Crazy Concept Cars: The 1966 AMC Cavalier Concept Was Designed to Saved $$!
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- Опубликовано: 26 апр 2024
- Learn more about the 1966 AMC Cavalier Concept Car that spawned the Hornet. Hear from AMC's former chief designer, Dick Teague, about the project!
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AMC was the fourth of the Big Three, and always the underdog. I suppose their limited resources forced them to be creative. I admire them for hanging in there as long as they did.
Am I the only one who saw nuances of the 67-68 Cougar in the AMX2?
The fact that AMC created entire lines of pretty decent cars for less than the Big Three spent to tool up an arm rest continues to amaze me.
My uncle & aunt owned a Rambler for many years through the '70s & '80s as my four cousins grew up. As they owned a holiday house on the NSW South Coast it suited them well, but with the Australian domestic car market dominated by the off-shoots of the American Big Three local products, it was rare to see the imported AMC Ramblers.
@@stevie-ray2020 - Which side was the steering wheel located?
Those AMC concepts were truly ahead of their time.Excellent design very clean and lacking useless chrome decorations.No wonder Teague has such an enduring reputation in the car design community.
He didn’t.
@@peteness9550 did you?
Agreed. Though the Cavalier looks very disjointed.
He was a truly independent thinker
He did wonders working at Packard during their final years. Plenty of ideas, not much $$$.
When it comes to designers Dick Teague was the best of the best. Great to hear his voice.
Teague did more with less better than anyone.
Weirdo car it is, you need to develop faster tooling, not mirror parts cars !
Funny you say that, as the jeep classic years wagoneer has brooks stevens studebaker styling all over it
My Dad was good friends with Dick Teague and as a young car enthusiast I loved it when we went to his house in suburban Detroit. He was a great car car guy and I distinctly remember him driving eight of us to a vintage car show in Greenfield village, in his huge 1904 Panhard-Levasier open touring car. We took the highway and had no problem keeping up with traffic! Teague was a good and aggressive driver and yet only had one eye from childhood. I got to see his early design concepts like the original Pace with a wankel motor, but all of his designs were fantastic but the AMC accountants messed them up. In college, I drove Teagues personal 1969 Javelin 390 with every possible option and it was fast as clocked at 142 by the Florida state police, but that is another story!
Back in the early 1950's, Nash applied a similar idea to a concept car that evolved into the Nash Metropolitan. The concept car had interchangeable left front/right rear fenders, interchangeable front and rear bumpers, and door skins that could be used on both sides of the car. Nash later merged with Hudson to become AMC, so maybe the ideas were still floating around the design department in the 1960's.
Scrap an attractive cost effective design over a dimmer switch. Now we know why AMC ended up defunct. You can sense his frustration and disdain with Company management over this vehicle. He wasn't going to speak ill of the dead which is commendable, but you know how he felt about them.
We used to say amc stood for almost a car as they contained so many various ford, gm, and chrysler parts
The interview at the end with Dick Teague was the finest expression of midwestern rage I've heard recorded.
Glorious.
He doesn't half sound intelligent and articulate, it disturbs me how I don't notice the lack of these qualities in today's speech, until something like this comes along.
Hornets rock! Had three of them and a Concord. Some of the most reliable, most versatile cars ever made.
My 1982 Concord DL was indestructible. I was in the Army at the time and they shipped it to Germany for me. It ran well even on the autobahn. Never really pushed it much past 80 mph. Figured if I didn't get to where I was going at that speed I wouldn't get there by going faster. Even the BMW I bought didn't get pushed much past 80. Only difference was that the BMW got to 80 quicker and was stick shift for fun. Peace.
I like the Sportabout wagon
They were pieces of shit.
