American MotorsPacer1978Overview/american-motors/pacer/1978/base/

1978 American Motors Pacer

Factory specifications, fluid capacities, torque values, EPA fuel economy and the federal safety record for the 1978 Pacer.

The 1978 American Motors Pacer is a four-door hatchback featuring a wide-body platform and an inline-six engine. The vehicle is characterized by its expansive glass area and a width that rivals full-size cars of the era. As a later iteration in the model's production run, the 1978 year benefits from accumulated reliability refinements, providing a more stable example for the researcher.

Model year198019791978197719761975

Reliability & federal safety record

Owner-reported issues, recalls, investigations and service bulletins on record with NHTSA — an unfiltered look at what owners actually experience.

1
Open recalls
NHTSA campaigns
0
Service bulletins
Manufacturer communications
0
ODI investigations
Office of Defects Investigation
0
Owner complaints
0 involved a crash · 0 a fire

No owner complaints on record with NHTSA for this vehicle.

Recalls NHTSA · verified

Showing 1 of 1 campaigns on record for this vehicle.

79V131000Suspension:Front:Control Arm:Lower Ball JointReported 30/05/1979

THE INVOLVED VEHICLES MAY HAVE BEEN ASSEMBLED WITH A METALLURGICALLY DEFICIENT LOWER CONTROL ARM BALL JOINT ASSEMBLY. Remedy: DEALER WILL REPLACE RIGHT AND LEFT LOWER CONTROL ARM BALL JOINT ASSEMBLIES.

Common OBD-II trouble codes

The most common OBD-II codes for this vehicle's emissions system. These are standardized SAE J2012 definitions, not vehicle-specific fault reports.

P0420
Catalyst system efficiency below threshold — Bank 1
P0300
Random / multiple cylinder misfire detected
P0171
System too lean — Bank 1
P0455
Evaporative emission system leak detected — large leak
P0128
Coolant thermostat below regulating temperature
P0442
Evaporative emission system leak detected — small leak

VIN tools

Decode factory build data for a specific vehicle by VIN.

VIN
Decode a VIN to confirm the transmission and build data for a specific Pacer. OEM
Build data
Plant, GVWR class, engine and body data for any 17-character VIN.
Recalls
Check open recall campaigns against a specific vehicle by VIN.

Reference guides

Cross-vehicle references for the kinds of data on this page.

Frequently asked

Does the 1978 Pacer have open recalls?

NHTSA lists 1 recall campaign(s) for this model year. Check your specific vehicle by VIN.