The AMC Amitron was an experimental
electric
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by ...
subcompact car
Subcompact car is a North American classification for cars smaller than a compact car. It is broadly equivalent to the B-segment (Europe), supermini (Great Britain) or A0-class (China) classifications.
According to the U.S. Environmental Prote ...
built in 1967 by
American Motors Corporation
American Motors Corporation (AMC; commonly referred to as American Motors) was an American automobile manufacturing company formed by the merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and Hudson Motor Car Company on May 1, 1954. At the time, it was the ...
(AMC) and
Gulton Industries. It included many advanced features, including
regenerative braking
Regenerative braking is an energy recovery mechanism that slows down a moving vehicle or object by converting its kinetic energy into a form that can be either used immediately or stored until needed. In this mechanism, the electric traction mo ...
and advanced battery designs, to provide a range on a single charge. Development ended because of technology issues and the high cost of batteries.
In 1977, the prototype was updated and renamed Electron to become one of the automaker's "Concept 80"
show car
A show car, sometimes called a dream car, is a custom-made automobile created specifically for public display, rather than sale. They are shown at auto shows and other exhibitions. Show cars can either come from car companies or from private indivi ...
s.
American Motors' small concept car was "meant to be a prediction of future subcompact commuter cars." It introduced technologies that included a revolutionary braking system that took 50 years to become common in the automotive industry.
Design
Impetus
Development of the Amitron was prompted by three bills passed by the
89th United States Congress
The 89th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1965, ...
, described collectively as the "Electric Vehicle Development Act of 1966", as well as a fourth bill that amended the
Clean Air Act of 1963
The Clean Air Act (CAA) is the United States' primary federal air quality law, intended to reduce and control air pollution nationwide. Initially enacted in 1963 and amended many times since, it is one of the United States' first and most infl ...
. The legislation provided funding for
electric car
An electric car, battery electric car, or all-electric car is an automobile that is propelled by one or more electric motors, using only energy stored in batteries. Compared to internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, electric cars are quie ...
research in response to the rapidly decreasing air quality caused by automobile emissions. Development of electric vehicles was undertaken by the domestic
big three automobile manufacturers
In the automotive industry, the term Big Three is used for a country's three largest motor vehicle manufacturers, especially indicating companies that sell under multiple brand names.
The term originated in the United States, where General Moto ...
, as well as AMC.
Electrically powered cars were also seen as a way for the U.S. to reduce its reliance on "expensive, undependable oil imports."
Powertrain
American Motors entered into a partnership with Gulton Industries of
Metuchen, New Jersey
Metuchen ( ) is a suburban borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. The borough is a commuter town of New York City, located in the heart of the Raritan Valley region within the New York Metropolitan area. The borough, along wit ...
(acquired by
Mark IV Industries Mark IV Industries, Inc., headquartered in Amherst, New York, is a Automotive manufacturing, manufacturer of automotive components. The company is known for power and fluid transfer products that are used primarily in automotive and industrial busin ...
in 1986) to develop the battery and power handling electronics for the car. Their entry into the electric car market was significantly more advanced than other developments, including two types of batteries for fast and slow power release and charging, as well as regenerative brakes to help extend range.
The primary power source consisted of two lithium-nickel-fluoride batteries rated at 150
watt-hours per lb, or 331 watt-hours per kg, with a total capacity of 22.5 kWh. The designers selected
lithium
Lithium (from el, λίθος, lithos, lit=stone) is a chemical element with the symbol Li and atomic number 3. It is a soft, silvery-white alkali metal. Under standard conditions, it is the least dense metal and the least dense solid el ...
for the Amitron because "it is both highly reactive (easy to oxidize) and has high electromotive potential."
The downside to these batteries is that they have relatively low instantaneous
power
Power most often refers to:
* Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work"
** Engine power, the power put out by an engine
** Electric power
* Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events
** Abusive power
Power may a ...
