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American Specialty Cars

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American Specialty Cars (commonly known as ASC) is a automobile supplier of highly engineered and designed roof systems, body systems and other specialty-vehicle systems for the world’s automakers. Headquartered in Southgate, Michigan, in the United States.

Founding

The company was founded by Heinz Prechter in Los Angeles, California as the American Sunroof Company in 1965. Born in 1942 in Kleinhöbing, Germany, Mr. Prechter began his automotive career at the age of 13 as an apprentice in automotive trim, tool and die making, and coach and body building. After completing his studies at Berufs-Oberschule in Nuremberg, Mr. Prechter furthered his education at Nuremberg's OHM Polytechnic Engineering School.

During his studies, Mr. Prechter gained a wide range of practical experience working for a number of German companies, including Faunwerke (a truck and military equipment supplier), Siemens (an electronics firm), and Deutz (a diesel engine manufacturer).

In 1963, he came to the U.S. as an exchange student. While studying Business Administration and English at San Francisco State College, he began installing sunroofs – a virtually unknown product on this side of the Atlantic.

Fifteen months later, in 1965, Mr. Prechter founded the American Sunroof Company (now ASC Incorporated) in Los Angeles. He spent $764 on tools, a workbench from an old door covered with aluminum and a sewing machine from a junkyard. This one-man enterprise soon became well-known for its "custom" sunroofs as well as its creative approach to supporting the development of specialty vehicles for the film industry.

The company soon expanded its operations into Detroit by 1967. The company first supplied OEM services to the Ford 1968 Cougar XR-7.

Innovations

ASC invented the glass-panel "moonroof", both the inward- and outward-folding soft convertible tops, and modern retractable hardtops. In the industry, ASC became well known for converting standard coupe automobiles into convertibles on an OEM basis. The company also engineers convertible tops for automakers to build themselves. Other original-equipment firsts for ASC include the mobile video system (on the Chevrolet Venture) and the powered sunroof.

Currently

The company has since changed its name in 2004 to highlight its new corporate focus on being a complete specialty-vehicle development partner for the world’s automakers.

Products

The Saab 900 convertible prototype made by ASC.

Recent ASC concepts:

  • ASC Cosmos – The Cosmos features an InfiniVu™ Fabric roof system, which transforms a Hummer H3 into an SUV ready to take on the heavens as well as Earth. Bi-directional, the between-the-roof-rails top slides either rearward toward the D-pillar or forward toward the A-pillar, or to any point in between, offering an infinite number of open-air iterations—for those in the rear of the vehicle as well as the front. And, at the D-pillar the system features a moving horizontal header, which moves out of the way as the roof slides forward, providing the added benefit of pickup-truck-like utility.
  • ASC TriLite – A skylight on wheels, the TriLite enhances a Toyota Sienna minivan, with a unique moving-panel roof system. Its InfiniVu™ system features not one, not two, but three moving panels. And, in an industry first, all are made of Lexan® GLX resin with Exatec®, a polycarbonate window-glazing solution that can potentially be up to half the weight of glass—an important benefit in roof-mounted systems. In addition, glazing applications made with GE’s Lexan® GLX resin offers shatter-resistance, and presents automotive designers with more styling freedom compared with glass.
  • ASC Diamondback Viper, Powered by McLaren – A “snake” with an all-new skin—and ultimate display of the production merits of ASC’s patent-pending OmniCarbon™ process--the Diamondback Viper is super-light and super-fast. It’s fitting that ASC, which helped the Chrysler Group bring the new Dodge Viper SRT10 coupe to life, would, with the aid of McLaren Performance Technologies, show how the Viper coupe might be taken to an all-new level of “extreme.” The 615 hp Diamondback Viper features a carbon fiber roof, deck lid, rockers, fascia inserts, body trim and a massive OmniCarbon™ hood that shows off ten unique trumpeted air intakes, with individual port throttles, peeking through—a McLaren Performance Technologies feature reminiscent of McLaren Can-Am engines of the past. The hood also shows off ASC’s expertise in compression-molded carbon fiber, both painted and woven. It’s displayed beautifully, with a broad, clear-coated racing stripe down the Artic White-painted expanse, subtly outlined by “Viper Blue” and “McLaren Orange” pinstripes. In all, ASC removed about 85 lb. of weight from the vehicle—including cutting the weight of the hood by nearly half versus the production model. Taken together with the powertrain modifications by McLaren Performance Technologies, the power-to-weight ratio was increased, resulting in an estimated increase in 0-60 mph time of 3.5 seconds. And, importantly, ASC’s OmniCarbon™ isn’t just light and nice to look at: ASC has reduced cycle times in the process by 80% versus conventional molding methods, and is confident its process meets OEM production specifications.
  • ASC-Suzuki Wave – Inventing an all-new segment, the UTV (“ultimate tailgate vehicle”) the Wave concept property was completely designed, developed and fabricated in ASC’s California studio for American Suzuki Motor Corp. LIFE VEHICLE Concept Series (LIVE). It’s one of two such vehicles designed by ASC (the other, the Dune, also being displayed at NAIAS, in Suzuki’s booth). The Wave’s entire rear section behind the second row of seats pulls out to reveal your own barbeque grille and cooler deck. Other unique ASC enhancements to the Grand Vitara-based four-door roadster include new front and rear fascias, modified doors with new top caps integrating a water-sports theme, and a custom two-tone paint scheme.


Current ASC products:


Past ASC products:

External link

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