Beaumont was a make of mid-sized

automobile A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...

s produced by

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

of Canada from 1964 to 1969. These cars were based on the Chevrolet Chevelle, but the line had its own logo and nameplate, and was neither marketed nor actively sold in the United States. Its logo consisted of an arrow, similar to that of Pontiac, but with a maple leaf to signify its dual heritage from both sides of Lake Ontario.

1962-1965: As an Acadian

To promote automobile manufacturing in Canada, the Auto Pact (APTA) in the 1960s had provisions prohibiting sales of certain American-made cars. General Motors responded by offering certain makes of cars manufactured in Canada primarily for the Canadian market such as Acadian and Beaumont. Beaumont started out as a trim level of the

Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...

line from 1962 to 1965. The Acadian from 1962 to 1969 was based on the contemporary Chevrolet Chevy II (Nova). Beaumonts were sold at Pontiac-Buick Dealers primarily for the Canadian market, but were also made and sold in some countries outside of

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. In 1962, the Acadian was offered in two models with either base Invader or deluxe Beaumont series. The Beaumont provided extra quality trim, identifications, and luxury. Items such as foam-cushioned rear seats, horn ring on steering wheel, rear armrests, and automatic front door dome light switches were standard Beaumont features. In 1963, the Acadian was offered in four series: base Invader, midlevel Canso, deluxe Beaumont, or Beaumont Sport Deluxe. The Beaumont again offered similar trim, identification, and luxury as the 1962 model did. The Beaumont Sport Deluxe was equivalent to the Chevy II Nova Super Sport, added deluxe identification and a substantial number of luxury items - upgraded upholstery and trim in six possible colours, extra cushion padding in bucket seats and rear seats, deluxe door handles, glove box light, and chrome-plated heat control and instrument panel knobs. With a Powerglide automatic transmission or three speed manual, a console and floor-mounted shift lever were standard on the Beaumont Sport Deluxe with the Powerglide only. Only a 6 cylinder was available. In 1964 and 1965, GM of Canada sold an "Acadian Beaumont" based on the Chevelle A-body platform, and continued to sell the Chevy II-based Acadian. By 1966, the Acadian was clearly Chevy II-based, and the Beaumont was Chevelle-based. Many people considered the cars to be Pontiacs with dubious or no supporting evidence, but GM marketed them as a separate marque. All model years are primarily Chevrolet, with only minor trim differences and (for Chevelle-based cars) Pontiac Tempest/LeMans-based instrument panels. This is because Canada required GM to have a certain percentage of Canadian content in the vehicles sold domestically. The popular Beaumont became available in three series on the Acadian - Beaumont Standard, Beaumont Custom, and Beaumont Sport Deluxe. A base-trimmed Beaumont Standard convertible was also offered, a model also produced in the base Chevelle line in Canada, but not in the United States.

1966-1969: As a standalone marque

From 1966, the Acadian name was only used for the Nova-based car and Beaumont became a standalone marque, still sold by Pontiac-Buick dealers. The interiors used the dash panel from the (U.S.) Pontiac Tempest/LeMans/GTO series. Exterior sheetmetal is shared with the Chevelle (the rear taillight housings and tail light lenses were Beaumont-exclusive - while full wheel covers had unique Beaumont emblems, small hubcaps and 1967-69 rally wheel caps were similarly trimmed but not the same as on the 1967 style Chevelle. The cars sported an emblem similar to but not the same as Pontiac's arrowhead motif with two red maple leaves or fleur-de-lis added. They featured the same powerplants as the

Chevrolet Chevelle The Chevrolet Chevelle is a Mid-size car, mid-sized automobile that was produced by the Chevrolet division of General Motors (GM) in three generations for the 1964 to 1977 model years. Part of the GM GM A platform, A-body platform, the Chevelle ...

, including the OHV inline six-cylinder

engine An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power ge ...