, too little to provide reasonable acceleration, or be able to handle the rapid recharging during regenerative braking. To handle these higher power peaks, a secondary power source consisting of two
nickel-cadmium (NiCd, often read ni-cad) batteries was used. These batteries could accelerate the car to in 20 seconds.
During cruise, the lithium batteries recharged the ni-cads, which continued to power the motor.
The regenerative system would automatically switch the
drive motors to
generators as the car slowed so that the ni-cads could recharge; thus increasing the range of the car.
The
regenerative braking
Regenerative braking is an energy recovery mechanism that slows down a moving vehicle or object by converting its kinetic energy into a form that can be either used immediately or stored until needed. In this mechanism, the electric traction mo ...
control was designed "to provide the same brake pedal "feel" as a conventional car.
This was the first use of regenerative braking technology in the U.S. automobile industry.
Altogether, the system provided the car with a range of when traveling at . Its total battery weight of only was also light for electric vehicles.
The equivalent in
lead-acid cells would weigh nearly a ton (907 kg).
The entire system was controlled by a
solid-state
Solid state, or solid matter, is one of the four fundamental states of matter.
Solid state may also refer to:
Electronics
* Solid-state electronics, circuits built of solid materials
* Solid state ionics, study of ionic conductors and their use ...
power management system.
The first road tests of the batteries and
powertrain
A drivetrain (also frequently spelled as drive train or sometimes drive-train) is the group of components that deliver mechanical power from the prime mover to the driven components. In automotive engineering, the drivetrain is the components o ...
were in 1968 using a converted conventional
Rambler American
The Rambler American is a compact car that was manufactured by the American Motors Corporation (AMC) between 1958 and 1969. The American was the second incarnation of AMC forerunner Nash Motors' compact Rambler that was introduced in 1950 an ...
sedan.
At the time, AMC's vice president of design,
Dick Teague
Richard Arthur Teague (December 26, 1923 – May 5, 1991) was an American industrial designer in the North American automotive industry. He held automotive design positions at General Motors, Packard, and Chrysler before becoming Vice President o ...
, was working on a car called "the Voltswagon".
The supporters of the Amitron were confident and stated that "We don't see a major obstacle in the technology. It's just a matter of time."
Body
The Amitron was designed to minimize power loss by keeping down
rolling resistance
Rolling resistance, sometimes called rolling friction or rolling drag, is the force resisting the motion when a body (such as a ball, tire, or wheel) rolls on a surface. It is mainly caused by non-elastic effects; that is, not all the energy nee ...
, wind
drag resistance, and vehicle weight. The prototype was a snub-snouted three-passenger urban area vehicle or
city car
The A-segment is the 1st category in the passenger car classification system defined by the European Commission. It is used for city cars, the smallest category of passenger cars defined.
A-segment sales represent approx. 7-8% of the market in ...
with an overall length of only . Among its unique design features were passenger seats that had air-filled cushions, rather than conventional
polyurethane
Polyurethane (; often abbreviated PUR and PU) refers to a class of polymers composed of organic chemistry, organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links. In contrast to other common polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, polyurethan ...
(foam rubber). The car did not feature conventional bodyside doors, but the
canopy
Canopy may refer to:
Plants
* Canopy (biology), aboveground portion of plant community or crop (including forests)
* Canopy (grape), aboveground portion of grapes
Religion and ceremonies
* Baldachin or canopy of state, typically placed over an a ...
of the vehicle was hinged up and backward ("clamshell-type" on rear-mounted pivots) for entry and egress.
American Motors put more effort into making its prototype electric car attractive than its competitors.
"The modern looking Amitron was one of the most promising electrics developed in the Sixties."
During the December 1967 public introduction of the car,
Roy D. Chapin Jr.
Roy Dikeman Chapin Jr. (September 21, 1915 – August 5, 2001) was the chairman and chief executive officer of American Motors Corporation (AMC). Chapin's father, Roy D. Chapin Sr., was one of the co-founders of the Hudson Motor Car Company; Hud ...
