Econosport
Encyclopedia
An econosport is a term used to describe a sport-performance version of a small economy car. It has also been referred to as a "sport compact
" and, if the car in question has a hatchback
design, a "Hot hatch
."
Volkswagen
is credited with inventing the market segment with the Volkswagen Golf GTI, a high-performance version of its bread-and-butter Golf model. The GTI was introduced in Europe in 1976 and offered the practicality and versatility of a small hatchback design with room for four adults, combined with the high performance of a sport model. It was an isntant success in Europe, leading Peugeot
, Fiat
, Opel
, Ford
, and Renault
, among others, to develop competing models.
In the United States
and Canada
, the typical "econosport" of 1970s and early 1980s was merely an economy car with cosmetic applications designed to make the car look sporty; the car's mechanicals were no different from a base model. When Volkswagen introduced the Rabbit (the North American name for the original Golf) GTI in the fall of 1982, however, Detroit quickly set about giving VW real competition; by the mid-eighties, Chevrolet
, Pontiac
, Ford
, Dodge
, and Chrysler-Plymouth
all offered econosports of some kind. The Japanese soon offered similar models as well.
The 1990s saw a change in the econosport market, as many small-car buyers in North America opted for trunked cars rather than hatchbacks. Again, VW led the pack; as early as 1984, it offered the Volkswagen Jetta
GLI, a high-performance version of its popular four-door sedan. This model was absent during the nineties, but a Jetta GLX, with Volkswagen's innovative VR6 engine, was available. A Jetta GT became available later in the nineties as well. Chevrolet and Pontiac had long since dropped the hatchback models from their Cavalier and Sunbird lines, respectively, and concentrated on sport versions of the two-door sedans in each model line. When a second-generation Chevrolet Cavalier
and an all-new Pontiac Sunfire
were introduced for the 1994 model year, Pontiac put a greater emphasis on sportiness in its 2-door Sunfire than Chevrolet did with its Cavalier counterpart. Ford still offered an Escort model, and its sport version was the Ford Escort ZX2; Chrysler's Neon, sold at Dodge and Chrysler-Plymouth dealers, briefly featured a two-door model with a sports package. The most visible econosports from the Asians were from Nissan - namely, the Nissan 200SX
and Nissan 240SX
coupes, complemented by a Sentra SE-R. The 240SX was available in notchback and hatchback form, but otherwise, in keeping with North American tastes in general and U.S. tastes in particular, these cars were all trunked models.
In the two thousand zeroes, econosports have been a smaller part of the larger U.S. car market, but they haven't entirely disappeared. Along with an all-new Jetta GLI, Volkswagen has introduced an all-new GTI hatchback that many believe recalls the spirit of the original. VW, however, appaears to be the only manufacturer committed to the "hot hatch" sector of the econosport market; after years of offering its Civic Si as a hatchback, Honda
now sells the 2006 Civic Si in the U.S. in trunked form only. Still, the future for econosports in North America looks promising, as sporty cars that deliver economy and practicality may come to be seen as attractive qualities in an era of rising gasoline prices.
Sport compact
A sport compact is a high-performance version of a compact car or a subcompact car. They are typically are front engined, front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive coupés, sedans, or hatchbacks driven by a straight-4 gasoline engine. Performance-oriented sport compacts generally focus on improving...
" and, if the car in question has a hatchback
Hatchback
A Hatchback is a car body style incorporating a shared passenger and cargo volume, with rearmost accessibility via a rear third or fifth door, typically a top-hinged liftgate—and features such as fold-down rear seats to enable flexibility within the shared passenger/cargo volume. As a two-box...
design, a "Hot hatch
Hot hatch
Hot hatch was originally an informal automotive industry term, shortened from hot hatchback, initially coined by the British motoring press in 1984, for a high-performance derivative of a car body style consisting of a three- or five-door hatchback automobile.Vehicles of this class are based on...
."
Volkswagen
Volkswagen
Volkswagen is a German automobile manufacturer and is the original and biggest-selling marque of the Volkswagen Group, which now also owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, SEAT, and Škoda marques and the truck manufacturer Scania.Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, where it is...
is credited with inventing the market segment with the Volkswagen Golf GTI, a high-performance version of its bread-and-butter Golf model. The GTI was introduced in Europe in 1976 and offered the practicality and versatility of a small hatchback design with room for four adults, combined with the high performance of a sport model. It was an isntant success in Europe, leading Peugeot
Peugeot
Peugeot is a major French car brand, part of PSA Peugeot Citroën, the second largest carmaker based in Europe.The family business that precedes the current Peugeot company was founded in 1810, and manufactured coffee mills and bicycles. On 20 November 1858, Emile Peugeot applied for the lion...
, Fiat
Fiat
FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...
