used to for millions who were used to conventional automobiles using the traditional Panhard layout, a.k.a. rear-wheel drive.

Advertising billed the Plymouth Horizon as the car that “goes anywhere with comfort and confidence.” Front wheel drive was the secret. “With Horizon, you’ll move confidently over mud, snow or rain-slick roads. Its front wheels do the driving. You’re being pulled by the front wheels.” Of course, the four-wheel independent suspension, rack-and-pinion steering, low-rate coil springs, shock-absorbing front struts, rear trailing arms and anti-sway bars both fore and aft made the little car ride like a dream despite its bite-sized 2 520-millimetre (99.2-inch) wheelbase. “This contributes to a great road-hugging performance with a minimum of road noise and less buffeting by strong crosswinds or side drafts from oncoming trucks.”

Badged as a Simca, the Horizon was assembled and sold in Europe.

This was a very advanced vehicle, one that delivered “tomorrow’s engineering today.”  Horizon was designed using Metric specifications, giving it clout around the world. It boasted the latest in technological wonders—a diagnostic plug in the engine compartment that made electrical system tests quickly and efficiently.  The fan belt had been eliminated. 

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Designed to be simple to service for the growing do-it-yourself crowd, the distributor cap, spark plugs and oil dipstick were all easy to access. The cooling system featured a single easy-to-reach drain plug. Clutch adjustments were possible without tools, the thermostat was readily replaceable and so was the oil sump pan.

The cabin was surprisingly generous for such a small car. Mounting the engine transversely and drastically reducing the transmission hump helped greatly. With the drive shaft eliminated, there was enough room left over to stash the spare tire in the spot where the rear axle housing was located on conventional vehicles.

1975 AMC Pacer.

Stealing a page from American Motors' revolutionary Pacer with its “people first” design, Horizon bragged, “You’ll like its people-room inside.” Advertising crooned sweetly. “There’s room for legs, feet, shoulders and hips-all adding up to seating comfort.”  Bucket seats were adjustable, trimmed in vinyl and headrests built into the seating. Carpeting was cut-pile and colour-keyed to match the upholstery. Custom or Premium interiors could be had in a range of materials including vinyl, cloth and vinyl, porous vinyl and crushed velour.

The instrument panel was efficient with a pod cluster holding gauges and speedometer. White numbers on black-face dials made monitoring easy. A multi-purpose stalk to the left of the steering column contained the turn signals, the headlight beam control and the windshield washer and wiper controls.  While common in European and Asian vehicles, this multi-purpose stalk was new to millions of North Americans and as such, rated its own space in sales brochures and  was given special attention to salesmen in their training sessions.

The Horizon's cargo area was given a great deal of attention in advertising. The space boasted a movable security shelf that acted as a lid to hide the contents in the luggage area. Available cargo space with the back seat folded down came to 1014 cubic decimetres or 35.8 cubic feet (ancient Canadian units of measure).

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Horizon and Omni could be ordered in Custom, Premium or Premium Woodgrain exterior packages to dress up the Unibody design. Exterior colours for the pint-sized inflation fighter were Sunrise Orange, Spitfire Orange, Formal Black Spinnaker White, Yellow Blaze, Light Mocha Tan and then in the metallic family, Pewter Grey, Regatta Blue, Starlight Blue Sunfire, Tapestry Red Sunfire, Caramel Tan, Augusta Green Sunfire and Mint Green. A triple sport stripe was available as a dress-up item. Two-tone paint jobs were available in five self-proclaimed classic colour combinations. If that wasn't enough sass, there were vinyl roof toppings in red, tan, green, blue, silver, black or white.

The optional equipment list was small and compact, like Prince Edward Island.. Extra cost items included air conditioning, tinted glass, dual horns, colour-keyed floor mats, carpeting for the cargo area, a centre console with rear ashtray, a nifty storage compartment with a roll-top cover, a clock, an electric rear window defroster, a rear window wiper, a locking gas cap, a roof rack, remote control left- and right-hand mirrors, power steering, power front brakes, AM/FM radio or stereo, a Deluxe three-spoke steering wheel, a rally wheel, TorqueFlite automatic transmission, undercoating and P165/75R13 glass-belted radial ply whitewall tires.

Horizon, along with the Dodge Omni, was impressive enough that it was promptly named Car of the Year by Motor Trend Magazine. That accolade didn’t hurt sales one bit and even though inflation was 8.9 percent in 1979, the calendar year tally for the Horizon allowed it to claim the 34^th spot in Canadian sales with 10,726 units delivered and the Dodge Omni right behind it in 35^th place with 10,728 units sold.

Those Horizon and Omni sales helped Chrysler Canada to reach 166,677 new automobiles sold, giving the Windsor-based manufacturer 21 percent of the domestic market.

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 Copyright James C. Mays 2006
All rights reserved.