, chairman and chief executive officer of AMC, stated that the Amitron "could eliminate many problems that up to this point have made electric-type cars impractical".
Potential market
American Motors' original plans were to offer the Amitron for sale to commuters and urban shoppers in five years, and Chapin said AMC had discussed the venture with its bankers and creditors, and "they are about as enthusiastic about it". The Amitron was also well received by the public.
The new technology was still in the infant stage and it was not expected to be popular "until the end of the decade." Competitors were also skeptical of AMC's rapid deployment, stating it would take ten years to have a practical battery.
Moreover, research programs to develop clean transportation in the U.S. ceased.
The Amitron did not go beyond the
prototype
A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototyp ...
stage. The expensive batteries forced AMC to halt further experiments with advanced technology electric vehicles for several years.
Legacy
![1977 AMC Electron concept vehicle 2-cars](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/1977_AMC_Electron_concept_vehicle_2-cars.jpg)
The
AMC Pacer
The AMC Pacer is a two-door compact car produced in the United States by American Motors Corporation (AMC) from the 1975 through the 1980 model years. The Pacer was also made in Mexico by Vehículos Automotores Mexicanos (VAM) from 1976 until 1 ...
was influenced by the Amitron's short, wide dimensions, along with optionally including three front seats.
The abruptly terminating rear end of the concept car influenced the
AMC Gremlin
The AMC Gremlin (also American Motors Gremlin) is a subcompact automobile introduced in 1970, manufactured and marketed in a single, two-door body style (1970–1978) by American Motors Corporation (AMC), as well as in Mexico (1974–1983) by A ...
.
American Motors' battery-powered vehicle development continued under a partnership with Gould (
Gould Electronics
Gould Electronics Inc. was a manufacturer of electronics and batteries that branched into other fields before being partially absorbed in 1988 by Nippon Mining (now JX Holdings) and closed by them in 2014.
History
Gould was founded in 1928 a ...
after selling its battery operations) that lead to the
mass production
Mass production, also known as flow production or continuous production, is the production of substantial amounts of standardized products in a constant flow, including and especially on assembly lines. Together with job production and batch ...
of the
Jeep DJ-5E starting in 1974. This rear-wheel-drive mini-delivery van was also known as the Electruck. Regenerative braking was effective at speeds above and the system included current-limiting to prevent overcharging the lead-acid batteries.
In 1977, AMC introduced their "Concept 80" line of experimental vehicles, which included the AM Van, Grand Touring, Concept I, Concept II, and Jeep II. Along with this lineup, AMC renamed the Amitron to be the Electron, added side-view mirrors to the windows, and gave it a fresh paint job. The show car was not driveable because it did not have a power train.
The design has been characterized by some observers as "hot, sexy, cute and practical." The exterior's angular design was also ahead of its time because it was not until the 1970s that wedge-shaped bodies were finally adopted for production cars.
The Amitron featured a polygonal exterior design that "looks like a miniature
Cybertruck
The Tesla Cybertruck is an upcoming battery electric light-duty truck announced by Tesla, Inc. in 2019. Three models have been announced, with EPA range estimates of and an estimated time of 2.9–6.5 seconds, depending on the model.
Th ...
" that was unveiled in late 2019 by
Tesla, Inc.
Tesla, Inc. ( or ) is an American multinational automotive and clean energy company headquartered in Austin, Texas. Tesla designs and manufactures electric vehicles (electric cars and trucks), battery energy storage from home to grid- ...
The AMC car "laid down principles that looked to represent the future of urban travel, but it was just too advanced for its own good." "The AMC Amitron had almost 50 years ago all that is still considered indispensable for an electric car if it is supposed to succeed: a decent range, low weight, and a jaunty look."
References
Further reading
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External links
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{{American Motors
AMC vehicles
Electric vehicles introduced in the 20th century
Front-wheel-drive vehicles
1960s cars
1970s cars
Subcompact cars
Hatchbacks
Electric city cars
Electric concept cars