If it was 1987 outside and you wanted a flash European convertible, you had some options. At the top of the price range were the Mercedes-Benz SL and the Jaguar XJS, which had been in production for waaay too long but were still selling like hotcakes. Alfa was still selling its ever-popular Spider, which was aging remarkably well despite the various things that were added to it. Then there were the Saab 900 and BMW 3-series convertibles, both of which came standard with Wayfarers. I’m pretty sure that somewhere in the purchase contract the owner was also obligated to wear a polo shirt with a popped collar at all times. But both of them were kind of pricey, especially the 3-series. And of course Volvo never figured out what a popular car the 780 Cabrio could have been, because they never made it. At the bottom of the price range were the Yugo, the VW Rabbit Cabriolet, and the Renault Alliance. What’s that? You had forgotten completely about the Alliance convertible?
That’s right, the Alliance was a popular and affordable European-plated convertible made right here in the USA. In sunny Kenosha, Wisconsin to be precise. The example I saw here appeared to be in pretty standard condition for a running Alliance. That is; in great cosmetic shape and likely with less than 50K on the clock. The AMC-built Renaults that I have seen within the last few years have all tended to be in surprisingly swell shape, no doubt most being recently resuscitated examples found in Nana’s old garage out back where she also keeps Star Trek: The Motion Picture-style plastic swiveling chairs and the 1973 Yard-Man riding mower. You know, the green and cream-colored one that Uncle Hiram got at Montgomery Ward at a good discount cause he and the manager were bowling buddies.
For a car that was in production for six years, and came in sedan, coupe, cabrio, and hatch form, these have disappeared pretty fast. An almost unbelievable 623,000+ examples were built at the AMC plant in Kenosha during that time, and sold through Renault dealers. Depending on where you lived, Renault dealers tended to be either sellers of various import wares such as Poozhoes and Volvos, or side franchises at AMC dealerships. For example, a local and now defunct dealership offered the award winning trio of AMCs, Pew-joes, and Renaults.
Just how popular were these? The base price, adjusted for 2013 dollars, hovered around 15 grand. Name a European-plated convertible that you could get for that much today. So yes, these moved out of showrooms at a pretty good pace.
I am starting to get the sense that most of the surviving Renault Alliances are convertibles, because all the other Renaults in the range were treated as disposable, and had been disposed of years before Cash for Clunkers. The convertibles probably weren’t used year round, and tended to be kept in garages which prevented them from immediately dissolving into the ground after the first dusting of snow. And since quite a lot of these were sold in the midwest and the northeast, it’s a safe bet that a lot of Alliance convertibles spent a good six months indoors. So that’s how we’ll have a steady supply of minty-looking Renault Alliance convertibles well into the 2070s.
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