View source for Engineering:Dodge Omni 024

{{Infobox automobile
|caption = 1979 Plymouth Horizon TC3
|image = 79PlymouthHorizonTC3.jpg
|name = Dodge Omni 024
|aka = Chrysler Omni 024 (Japan)<br>Dodge 024<br>Plymouth Horizon TC3<br>Plymouth TC3
|manufacturer = Chrysler Corporation
|production = 1979–1982
|class = [[Engineering:Subcompact car|Subcompact]]
|platform = [[Engineering:Chrysler L platform|L-body]]
|layout=[[Engineering:Front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout|Transverse front-engine, front-wheel drive]]
|body_style = 3-door [[Engineering:Hatchback|hatchback]] coupe
| length       = {{convert|4419|mm|in|1|abbr=on|disp=flip}}
| width        = {{convert|1694|mm|in|1|abbr=on|disp=flip}}
| height       = {{convert|1290|mm|in|1|abbr=on|disp=flip}}
| wheelbase    = {{convert|2453|mm|in|1|abbr=on|disp=flip}}
| weight       = {{convert|1157|kg|lb|0|abbr=on|disp=flip}}
|engine = 1.7 L [[Company:Volkswagen|Volkswagen]] I4<br>2.2 L ''K'' I4
|transmission = {{ubl | 4-speed [[Engineering:Manual transmission|manual]] | 3-speed ''[[Engineering:TorqueFlite|A404]]'' [[Engineering:Automatic transmission|automatic]] }}
|successor = [[Engineering:Dodge Charger (L-body)|Dodge Charger / Plymouth Turismo]]
|related = [[Engineering:Dodge Omni|Dodge Omni]]<br>[[Engineering:Dodge Rampage|Dodge Rampage]]<br>Plymouth Horizon
}}

The '''Dodge Omni 024''' was a modified version of the popular [[Engineering:Dodge Omni|Dodge Omni]] made from 1979 to 1982. Analogous to the VW Scirocco, this car was a lower, sportier three-door hatchback coupé version of the Chrysler/Simca Horizon, using the five-door hatchback's floor pan and chassis as a basis. The cars were designed in-house at the prompting of Lee Iacocca.<ref name=AllPar>{{cite web | url = http://www.allpar.com/omni/turismo.html | last = Nicalek | first = Bryan T. | title = Charger, Turismo, 024, and TC3: Omni/Horizon Coupes | work = Allpar | date = 20 August 2021 }}</ref>

It used the same chassis and engine options as the Omni but had unique bodywork and front end styling. The base engine was a 1.7&nbsp;L [[Company:Volkswagen|Volkswagen]] inline four producing {{convert|70|hp|kW|abbr=on}}, with a 2.2&nbsp;L, {{convert|84|hp|kW|abbr=on}} Chrysler inline four as an option beginning in 1981.<ref name=RT82>{{cite journal | ref = 81bg | journal = Road & Track's Road Test Annual & Buyer's Guide 1981 | issue = January-February 1981 | title = 1981 Buyer's Guide | editor-first = Tony | editor-last = Hogg | page = 93 }}</ref> By then, the smaller engine only produced {{convert|63|hp|kW|abbr=on}}. For the first year, the car had a folding back seat and the wheels were painted in the exterior color. The car's looks promised more performance than the engine could deliver, and the car was not as practical as the Omni. Both the Omni and Horizon prefixes were dropped for 1981, making them the "024" and "TC3", respectively.<ref name=Lee1>Lee, pp. 320, 434.</ref>

[[File:Dodge Omni 024 rear.jpg|thumb|left|Rear view of 1979-1980 Dodge Omni 024]]
The 024 did not sell well and was renamed as the [[Engineering:Dodge Charger (L-body)|Dodge Charger]] for the 1983 [[Physics:Model year|model year]], a name which had been gradually introduced as part of a special "Charger 2.2" package beginning in 1981.<ref name=Lee1/> The 024 had also been produced as the  '''Plymouth Horizon TC3'''. It, too, was renamed in the 1983 model year: to the [[Engineering:Plymouth Turismo|Plymouth Turismo]]. The "Turismo" label had already been used on a sport package beginning in 1980.<ref>Lee, p. 432.</ref>

In its last year, the 024 and TC3 served as a base for the [[Engineering:Dodge Rampage|Dodge Rampage]] and [[Engineering:Dodge Rampage|Plymouth Scamp]] pick-up trucks using the same chassis, powertrain and body parts from the doors forward. 

In 1980 the Plymouth Horizon TC3 also became available with the Turismo sport package. For the Dodge Omni 024 this was called the DeTomaso package, with De Tomaso designed trim and wheels but the standard drivetrain.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.geocities.com/aaronkarpi/1978.htm | work = My Cars | last = Karpi | first = Aaron | title = The Dodge Omni/Plymouth Horizon | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060910235826/http://www.geocities.com/aaronkarpi/1978.htm | archive-date = September 10, 2006}}</ref> 1,333 De Tomaso 024's were built in 1980, followed by 619 more in 1981. The 1981 De Tomasos were only available with the new 2.2 litre engine.<ref>Lee, pp. 317, 320.</ref>

Also in 1980, in cooperation with Chrysler partner [[Company:Mitsubishi Motors|Mitsubishi]], the '''Chrysler Omni 024''' was briefly sold in Japan. It was available for two years at Mitsubishi dealerships and it complied with Japanese Government [[Engineering:Vehicle size class#Japan|dimension regulations]]. It didn't sell well, with only 1491 finding Japanese buyers.

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==References==
* {{Cite book | title = Standard Catalog of Chrysler, 1924-1990 | ref = SCC | first = John | last = Lee | publisher = Krause Publications, Inc. | location = Iola, WI | year = 1990 | isbn = 0-87341-142-0 }}
{{Reflist}}

==External links==

{{Dodge}}
{{Dodge timeline 1980 to date}}

[[Category:Front-wheel-drive vehicles]]
[[Category:Subcompact cars]]
[[Category:Hatchbacks]]



{{Sourceattribution|Dodge Omni 024}}