1977 Dodge Aspen Commercial vs. Chevy Nova
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 25 дек 2011
- (Improved color quality and stabilized) This film was restored and cleaned. It's originally a Dodge Dealer Demo Film used by Dodge Dealerships at the time to familiarize Salemen with the products, In some cases, it would be shown to potential customers using the Dodge Demo Screen.
My father bought a 1976 Nova Concours brand new, same color as the car in the video. It really was a very good running reliable car. And yes 42 years later I still have it.
Nice. I love the nova
What about the thermal battery cover? Stereo 8?😍😍😍
Yes, the chevy Nova was a much better car than the Aspen.
My folks baught 76 nova 4 door no power steering 3 speed manual on steering, 305 V8 my uncle baught same car the keys work on both vehicles
@@Aaronhouston33 I had the battery cover on my 1977 Chrysler Cordoba! It kept it warm!
I had a Volare with the road runner option. It had a 360V8 and automatic. I put some 3.55 gears and dual exhaust on it. Was pretty quick for a 1970s car
My neighbor had the Dodge R/T version
Marketing! LOL. Did you notice when they were comparing the interior space, for the Nova they had the front seat shoved far forward and used a higher camera angle. For the Aspen the seat was all the way back and the camera angle was lower.
Yeah. The copy that he read to us was written in a deceiving manner. In other words, it is full of outright lies.
Yep, I noticed that!
Useless trivia: Around the 23 second mark, that's the same stretch of road where Dennis Weaver drove his Valiant over the embankment in "Duel", and hid out by the railroad tracks to get away from the tanker truck.
I watched Duel the other night, I thought the same thing watching this video, funny!
I saw it when I was a kid. Scary, that, but I'm used to seeing Weaver in mostly light-hearted stuff.
A car that was considered a compact in the. 70's is bigger than most full size cars today
I still drive a 1976 Dodge Aspen Special Edition sedan, silver with burgundy vinyl roof and interior with the 60/40 bucket seats. I am the second owner; I have had it since 1987 when I was in high school. This was my first car. Overall it has been a fairly reliable car, even on long cross-country trips. The front fenders were replaced with fiberglass by Chrysler in the late 1970s, and the plastic front inner fender liners which were standard after 1978 were added. Skipping on these was a major engineering failure on the part of Chrysler. Sand and mud would collect on the firewall, door hinge area and underside of the front fenders and cause rust. What a stupidly inexpensive thing to omit to ruin the reputation of what are actually fairly decent cars for the time... interior comfort, ride, handling and visibility.
It was also costly, at the time, the most expensive recall ever and put Chrysler in Financial difficulties.....it was fixed by mid year 1977, but today, people seem to think that this was the most recalled car ever and had lots of problems, it's the most expensive recall at the time...the cars themselves were extremely reliable.
I always liked the '76 and '77 Volare and Aspen. Sweet rides. Thanks for posting, OsbornTramain!
you won't believe what I'm uploading later today and tomorrow.
I had more than one mid to early 80s Chrysler products back in the day. Those included a 75 Sport Fury with a 360-2bbl, 79 Duster w/Super Six 225-2bbl. and a 81 Cordoba with a Slant Six. They were all dependable cars compared to other brands made in that time. Every brand had problems with their computer systems, which suffered from heat damage from the engine compartment. That was what was wrong with the Lean Burn system computer. If you removed the Lean Burn computer and set the engine up with just electronic ignition, you would have a good running car again. The Fury was tempermental in the way it ran. Probably the carb needed to be replaced. The other two ran really good. My sister drove a 79 Duster for 15 years and put almost 200,000 miles on it! It still ran when she gave it away to charity. Someone got a car that wouldn't die!
The Lean Burn computers in 79 cost $100 to replace. Smart people ditched them, if their mechanic suggested it.
