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Does Anyone Miss AMC/Rambler?

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  • #31
    Originally posted by studegary View Post
    The 1978 AMC would be a Concord. Chrysler made a Concorde. I do not know what your 1982 was. Perhaps it was a Hornet.
    Would it be too confusing for you to just drop the 'e'? No need to try to turn the 82 Concord into a Hornet. Maybe just google AMC if you are still confused, and read up on Concord and Hornet, and years they were made. A simple drop of the 'e' is really all you need to do though. LOL

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    • #32
      Originally posted by JoeHall View Post
      Would it be too confusing for you to just drop the 'e'? No need to try to turn the 82 Concord into a Hornet. Maybe just google AMC if you are still confused, and read up on Concord and Hornet, and years they were made. A simple drop of the 'e' is really all you need to do though. LOL
      Sorry, my error. Concords were made through 1983. I sold new Concordes so I knew that was incorrect.
      Gary L.
      Wappinger, NY

      SDC member since 1968
      Studebaker enthusiast much longer

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      • #33
        My first licensed vehicle, obtained the summer I turned 16, was a green and white '61 Rambler Classic. It was low mileage, sparkling clean. and in excellent condition, ...that is except the rare aluminum 6 which was already stripped down, and I was told was wasted beyond repair.
        BUT the shop that had it was willing to install a 283-Powerglide and '56 Chev rear that they had on hand. Pitching in, within a week I was able to drive it home. These were some cool guys, installed a new FoxCraft console mouted floor shifter, and a big 'ol SW tach, at no extra cost.
        I don't recall the exact price, but on my lawn mowing income (if you could call it that) it couldn't have been over $300. I think I paid it off in two payments.
        Everything wasn't perfect by any means, of course. Turned out the engine had a wiped cam lobe so I learned how to install a cam in my driveway. The Shop stepped up again, but the only cam they had on hand was a radical Duntov solid, bought for their Dirt track Sprint car, for $75 bucks. Done deal. (the owner ended up trying to buy it back from me the rest of the summer)
        So I get the new cam and lifters in, and as I rock the crank back and forth to install timing gears I hear a 'clunk-clunk' 'clunk-clunk' Unh Oh Sumpin ain't right here! Drop the oil pan.. (by the way a SBC fits into one of these Rambler Classics like it was made for it. LOTS of room to work)...can rattle a couple of rods around on the crankshaft, bearings are shot. Back to my good buddies at the Shop. Guy scrounges around in his old carry-about tool box and hands me two loose bearing sets (4 pieces) Take 'em home, stick 'em in, button 'er up. All fixed!
        Ahha! new cam and solids! Rumpty Rump RUMP! Why I got me a cookin hot Corvette mill here! Pull 'er out on the street. Power Jack! Foot on brake. Mash the gas. Rear humps up .....and stays there! WHAT THE HEY???
        Get out, get under. Homemade 4' long traction bars bent and holding rear axle pointed towards floor pan! Dang! THAT wasn't supposed to happen! Hmmm. ....still derivable. Humiliated, I rump rump rump back to the house at 5mph. Get a lift to the junkyard, 10 bucks gets me the leaf springs off a old Ford delivery truck. Jack the traction bars back straight and bolt a truck spring on one side. Ya' know I never did get around to installing the other. Had a ball with that thing, could rap it out to around 80 in Low and easily fly pass 100. I quite literally lived in that car, parking and sleeping on the beach the rest of the summer. The Lay down seats were great! and the envy of all my pals, and a hit with the girls (no none of that, we were all too shy and innocent back then)
        Put thousands of miles on that home-brewed contraption, no more problems till I tried a neutral-slam start and blew the driveshaft plumb out. At that summers end I sold it to buy a Old's Rocket powered '47 Hudson coupe, ... but that's another story.

        Also latter owned a '68 AMX with 343 and 4 speed. WOO HOO! Gobs of torque steer, Light up those 60 series tires and go sideways for half a block. ....but the interior was so darn cheap ....and the windows would daily fall into the bottom of the doors on closing #&$#% traded it in (with the widows down) on a '70 Cougar Eliminator SCJ 428 4 speed 4:30 gear Drag Pac.
        Did a lot of 'engine swapping' back in the '60s to 80's. My last one was my son's HS car, '77 pinto wagon with 302.

        .
        Last edited by Jessie J.; 01-19-2018, 10:02 PM.

