Brampton Assembly (AMC)

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Brampton Assembly Plant
Chrysler starlogo.svg
Brampton Assembly (AMC)
Built1960
Operated1962–1992
Location Brampton, Ontario
Coordinates 43°40′41″N79°43′19″W / 43.678°N 79.722°W / 43.678; -79.722
Industry Automotive
Products Automobiles
Area40 acres (16.2 ha)
AddressKennedy Road
Owner(s)
Defunct1992;32 years ago (1992)

The Brampton Assembly Plant is a former automobile manufacturing facility initially owned and operated by American Motors Corporation (AMC) in Brampton, Ontario. The factory began production in 1962 to build over 1.2 million AMC cars and Jeep vehicles through the automaker's acquisition by Chrysler in 1987, until it was closed in 1992.

Contents

Chrysler sold the factory to Wal-Mart for use as a warehouse. The buildings were eventually demolished in the 2000s when the site was redeveloped into a power centre which includes a Lowe's Home Improvement store.

History

The factory was built at the corner of Steeles Avenue and Kennedy Road for American Motors Canada, Inc., who relocated operations from the old Danforth assembly plant (now Shoppers World Danforth) - which also previously served as the Canadian production site of the Ford Model T and Model A - to Peel-Elder's new "Peel Village" neighborhood in Brampton. The facility produced its first Rambler Classic on 26 January 1961. [1]

The facility was composed of an assembly plant, parts warehouse, and engine plant, with an annual capacity of over 50,000 vehicles while employing 1,100 hourly and 500 salaried workers. [2] The Rambler Classic was built on a line speed of 32 cars per shift. [3] The facility was soon producing 33,000 cars annually in Canada. [4] This assembly plant produced Rambler Americans, AMC Rebels, and later, Hornets, Concords, Gremlins, Spirits, and Eagles.

A long rail spur was built south from Canadian National Railway's busy Halton Sub mainline to service the plant. New automobiles were loaded with ramps onto autoracks for rail shipment at the plant.[ citation needed ]

With minimal Canadian production before 1965, American Motors was in the best position of the U.S. automakers to take advantage of the Canada–United States Automotive Products Agreement. [5] This plant also allowed AMC to export cars within Commonwealth countries at a favorable tariff rate, making AMC the number one US nameplate in markets such as Trinidad and Jamaica in the 1960s. [6] The assembly of Ambassador models was moved to Kenosha, Wisconsin while production of Ramblers and Rebels increased. By 1969, the output of AMC's Brampton operation was destined for the eastern half of the continent, while Kenosha supplied the western regions. [7]

In 1977, AMC hired the first female assembly worker, Cecilia Palmer, who became Canadian Auto Workers Local 1285's first sister. [3] The organization is now named Unifor Local 1285.

Passenger car assembly was moved from Brampton to Kenosha in 1978, and this allowed AMC to expand production of its popular Jeep CJ-5 and CJ-7 models. [8]

As Renault increased control of AMC since 1979, the future of the old Brampton facility was in jeopardy by 1982. [9] Renault's strategic business plan was to limit production of AMCs to Kenosha and Jeeps to Toledo as part of efforts to gain economies of scale. [9] Moreover, local production was no longer a prerequisite for duty-free access into the Canadian market as long as the car's Canadian-sourced parts content met a minimum ratio to the total value of its sales in Canada. [9]

Discussions to possibly utilize the assembly plant's capacity with Nissan ended in 1986, while at the time, AMC's president, Jose Dedeurwaerder, a former Renault executive, made an "ominous" statement that the automaker was openly looking for a partner. [10]

In 1987, with the Chrysler buyout, the AMC division and its plants (Brampton and Bramalea) were absorbed into Chrysler, becoming part of Chrysler Canada Limited. At the time of Chrysler's purchase, the combined full production capacity of the four AMC assembly plants (Brampton, Kenosha, Toledo, and the brand-new Bramalea Assembly in Brampton) had a combined annual total production capacity of around 700,000 vehicles. [11] This meant overcapacity for Chrysler, and AMC's old Kenosha and Toledo factories were at the top of Chrysler's closure list. [12] The workers in Toledo agreed to concessions to keep the factory open, but by 1990, they were pitted against Brampton Assembly and additional concessions by the Toledo employees were crucial to Chrysler's decision to close Brampton. [12] The old Brampton factory had been building the Jeep Wrangler, which in 1992 was moved to Toledo and the Brampton plant closed. [13]

