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| Dodge Aries Plymouth Reliant | |
|---|---|
 1985–89 Plymouth Reliant sedan | |
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Chrysler Corporation |
| Also called | Dodge Dart K/Plymouth Valiant Volare K (Mexico) Dodge Michigan (Japan) |
| Production | October 1980 – December 1988 |
| Model years | 1981–1989 |
| Assembly | Newark, Delaware (Newark Assembly), United States (sedans and wagons) Detroit, Michigan (Jefferson Avenue Assembly),[1] United States Fenton, Missouri (Saint Louis Assembly), United States (2-door sedans only) Toluca, Mexico (Toluca Car Assembly) |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Mid-size car |
| Body style | 4-door wagon (1981–88) 4-door sedan (1981–89) 2-door coupe (1981–89) |
| Layout | Transverse front-engine, front-wheel drive |
| Platform | K-body |
| Related | Chrysler LeBaron Chrysler Town & Country Dodge 400 |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine |
|
| Transmission | 4-speed A460 manual 5-speed A465 manual 5-speed A520 manual 5-speed A525 manual 3-speed A413 automatic 3-speed A470 automatic |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 100.3 in (2,548 mm) Wagon: 100.4 in (2,550 mm) |
| Length | 178.6 in (4,536 mm) Wagon: 178.5 in (4,534 mm) |
| Width | 68.0 in (1,727 mm) |
| Height | Sedan: 52.9 in (1,344 mm) Coupe: 52.5 in (1,334 mm) Wagon: 53.2 in (1,351 mm) |
| Curb weight | 2,300 lb (1,043 kg) |
| Chronology | |
| Predecessor | Dodge Aspen / Plymouth Volaré |
| Successor | Dodge Spirit / Plymouth Acclaim |
The Plymouth Reliant and Dodge Aries are mid size cars introduced for model year 1981 as the first "K-cars" manufactured and marketed by the Chrysler Corporation. The Reliant and Aries were the smallest cars to have the traditional 6 passenger 2 bench seat with column shifter seating arrangement favored by customers in the United States (Chrysler marketed the car as being able to seat "six Americans"), similar to larger rear-wheel drive cars such as the Dodge Dart and other front-wheel drive cars such as the Chevrolet Celebrity. The Reliant was powered by a then-new 2.2 L I4 SOHC engine, with a Mitsubishi "Silent Shaft" 2.6 L as an option (this engine also featured hemispherical combustion chambers, and all 1981 models equipped with it featured "HEMI" badges on the front fenders). The Reliant was available as a 2-door coupe, 4-door sedan, or as a 4-door station wagon, in three different trim lines: base, Custom and SE ("Special Edition"). Station wagons came only in Custom or SE trim.
As rebadged variants, the Reliant and Aries were manufactured in Newark, Delaware, Detroit, Michigan, and Toluca, Mexico — in a single generation. After their introduction, the Reliant and Aries were marketed as the "Reliant K" and "Aries K".[2] The Aries was sold as the Dart K in Mexico,[3] and as the Michigan in Japan.[4] The Reliant replaced the Plymouth Volaré/Road Runner, while the Aries replaced the Dodge Aspen.
The Reliant and Aries were selected together as Motor Trend magazine's Car of the Year for 1981. Initial sales were brisk, with both Reliant and Aries each selling over 150,000 units in 1981, with cumulative sales of million Aries and 1.1 million Reliant units over the nine-year run.