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        • #34
          I don’t know that I miss AMC, but I do have a soft spot for them. Grandpa went to AMC after Studebaker stopped building Cars. The first I remember was a 1968 Ambassador. That was a big step up from a Lark Wagonaire that he had before. Then a 1972 Ambassador. Next were 1976 and 1977 Matadors. Don’t remember why gramps only kept the 76 for less than a year. Then an Eagle Station Wagon. The last was an Eagle Premier. Their was a Gremlin and a Hornet that my Aunt and Uncle drove in high school and college. Their were at least 4 Jeep pickups that I can remember. One was very rare. It was a 3/4 ton with a manual 4speed, and a 360 4 barrell. Most Jeep pickups were half ton automatics with quadratrac 4wheel drive. He had one of those as well. They all held up as well as other vehicles of that vintage, but were definitely “cheap”.
          1962 Champ

          51 Commander 4 door

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          • #35
            I should mention my first encounter with what ended up AMC. When I was 6, my Grandpa Bowers bought himself a spanking new 1955 Nash Statesman. I'll never forget my negative reaction to that thing, it was the most horrible shade of coral orange-pink that I'd ever seen in my young life, looked like a huge bar of Lifebuoy soap, just looking at it provoked a gag reflex in me. Gramp's would pick us up in Muskegon and drive us to church in Big Rapids every week. That things 'eyes' looked like they way were too close together, and I thought the wheels were too, 'cause it seemed we were constantly dropping off the edge of the pavement and swerving all over. That Nash was famous for having a great 'ride', so I have been told, but the seat of my then young pants was telling me I was riding in a wallowing boat that was apt to flip over at any moment. Now I can't really say whether that was a fault of that Nash, or the driving skills of the grandpa. I was just a kid, but those rides scared the bejesus otta me. Dad too as I recall.

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            • #36
              Here is my work horse '83 Spirit . A very handy car . Hatchback , maneuverable , 4.2 L six torque , 2wd . Tough as nails .
              I wish that I had it back sometimes , or even another with the 4 cyl for around town duties .

              AMC Spirit by Bill H, on Flickr
              Last edited by shifter4; 01-21-2018, 06:45 AM.
              Bill H
              Daytona Beach
              SDC member since 1970
              Owner of The Skeeter Hawk .

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              • #37
                Now THAT I like! Of course I'm nuts and my first thought is 401.

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                • #38
                  Originally posted by Milaca View Post
                  Interestingly, Jeep history keeps repeating itself. It was Willys-Overland that created 'Jeep' during WWII which it manufactured along with Willys passenger cars after the war.

                  Willys-Overland merged with Kaiser Motors in 1953 and Henry J. Kaiser soon phased out the production of Kaiser and Willys passenger cars (in 1955) and concentrated on the Jeep brand as it had no direct competition from other manufacturers and therefor was very profitable.

                  This makes me wonder....why did Willys-Overland merge with Kaiser?
                  They didn't.

                  Despite Jeep having been owned by four automotive manufactures (and ultimately owned by foreign companies based in Germany (Daimler-Chrysler) and Italy (Fiat-Chrysler), it keeps on going.
                  Willys-Overland (W-O) did not create the Jeep and they didn't merge with Kaiser Motors.

                  The Jeep is the most traveled brand in the history of the auto biz, being owned by 11 different companies.

                  Prior to the US involvement in WWII, the US Army wanted a new 'scout' car. A contest was held between the auto makers to come up with a design. The winner was American Bantam (1) of Butler PA

                  But American Bantam didn't have the facilities to build them, so the contract was given to W-O (2), who made changes, mainly to the engine and front sheet metal.

                  After the Pearl Harbor Attack, FoMoCo began assembling Jeeps (but never owned Jeep), because the W-O Toledo OH factory was too small the build the quantity required.

                  In 1953, Henry J. Kaiser purchased W-O, the company became known as Kaiser-Jeep (3). Kaiser-Jeep was purchased by AMC (4) and in the 1980's, AMC reeling from losses, received financial backing from Renault.

                  Renault eventually took control of AMC (6), then proceeded to run it into the ground (the frogs never understood the US market).

                  Renault then sold AMC to Chrysler Corp (7). Chrysler ran into financial difficulties (again!), Daimler-Benz then purchased Chrysler, which became Daimler-Chrysler (8).

                  Daimler milked Chrysler for all it was worth, then sold 83% of Chrysler to Cerberes Capital Management (9) (a private investment group) with Daimler retaining 17%

                  During the Great Recession, Cerberes divested themselves of Chrysler after they got 'bail-out' bucks. The company name reverted to Chrysler Corp (10). Then along came Fiat (Fix it again Tony), who wanted to get back into the US market. Company now known as Fiat-Chrysler (11).
                  Last edited by WinM1895; 01-21-2018, 08:21 PM.

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