Published: May 27, 2018, 9:30 PM
Updated: November 21, 2021, 3:02 PM
Making makes from models
Throughout automotive history, there have been legendary makes that have created legendary models, such as Beetle, Corvette and Supra. And sometimes the model becomes so well known, with so many possibilities for expansion, that the company ends up structuring a new model line around that nameplate. Here are just 10 examples.
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Ahead of its time
The AMC Eagle was arguably the world’s first crossover vehicle, available in 2-door coupe, convertible, notchback and hatchback, as well as 4-door sedan and wagon. But what made the compact American-produced car unique was its 4-wheel drivetrain, which at the time was mostly a pickup and SUV feature. The car was introduced in 1979 and made it to 1987, following the takeover of AMC by Chrysler.
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Soaring above the turkeys
Following its acquisition of AMC, Chrysler (which made the purchase to obtain the Jeep brand) branched off a line of import-fighters that included AMC-imported Renaults. The Eagle (car) was primarily replaced by compact Mitsubishi sedans, coupes and wagons, though the only offered all-wheel drive vehicle was the sporty and wildly-successful Eagle Talon sporty coupe.
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Born out of necessity
The late-’50s’ fuel rationing, arising out of the crisis in the Suez, resulted in an influx of German bubble cars and the Fiat 500 into Great Britain. Outraged by the popularity of the “Axis” cars on British soil, the British Motor Corporation (BMC) commissioned a “proper minitature car,” leading Sir Alec Issigonis to design the front-wheel drive, front-engined diminutive 2-box city car that would end up marketed as the Austin Seven (and later Austin Mini) and Morris Mini-Minor (meaning it was smaller than the Morris Minor).
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Forging its own way in the world
When the Austin Seven was renamed Austin Mini in 1962, it created a common identifier for car buyers, since both the Austin and Morris marques had the car pegged as “Mini,” leading the company to create the Mini marque in 1969. Variations from the original city car included a pickup, van, wagon and a Jeep-like buggy called Moke. All were 2-door bodystyles (except the Moke, which had no doors). Mini reverted back to model status under Austin and Rover ownership in the ’80s, until BMW bought Rover and again resurrected the Mini name as its own marque in 2001.
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A new direction for Hyundai
Hyundai surprised the automotive world at the 2007 New York International Auto Show with a rear-wheel drive, V-8 engined mid-sized sedan meant to expand the company into the premium sedan segment, where it would battle Acura, Infiniti and Lexus, primarily, as well as Buick and Lincoln. A year later, the company introduced a coupe that was a model replacement for the Tiburon coupe, but not a successor, since it went in a different direction. Its main competitors were Camaro and Mustang, both rear-wheel drive but also bigger.
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A new destination for Hyundai
In 2015, amid speculation of a new Equus luxury sedan, the company announced it would spin off Genesis as a premium brand (an idea reportedly floated to management during the creation of the Genesis in 2007), again targetting Japanese rivals Honda, Nissan and Toyota (each of which had created luxury brands to justify higher investments and, therefore, prices). Genesis now markets the G70 (compact), G80 (mid-sized) and G90 (full-sized) sedans and will add a coupe (not a Genesis Coupe replacement, as that will reportedly be replaced with a rebadged Hyundai) and a couple SUVs (reportedly monikered GX).
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Regarded as the runt of the full-size pickup litter
The Dodge Brothers made their first car in 1914, and trucks followed soon after (at first derived from the passenger car chassis, but then with dedicated platforms toward the end of the ’20s, about the time that the leaping Ram first appeared as the Dodge hood ornament). The name had been applied to truck models since the early ’30s, disappeared during the ’60s and ’70s, and was resurrected in 1981 as a rebadge of the aging Dodge D/W Series (D for rear-wheel pickups; W for 4WDs) and the latter’s subsequent replacements.
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Charging forth with a new identity
The name Ram had been applied to other vehicles — SUVs, vans, compact SUVs and even a car with a pickup box — but with the Chrysler acquisition by Fiat, Ram formed its own brand in 2010 around the full-sized pickup. The division soon rebadged imported full-sized vans under the new marque and there were also plans to bring the mid-sized Dakota pickup to the brand, though that likely won't happen with the discontinuation of the pickup and the creation of a Jeep compact pickup to fill Fiat Chrysler’s needs in that segment.
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Creating production performance from racing experience
Volvo started using Polestar Racing to modify its production cars back in 2009, getting its motorsport partner to create a performance version of the C30 compact coupe/hatchback. The company produced three concepts (C30, S60 sedan and V60 wagon) before releasing the latter two as production models clad in the Polestar Racing signature Cyan bodypaint, and with appropriate performance upgrades to suspension, wheels and powermaps.