Interiors on all late 70s GMs, Fords and Mopars were cheap. Quality control was nominal during assembly process. Think not? I detailed new and used cars during this time period and had a chance to not just clean them but also drive them to my detail shop after picking them up at dealers. I also worked at Ford and Chevy dealers where I prepped new cars for delivery. One summer I prepped 5 new Vettes in 1978 for delivery-2 silver anniversary models and 3 pace car Vettes. The Camaros had about the same quality controls as a Chit-vette. Very cheap interiors and too many of them ran like crap due to defective assembly or parts that didn't meet specs.
Same deal with Fords. I was moving a used Pinto around the Ford dealer's lot when the stick shift broke off in my hand as I tried to put it in 1rst gear! Ford's interiors were very Spartan too and super cheap. The only decent model Ford made in the late 70s was the T-bird.
Novas? They weren't any better than the A-body or F-body Chryslers, although they had more cushy suspension. Their interiors were the same in quality. Their drive trains were OK, but you could blow away a later model Nova or Pontiac Tempest with a Mopar 318 and that included dusting the 350-4bbl. I did it may times with a 72 Challenger 318/auto car.
Novas may have had a following, but GM wasn't putting much into their smaller car lines by 1972, probably because they were going to drop them soon enough. Also, GM had a tough time with emissions and keeping power up in their V8 motors after 1970. Pontiac had the most success with drive trains after 1970 in the GM camp.
I wouldn't have bought either . I remember all the Aspen and Volari commercials . They sold a good number of them it seemed like. The first ticket I got I was pulled over by Maryland State Trooper driving either an Aspen or Volari.
I was hungry for a burger and took my dad's 77 Trans Am to go to Burger King. The one closet our home was closed for remodeling. So I got back on the highway and was going to another. I was doing about 65 mph and the limit was 55. There was a car back about a 1/8 mile. I finally decided it wasn't a cop and nailed it. I was clipping along doing close to 80 mph. The car speed up and the lights came on. My first reaction was lose him and I put the pedal to the floor. I knew the area so well I was going to take the first off ramp and lose him in the neighborhood. Instead I decided to pull over .
He asked me where I was going in such a hurry and if it was my brother's car. I told him it was my dad's car to which he seemed surprised. I racked up lots of tickets driving that car. Oh those were fun days . My dad gave me the T/A and he bought a Cadillac Sedan Deville .
Copper must have had under the hood either the 360 or the police issue 400, if it could fit.
Am I the only one who misses chrome and square shaped cars???
turowat nope
no
Nope. Chrome and square shaped cars are sexy. I’m over the rounded off body colored crap of today’s cars. Ugh.
This era of Nova was notorious for "dog walking" or "crabbing", meaning they'd go down the street crooked with the rear wheels not following the front wheels. It was so common it got to the point where it was rare to see one NOT crabbing down the road. Some were so bad the driver had a quarter turn in the steering wheel just to go down a straight road, and they couldn't go through a drive-through car wash because they'd jump off the tracks. I always heard it was something about a defect in a positioning pin for the rear suspension that would sheer off and allow the axle to swivel out of place. I don't know if that was true, but I always wondered if the drivers could tell something was horribly amiss.
Oh the other hand, the Aspens/Volares were horrible rust buckets that had the dubious honor of being the most recalled cars ever produced up until that time. For example, in 1978 Chrysler had to recall every single 1976 and 1977 Aspen and Volare to inspect the front fenders and replace them if necessary due to severe corrosion issues.
It was indeed the "malaise" era of the 1970s, and Detroit was busy digging its own grave with inexcusable engineering and quality control problems and driving off customers in droves, many of whom they'd never get back.
Actually, Chrysler engineering was ahead of the others. It was the quality control that sucked...
wasn`t that usually due to frame damage?
The way we were acting reflected that weird period in our lives!
Yeah but that slant six
First time I’ve ever heard of a nova crab walking down the street. Not to mention your other 10 or whatever areas that you didn’t like 70s cars. If you don’t like these cars go puke on someone else’s RUclips page we don’t want to hear your puke.
