Does anybody here remember AMC?

[AlongCameJones]

They built some of the lowliest automobiles ever. The late 1960's/early-mid 1970's Ambassador gets honorable mention for actually looking half-way decent. My grandfather sold Hudson in the 1950's and praised it's stable, low-center-of-gravity step-down ride. It is no looker to me though. Gramps sold Lincoln-Mercury also back in that decade.

I have been watching this interesting history of AMC:


I've never owned an AMC car nor even have ridden in one. I've hardly missed much.

AMC and some of its predecesors from Nash and Hudson was just some butt-ugly automobiles except for the late 1960's/1970's Ambassadors. The Pacer, the Matador and the Gremlin are the homliest cars of the 1970's. Early 1960's Ramblers and Mopar cars were homely as well as Studebakers and Edsels of the 1950's. AMC ultimately died due to crappy looks and crappy build quality. Lee Iocacca merged American Motors Corporation into Chrysler Corporation in the 1980's.

"Green, ugly and breaks down a lot...sounds like a Nash." - Henry Fonda, On Golden Pond, 1981

 

[GeneW]

The 1970-ish model years AMC Javelin (and AMX if my memory serves me right) was a mighty find muscle car of that area. Very fast and nice muscle car.

 

[AlongCameJones]

The 1970-ish model years AMC Javelin (and AMX if my memory serves me right) was a mighty find muscle car of that area. Very fast and nice muscle car.

Probably the smartest move AMC ever tried was the revolutionary Eagle.

Launched in 1979, the AMC Eagle was the world's first car-based 4x4 and perhaps the world's first crossover vehicle as we know it today. The Subraru Outback would follow that concept later on.

Personally, I think the late-'60's-onward Ambassadors were the best-looking AMC automobiles ever by far. I would not be ashamed to be seen in a minty Ambassador from that era. New Ambassadors of that final generation certainly looked nicer than some of the stuff even Big Three has built in the past.

 

[RangerRick]

SC/Ramblers and Machines were quicker and also made by AMC, also those ugly Gremlins could be bought with V-8's since AMC only had one V-8 block you could stick 401's in them, but not from the factory.

 

[Oklahomabassin]

 

[SDarkRage]

My dad and I are working on a 1964 Rambler American 440 2-door coupe. It’s got a 196ci straight 6 in it. Pretty neat car that’s a competitor with the Ford Falcon and Chevy Nova.

 

[Profreedomokie]

The first car my brother and I had was a 1963 Rambler Classic 4 door. Later we got a 1967 American 2 door auto. My parents had a 1969 Rambler wagon and a 1969 Ambassador SST 390 cu.in.,4 barrel, auto. In the early 80's I bought and restored a 1968 Javelin SST 290 cu.in. 2 barrel auto.

 

[cjjtulsa]

The SCRAmbler was cool, and the AMX was my favorite. Friend had a 68 AMX for a short time; 390 4speed. Don't know what he ever did with it. The Javelins were cool, too. I'm a dyed-in-the-wool Ford guy, but I'd love to have an AMX.

 

[AlongCameJones]

AMC died in 1987 but at least they tried. They did not have the deep pockets of Big Three nor the craftsmanship excellence, engineering mastery and materials quality of Europe and Japan. Not too mention this Kenosha, Wisconsin car company was saddled with an image of cars that were downright ugly. AMC was the red-headed freckles-face stepchild of the American automobile world. They were the laughing stock of the buisness like the Buffalo Bills, San Diego Chargers and Cleveland Indians were the laughing stock of American sports. AMC was the black sheep of American car companies.

Another famous Wisconsin based American motorized vehicle company, Harley-Davidson, had many long troubled years but are still very much alive today.

Back in 1981, my father told me that American car companies did not know how to build econobox cars and trucks just as Harley doesn't know how to build little mopeds and motorbikes.

 

[Profreedomokie]

I forgot about the 1972 Hornet station wagon my wife and I bought when we were first married. We drove it here from Va. when we moved. Here is the Javelin we had.