Eagle Medallion

Production period:	1987 to 1994
Class :	motor car
Body versions :	Saloon , station wagon
Engines:	Gasoline :2.2 liters (79 kW)

The Eagle Medallion , also called Renault Medallion , was a version of the Renaults 21 from the mid 1980s .

History

 Both sister models were created on the same floor group. The Medallion differed from the Renault 21 especially in equipment and engine range and the front area.The Medallion was developed by Renault in France and imported by the cooperation partner American Motors Corporation in the spring of 1987 in the United States.This wore the Renault logo until Chrysler took over American Motors Corporation in August 1987.

The Medallion had the 2.2-liter inline four-cylinder engine of the Renault 25 . He was in the then usual Renault type front mounted longitudinally and drove the front wheels. The car was equipped with a manual 5-speed gearbox or a 3-speed automatic transmission. The longitudinal installation of the engine was unusual - and somewhat old-fashioned - at a time when most vehicles with front-wheel drive had space-saving transversely mounted engines.

The reason for this design principle was the fact that the torque of the larger Renault engines (over 2.0 liters capacity) had proved too large for the transmission usually used in the Renault 21. In Europe, all Renault 21 models with engines under two liters of cubic capacity - like the smaller models had transversely installed them. On the other hand, had the larger models, such. As the Renault 20 or the Renault 30 , with engines of two liters and more along these longitudinally installed. The same design had the Renault 25, whose engines were all larger than two liters.

The Medallion had a lot of space to offer. The sedan was known for its extra large trunk. The station wagon was exceptional, as it had an optional extra third row of seats with longer wheelbase than the sedan, with the passengers looking ahead. The basic equipment was called DL , the more luxurious equipment version LX .From the model year 1988, the Medallion was sold under the newly created brand name Eagle . The import of vehicles from France lasted until 1989.

Although the market outlook was initially good, the Medallion had a poor start in the US market as the AMC dealer network was thin and there were frequent rumors of Chrysler taking over the company, which overshadowed the launch of the Medallion. So the car never sold really well. Although it was a really solid proposition in an interesting market segment, Chrysler decided to stop the Renault import in 1989.The imported Medallion competed with the Chrysler Corporation's US models under the Chrysler , Dodge, and Plymouth brand names , and so the enthusiasm for properly marketing Medallion  and the Premier - was not great.