Ranger (automobile)

File:GMRangerSouthAfrica.jpg

South Africa received the Ranger A only, introduced in the summer of 1968.{{cite journal | title = Automobil Revue '71 | ref = AR71 | editor1-last = Braunschweig | editor1-first = Robert | language = German, French | publisher = Hallwag SA | pages = 465–466 | location = Berne, Switzerland | volume = 66 | date = March 11, 1971 |display-editors=etal}} The South African Rangers had a stylized springbok logo until 1970, when a copyright conflict with the South African athletic association put a halt to further use - not entirely surprising, as use of the Springbok name had already been ruled out on such grounds.{{cite magazine | magazine = CAR (South Africa) | title = By The Way | editor-last = Wright | editor-first = Cedric | volume = 12 | number = 7 | date = August 1968 | ref = DNLCV | page = 9 | author = Cotter | publisher = Central News Agency Ltd. | location = Cape Town, South Africa }} General Motors South Africa had two parallel sales networks at the time, Chevrolet/Opel and Pontiac/Vauxhall. After the Victor 101 (FC) was discontinued it was replaced by the Ranger rather than the new Victor FD.{{cite web | url = http://www.commodore-b.com/CONTENT/INTERNATIONAL/GM%20Ranger.htm | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20040622022815/http://www.commodore-b.com/CONTENT/INTERNATIONAL/GM%20Ranger.htm | archivedate = 2004-06-22 | date = 2002-03-29 | last = Clark | first = Paul | work = www.Commodore-B.com | title = Südafrika - GM Ranger }} The Ranger was better able to meet local content targets set by the South African government.

In April 1970 the sporty SS model arrived. Rather than the standard 2.5-liter model's {{convert|90|hp|kW|0|abbr=on}} SAE (76.5 bhp net), the SS has {{convert|108|hp|kW|0|abbr=on}} SAE at 4400 rpm, thanks to a twin-choke Weber carburettor, better breathing, and a performance exhaust system. The SS also received a chromed air cleaner and valve covers, a vinyl roof, twin exhaust tips, and other sporty embellishments.{{citation | title = General Motors World | issue = June/July 1970 | publisher = General Motors Export Division | location = New York, NY | page = 23 }}

It was mostly based on the European Opel Rekord, with a locally built engine of Chevrolet origin and the grille and headlights of the Vauxhall Victor. The Rekord bodywork was slightly altered to accommodate the different grille. The steering was also from Vauxhall, as was the suspension, which gave the car a somewhat wider track than the Opel.{{cite magazine | magazine = CAR (South Africa) | title = Ranger 153 Fastback | editor-last = Wright | editor-first = Cedric | volume = 12 | number = 7 | date = August 1968 | ref = DNLCV | pages = 38–39 | publisher = Central News Agency Ltd. | location = Cape Town, South Africa }} Early cars came in for some criticism as some of the parts did not quite match up; for instance, while the car's gearing was raised, the speedo drive was unchanged, causing grossly inaccurate readings. The brand was discontinued after only a few years. The engines were referred to by their displacement in cubic inches, part of an attempt of differentiating the car from its Opel counterpart. There were the 130, the 153, and the 153HC (high compression) to choose from, with the more powerful SS version added later.

The Ranger was discontinued in 1973, without a direct replacement in the South African market. The Opel Rekord D, successor to the Rekord C upon which the Ranger was based, was originally sold in South Africa as the Chevrolet 3800 or 4100. When they were introduced, GM South Africa made it a point to state that the Ranger lineup was not affected by the new car.{{cite magazine | magazine = CAR (South Africa) | title = Chev 3800 and 4100 manual and automatic | editor-last = Wright | editor-first = Cedric | volume = 16 | number = 11 | date = December 1972 | ref = DNLCV | page = 12 | publisher = Ramsay, Son & Parker (Pty) Ltd. | location = Cape Town, South Africa }} Nonetheless, soon a 2500 model of the Rekord D appeared and not long thereafter the Ranger line was gone.

• 2.1 L (4-cylinder engine) 2/4-door saloon
• 2.1 L (4-cylinder engine) 3/5-door station wagon
• 2.1 L (4-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé
• 2.5 L (4-cylinder engine) 4-door saloon
• 2.5 L (4-cylinder engine) 5-door station wagon
• 2.5 L (4-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé
• 2.5 L (4-cylinder engine) SS 2-door coupé (from April 1970)

File:1972 Ranger 1900 (5242057994).jpg

The existence of the Ranger brand was a result of General Motors continuing a policy of theirs in the United States, with a number of brands competing directly with each other. General Motors Continental and GM Suisse had hitherto attempted to compete with Opel in their respective markets by selling Vauxhalls, but dealers were complaining as Vauxhall products were becoming less and less competitive vis-à-vis their Opel cousins. To flesh out the range and help their dealers in the marketplace, General Motors Suisse responded with the Rekord-based Ranger in February 1970.Automobil Revue '71, pp. 467-468 Belgium received their Ranger versions in November 1970, with an additional 1700 model at the bottom of the lineup. Other alternatives had also been considered, including the Brazilian Chevrolet Opala and Australia's Holden Torana. Unlike the Chevrolet-engined South African Ranger, Belgian Rangers all received Opel engines.

