The Dodge Omni (and the nearly identical Plymouth Horizon) is a subcompact car that was produced by Chrysler Corporation from the 1978 to 1990 model years. The first Chrysler model line produced with front-wheel drive, the Omni and Horizon were also the first front-wheel drive economy cars assembled in the United States. Marketed for eleven years with very few changes, around 2,500,000 Omnis and Horizons were built with the Plymouth badged versions more popular than the Dodge branded models. The first (and only) world car designed by Chrysler, the model line originated from a design of Chrysler Europe (who developed the namesake Chrysler Horizon). While visually similar, the American Omni/Horizon would have extensive functional differences from its European counterpart. From 1977 to 1990, Chrysler produced the Omni and Horizon at its Belvidere Assembly Plant facility (Belvidere, Illinois); from 1987 to 1989, the model line was built under contract by American Motors Corporation (AMC) at its own facility in Kenosha, Wisconsin. From 1987 to 1990, the model line was marketed alongside its successor, the Dodge Shadow/Plymouth Sundance hatchback sedan. Development In 1974, Chrysler president Lynn Townsend sent an American management team to Chrysler Europe to find a suitable small-car design to market in the United States, ultimately rejecting a front-wheel drive compact (codenamed C6) as unsuitable to produce for the United States (the design was produced in Europe as the Chrysler Alpine). At the end of 1974, Chrysler Europe approved the final clay model design of a shorter wheelbase version (codenamed C2) as a subcompact in the 1.3 L engine range. The C2 project provided multinational Chrysler Europe with a single model line to replace the outdated Simca 1100 and the Hillman Avenger. The development of the Dodge Omni and Plymouth Horizon began life in 1975. Following the retirement of Townsend, Chrysler management decided to develop an American-market version of the C2 project, working in tandem with Chrysler Europe. While one American design team sought to redevelop the body as a coupe, designers ultimately retained the five-door hatchback, favoring its European-style configuration (similar to the five-door Golf). At the time, Chrysler Europe was splitting design and engineering work between France (chassis, powertrain, and manufacturing) and the United Kingdom (body design and development). Alongside component design for European use, American designers developed the C2 project to comply with local standards. As part of the dire financial situation of its parent company, Chrysler