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American Bantam® off-road vehicles
MADE IN USA
“The name of the company is American Bantam Car Corp. There was never any question: American Bantam® off-road vehicles will definitely be Made in USA.”
From the very beginning way back in 2010 our plan has always been to manufacture American Bantam® off-road vehicles in the USA. Our strategy is to begin manufacturing off-road vehicles in the USA while we engineer compliance with USA automotive regulations for a completely new street-legal off-road vehicle. The decision was simple: when a company’s name contains the word “American” the products they sell in the USA must be built in the USA. No two ways about it.
American Bantam Car Corp. is a USA owned company with a long American history and strong American heritage. American Bantam® was founded by Charlie Paglee, combining the resources of an 88 year old company with an 80 year old automotive marquee to relaunch the brand that invented the Jeep.
When we say “American” we mean United States of American, not Canada, not Mexico, but good ol’ USA. American Bantam® has already met with half a dozen different USA state governments to explore building a factory in the USA. Our plan is to purchase a factory facility in 2021 and fit out our facility to begin manufacturing American Bantam® street-legal off-road vehicles in 2022. USA manufactured American Bantam® vehicles will supply the USA and Europe.
American Bantam® will launch our line of off-road vehicles based on the original WW2 era BRC-40 Bantam® Reconnaissance Car. We have re-engineered the original vehicle to improve safety and performance with a full six-point roll cage, safety seats, seat belts, laminated safety glass, coil over spring fixed axle rear suspension and a fully independent front-suspension. Our new vehicle will include a modern direct fuel-injected engine fully compliant with California CARB and EPA off-road vehicle emission requirements to provide excellent 2-wheel drive and 4-wheel drive performance. Off-road vehicles don’t require crash testing which will allow us to go to market sooner.
American Bantam® off-road vehicle bodies will always be built by American workers, not by robots, using manually operated spot-welders and MIG welders. American Bantam® off-road vehicles may one day literally be the last automobiles manufactured by humans beings in the USA.
AMERICAN BANTAM® SAFETY
American Bantam® is serious about off-roading so we take safety seriously from design, engineering and manufacturing. We build safety into our products and our manufacturing processes to ensure the safety of our employees and our customers alike. Whether in the USA or in our overseas factory facilities and manufacturing procedures build safety for American Bantam® employees into the manufacturing process every step of the way.
American Bantam® meets the challenge of fulfilling government mandated street-legal vehicle safety requirements for an off-road vehicle by engineering safety into mechanical, software and safety systems from the grill to the tailpipe. American Bantam leads the industry in designed-in street-legal off-road safety features including:
- Low Profile Low Center of Gravity Design
- Stamped Steel Body and Steel Chassis Design
- Lateral Truss Side Impact Reinforced Door Beams
- 3-Layer CCC Approved Laminated Safety Windshield
- Integrated A-Pillar Windshield High-Strength Roll Bar
- Removable High-Strength Steel 6-point / 8-point Roll Cage
- Steel Reinforced Lower A-Pillar / Lower B-Pillar / Lower C-Pillar
- Canvas Covered ¾ inch (19mm) Roll Cage Protective Foam Padding
- 35-inch (888mm) CCC Approved 315/70R17 Deep Tread All-Terrain Radial Tires
- Inherently Stable 66.1-inch (1,680mm) Track Width under 65.7 inch (1,670mm) Wide Steel Body
- Always-Active Traction Control with Front/Back Torsen Mechanical Limited Slip Differentials
- Reclinable Steel Frame CCC Approved Seat with Deep Side and Lateral Bolsters
- Street-Legal 3-Point 2-inch (50mm) CCC Approved Seatbelt
- Mountings Ready for Extra 5-Point Racing Harness Seatbelt
American Bantam® off-road vehicles are designed and engineered with safety in mind. Our vehicles include the safety features off-roaders demand. Remember to Always Wear Your Seatbelt, unless you are wearing a 5-Point Safety Harness!
OVERSEAS FACTORY
American Bantam Car Co will launch production of new American Bantam® off-road vehicles in the USA and in China together.
China is a paradise for off-roading. China has an excellent and relatively new national highway system but most of China is sparsely populated. People like to think of China as being very crowded, and the cities are, without a doubt, but 78% of China’s land is relatively unpopulated (the green areas in this map).
China’s terrain is also very suitable for off-roading. More than 58% of China is mountains and 28% of China is desert, so over 86% of China is ideal for a four-wheel drive vehicle. Most of China is empty: more than 98% of China’s population lives on less than half the land in China.
China has the world’s largest online social network for off-road enthusiasts called FBLife.com with 16 Million members. Every weekend off-roading events are held all over the country with thousands of people participating. Every October over a million off-road enthusiasts gather in the desert in western Inner Mongolia to celebrate off-roading during a week long government holiday.
Chinese automobile manufacturers make off-road vehicles for the military but they are oversized, heavy and under-powered. Imported off-road vehicles are subject to heavy duties and must be outfitted to be safe for off-roading. Even ten year old used 4x4s can sell for over $100,000 in China. So right now there is a dearth of off-road vehicles for a market with a huge demand in China.
China has a special “Type 2” off-road vehicle category which doesn’t require crash tests, airbags or an electronic stability control system which are required in the USA. The Chinese regulations for off-road vehicles make a lot of sense: the idea is these safety systems are not really necessary when off-roading because drivers and passengers always wear seatbelts. Certainly the last thing a 4×4 owner wants is an airbag to deploy when their vehicle hits a rough patch.
American Bantam® has spent the last four years engineering our new vehicle chassis and body to produce a quality vehicle at an affordable price. Multiple China vehicle manufacturers have approached American Bantam® to manufacture our new off-road vehicles. We have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with one manufacturer and, subject to Chinese government approvals, vehicle production will begin next year.