The music that starts at 3:12 is really relaxing. It gets kinda scary sounding at the end when the video starts to mess up.
Friend of the family had a Plymouth Volaire' (aspen) with the slant-6. It blew a connecting rod through the crankcase and only had five working cylinders but he drove it like that for two years when the frame broke. Great cars.
Owned a 1970 Dart Swinger a 1977 Volare' wagon and a 1980 Dodge Diplomat , all slant six powered and they were just such solid reliable cars. Always started after sitting outside in Temps that you would not survive should you be caught outside overnight. My wife worked three to eleven shift and that Volare' wagon always got her home after work on some really snowy nights. She always said how good it went in the snow.
Cars really were more distinctive between brands back then. We are at a place in life where we can buy whatever we want, and today's dinky little soulless cars just lack anything that make them enjoyable and fun.
My dad bought his Nova brand new in ‘78. Our old neighbour was moving and scraped the driver’s side with their moving truck in the early 90s. That was the end of my dad’s Nova. I learned to drive in that car when I was 16.
Chrysler Australia had a couple of these here for evaluation with replacing the then current VK/CL Valiant in mind. It was to have been offered with a choice of two sixes, 245 and 265 cid (Chrysler Australia had ceased using the slant six in 1970) and the 318 V8. A good power to rate ratio would have been guaranteed. Chrysler conducted a styling clinic in Sydney for the public to view the Dodge (without badging) alongside then current Holden (GM) and Ford offerings and the current Valiant, also without any badging. Also included was a German Opel that everybody knew the forthcoming Holden world car would be based on. The Dodge bombed badly and even Chrysler said that "even if we had it in our showrooms right now it would be a failure".
Mopars are awesome Those slant six engines you can't kill trust me I have tried I'd buy a Aspen over a nova I owned a 79 Aspen R/T with a 360 and never had any big issues with it
I had a 1975 Nova LN. I put Camaro rally wheels and the police option rear sway bar on it with Goodyear GT tires. It was bad ass for it's time. Never had and problems with the detuned 350. It was a great car for the time.
Why do you reckon GM and Ford used warning lights for the instrument cluster rather than proper gauges? I would think it'd be easier to know see what the temperature is than with a warning light. Warning lights are fine for getting the driver's attention, but that's about it.
Ah, I still remember my uncle trading his 2 dr. Dart for a new 4 dr. Deluxe Aspen. I never thought of the Aspen as a small car. Red w/ Red interior and white vinyl top. It was sharp looking. I still remember the new car smell. But I like the Nova Concours. Haha
Hey should have gotten the 2 dr Aspen. Looked better.
I grew up being told that the Dodge Aspen and Plymouth Volare were poorly built cars. I disagree. My aunt had a 1977 Dodge Aspen coupe when I was a boy, and it was a wonderful car, very reliable.
I agree, they were great cars after the initial first year...unlike the Vega that was simply a bad design, the Aspen's issues were of manufacturing quality. they were fixed by the 1977 model year.
OsbornTramain I agree. I'd prefer the 1977 Aspen over the Volare. I find the Aspen grille to be more attractive than that of the Volare.
Totally agree! My family had a Volare coupe and it was still running at 200,000 miles when my parents gave it to my cousin when he went away to school and he sold it a couple of years later with it still running fine. After seeing the differences in parts, features, etc. versus the Nova I guess I know why it was so reliable. I almost wish I could buy one today.
They were Motor Trend Car of the year, years ahead of design and engineering compared to the X cars of GM (Nova, Apollo, Omega and Phoenix). They absolutely had an awful horrendous launch in Fall of 75, but, those problem and issues were quality issues, not design issues. They were sorted out and it went on to be an extremely reliable car.
