Eagle (automobile)
From Free net encyclopedia
Image:Eaglecar.gif Eagle was a short-lived marque of the Chrysler Corporation that was made from the remains of American Motors Corporation, aimed at the enthusiast driver. Even though the brand was short-lived, the Vision sold in respectable numbers, while the Talon (pictured below right) sold more than 115,000 units. Eagle ran for 10 years, 1988 to 1998.
Contents |
Overview
Image:Talon.jpg The Eagle name was taken from the AMC Eagle, the last of AMC's wholly US-designed vehicles. The short-lived Jeep/Eagle division of Chrysler Corporation was formed after Chrysler's 1987 purchase of American Motors. The vehicles were marketed primarily by AMC dealers along with Jeep products.
Unlike Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth and Jeep automobiles, Eagles eschewed the Chrysler Corporation "pentastar" logo. Instead, all models prominently featured the Eagle logo, seen at the top right.
Two of Eagle's first models, the Eagle Premier and Eagle Medallion, were designed by AMC in cooperation with its former corporate partner (and majority owner), Renault. The remainder of the brand's cars were simply rebadged versions of cars sold by other Chrysler Corporation divisions, as well as some captive imports produced by Mitsubishi.
Throughout its short history, the Eagle brand suffered from a lack of product recognition because most of its product range was marketed under different (more popular) guises by Chrysler and Mitsubishi. After a decade of slow sales, Chrysler discontinued the Eagle brand in 1998, with the Eagle Vision's successor becoming the Chrysler 300M in 1999.
The Eagle brand was phased out in stages. In 1996, Chrysler discontinued the Mitsubishi (formerly Colt) family, including the Eagle Summit, Dodge Colt, and Plymouth Colt. In 1997, the Eagle Vision was discontinued, though the similar Dodge Intrepid and Chrysler Concorde continued until 2004. All that was left was the Eagle Talon, which was discontinued in 1998 along with the whole Eagle brand.
Eagle vehicles
Designed by AMC, the Premier was also briefly badged as the AMC Premier and Renault Premier in late 1987 and early 1988. It shared several parts with the Renault 25, and spawned a rebadged version named Dodge Monaco (1990–1992).
Also badged as the Renault Medallion in 1988, this car was essentially identical to the Renault 21.
A rebadged Mitsubishi Mirage.
A rebadged 1983–1986 Mitsubishi Mirage, sold only in Canada.
Similar to the Plymouth Laser and the Mitsubishi Eclipse, the Talon was Eagle's halo car and outsold its cousins. (see also Diamond Star Motors)
A rebadged Mitsubishi Galant, sold only in Canada.
One of Chrysler's three original LH-cars. Sold in Europe as the Chrysler Vision.
External links
- Eaglecars.com A website dedicated to the brand
- archived version of Eagle's website
Other uses
The name Eagle was also used by Dan Gurney for his racing cars. Among them the most noticeable is probably the 1967 Eagle-Weslake Formula One, considered by many as one of most beautiful F1 cars ever built.