With this transfer and closure, AMC's new Bramalea Assembly plant (that was built in 1986) was renamed the Brampton Assembly and began producing the new large Chrysler LH platform models (Chrysler Concorde, Dodge Intrepid, and Eagle Vision). [13] These were followed by the Chrysler LHS and New Yorker as well as the 1999 model year 300M. [13]

Legacy

The original AMC factory was closed on 4 April 1992 [3] and sold to Wal-Mart for use as one of their Canadian warehouses. The remains of the plant's west buildings were torn down in 2005, and the land was redeveloped for commercial/retail use. Among the buildings on the site is a Lowe's home improvement store that opened on 10 December 2007, as one of the first three to be established by the retail chain in Canada. [14] The old factory's east building was demolished in 2007, and a Walmart Supercentre now occupies the site along with a warehouse.[ citation needed ]

Rambler Drive, a street to the west of the plant leading into the Peel Village neighborhood off Kennedy, serves as a reminder of AMC's former presence in the area. [15]

Annual production

American Motors' original Brampton production and products for model years (MY) from 1961 through 1992: [16]

1979 Jeep CJ-7 manufactured November 1978 at AMC's Brampton Assembly 1979 Jeep CJ7 Renegade made by AMC Canada Limited at 2015 Macungie show 3of3.jpg
1979 Jeep CJ-7 manufactured November 1978 at AMC's Brampton Assembly
YearModelUnitsMY totals
1961 Rambler Classic 4,1684,168
1962 Rambler American 5,050
Rambler Classic12,29717,347
1963Rambler American5,308
Rambler Classic18,941
Rambler Ambassador 3,24227,491
1964Rambler American11,860
Rambler Classic19,247
Rambler Ambassador1,87732,984
1965Rambler American9,391
Rambler Classic18,264
Rambler Ambassador6,89334,548
1966Rambler American9,314
Rambler Classic11,606
AMC Ambassador7,85228,772
1967Rambler American5,434
AMC Rebel 15,836
AMC Ambassador10,12531,395
1968Rambler American25,296
AMC Rebel9,718
AMC Ambassador6,41341,427
1969American24,185
AMC Rebel15,52938,714
1970 AMC Hornet 36,408
AMC Gremlin 3,260
AMC Rebel3,58143,249
1971AMC Hornet17,666
AMC Gremlin23,42841,094
1972AMC Hornet18,650
AMC Gremlin33,09157,741
1973AMC Hornet32,331
AMC Gremlin37,66369,994
1974AMC Hornet43,150
AMC Gremlin39,22382,373
1975AMC Hornet21,848
AMC Gremlin10,16332,011
1976AMC Hornet35,204
AMC Gremlin14,42249,626
1977AMC Hornet21,218
AMC Gremlin19,16640,284
1978 AMC Concord 41,017
AMC Gremlin4,21145,228
1979 Jeep CJ-520,913
Jeep CJ-730,68451,597
1980Jeep CJ-512,050
Jeep CJ-717,99330,043
1981AMC Concord10,441
AMC Eagle 10,34720,788
1982AMC Concord10,117
AMC Eagle20,90031,017
1983AMC Concord14,277
AMC Spirit 1,689
AMC Eagle10,424
AMC Eagle SX/45,39831,788
1984AMC Eagle25,535
AMC Eagle SX/4125,536
1985AMC Eagle16,86616,866
1986AMC Eagle8,2178,217
1987AMC Eagle4,996
Jeep Wrangler 44,51749,513
1988Eagle Wagon *2,305
Jeep Wrangler46,13048,435
1989Jeep Wrangler71,02571,025
1990Jeep Wrangler57,45157,451
1991Jeep Wrangler57,24157,241
1992Jeep Wrangler82,01582,015
1961-1992Grand total1,280,078
* Note: the final AMC branded car (not Jeep), a 1988 AMC Eagle, was built on 11 December 1987, and shipped from Brampton on 15 December to a dealer in the U.S. [17]

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