1950s The government of Argentina sent a delegation to the United States in 1951 to meet with auto manufacturers interested in building cars in Argentina. Unfortunately, the market was seen as too small to justify the investment, and no one but Kaiser was interested. On 19 January 1955, the government signed an agreement to permit Kaiser to manufacture automobiles and trucks in Argentina. The U.S. automaker was facing problems in its domestic market. It took the
Willys Aero out of production in 1955 leaving two redundant sets of vehicle production lines. Kaiser created Kaiser Automotores, a wholly owned
subsidiary as a holding company that owned part of the newly created Industrias Kaiser Argentina, the manufacturing and marketing arm. Other partners in IKA included
Industrias Aeronáuticas y Mecánicas del Estado (IAME), the government-owned airplane and vehicle manufacturer, as well as private investors. The public offering of shares of stock was oversubscribed. The first imports from the U.S. consisted of 1,021 complete cars, manufacturing equipment, and spare parts. Groundbreaking for the new factory in the city of Santa Isabel in
Córdoba Province was held in March 1955 with the first
Jeep vehicle driven out on 27 April 1956. The initial production was of various
Jeeps. Models included the
CJ versions, as well as the
Willys Jeep Truck (renamed "Baqueano") pick-up, and the
Willys Jeep Station Wagon or "Estanciera" as well as a panel delivery version known as the "Utilitario". These utility vehicles were shortly followed by a local version of the
Kaiser Manhattan 4-door sedan, called the "Carabela", using the U.S. production equipment which had been transferred to IKA. The combined Carabela-Jeep production of 22,612 units was 81% of all vehicles manufactured in Argentina in 1958 with the only competition being a state-run utility vehicle manufacturer. To expand the marketing of its vehicles in 1958, IKA sponsored a musical variety show
El Show de IKA that highlighted an American vocalist,
Andy Russell. It was the most expensive TV program produced in Argentina, a Jeep was driven on the stage during every show, and the first to use cameras mounted high above the stage. In 1959, the American-Argentine company signed a license agreement with French firm
Renault to produce its cars in Argentina. The small
Renault Dauphine was the first model to be launched. Local content made in Córdoba included a
Willys 2480 cc four-cylinder engine and the Jeep rear suspension and drum brakes that were also used in the Estanciera. The car rode on a
wheelbase with an overall length of . Starting on 31 May 1961, the IKA Bergantin received the Continental six-cylinder that was already used for the Estanciera and Carabela models, but only 353 units were made with this engine. Production of the IKA Bergantin ended on 21 February 1962, with nearly 5,000 units sold in three versions: Standard, Deluxe, and Taxi cab. At the time, IKA's Cordoba plant produced about 40,000 vehicles annually, including Renaults and Jeeps as well as Kaisers and Ramblers. In 1962, another joint model venture agreement took place between IKA and
American Motors Corporation (AMC). Various
Rambler models licensed from
American Motors Corporation (AMC) replaced all of the old Kaiser and Alfa Romeo based cars. To meet local content regulations the Ramblers were adapted to use an Argentine-built Kaiser engine. The same engineer (Ralph H. Isebrandt) had designed both drivetrains. Automotive magazine
Parabrisas wrote that the 1965 Ambassador was "the highest expression of comfort tested so far" by the editors. This top model in Argentina continued to be available by special order through 1975. By 1966 the Santa Isabel plant was producing a broad line of models that included the following: • Four Renaults: Dauphine, Gordini, R4L, and R4F • Six utility models: Jeep, Pick-up, Jeep Estanciera (also taxi version), Jeep truck, Jeep Gladiator (500, 1000 kilos) - in two- and four-wheel drive - and Charge • Four AMC Rambler models: Classic Custom, Classic de Luxe, Classic Cross-Country (station wagon), and Ambassador 990 • IKA Torino model (coupe and sedan) In 1967, Régie Nationale des Usines Renault of France assumed control of the company by purchasing a large percentage of the shares of stock and changed its name to "IKA Renault S.A."
1970s In 1970 Kaiser Industries decided to exit the auto business and it sold the rest of its IKA holdings to its partner,
Renault of France, thus ending the history of Argentina's indigenous automaker. The new enterprise was focused on mass-market models, such as the Renault 12. In 1975, the original factory in Santa Isabel changed from IKA to
Renault Argentina S.A. == Models produced ==