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Shining bright in a sky of electrified luxury
Upon acquiring the Polestar brand in 2015, Volvo announced that it would create a line of dedicated performance vehicles, and just last year decided they would be high-performance electrified models (to compete with Tesla), given the ownership of the Volvo Group by Chinese company Geely (which is one of the world’s leaders in electric propulsion). The company introduced its first model Polestar 1 (a Grand Touring coupe) and plans to add a mid-sized sedan and crossover to the stable in coming years.
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Making a better Corvette
After acquiring Studebaker in 1961, Sherwood Egbert reportedly doodled up a 2-plus-2 sports coupe to rival the Chevrolet Corvette. Like the Corvette, the body would be fiberglass (because steel would have been to difficult to stamp) and power would come from a V-8, with the end result being an equivalent to Corvette performance, with the added benefit that you could take more than one passenger.
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Performance coupe still looking for customers
When Studebaker collapsed in 1963, barely 6,000 Avantis had been sold (the company planned to sell 22,000 per year; Corvette sold over 23,000 during the time Avanti was on sale). The Avanti plant and tooling was acquired by Indiana dealers Nate Altman and Leo Newman, who planned to sell replicas and build new cars. Since then, Avantis have been built by several owners on various chasses (Chevy Monte Carlo and Ford Mustang, among them) and in various bodystyles (including a convertible and sedan) right up to 2006, when the last one rolled off the line in Cancun, Mexico … last one, for now.
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Adapting to civilian life
Willys Overland applied for a copyright on the Jeep name (regardless of how it was arrived at) in 1946 (granted in 1950, as it was the only company still building the vehicle based on military designs), under protest from the other companies and government departments that contributed to its styling and also produced the vehicle (most notably Bantam and Ford). After WW2, Willys Overland had decided to not go back to its passenger car business, concentrating on Jeep production that resulted in the introduction of the CJ-2A in 1945 (CJ standing for Civilian Jeep) and following that up with station wagon and pickup derivatives in subsequent years.
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Forging its own paths
When Willys was bought up by Kaiser in 1953, the company rebranded itself Kaiser-Jeep, and in 1955 was simply building Jeeps. Losing money, Jeep was bought up by AMC in 1970 and that company was bought up by Chrysler in 1987, shortly after the iconic Jeep Wrangler was introduced. From early in its civilian life, Jeep has marketed a full line of 4WD vehicles, including compact, mid-size and full-size SUVs, and pickups, with many bearing a stunning resemblance to the military vehicle of the 1940s.
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Following in Jeep footprints
When AMC bought Jeep from Kaiser, it branched off Jeep’s General Products arm (which was responsible for military and other commercial products, such as US Post Office vehicles) and created AM General, with one of its duties to adapt the Jeep-type military vehicle for heavy-duty military service. It created the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV, or Humvee for short). AM General was bought by LTV Corporation in 1982 when Renault acquired controlling interest in AMC (US defense contracts cannot be held by foreign governments and Renault was partly owned by the French government) and with rising market interest, made a civilian version of the Humvee, called Hummer, in 1992.
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Sheep in wolfs’ clothing
When General Motors acquired the rights to the Hummer name in 1999, it decided to create a family of vehicles, with the original Hummer rebranded Hummer H1. It added the larger H2 (on a modified Heavy Duty pickup platform), which was softer and less Spartan in its looks, ride and amenities, and then the smaller H3 and its derivative pickup H3T (both of which were built on the GM compact pickup platform). When GM restructured, the Hummer name and products were shopped around but folded when no takers came forward.
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Top of the line
The Chrysler Imperial was launched in 1926 and spent the better part of three decades at the top of Chrysler’s product hierarchy. It was positioned as a rival to other American prestige lines, such as Cord and Duesenberg, among others. After several decades as its own line, it was resurrected at the top of the Chrysler sedan line again in 1990 but was discontinued in 1993 when Chrysler introduced its cab-forward LH sedans.
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A regal offering for celebrities
To better compete against luxury rivals such as Cadillac and Lincoln, Imperial was given its own line of cars in 1955, carrying on for two decades and five generations until the fuel crisis of the mid-’70s created a shift to smaller, fuel efficient cars. Lee Iacocca attempted to resurrect the marque in 1981, even naming a trim level after friend Frank Sinatra, but sales were not up to management’s expectations and the Imperial make was relegated to history.
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