The Ranger A, like its South African counterpart, had a Vauxhall-style grille. Sold by dealers alongside Vauxhalls, the lineup was carefully limited so as not to compete directly with Vauxhall's four-door only Victor, and thus the smaller-engined Ranger As were usually only available as two-doors. At Geneva 1971, General Motors Continental and General Motors Suisse presented the new Ranger B alongside its Opel Rekord D twin. Aside from some minor trim differences, including twin headlights and a grille with a crossbar, as well as different taillights and a rear license plate mounted higher than on the Rekord. The Ranger B used a "humped" bonnet, similar to the one used on Rekord D diesels. In early 1974, the twin-carb 2500 GTS was replaced by the {{convert|140|PS|kW|0|abbr=on}} 2800 GTS, only available as a coupé.Automobil Revue '74, p. 453

The Swiss plant received most of its parts from Germany, utilizing up to 15 percent local material (tires, upholstery, glass, etcetera) to save on import tariffs. Some parts were brought in from England and South Africa as well, however.{{cite journal | ref = AR70 | title = Automobil Revue '70 | editor1-last = Braunschweig | editor1-first = Robert | language = German, French | publisher = Hallwag AG | page = 53 | location = Berne, Switzerland | volume = 65 | date = March 12, 1970 |display-editors=etal}} As Swiss wages increased the plant, with its small numbers, became unprofitable and it was closed in the middle of 1975.{{cite book | title = The World Automotive Industry | last = Bloomfield | first = Gerald | publisher = David & Charles | location = Newton Abbot, Devon, UK | series = Problems in Modern Geography | isbn = 0-7153-7539-3 | year = 1978 | page = [https://archive.org/details/worldautomotivei0000bloo/page/201 201] | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/worldautomotivei0000bloo }} The Belgian Rangers continued to be available, in an ever-shrinking lineup, until 1978 when the new Opel Rekord (E) appeared.{{cite journal | journal = Le Moniteur de l'Automobile | title = La Côte De L'Occasion | trans-title = Used Car Prices | page = 59 | location = Brussels, Belgium | language = fr | volume = 34 | number = 784 | date = 1983-12-15 | publisher = Editions Auto-Magazine }}

;Ranger A (1970–1972)Automobil Revue '71, pp. 466-467

• 1.7 L (Opel 17S CIH 4-cylinder engine) 2-door saloon
• 1.9 L (Opel 19S CIH 4-cylinder engine) 2-door saloon
• 1.9 L (Opel 19S CIH 4-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé
• 2.5 L (Opel 25S CIH 6-cylinder engine) 4-door saloon
• 2.5 L (Opel 25S CIH 6-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé
• 2.5 L (Opel 25H CIH 6-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé (twin carburetors)

;Ranger B, marketed as Ranger II (1972–1978){{citation needed|date=February 2023}}

• 1.7 L (Opel 17N CIH 4-cylinder engine, regular petrol) 2-door saloon (1972–1976)
• 1.7 L (Opel 17S CIH 4-cylinder engine, super petrol) 2-door saloon (1972–1976)
• 1.7 L (Opel 17S CIH 4-cylinder engine, super petrol) 2-door coupé (1972–1976)
• 1.9 L (Opel 19N CIH 4-cylinder engine, normal petrol) 2-door saloon (1976–1978)
• 1.9 L (Opel 19N CIH 4-cylinder engine, normal petrol) 2-door coupé (1976–1978)
• 1.9 L (Opel 19SH CIH 4-cylinder engine, super petrol) 2-door saloon (1972–1978)
• 1.9 L (Opel 19SH CIH 4-cylinder engine, super petrol) 2-door coupé (1972–1978)
• 2.5 L (Opel 25S CIH 6-cylinder engine) 4-door saloon (1972–1977)
• 2.5 L (Opel 25S CIH 6-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé (1972–1977)
• 2.5 L (Opel 25H CIH 6-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé (twin carburettors)
• 2.8 L (Opel 28HL CIH 6-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé GTS(1974-197?)

;Ranger A (1970–1972)

• 1.9 L (Opel 19S CIH 4-cylinder engine) 2-door saloon
• 1.9 L (Opel 19S CIH 4-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé
• 2.5 L (Opel 25S CIH 6-cylinder engine) 4-door saloon
• 2.5 L (Opel 25S CIH 6-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé
• 2.5 L (Opel 25H CIH 6-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé (twin carburetors)

;Ranger B (1972–1975)

• 1.9 L (Opel 19S CIH 4-cylinder engine) 2-door saloon
• 1.9 L (Opel 19S CIH 4-cylinder engine) 4-door saloon{{Citation needed|date=October 2012}}
• 1.9 L (Opel 19S CIH 4-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé
• 2.5 L (Opel 25S CIH 6-cylinder engine) 4-door saloon
• 2.5 L (Opel 25H CIH 6-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé (twin carburettors)
• 2.8 L (Opel 28H CIH 6-cylinder engine) 2-door coupé GTS (twin carburettors, from 1974)

• {{cite book | author = Georgano, G.N., Editor |authorlink= G.N. Georgano| title = The Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars 1885 to the present| publisher = Guild Publishing | year = 1985 }} pp. 512.

{{Reflist}}

{{commons category|Ranger automobiles}}

• [https://www.flickr.com/photos/ifhp97/4576862167/ Advertisement for Ranger 1970 (South Africa)]
• [https://www.flickr.com/photos/ifhp97/4585549303/in/album-72157644656440206/ Advertisement for Ranger 1972 (Belgium)]

{{Automotive industry in South Africa}}

{{General Motors brands}}

{{General Motors}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ranger}}

Category:Cars of South Africa

Category:Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1968

Category:Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1978

Category:General Motors marques

Category:1968 establishments in South Africa

Category:1978 disestablishments in Belgium

Category:Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of South Africa

Category:Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of Belgium

Category:Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of Switzerland