I was an AMC fan because I've always liked an underdog. My dad had an Eagle wagon and I loved it even though it was pretty outdated even when new. It was reliable and a beast in the snow. Amazing to hear Dick Teague talk about the Cavalier concept. He was a brilliant designer working for a cash-strapped company. And, even when he comes up with a brilliant money saving design he gets shot down. I admit that the interchangeable body panels made the proportions a bit awkward but overall it was a clean, handsome design. Thanks for the great video and for throwing some love towards AMC and Mr. Teague. I'd love to have your green Ambassador if you ever want to part with it!
I don’t like “underdog” cars. I prefer decent built ones.
There’s a thin line between crazy and genius, and there’s a lot of good thinking that went into this design. Big Teague fan here.
Always enjoyed watching James Bond drive a AMC Hornet 2-Door Hatchback in "The Man with the Golden Gun" . . . 1974
Yes! The infamous corkscrew jump 🤓 !
The AMX prototype and that AMX 2 are just absolutely drop dead gorgeous vehicles ! I'm amazed at how much that AMX 2 reminds me of the 67 Cougar. I definitely would have been in the market for that AMX 2 if that had been produced.
Of course. 150,000 social media users sit around on the internet saying they would buy one, yet only 5 people who live life in the real world go out and buy it.
@@peteness9550 don't speak for me... I got the car I ALWAYS wanted.... A pristine, like new, '70 Trans-Am M/T
Pity that concept car looked AMAZING!!!!!!! And saving the money on retooling would have been a win-win.........
Hands down, the best- looking 'push me- pull me' car design ever, and there were indeed others.
the AMX 2 reminds me of the Buick Riviera.
Too close to be a coincidence, maybe....?
I see that.
@@noscwoh1 - Sometimes when you see something that looks a lot like something else, there was a common designer involved.
They should have brought these gorgeous concepts to fruition. Sales would have been through the roof.
The amc cavalier concept was the concept car for the gremlin/hornet platform, and was the car that saved amc. Amc used the hornet platform from 1970-1988 when they sold to Chrysler. The hornet, gremlin, concord, spirit, and eagle were Ann nearly identical aside from grill/headlights/taillights on top, and 100% identical underneath. And actually the chassis goes all the way back to 63, with the rambler American. I got a 76 hornet x a couple years ago that my now 13 year old son is starting to restore
It is an astonishment to me that American Motors could compete against the likes of Chevy and Ford. There were so many things against them, not the least of which is the public's distrust of cars and car companies they were not experienced with.
And why should they risk trying an American Motors car? The big three were producing excellent cars with an abundance of dealers and advertising to sell pretty much anything they wanted. Nonetheless, AMC was able to produce many wonderful, memorable and highly functional cars amidst the continuous economic and image deficiencies that followed it throughout its existence. A very heroic company, to say the least.
The Hornet is a fine example of what AM could offer against the mega-popular Ford Maverick. The Hornet had a longer wheelbase, so the rear seat was wider, had a glove box, counterbalanced hood, coil seats and other quality features and could be had as a wagon, all with a competitive price. The Maverick was a nice car, too. I just think the Hornet was actually a better buy. No small feat for cash strapped AMC. That baby blue 4 door looks sweet.
I am glad AMC lasted as long as they did which allowed me to have some of the most satisfying and unique driving experiences of my life. But, as is true with so many things, once they’re gone they’re gone for good. Oh, how I miss them.😭
Thanks Adam. I was waiting for someone to do a video on the AMC Cavalier. AMC sure got their money’s worth with the Hornet platform from 1970 to the late ‘80s!
7:05 That concept seems to have come to life as 1968 Cougar.
Absolutely!
You beat me to it. I was thinking the same thing. Came to make a comment and there yours was.
@@skinny7010 Only a true car nerd will see it, glad you are in the club.
@@bretttimmons2653 Only true car nerds will see it glad you are in the club.
Yes!
I had no idea AMC reused so many panels. My dad bought a loaded AMC Eagle the first year. It had an insane amount of features. Thanks for the video, well researched.
The AMC wagon was todays crossover SUV.
Thank you for the Teague interview!
The audios of actual players in the dramas are unique to this channel. Great idea, well played.