, and a variety of small- and big-block V8s. The

V8 engine A V8 engine is an eight- cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. Origins The first known V8 was the Antoinette, designed by Léon Levavasseur, a ...

choices included small-block 283, 307, 327, and later 350 cubic-inch versions, while the Mark IV big-block could be ordered in its 396 cubic inch displacement from 1966 to 1969. 3- and 4-speed

manual transmission A manual transmission (MT), also known as manual gearbox, standard transmission (in Canadian English, Canada, British English, the United Kingdom and American English, the United States), or stick shift (in the United States), is a multi-speed ...

s were available, as were the 2-speed Powerglide and 3-speed Turbo Hydra-Matic starting in 1967. A popular configuration for both the Beaumont and its sister, the Chevrolet Chevelle, were the six cylinder engines or the small block 283 V8, and to a lesser extent, the 327 V8 with the Powerglide transmission, allowing for fuel economy and reasonable performance at higher RPM. Models equipped with the 2 speed Powerglide were low on performance at the line and at low RPMs, but capable of exacting more torque and performance at higher speeds and RPM, simply due to the configuration of the transmission, and the fact there were only 2 forward gears. The Sport Deluxe (SD) models were equivalent to the

Super Sport trim level, and featured optional bucket seats and center console, as well as SD body striping and trim. The SD396 models are the most desirable Beaumonts today. Only 451 were built in 1967, but most succumbed to the harsh Canadian winter climate, which makes them significantly rarer than equivalent Chevelles and desirable to some collectors. The SD was actually the "Sports Option" package that was available on the Beaumont Custom Sport Coupe and convertible, rather than its own series early in 1967. Starting in December the model 738 Sport Deluxe model was separate, no longer the A51 Sport Option. In addition to the SD series, the Beaumont line included base, custom and deluxe lines. A convertible was available. Other body styles were identical to those offered on the Chevelle for the given year, including a very rare four-door hardtop offered from 1966 to 1969. Beaumont SD 396 cars built in 1966 with the 4 speed manual transmission are exceedingly rare; only 41 were ever built. Starting in 1970, GM Canada discontinued the Beaumont in favor of both Chevrolet Chevelle and Pontiac LeMans midsized cars, which were identical to U.S. models.

Production and sales outside Canada

Beaumonts were also made in a GM Overseas Operation factory in

Arica, Chile Arica ( ; ) is a commune and a port city with a population of 222,619 in the Arica Province of northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. It is Chile's northernmost city, being located only south of the border with Peru. The city is the cap ...

, for the local market (the TECNA assembly plant assembled Beaumonts from CKD kits until 1971 using the 1968 bodystyle introduced during 1969), and the Canadian-made cars were sold in

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

for a time. Beaumonts were also locally assembled in South Africa at the GM Port Elizabeth assembly plant using CKD kits with a mirror-flipped 1968 Chevelle instrument cluster and dash (South African market cars are right-hand drive). Both Chile and South Africa commenced local assembly with CKD kits and local content components to avoid import tariffs.

Gallery

File:1966 Beaumont Sedan.JPG, 1966 Beaumont Custom 4-Door Sedan File:1966 Beaumont Sport DeLuxe conv.jpg, 1966 Beaumont Sport DeLuxe convertible File:1966 Beaumont Sport Deluxe (2676252578).jpg, 1966 Beaumont Sport Deluxe interior File:Acadian Beaumont Custom Cabriolet – Frontansicht, 10. April 2011, Düsseldorf.jpg, 1967 Beaumont Custom convertible File:1967 Beaumont Sport Coupe in Burgundy Poly, Front Left, 06-17-2022.jpg, 1967 Beaumont Sport Coupe File:1967 Beaumont Sedan.jpg, 1967 Beaumont sedan File:1968 Beaumont SD.JPG, 1968 Beaumont SD 396 Coupe File:1969 Beamount SD 396 (3096349849).jpg, 1969 Beaumont SD 396 convertible File:1969 Beaumont (2559209711).jpg, 1969 Beaumont coupé

References

External links