OsbornTramain Why do you reckon that is, that quality was such a problem? I know that during the 70s, companies were trying to save money, but why would anyone sacrifice quality in favour of a low cost?
I owned a 78 nova and nowadays want another I paid 400$ for it in 01 and it lasted for 2 years
No, it ran for 2 years. You didn't keep it running. If it fell apart in only 2 years then either it was junk when you got it, or you somehow destroyed it.
My father, bought a 77volare with a 318,, we live in Sweden so this was cind of a luxury car. 😂. Me and my dad loved it, until my stupid older brother totalled it, so my dad bought a new mercedes, and still drive mercedes after all these years. But when we taik about the Volare he still miss that car. I think my Mother had a finger in chosing merc, instead. My first car was a 1965 Baracuda, and I have a 2018 Ram, 1971 Impala conv, and a 199 Camaro today. I love american cars thanks to that Plymouth.
I've heard that older American cars are very popular in Sweden. Are newer models popular also?
@@devildog5354 yes, they are. Ram chev 1500 and musclecars like Mustang camaro and challenger, are very popular here. But Sweden have Greta Thunberg and a lot of refuges, so gasprice is 7,5 per gallon and ricing. Sweden wants to for e us to electrik cars. I hate it,. A new. Ram 1500 Bighorn cost 80-100000$here.
What Chrysler wouldn't say is that the Aspen would rot out within two years.
Ah, they had a recall for rust in 1977 for the 1976 models. it was only the front fenders that rusted at the top near the windshield posts, not the rest of the car. By the time of this film was created, that rust problem was solved. It not something that effected the entire production run of Aspens' Your comment seem off the mark.
No my comment isn't off the mark, we had a 1977 model and my dad was ever so happy to trade it in for a Nova.
It had rust in the front and rear fenders, floor boards and windshield columns in one and a half years.
We also had a 1973 Dodge Dart Swinger and that one did not have any rust issue, but the Aspen was a car to forget.
I'm only saying it was a temporary problem 76 and 77, which is what you owned. This film was made in 1976 when the car was only 6 months old, so it's hard to imagine anyone at the time of this film creation knowingly hide the rust issue because they couldn't have rusted that fast. The car was introduced in January of 1976 and this film was produced only 8 months later. You implied that "what they wouldn't tell you..." I'm saying they didn't know yet...when this film was made.
Idk I still see them up here in the Northeast!
I had a 1978 Aspen... When it rained i would have 2 to 6" of water down the whole passenger side ... Lol
"Out of sight" t-bar roof lol
I never saw one on an Aspen.
Well then they need to consider bringing back the Dodge Polara and the Monaco. Those were once great cars to.
NHTSA recalled these cars so much that when their replacements arrived on the scene in 1980, Chrysler Corp. renamed them Plymouth Reliant and Dodge Aries
You're wrong on a couple of points. The issue with these cars were that they had the "most expensive" recall in history, it's not an issue of quantities of recalls. The Front Fender Recall for Rust Repair was extremely expensive. They didn't have any other safety recalls and were extremely reliable cars. There's no evidence that Chrysler changed the name on the K cars because of this. Dart and Valiant were replaced by Aspen and Volare, Aries and Reliant were the replacement for the Aspen and Volare, Chrysler had a tradition of name changes when all new cars were introduced, it has nothing to do with recalls. These cars continued in production thru 1989 in Dodge Diplomat, Plymouth Gran Fury and Chrysler Fifth Avenue forms.
@@OsbornTramain and don't forget the Plymouth Caravel made in Canada was based on the Plymouth Volare.
My folks had an Aspen wagon. Really comfy interior. Besides that, it was a MAJOR p.o.s.!
what year was it? just curious? the 76 were particularly bad.
We had the Volare wagon, always in the shop
@@OsbornTramain I don't know for sure but that sounds about right. It was a manual to boot!
I had a '77Nova in high skool. Had a 350ci, with... MODS 😉
Running high13's in the late 80s wasnt too shabby.
