IKA-Renault Torino

The IKA Torino, later Renault Torino, is a mid-sized automobile made by Industrias Kaiser Argentina (IKA) under an agreement with American Motors (AMC) in 1966. The 1966 Torino was IKA’s first integral national product and IKA was eventually bought out by Renault in 1975 to form Renault Argentina S.A. The Torino was built on the same AMC platform all the way through 1981 in both two-door hardtop and four-door sedan variants. It has been called Argentina's national car.

Design

The Torino began life as an Argentine hybrid of AMC's 1964-65 Rambler American with exclusively designed front and rear body panels, bumpers and interior. One unique feature is the Torino's front unibody "frame rails" that came from the bigger 1963-1964 Rambler Classic and made up for a beefier front end, adapting the car to the rougher road conditions of Argentina at the time, and unlike the American, the Torino rode on a slightly longer by one inch wheelbase of 2723 mm (107-inch). Although the engines were not obtained from American Motors, the vehicle's basic AMC platform continued throughout its lifetime. As upgrades were incorporated over the years, such as AMC's flush door handles, the Torino became mostly a product of Argentina with few imported parts.



The car's badging was based on the city of Turin's coat of arms. The symbol was a bull standing on its two hind legs, mimicking the prancing stallion symbol of Ferrari. The...
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