Editing AMC Pacer (section)

===Coupe===
American Motors began the development of an entirely new car in 1971. It invested $52 million in tooling and $8 million in associated expenses to bring out the Pacer.<ref name="PM-October-1976">{{cite magazine |title=AMC Pacer Station Wagon is a Styling Coup! |magazine=Popular Mechanics |pages=96–178 |date=October 1976 |volume=146 |issue=4 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=auMDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA96 |via=Google Books |access-date=29 June 2024}}</ref> Production began in January and the Pacer was unveiled on 13 January 1975.<ref name="NYT-production">{{cite news|url= https://www.nytimes.com/1975/09/17/archives/amcs-pacer-model-sets-production-mark.html |title=A.M.C's Pacer Model Sets Production Mark |date=17 September 1975 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=29 June 2024}}</ref> Sales in AMC dealer showrooms began on 28 February 1975.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://automotivehistory.org/february-28-1975-amc-introduces-the-pacer/ |title=February 28, 1975 – AMC Introduces the Pacer |date=28 February 2022 |first=Brian |last=Corey |website=automotivehistory.org |access-date=29 June 2024}}</ref> The Pacer was designed to attract buyers of traditional large cars to a smaller package during a time when gasoline prices were projected to rise dramatically.<ref>{{cite magazine |url= http://wardsautoworld.com/ar/auto_rear_view_mirror_16/index.html |title=Rear View Mirror |magazine=Ward's Auto World |date=1 December 2003 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120728095000/http://wardsauto.com/news-amp-analysis/rear-view-mirror-11 |archive-date=28 July 2012 |url-status=dead |access-date=31 December 2022}}</ref> The new car was well received and seen as futuristic by journalists and buyers.<ref name="Strauss">{{cite web|url= https://95octane.com/2014/02/19/the-unfortunate-history-of-the-amc-pacer/ |title=The Unfortunate History of the AMC Pacer |first=Paul |last=Strauss |date=19 February 2014 |website=95octane.com |access-date=29 June 2024}}</ref> Pacer production, which started at 530 cars a day was increased to 700 a day by April, and went up to 800 per day in September.<ref name="NYT-production"/> Pacer sales success can be attributed to lack of competition from the other domestic automakers who had been blindsided by the [[1973 oil crisis|oil crisis]]. Production passed 100,000 Pacers in less than eight months after production began.<ref name="NYT-production"/> This was the first time a new AMC model achieved the 100,000 mark in less than one year.<ref name="NYT-production"/> By way of comparison, it took more than two years for the Gremlin to reach 100,000 units after production of it began in January 1970.<ref name="NYT-production"/> The early demand outstripping production capacity affected the Pacer's build quality.<ref name="Strauss"/> In its first year of production, the Pacer sold well, with 145,528 units. The increased demand for compact, economy vehicles grew rapidly, and the other automakers were rolling out their small cars. Pacer sales fell after the first two years.

The Pacer's unconventional styling was commonly cited in its continued lack of success. Other concerns included the limited cargo space when carrying a full load of passengers (primarily because of the steeply sloping rear roofline design). Folding down the rear seat backrest formed a flat-floored, {{convert|29.5|cuft|2}} cargo area. Design work on the new car began five years before its launch. Richard Teague explained this "was before weight was magnified as a super economy consideration".<ref name="PM-October-1976"/> The Pacer was heavy, with only six-cylinder engines available, and drivers cited a lack of power. ''Car & Driver'' wrote, "American Motors had already quoted a curb weight of 2990 lb. for the basic Pacer when we first wrote about the car, and that already seemed quite heavy; but when we weighed the test car (whose air conditioning, automatic transmission, power steering and so forth would not account for the full difference) it registered an astounding 3425 lb."<ref name="roadtrack">{{cite magazine |title=American Motors Pacer: The world's biggest small car? |pages=35–39 |magazine=Road & Track |date=April 1975}}</ref>

The standard {{convert|232|CID|L|1|abbr=on}} [[AMC Straight-6 engine|I6]], with a single-barrel [[carburetor]] was optimized for [[Emission standard|low emissions]] (all vehicles at the time carried emissions-reducing devices, including [[exhaust gas recirculation]]); making the Pacer relatively low-powered ("The Pacer comes with either of two AMC inline six-cylinder engines, both producing 100 bhp, but the larger 258-cu-in. unit deliver[s] better mid-range torque"<ref name="roadtrack"/>). The EPA fuel mileage results showed the {{convert|258|CID|L|1|abbr=on}} one-barrel engine with manual transmission achieved better economy ({{convert|20|mpgus|L/100 km mpgimp|abbr=on}} city and {{convert|31|mpgus|L/100 km mpgimp|abbr=on}} highway) compared to the standard, lower displacement drive train ({{convert|17|mpgus|L/100 km mpgimp|abbr=on}} city and {{convert|25|mpgus|L/100 km mpgimp|abbr=on}} highway).<ref name="EPA-1976">{{cite web|url= https://afdc.energy.gov/files/pdfs/1976_feg.pdf |title=1976 Gas Mileage Guide for New Car Buyers |website=afdc.energy.gov |access-date=29 June 2024}}</ref> When equipped with the automatic transmission the Pacer's fuel economy was almost identical between the {{convert|232|and|258|CID|L|1|abbr=on}} engines.<ref name="EPA-1976"/> Additionally, a two-barrel version of the {{convert|258|CID|L|1|abbr=on}} engine was available with automatic transmission, which helped performance and the same fuel consumption rating as the one-barrel version.<ref name="EPA-1976"/> The EPA results noted the same fuel economy in actual on-the-road driving because in-use mileage depends on many factors.<ref name="NYT-1976-EPA"/> Nevertheless, the EPA method can be used to compare fuel use by cars under identical conditions, and the EPA calculated the industrywide average of the 1976 model year cars tested to be {{convert|17.6|mpgus|L/100 km mpgimp|abbr=on}} in simulated city-plus-highway driving.<ref name="NYT-1976-EPA">{{cite news|url= https://www.nytimes.com/1975/09/23/archives/epa-tests-of-76-cars-show-big-rise-in-mileage.html |title=E.P.A. Tests of '76 Cars Show Big Rise in Mileage |agency=Associated Press |date=23 September 1975 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=29 June 2024}}</ref> None of the 1976 Pacer drivetrain configurations included catalytic converters and met California's more stringent antipollution standards.<ref name="EPA-1976"/><ref name="NYT-1976-EPA"/>

In mid-year 1976, a floor-shifted four-speed manual transmission was made available on the Pacers. Because of the requirement to use unleaded gasoline, a new "quench-head was incorporated in I6 engines for 1977 that pushed the air-fuel mixture closer to the spark plug, created more turbulence for better mixing, allowed an additional 3 degrees of spark advance without knock, and gain an extra one mile per gallon fuel efficiency.<ref name="PM-October-1976"/> By the time a {{convert|304|CID|L|1|abbr=on}} [[AMC V8 engine|V8]] was offered for the 1978 Pacer, AMC introduced a line of "luxury-compact" models (the [[AMC Concord]]). Moreover, gasoline prices in the U.S. remained high, limiting demand for V8-powered vehicles.