What a sad story. What a handsome car, like a mini '61 Continental. I have always loved the Hornet, my grandparents had a wagon in white with a black and white woven vinyl interior. Beautiful. Thanks for the story behind a underappreciated and wonderful car. So sad about the Cavalier.
The ‘models’ were very attractive back in the day. The cars looked good too!😊
Teague sounds like a real old school character - from his gravelly smoker's voice, to his using of the phrase, "dicked around!"😆
I think he aaid "dinked." The phrase "dinked around" was sometimes used to loosely describe a trial and error process.
@@dano7145I had to listen to him a second time because at first I thought he said dicked, but after I did hear dinked.😁
@@dano7145 Ah that could be.
@@dano7145 I heard it the same way, I grew up with two uncles that used thgat term a lot.
Great feature!! I could have listened to this forever! Was that AMX II not one of the hottest looking rigs ever put together?
Was thinking Buick Riviera for the AMX 2.
I always liked the AMC products. Lots of good ideas. Some nice looking concept cars here.
AMC had some freakish cars (Gremlin, Pacer), but also many attractive cars. A friend of mine in high school (1976-1980) had a Javelin and he loved it. I think it was a 1969 model.
I can see a little 67 Cougar design in the AMX 2.
Wow, that rumble seat looks astoundingly unsafe lol. Great video!
I always liked all of these AMC concept cars. One thing I noticed about the AMX II (the light green metallic car) was how similar the side view was to that of the '67-'68 Cougar.
Yessir. Interesting!
The AMX 2 is more reminiscent of the 68 Mercury cougar.
I see it too - in the front fender (especially the wheel opening) and the rounded sculpture of the door skin!
Same here. Actually better.
I enjoy when you talk about AMC, always had a soft spot for the little car company that could. Of course since AMC "spawned" so many vehicles out of old tooling you may run out of things to say. The Nash Metropolitan had interchangeable doors as well. Did the Hornet have fold into bed front seats for the "sportsmen"?
Had a 1971 Hornet 2door. The lobe for the fuel pump was bad so I had to put an electric fuel pump in it. That car took me from Chicago to Princeton, NJ for Sperry Univac computer repair training 8 times. Great little car. In the winter I had put studded tires on it for traction. Got me in and out of my lawn chair (that’s how you saved the spot you shoveled clean) parking space. Good times, good times.😊
Another good video. AMC sure got their money's worth from this design. They had a great knack for their ability to re-purpose styling. If you haven't already done so, a very interesting story would be how, under George Romney, the Nash Rambler of the early 50s, with a minimal investment, was brilliantly resurrected in the late 50s as the Rambler American at a time when compact cars were gaining in popularity. Perfect timing. (BTW, IIRC, the doors on the Nash Metropolitan were interchangeable left and right - at least before the door handle holes were punched.)
Keep up the great work.
That swoopy AMX is tough.
Love the Ramble Seat in the glassback version!
Adam, Nobody could accuse you of having a 'cavalier' attitude in the way you make these videos. 😉😉🤣😂 Getting back to the AMC Hornet, it must be rolling in its grave thinking about today's Fiat/Peugeot Hornet. 😱😱
Great comments
I was gonna say that, Dang! Dad jokes are great!
@@kevinsmith7697 😄
Hard to believe the engineer got the project shelved over a dimmer switch. Would have love to seen a picture of the interior and the "incursion". From the side, those doors kind of resemble the early 60s Continental. Very ingenious project indeed
My BFF and I tore up a town just north of Dallas for several years in a yellowish/green Gremlin in my earlier days...dang near indestructible!!
The AMX II Is by far the best looking car of the bunch!! Went out with a girl in High School in 1977, who had a 1970 purple hornet coupe with a white interior, black dash and carpets, and a white vinyl top! I always thought that little car was cool. Just try and find one of those today, and good luck because you won't!!
