Dodge Aspen и Plymouth Volaré: История компактных автомобилей 1970-х

The Dodge Aspen, and the nearly identical Plymouth Volaré, are compact cars that were produced from 1976 until 1980. The Volaré/Aspen model line offered a four door sedan, a two door coupe, and a four door wagon. During the time that the Volaré and the Aspen were produced, North American automakers were actively "downsizing" their lineups, reducing size and weight for improved fuel economy. For that reason, the rear wheel drive Volaré and the Aspen were originally classified as compact cars, but were considered intermediate sized cars by the end of their production run. The Volaré/Aspen were discontinued following the 1980 model year just prior to the introduction of the front wheel drive Plymouth Reliant and Dodge Aries, known collectively as K cars.

The Volaré and the Aspen were introduced in the middle of the 1976 model year. They were the successors to the Chrysler Corporation "A platform" models, the Plymouth Valiant/Plymouth Duster and the Dodge Dart. During the 1976 model year, Valiant/Duster models were sold alongside the Volaré at Chrysler/Plymouth dealerships, and the Dart models were sold alongside the Aspen at Dodge dealerships. After the 1976 model year, the Valiant and Dart models were discontinued. With the Plymouth Volaré and Dodge Aspen models, Chrysler Corporation hoped to offer consumers modern, fuel efficient cars that seemed to be more luxurious and desirable than the dated Plymouth Valiant and Dodge Dart predecessors. And, at launch, hopes were high: the Volaré/Aspen were collectively named Motor Trend's Car of the Year for 1976, and they were hailed by Consumer Reports magazine for their modern design and good performance. However, the Volaré and Aspen suffered from numerous quality problems, frequent product recalls, and early rusting damage that ruined the cars' reputations and hampered sales.

During development, the Volaré/Aspen models were extensively wind tunnel tested to be aerodynamically sound. This was done to improve fuel economy through reduced wind drag, improve crosswind stability, reduce wind noise, and increase interior ventilation performance. This testing led Chrysler Corporation designers to soften the front end contours of the Volaré/Aspen, remove their roof drip moldings, and offer improved internal airflow ducting. Body engineering for the Volaré/Aspen was aided with computer technology, as well as the use of clear plastic stress models. These models helped to reveal stress points in the design phase before any sheet metal was formed. Weight reduction to provide improved fuel economy was achieved with thinner glass, lighter side door beams, and high strength/low alloy steel (HSLA) brackets and reinforcements that reduced weight, yet were four times as strong as conventional mild steel. In addition, a reduced number of steel stampings offered better sheet metal panel fits with fewer welds needed. Larger glass areas gave the new models improved visibility over their predecessors; the vehicles offered a total glass area increase of 25% on two door models and 33% on sedans. For the new models, the Chrysler Corporation introduced the Isolated Transverse Suspension System; this new front suspension system used torsion bars that crossed and were mounted transversely beneath the engine, a noticeable change from the longitudinal torsion bar suspension that Chrysler had introduced in 1957 and had used on all models up to that time. Testing began in August 1976. This new turbine engine was a smaller version of Chrysler Corporation's earlier turbine engine. "Aspen is a very pleasant name", Schirmer said, "people think of the outdoors, but not necessarily skiing when they hear it it won't inhibit where we want to position the car because it's basically neutral." The standard engine was Chrysler's slant six, and was available with a single barrel carburetor. Optional engines were a V8 or a V8, both with two barrel carburetors. New performance and trim packages for both models included the "kit car" and the "Super Coupe", which combined performance trim with the V8, but the six cylinder engine was standard. The Volaré or Aspen "kit car", made in honor of NASCAR legend Richard Petty, was supposed to look as much like a race car as possible. The wheels had no hubcaps, the wheel opening flares had a bolted on look, and even the windshield had metal tie downs just like the race cars. Unlike a race car, the kit car came standard with an automatic transmission. A special addition was a decal kit with large door mountable "43" decals and "360" decals for the hood. These decals were shipped in the trunk either to be installed by the dealer or by the owner. It was available in blue for the Volaré or red for the Aspen. Only 131 Dodges and 145 Plymouths were built. The Volaré and Aspen Super Coupe packages (order code A67) included GR60x15 Goodyear GT radial tires on 15x8 inch wheels, Code "E58" 360CID 4bbl engine,727HD transmission, heavy duty suspension with a rear sway bar. The appearance was altered drastically from a standard Aspen/ Volare by adding Matte Black finishes on the entire hood, top of fenders, half the roof, both bumpers and misc. other trim. Along with that Blacked out look were full Matt Black wheel well flairs giving a widebody appearance along with a front spoiler attached to the front flairs. A 3 piece trunk tail spoiler was also included. Each were offered as a design package leaving no choice of paint colors. All Dodge Aspen versions were Sable Tan Sunfire Metallic (a rich Dark Brown) with orange, blue and yellow stripes to separate Body color from the Black. Volaré versions were all painted Crimson Sunfire Metallic (a Maroon/Red) with its own special three color stripes in Yellow, Orange and Red separating the body color from the Black. Only 494 Volare and 531 Dodge Super Coupes were built. Wider tail light lenses with amber turn signals replaced the previous all red lenses on Volaré and Aspen coupes and sedans. For the 1978 model year, sales were down over 30% from 1977; total production came to 166,419 (Aspen) and 217,795 (Volaré).