My uncle had 1977 Dodge Aspen..R.i.p.
An Aspen with a 360! I forgot that was a thing.
I had a 79 Aspen wagon with the 225 slant six and it got 20 on the highway on a good day.
Yep, I own a 77 Royal Monaco....they did bring the Monaco back in the 199 thru 1992 model year. Rebadged AMC Eagle Premiers for Dodge Dealers. I always thought the Monaco was a great name.
Damn.. They didn't know how gangster that bih was!! 🔥🚒
SWANGIN!!
The jive turkey music in the intro fits perfect XD
Man dodge knew they threw a lot of shade back in the day. Them where the days.
I have a 1977 aspen that does not have rust issues its my drag car I love the car very strong car
3:44 the quintessential 70s look
They already did! It's the Chrysler Version of the Dodge Durango, the Chrysler Aspen. It was on the market for a few years and discontinued I think in 2011
Its funny to cars that were all over the place and to see how they have changed for the better.
I had a Chevy Nova (not a 1976, or later model) it was a 1974 model with a 350 V-8, and an automatic transmission, finally got rid of it by donating it to a fire department for training in extraction purposes.
the 4 door aspen had a 112 inch wheelbase but he coupe a 108 one
The Nova had a much better ride and handling. Those electronic junk under the hood was always a nightmare but it’s brakes were good!
I had both cars 1978 Chevy Nova V8 305 with a 3 speed auto and a 1979 four door Dodge Aspen SE with slant 6 3 speed auto. Sad to say the Nova was more fun. Aspen was more reliable. You decide Junked Nova with bad Trans, rust and a bad paint job, head liner falling, A/C compressor fried, power antenna stuck up half way and two wheel covers left with 133,000 miles on it. Junk Dodge with rusted frame, no wheel covers left, faded paint, a/c compressor fried, head liner falling, driver side window no longer would roll down or up 126,000 miles on it. I would do both cars again thou.
Get in the Aspen and put it in neutral, I'll do the pushing
Don't see many of those on the road anymore...
Never seen a Aspen "dogtailing" like I did with these Nova's....
Why are seats in 90 percent of modern cars ROCK HARD?
Why does the Nova and Aspen look so much a like???
Which is larger--the t-tops or the wings of the dude's collar?
Back in the day most of my friends' parents owed one of those cars. (I'm GenX, btw)
Im still searching for a Blue Volare Premiere with high bucket seats console t tops. Cant find one in Canada
I want white interior
When you think the way cars were back then you could order your car with the options you wanted , now all the cars are basically the same.
I had a 76 Volare coupe top banana yellow and a black bucket seat int I loved that car just a 318 two bbl but it would do a wonderful smoke show and won many a stop light drag race
3:37 I see Ron Burgundy liked the Aspen!
“Standard”on “special edition” Aspen…??? Huh? Comparing an SE to a base model Nova?
Aspen, Nova and Maverick (later Fairmont) were all the same size!
The Maverick as significantly smaller, in the same size range as the AMC Hornet. Aspen Volare and Granada were similar in size and considered a size bigger than a Compact and smaller than a MidSized car.
I stand corrected. Aspen, Granada and Nova were roughly the same size!
@@davidallen5776 Fairmont was really a downsized intermediate, and arguably Aspen as well. Both were similar in size to the '78 GM downsized intermediates.
@@kevinwong6588 You mean Granada, which was a step up from Fairmont.
@@davidallen5776 Pre-81 Granadas are actually smaller than Fairmont.
Estos dos vehículos me gustaban mucho como también el Malibú Classic. Pero entre los tres encontraba con un aire más deportivo el Chevrolet Nova. Lindos autos, lindo comercial 👍
When you think about it if they brought back the Dodge Challenger, Charger and Dart they might bring back the Aspen.
Cool :)
I'm guessing the Ford rival to these two would be the Maverick and later the Fairmont.