AMC had a lot of innovations over the company's lifetime, not the least of which was how they sold cars. My best friend's Dad had a "dealership" in 1968 that was basically a "lot" on the side of their house in front of his repair garage with maybe 8 new cars on display. Cheers Adam, loved the recording of Dick Teague!
Love the AMX concept. And the AMX2 concept looks like the Buick Riviera. Beautiful
I remember reading about it in the car magazines/Popular Science, etc., when it was first shown. All i saw were black and white pictures. I didn't realize it was red. Minor point, but the car looks all the better in red ... and, of course, much of the styling was incorporated into the Hornet, as you note.
Adam, I know you are more biased towards GM cars for obvious reasons but my first impression of the notch-back concept car is the Mercury Cougar. Especially the roof line ans rear quarter. I've always wonder just how famous Teague would have been if the had been the design studio chief for one of the Big 3. thanks for all the interesting videos and insights.
That grill on the AMC Cavalier in thumbnail looks very Australian!
I thought the same thing
Come to think of it, the concept vehicle does bear a resemblance, both in the front and rear, to the 1971 Holden Kingswood sedan that the lead character Detective Senior Sergeant Mike Shepherd owns and carefully maintains in The Brokenwood Mysteries series. My wife and I have enjoyed the series immensely, and we look forward to the new upcoming season.
It reminds me of an Opel...
@@fernandonavarro3839 it does! A Senator or Diplomat.
Ya, I was thinking the same thing.
Brooks Stevens's proposals (that actually made it to running prototypes) for the next-generation Studebaker Lark line also relied heavily on diagonally interchangeable body components, and were quite handsome in their execution. See also the Studebaker Sceptre (sp?) prototype, proposed as a replacement for the Hawk line. .
Remember the Gm Vauxhall Cavalier from 1975 until 1995 too.
In addition to similarities between the AMX II and a 67 Cougar, the profile and a rear shots of the four door concept car seems to resemble a 67 Malibu. From the front, some styling feature that wound up on 70s MOPAR B-bodies.
I’m glad you mentioned the more robust construction of the Hornets because even as a kid I always thought the Hornets were built like tanks.
If you have any more Richard Teague interview tapes, I for one would love to hear them, any designer really. I enjoy your channel immensely.
The J series cars were mildly altered Opel Ascona /Vauxhall Cavalier which were engineered and styled at GMs Opel division in Rüsselsheim /Germany. Although the Opel brand still exists it belongs now to Stellantis ( Peugeot, Citroen, Fiat, Jeep, Chrysler). Ironically most newer Opel models share parts with other Stellantis brands, for instance underpinnings and engines with Peugeot/ Citroen models. So Chrysler now co-owns something that originally was part of GM, who would have thought that could happen!
AMC had very smart engineers and management. As they worked on keeping costs down, they were still very creative as they came up with ideas by using the same components without a buyer noticing.
If you were to pause for a while around 15:00, you might notice the rear 2/3 of the car looks similar to the same area of the second gen Cordoba.
Prior to its merger into British Leyland, BMC definitely offered different sized variants in the 1960'ies - which due to cost cutting shared doors with early models. The BMC 1800 Landcrab comes to mind. This AMC prototype looks much cleaner than what BMC offered.
Pininfarina did an amazing reskin of the BMC 1800 in 1967, which essentially became the future Citroen CX in 1974.
Brooks Stevens made a prototype for a new Studebaker in the 60s that used similar ideas for sharing door and fender tooling.
Thank for sharing this video. I’m a big AMC fan and this is the first time to hear Dick Teague’s voice. Thank You
Adam, the AMX2's front end looks like a mid 60's Riviera with the side/rear view that looks like a late 60's/70's Cougar. 🤔
That would have been the first American car to do away with vent windows. I'm sure, the relenquishment of those would have been a greater issue with potential buyers than where a high beam switch were to be placed
My mom bought a new ‘71 Hornet sst, 6cyl, she loved it, great car. Then about ’85, us kids bought her a nice used Concorde, she loved it, drove it till she passed in ‘87, then we sold it to a family friend’s mom who drove it till she passed. Great cars!
