Who would have known that Granby was the second home of the Manic GT?
This vehicle was a two-seater sports car built in Quebec from 1969 to 1971, first in Terrebonne, and then later in Granby. However the car was not the success the designer had dreamt it would be and eventually, after a very short-lived success, the plant closed it’s doors in Granby in May 1971.
The Manic had a rear engine and was built largely using components from the Renault line; it’s body was molded from fiberglass.
The Manic GT was to be sold and serviced by Renault dealers across Canada. Named the Manic GT after Quebec's Manicuagan River, it was built in Granby, in 1970 and 1971. It was the brainchild of Montrealer Jacques About.
About was an employee of Renault Canada's public relations department in the late 1960’s, and was asked to study the feasibility of importing the sporty Renault Alpine into Canada. The Alpine was a specialized sports/competition car made by an independent company using Renault components. Alpines were sold through Renault dealers in Europe. Although About's survey results were positive, Renault chose not to import the Alpine.
About was not only encouraged by the results of the survey he made a decision to leave his position with Renault and produce his own sports car.
Jacques About proved his ability at fund-raising, and with the backing of Bombardier (snowmobiles), Steinberg (groceries), and the Governments of Canada and Quebec, he soon had capitalization of $1.5 million.
A plant was acquired in Granby, and design and production planning for the new car began. The Manic GT was to be a small, stylish and affordable two passenger touring car offering good performance and low fuel consumption.
Jacques About was very familiar with the Renault components and the company in general, and made a deal to use the platform and running gear of the rear-engined Renault 10 sedan as the skeleton for the Manic.
The suspension was independent all around via coil springs, the steering was rack-and-pinion, and it was equipped with four-wheel disc brakes. The Renault engine consisted of 1,289-cc, overhead valve four-cylinder with five main bearings. It was available in three stages of tune: 65, 80 and 105 horsepower. The Manic GT was equipped with standard four-speed, or optional five-speed manual transmission.
According to reports the Manic GT was fuel-friendly as well, getting approximately 40 mpg. The car, however was listed as pricy for that era – $3400 and more depending of the chosen options. A company brochure claim was the the top speeds obtained by the Manic GT of 105, 120 and 135 mph.
Some reports claim that the total production had been sluggish, with only 160 produced – far below the 1300 planned for the first year. Unfortunately, the Manic’s time had come to an end.
Some of the Manic GT’s have been preserved in time – and one of them can be seen at the National Museum of Science and Technology in Ottawa.
Karen Eryou
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