Austin Ambassador

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Austin
Austin Ambassador Vanden Plas
Austin Ambassador Vanden Plas
Ambassador
Sales designation: Austin Ambassador
Production period: 1982-1984
Class : Middle class
Body versions : Station wagon
Engines:
Petrol engines : 1.7–2.0 liters
(64.5–74.6 kW)
Length: 4455 mm
Width: 1730 mm
Height: 1410 mm
Wheelbase : 2670 mm
Empty weight : 1140-1215 kg
Previous model Princess
successor Austin Montego

The Austin Ambassador (development code BL LM19) was a mid -range five-door hatchback sedan developed under British Leyland from 1980 and offered by the Austin Rover Group from 1982 to 1984. The English name ambassador means "envoy, ambassador". The car was a further development of the originally four-door Princess model. The facelift was so thorough that only the doors and the internal structure were retained. In contrast to the Princess, the car was only produced as a right-hand drive and only offered in Great Britain and Ireland.

history

The introduction of the Ambassador was due to the streamlining and attempted modernization of the model range from BL at the very beginning of the 1980s. Both the five-door Austin Maxi , which had become practically unsaleable, and the hatchback version of the technically and visually obsolete Morris Marina were to be taken out of the range as soon as possible. Because the five-door, mid-range Austin Maestro, which was planned to be the successor, was still in a very early stage of development, a few years had to be bridged before it was introduced. In order to be able to continue to offer a five-door hatchback model with a tailgate in the meantime, the Princess, which has been built since 1975, was given a facelift and sold as an Austin Ambassador with a tailgate and folding rear seat bench. For similar reasons, the Morris Ital was created as a facelift version of the Morris Marina in 1980 . In both cases, the name change was due to the bad reputation of the original models.

In contrast to the case of the Marina, which was only visually changed, the revision of the Princess was very extensive. It extended to the body, engines and interior. The tall 2.2-liter six-cylinder was omitted, which meant that the front end could be made flatter and more aerodynamically favorable. By using the tailgate, extensive and costly changes to the load-bearing parts were necessary. The C-pillars also received side windows for improved all-round visibility. In the interior there was a new dashboard and a much more extensive, but overall perceived as less valuable equipment. However, ergonomics and processing quality had noticeably improved.

There was criticism not only for the low-quality equipment, but also, as before with the Princess, for the low-torque engines and the missing fifth gear. The elimination of the previously pronounced wedge shape also caused a lack of understanding. The fact that the customers' wishes for sportiness and comfort were only rarely addressed resulted in an even further decline in sales compared to the Princess.

The Ambassador was initially offered with 1.7-liter and 2.0-liter engines and in the equipment variants L , HL , HLS and the top model Vanden Plas with a 2.0-liter engine and double carburetor system. The name referred to the former body manufacturer Vanden Plas , which had belonged to the Leyland Group for several decades and whose name had meanwhile become a mere addition to the name. In 1983 the HLS also got the twin carburetor engine.

  Equipment lines
Engines L. HL HLS Vanden Plas
1.7 Yes Yes
2.0 Yes
2.0 TC Yes Yes Yes

After the launch of the Austin Maestro and the notchback version Montego , production of the Ambassador and the Morris Ital was discontinued.

Data sheet Austin Ambassador (1982)
Austin Ambassador 1700 2000 2000 TC
Engine:  4-cylinder in-line engine (four-stroke), front transverse
Displacement:  1698 cc 1994 cc 1994 cc
Bore × stroke:  84.5 x 75.8 mm 84.5 x 89 mm 84.5 x 89 mm
Performance at 1 / min:  64.5 kW (88 hp)
at 5200		 69 kW (94 PS)
at 4900		 74.6 kW (101.4 hp)
for the 5250
Max. Torque at 1 / min:  131 Nm at 3800 153 Nm at 3400 161 Nm at 3250
Compression:  9.0: 1
Mixture preparation:  1 downdraft carburetor SU 2 SU
downdraft carburettors with automatic starter
Valve control:  Overhead camshaft, drive via toothed belt
Cooling:  Water cooling
Transmission:  4-speed gearbox, stick shift
aW three-speed automatic (Borg-Warner)
front-wheel drive
Front suspension:  Wishbones, reaction struts, hydragas composite suspension
Rear suspension:  Trailing arm, torsion bar, hydragas composite suspension
Body:  Sheet steel, self-supporting
Track width front / rear:  1475/1455 mm
Wheelbase:  2670 mm
L × W × H:  4455 × 1730 × 1410 mm
Empty weight:  1140 kg 1145 kg 1215 kg
Maximum speed (factory):  155-160 km / h 155-160 km / h 165 km / h
0-100 km / h (factory):  18-20 s 14-16 s 13.7 s
Consumption (liters / 100 km, EU city cycle):  9.5-9.6 S. 10.2-10.4 S 10.4 S

literature

  • Automobil Revue , catalog number 1982 (technical data)

Web links