I've been a fan of AMC since I was a teenager in the 90s, I've read about Dick Teague and saw many pictures of him but I had NEVER heard his voice until tonight! Adam, thank you so very much for your hard work and research, and filling in a personal void of mine from an amazing designer!
I love the Hornet. Dick Teague did a great job. The Cavalier show car was a great looking car. There is an AMC brown book that has the history of AMC and it shows many of Dick Teague’s show cars. I see 67 Cougar in the AMC coupe show car. The matching door idea on the Cavalier was also applied to the never produced Studebaker design concepts with the Sylvania headlights. I have seen those terrific looking cars at the Stude museum in Southbend. 👍
I remember seeing this in the car magazines of the time.
That Concord at 2:23 seems to have been ordered as a “detective special”. It has a very clean, no-nonsense look, especially compared to that AMC Eagle you included.
Well, AMC seemed to more creative than Big 3 with their unlimited funds. Strange thing.
P.S. There was another Cavalier before Chevrolet - Vauxhall Cavalier (Opel Ascona w/minor changes).
I believe Brook Stevens did something similar for Studabaker concept car, called the Spector. I saw it in the Patterson Museum. 60s still had cars that are cool and quirky.
My grampa had a '74 Hornet and my Mom had a '74 Gremlin... and I learned howto drive on them. They had a bump where the front tires were that poked in pretty well. I'm thinking with the suicide doors, access to the rear seat must have been awesome! It does look a little odd, but nothing I would consider ugly. It's kinda sharp actually. That AMX coupe is freaking gorgeous! And somehow they came out with the Matador coupe instead... ugh... My mom's Gremlin got totaled in a head on in 1980 and she bought a Spirit hatchback to replace it. She traded that for Daytona turbo in '84. My gramps Hornet continued to plod along until he passed in 1990 and I ran what was left of it in a demo derby in '92. It ran great! It had no body left 😞 It had the 232 6 with an auto, and that engine was bulletproof!
There is something absolutely stunning about AMC's design language in that era. Magical, even.
I learned about Dick Teague and this car during an industrial design class I had. If only I was a better student...
05:33 Wow that AMX II is a nice looking car, sort of looks like a cross between a '67 Cougar and '65 Corvair!
Pity that the world never saw a Teague and Elwood Engle collaboration. It would have rocked the very axis of the earth.
It would make a great large city taxicab!👍
Imagine a tall-roof version for easy step-in/out.
AMC matadors were widely used as taxi cabs, as well as police cruisers.
@@dennisg8119true, especially the cop cars
Those AMX prototypes were gorgeous!
First thing I thought when I looked at the car was "I'm not sure which end is the front..."... When you started talking about the tooling, it all made sense, lol.
13:05 Ironically, the Chevrolet Cavalier also had standard 13" wheels and one of the good things I remember about the A-cars was that the wheel housing was small enough that you could stretch your left leg by putting it between the wheel housing and the brake pedal, something that was almost impossible in the X-cars and A-cars. I assume that Dick Teague was intending this car for a 4 cylinder engine, since either an inline 6 or a V8 would require the front wheels to be further forward for tolerable handling. Volvo actually sold their 6 cylinder models with the wheelbase stretched under the hood up until the 264 came out in 1975; that year, the replacement of the inline 6 with a V6 allowed them to put their 4 and 6 cylinder cars on the same wheelbase.
thx for hearing Teague s voice..always loved amc, my first gf dad drove a Gremlin, had an Eagle later and today still a Jeep XJ
Amazing video, it felt like we were in the meeting with Abernathy and Teague! Powerful!
I remember seeing/reading about the Cavalier way back in 66, probably in Motor Trend. I thought it was a clever idea. I never knew about the fenders and hood/deck lid being interchangeable, tho. It does look like the midsection is out of proportion, but not horribly so. Cool video, adam!