Hey, How's your Aspen?
It's almost done being repaired, I just need to replace the intake manifold.
Me gustan los dos carros un Dodge Aspen SE y Chevrolet Nova 1977; son unos excelentes automóviles; me gusta el Dodge Aspen SE 1977; Motor 318 V8 transmisión automática; también me gusta el Chevrolet Nova 1977; motor 350 V8; transmisión automática; saludos y buenas noches.
0:20...........no, the Volare was "The (new) small car with the accent on comfort". The Aspen was "Unbelievable".
I like that station wagon
Always wanted a Nova back in the 80s but too much money on the used market.
The Chevrolet Nova was hands down a less problematic car than the Dodge Aspen. The 250 i-6 in the Nova was bulletproof and got 20 mpg. The once solid slant 6 225 and 318 v8 engines in Chrysler cars were now ruined by LEAN BURN system.
You're simply factually wrong. First, the Nova had just as many Recalls, the data is out there at the NHTSA. The Fender Recall of Aspen made it them most expensive recall in automotive history, but from a safety perspective, Nova had just as many recalls......additionally, The problematic lean Burn you mention was version 1 on the 400 cubic inch engine, never even available on the Aspen. Aspen got the version II lean Burn 1977 but only on the 360 Cubic Inch Engine, the 318 and 225 didn't use Lean Burn........in 1978 the Aspen would have the Lean Burn but again, only in the V8, it wasn't until 79 that the 225 got Lean Burn.....the last two model years. 76, 77, 78 Aspens 225's DIDN"T have Lean Burn. The significant majority of the 811 thousand Aspens, didn't have lean burn ever. The bugs in Lean Burn were well worked out by 1979, it was gradually phased into production to resolve problem. Lean Burn simply is not an issue in the Aspen or the Volare, LeBaron or Diplomat. Lean Burn made the cars more powerful and more fuel efficient and served Chrysler well into the decades that followed. Version I of Lean Burn had problem but again, they weren't on all Chrysler Products. As a former owner and driver of Lean Burn cars, i can tell you, it's a myth that they were bad, yep, Version 1 on the 400 was a disaster, but after that, simply not an issue.
My 1978 Magnum had a 318 with the lean burn and it was in the shop more than it was on the road..Got rid of it after just one year..But i really loved the car itself
Ok, you like the lean burn and know its history. Now lets say you had a car with a choice between another lean burn and another with the GM HEI distributor with its easy to replace coil and ignition control module. which would you put on your car given the history of both units?
@@OsbornTramain
Lol I’ll take the 1957 line up hands down before 77
They sold me
MOPAR rules!
I miss the days when cars were actually cars and not high-tech robots like they are now... I loved cars being nothing but power, looks, radio, and something that got you from A to B.
Now, most cars are ugly, sound like crap, some have TV's in them and all that other shit that's not even needed.
Technology destroys nostalgia.. I hate this day and age..
I own this car, it has a 380 v8 supercharger and elderblock heads
bence her zaman chevrolet impala caprıce belair nova camaro corvette en üstün otomabil dünya da her zaman parça sıkıntısı olmayan bir araç şu an en güzel klasik otmabil olarak hizmet veriyor
I have a 74 nova
I'd rather have a bare bones Nova than a highly equipped Aspen.
not me!
I know there were Nova police cars, can't remember ever seeing an Aspen/Volare police car......Shows how not popular they were
Aspen and Volare were outselling the Nova, they were very popular, Chrysler was larger than GM in the Police car market, very few Nova Police Cars were sold, Police Departments primarily used the Royal Monaco or the Fury in Police Fleets, very few police departments ran Nova cop cars. They were rare in the day. Before you make comments, you might want to think about checking production figures which are out there on the web Between 1976 and 1979, Aspen/Volare, 1,723,046 cars produced, the Nova in the same time period, 1,085,822 Nova was old and dated technology, lipstick on a pig, 1968 technology, the Aspen/Volare were state of the art at the time.