, Opel
Opel
Adam Opel AG, generally shortened to Opel, is a German automobile company founded by Adam Opel in 1862. Opel has been building automobiles since 1899, and became an Aktiengesellschaft in 1929...
, Ford
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
, and Renault
Renault
Renault S.A. is a French automaker producing cars, vans, and in the past, autorail vehicles, trucks, tractors, vans and also buses/coaches. Its alliance with Nissan makes it the world's third largest automaker...
, among others, to develop competing models.
In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, the typical "econosport" of 1970s and early 1980s was merely an economy car with cosmetic applications designed to make the car look sporty; the car's mechanicals were no different from a base model. When Volkswagen introduced the Rabbit (the North American name for the original Golf) GTI in the fall of 1982, however, Detroit quickly set about giving VW real competition; by the mid-eighties, Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...
, Pontiac
Pontiac
Pontiac was an automobile brand that was established in 1926 as a companion make for General Motors' Oakland. Quickly overtaking its parent in popularity, it supplanted the Oakland brand entirely by 1933 and, for most of its life, became a companion make for Chevrolet. Pontiac was sold in the...
, Ford
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
, Dodge
Dodge
Dodge is a United States-based brand of automobiles, minivans, and sport utility vehicles, manufactured and marketed by Chrysler Group LLC in more than 60 different countries and territories worldwide....
, and Chrysler-Plymouth
Chrysler-Plymouth
Chrysler-Plymouth was a division of the Chrysler Corporation, an American automobile company founded by Walter P. Chrysler. The division sold cars with both Chrysler and Plymouth brand names...
all offered econosports of some kind. The Japanese soon offered similar models as well.
The 1990s saw a change in the econosport market, as many small-car buyers in North America opted for trunked cars rather than hatchbacks. Again, VW led the pack; as early as 1984, it offered the Volkswagen Jetta
Volkswagen Jetta
Although the Golf had reached considerable success, in the North American markets, Volkswagen observed that the hatchback body style lacked some of the appeal to those who preferred the traditional three-box configuration...
GLI, a high-performance version of its popular four-door sedan. This model was absent during the nineties, but a Jetta GLX, with Volkswagen's innovative VR6 engine, was available. A Jetta GT became available later in the nineties as well. Chevrolet and Pontiac had long since dropped the hatchback models from their Cavalier and Sunbird lines, respectively, and concentrated on sport versions of the two-door sedans in each model line. When a second-generation Chevrolet Cavalier
Chevrolet Cavalier
The Chevrolet Cavalier was a compact automobile produced from 1982 to 2005 by General Motors. Built on the company's J platform, the Cavalier was one of the best-selling cars in the United States throughout its life.- Predecessors :...
and an all-new Pontiac Sunfire
Pontiac Sunfire
The Pontiac Sunfire was introduced for the 1995 model year as the compact car to replace the Sunbird. Not only was the name changed, but dramatic styling changes were included as well. The new styling was shared with the redesigned Chevrolet Cavalier...
were introduced for the 1994 model year, Pontiac put a greater emphasis on sportiness in its 2-door Sunfire than Chevrolet did with its Cavalier counterpart. Ford still offered an Escort model, and its sport version was the Ford Escort ZX2; Chrysler's Neon, sold at Dodge and Chrysler-Plymouth dealers, briefly featured a two-door model with a sports package. The most visible econosports from the Asians were from Nissan - namely, the Nissan 200SX
Nissan 200SX
From 1995 to 1998 Nissan applied the name "200SX" to two different lines of automobiles in different markets these years.In 1995, Nissan reintroduced the 200SX nameplate in United States and Canada to designate a two-door version of the Nissan Sentra , known in Japan and Mexico as Lucino, replacing...
and Nissan 240SX
Nissan 240SX
The 240SX is a two-door compact car that was introduced to the North American market by Nissan in 1988 for the following model year. It replaced the outgoing 200SX model. Most of the 240SX were equipped with the 2.4-liter inline 4 engine . The KA24E being single over-head cam and KA24DE being dual...
coupes, complemented by a Sentra SE-R. The 240SX was available in notchback and hatchback form, but otherwise, in keeping with North American tastes in general and U.S. tastes in particular, these cars were all trunked models.
In the two thousand zeroes, econosports have been a smaller part of the larger U.S. car market, but they haven't entirely disappeared. Along with an all-new Jetta GLI, Volkswagen has introduced an all-new GTI hatchback that many believe recalls the spirit of the original. VW, however, appaears to be the only manufacturer committed to the "hot hatch" sector of the econosport market; after years of offering its Civic Si as a hatchback, Honda
Honda
is a Japanese public multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles.Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume, producing more than...
now sells the 2006 Civic Si in the U.S. in trunked form only. Still, the future for econosports in North America looks promising, as sporty cars that deliver economy and practicality may come to be seen as attractive qualities in an era of rising gasoline prices.