Dick Teague and Bob Nixon knew how to stretch the dollars into iconic designs.
Thanks for giving Dick Teague some love. I think he deserves more attention.
As a car guy, I missed this knowledge about AMC. Thanks for the great piece of history. Great insight
Nice to have that recoding of Dick Teague.
Great video, I'd never heard of those AMC concepts before!
Great video Mr. Wade. Please keep them coming!😊
Really good video. Sad to hear the cost saving features could not be utilized in the production Hornet. It was great to hear
Dick Teague’s thoughts directly. Great video!
The AMC Concord was our driver Ed car in high school in the 1980s.
And, I had a 1987 Chevy Cavalier in the 90s.
this video is not about you, sorry
The AMX II Concept Car has cylindrical body sides similar to Mercury's 1967-'68 Cougar. Additionally, its proportions and hidden headlights mimic that car.
I like the AMX Cavalier Concept Car. It's a handsomely clean and functional design.
Footwells have decreased in width, pedals are so much smaller now and it seems that the accelerator pedals have moved further to the upper right corner of the wells, almost somewhat under the dashboard.
I have size 14 medium width feet so I usually remove my shoes when driving, especially if I'm wearing dress shoes. Also, I slide my L foot back so my heel is closer to the base of the seat cushion.
What a shame neither of these show cars were produced but thank you for posting. The interview with Dick Teague was quite insightful. 👍🏾❤️🚗
Good ol' AMC , everything on a shoestring 😊
Dick Teague was legendary for his styling refresh of the 1955-56 Packard. The new company president, James Nance was so taken with the "cathedral" taillights that he gave Teague a substantial raise. Nance had called the taillights on the '51-'54 senior Packards "bulls' nuts." The story goes that Dick Teague also smuggled out a lot of company records that new management had ordered to be destroyed.
Thank you Adam. This was interesting for the concepts and what went into production. Everything was well stated about AMC budget constraints. Thank you for sharing the concepts. I have seen the coupe concept somewhere before. I liked the fact you talked about how the Hornet lived on for years into other cars. The Hornet name lives on as a Dodge today. The Cavalier name information was interesting as well.
Wow- really good stuff here! The Cavalier was a nice-looking car, with some really interesting features. Dick Teague really was a genius at doing a lot with the limited means at AMC's disposal. Thanks for posting- you have a new subscriber!
I used to think AMC cars were ugly and old looking. As I gotten older I appreciate AMC's beauty in simplicity, I'd love to have a AMC Eagle wagon !
I bet that design gave a lot of back seat room, and the longer wheelbase made for a comfortable ride.
The front cases wheels made is small there ..
The front of the cavalier looks like an opel
The a m x 2 is outstanding!
That would have been fun to stand back and watch Teague and Isbrandt argue it out.
AMC Cars were assembled from CKD kits in Australia (and New Zealand) in RHD from the mid 1950s to late 1970s. They were quite popular for many years as an alternative to the Holden, Ford Falcon and Chrysler Valiant sedans and derivatives in our market. The cars were sold under the Rambler brand and the models included the AMX and Javelin muscle coupes and the Hornet, Ambassador, Matador and Rebel. You still occasionally see one on the road. The market changed in the 1970s as did rules regarding tarriffs and local manufactured content, as well as the rise of the Japanese brands in Australia and the local assembly contractor Australian Motor Industries (AMI)was eventually acquired by Toyota who was AMI's major brand. The Ramblers were also positioned as a premuim brand to the local sedans and priced higher too.These and other factors led to them ceasing production and sale in Australia by the end of the 1970s.
I always liked them becase they were a little different. The police also liked the big V8 sedans for highway patrol duties too!
From the frt, it looks kinda like a Ford Cortina. Scrapped over a dimmer switch, amazing! Ironically a lot of early FWD subcompacts had the wheel intrusion up front. Neat car, thx for sharing!
This car and some of the other concepts had good looking lines.