The 1979 model year saw few changes. The only visible difference was the replacement of the amber rear turn signals with red ones. For the Volaré, a new coupe only "Duster" trim package mirrored the Aspen "Sunrise" package, consisting mainly of new stripes and louvered rear windows. The 1978 option packages continued into 1979, with the exception of the super coupe and kit car options. A federally mandated maximum speedometer, new colors, and a diagnostic connector for the engine were added. Station wagon models were available with a "sport package" (Volaré) or as a "sport wagon" (Aspen) with special stripes, a front air dam, and wheel arch flares. Total 1979 production came to 178,819 (Volaré) and 121,354 (Aspen).

For its final year of production, and at the insistence of Lee Iacocca, the Volaré and Aspen were restyled. They gained new front styling (very similar to the Ford Fairmont) with a thin grille and rectangular headlamps. This was achieved by sharing the hood, fenders, and front bumper with the Dodge Diplomat. Premier and SE packages were available, but now only available on the sedan and coupe. The Volaré Duster trim package was also available for the 1980 model year. The R/T package was installed on 285 Aspens for this year. The V8 was dropped for 1980, leaving the V8 as the top engine choice. Power from the 318 V8 engine was reduced from at 4,000 rpm to at 3,600 rpm in two barrel models. Four barrel versions of the 318 V8 saw their output increase from (non California) at 4,000 rpm to at 4,000 rpm. The slant six engine remained the base engine offering. The Super Six two barrel carburetor option was dropped, leaving only the single barrel, Holley 1945 carburetor for the venerable slant six engine. In this configuration, the slant six produced at 3,600 rpm. Total production came to 67,318 (Aspen) and 90,063 (Volaré), though a significant portion of the sales were for fleet (police and taxi) use.

Between 1977 and 1979, the small Swiss specialty automaker Monteverdi built 20 modified versions of the Volaré/Aspen called the Sierra to compete in Europe's luxury car market. The "Dart" name (rather than "Aspen") was applied to Dodge branded F platform cars in Mexico and Colombia, corresponding to the local Chrysler branded F platform cars badged as "Valiant Volarés". F body Volaré models were not marketed under the "Plymouth" brand in Mexico because that brand was dropped after 1969. During 1981 and 1982, Dart coupes built for the Mexican market used an M platform Diplomat coupe that was fitted with a 1980 Volare header panel. Chrysler de México also sold less expensive versions of the American K cars: The Plymouth Reliant and Dodge Aries (in 1982–1987) and Plymouth Caravelle (1988) as "Chrysler Volarés". The 1988 Chrysler Volaré E (an inexpensive version of the 1988 Plymouth Caravelle modified with a 1986–1988 Plymouth Reliant front end) served as Mexican Highway Patrol units from 1988 to 1990. They used Chrysler Turbo II 2.2 L engines and three speed automatic transmissions (arm shifter on the steering columns, like U. S. patrol cars). In Mexico, they were known as "turbo patrols". The Volaré also became known as the "Volaré Duster" in Canada.

In 1980, the Volaré/Aspen cars were replaced with the front wheel drive Plymouth Reliant and Dodge Aries for the 1981 model year. However, a new class of the F platform emerged as the M Body vehicles that included the Dodge Diplomat and Plymouth Gran Fury four door sedans, which were very similar in structure, size, and engineering with the Aspen and Volaré. The Aspen model name was revived in 2007 for the Chrysler Aspen luxury sport utility vehicle (SUV).