Bricklin 1974

Assembled in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada by General Vehicle DBA Bricklin the SV-1 is advertised as a safe and economical sports car. SV-1 stands for "safety vehicle one". 780 were produced this year with 220bhp AMC 360cid V-8 engines. Malcolm Bricklin's intended to sell the car for around $4000, but due to high development and production cost the price almost doubled up to $7490.

Twenty million dollars were spent on the development of Bricklin, four million of which were donated by the New Brunswick District Government in the hope of new jobs. Until mid-1974 the Bricklin existed only as a prototype, but by the end of the year 4000 cars were to be built and for 1975 30000 are planned. However with the price tag of 6500 dollars these hopes can be doubted.
The Bricklin has a steel frame, which should offer particularly good protection. The bumpers claim that they will withstand an impact up to 16 km/h which seems impossible with such a compact design. The body is made of an acrylic-based plastic, akin to the Plexiglas and supposedly harder than steel - not necessarily a safety advantage, but little is known about details. The Bricklin is not exempted from the extra which American insurers charge for plastic bodies because of their flammability.