The NYPD had a lot of Volaré/Aspen police cars back in the day
Compact road runner was a ok
The car that almost killed Chrysler Co
Not really. The Recall wasn't good, but there were lots of other reasons why Chrysler had financial difficulties in the later half of the 1970's. High R&D Costs to launch the Omni/Horizon, failed R body launch with very poor sales results, C body sales tanking in 1975, Negative Press and media etc. etc. The Fender recall on the Aspen Volare was just one event among many. The car itself was in production in M body for thru 1989, a darn good platform.
My mom had a 76 Nova Cp, and never had any problems until she purchase a 80 Dodge Omni which was worse car she every own.
GM had the Malibu wagon
that was a midsize. not a compact
Don't apologize
Had them loved them Better cars than the crappy Pontiac Grand Prix’s I had and I like Pontiac as well just not on those
who could say they looked bad I think it was the best looking car of the late 70's and I had a few of them god love the super six
Man Dodge being salty AF!
Small Cars! LoL & 😱 at the same time
Compact wagon too!
They were small compared to the Full Sized Cars. in 1974 Full Sized Cars comprised 50% of the USA auto market. these were tiny compared to them.
Its funny watching this in 2015, where my now almost 20 yr old bmw m3 easily does 28mpg.....
gas mileage wasn't an issue then
Its funny watching this in 2023, where my still new 2023 mirage gets over 50 mpg and easily beats 40mpg in the city!
The Nova is prettier than the Aspen
"small car". Lol
Comparisons are lame all these old cars are pretty especially compared to the ugly bubbles they all are today.
but when it comes to styling.... Nova wins...
Why oh why do American car brands have to always be changing the name of their cars? Toyota just kept selling the Corolla even today in 2022. It should have been called the Dodge Dart, period.
Because it didn't replace the Dodge Dart. The Dodge Dart was on sale in showrooms on the floor side by side the Aspen. The Aspen (despite what you read) was a new sized car larger than the Dart. In January of 1978, the New Dodge Omni was on the scene which is really what replaced the Dart despite what you read. There was a 1976 Dodge Dart and a 1976 Dodge Aspen.....two different cars for two different customers. The Dart was a no frills economy car.....that's what the Omni was but front drive down sized but the low end car for Dodge
NOVA 10+ , aspen 10-
Lol the nova was years ahead the ugly crappy dodge in looks, performance and reliability. No wonder nova was the best handling sedan in the 70’s . The dodge attempt was a fiasco of a car that would fall apart easily.
I think you're actually wrong on many counts. First, Nova was a fossil in terms of technology. It was based on it's 1962 Platform and eliminated by Chevy in 1980. It's subframe was based on 1962 technology Nothing about the car was state of the art. The Dodge was the opposite in all aspects, unit body, suspension and safety features. Despite your claims of a "fiaco", your really speaking revisionist history. Aspen had some recalls in 1976 and half of the 1977 model year which were expensive, the front fenders in particular, but the car itself was solid and it's platform lasted in Dodge Diplomat version until 1989 and was a cash cow producing tons of cash for Chrysler, it was so profitable, that Chrysler decided not to eliminate it as planned in 1985 and moved it's production to AMC's plants in Kenosha in 1987 before they even merged with AMC where it stayed in Production until Summer of 1989. Here are the Chevy recalls for 1977, just as bad as Aspen, but maybe not as expensive. howtune.com/recalls/chevrolet/nova/1977/
The Aspen/Volare were equipped with an isolated torsion bar suspension system that allowed the front tires to maintain road contact when a bump was encountered unlike the Nova the tires bounced over the bump when it hit it.
When the Aspen/Volare hit the bump the tires moved backwards then rolled over the bump as opposed to moving up into the air then back down when the Nova hit a bump with it's coil springs.
Car only American and rest..sh..