Onstage at Detroit's Cobo Hall was a line of four U.S.-made compact cars and four small imports—with a wide space in the middle. Pointing at the gap, American Motors Chairman Roy D. Chapin Jr. proclaimed: "The center of this market has been unoccupied—until today!" On that cue, a shiny new Rambler American burst through a paper partition. It carried a new, low price tag, which, said Chapin, would make it a "total value superior to the imports and superior in both price and range of choice" to U.S. compacts.
With his first major move since he took over the ailing company (1966 deficit: $12.6 million) in January,
Chapin aims to double Rambler sales to 140,000 cars this year, recapture at least 10% of the compact market it once dominated. His main ammunition: price cuts of from $154 to $234. The $2,073 two-door Rambler sedan will now go for $1,839, which is well under its closest U.S. competitor, the $2,117 Chrysler Valiant, and only $200 more than the Volkswagen.
To keep Rambler's price low, A.M.C. will forgo annual styling changeovers, thus saving retooling costs. But Chapin does not intend to economize all the way. Two sporty specialty cars are in the works, and this week three jazzed-up Rebel station wagons will be introduced. Main features: "simulated natural tan leather" side trim for Midwest and Southwest markets, "black camera grain" in the East, and "bleached teakwood" on the West Coast and in Florida.
A.M.C.'s main target is the Volkswagen, which accounted for 30% of the 1.4 million compacts sold in the U.S. last year. Getting the new campaign off to a start, Chapin pointed out that the Rambler is not only bigger (six v. four passengers) and more powerful (128 h.p. v. 53 h.p.), but, "in terms familiar to every housewife, costs only 69¢ a pound compared to more than 90¢ for the Volkswagen."