Yeah. I'm trying to think of how I thought of it back in the 70's. I was aware even back then that it was looked down on, but I think I recall not seeing what everyone else was seeing, and thinking it an okay car, style wise. Putting aside the "Chariots of Fire" aspect of the Pinto, I think that car was a lot uglier than the Gremlin. Those Pintos and Vegas looked like they were ready to fall apart brand new.
The Gremlin was considered odd looking because of the groundbreaking design. At the time of introduction there was no such thing as a hatchback or as designer Dick Teague termed the design "Kammback." From the B-pillar forward it was a Hornet. AMC had experience with chopping existing chassis down with the original 2 seater AMX essentially a shortened Javelin as the Gremlin in a sense was a wheelbase chopped Hornet. Make no mistake the Gremlin had a better than decent track record. It was simple and relatively well built. The motors were bullet proof. It was just fashionable to bash AMC - the little guy... I guarantee that wasn't the case with the people who owned them.
Well said MacVeigh, The Gremlin was "Cheap and Cheerful", and a reliable useful car too. Your doing a good job on setting the record straight, much appreciated.
The Gremlin was never assembled in Australia. One Gremlin was test built for possible sale, but that was the only one sent down the production line. The Hornet version was the model that AMC ended up building in Australia.
AMC was pretty awesome, cool designs which made do with what parts were on the shelves. they really were putting it out there compared to the big three dinosaurs. who can forget The Man With the Golden Gun? anyone who was important in Thailand drove an AMC seemly, even Dracula. best humble classics!
Thank you, it's nice to hear an honest telling of the Gremlin story. The people who put together those lists of the worst cars and include the Gremlin literally have no idea what they are talking about. All they are interested is getting clicks and views. I like Gremlins, I liked them when they were new and still do.
One of the things that most people overlook when it comes to the Gremlin is that unlike the earlier Hornets that came standard with the 232 I6, Gremlins came primarily with the 258 I6, which was not only more powerful and had a lot more torque, but was also far more reliable, so much so that it was a staple in Jeeps which were well regarded during the era for their high reliability. Next, look at all the hatchbacks that followed. How many of them have the same basic shape as the Gremlin? Engine compartment in front, passenger area, truncated (short) cargo area in the rear. The Gremlin wasn't so much ugly as it was ahead of its time. The Gremlin was a great car with a great design idea, that was the forerunner of a major niche in the automotive industry that has learned to follow in its footsteps!
@@kenjackson8078 While I would argue about the differences between the 232 and 258 (they were basically the same engine) I agree about the shape of the Gremlin. If it had a hatchback and front wheel drive it would be much different than cars of ten or twenty years later.
Overall, an honest, accurate and positive documentary of the Gremlin. For once, the author isn't making fun of this superb automobile. The Gremlin and its sister, the Hornet, were the two best cars sold during the seventies.
The Gremlin also had a 304 V8 option for a few years. The later models could be had with a 4 cyl that I believe was sourced from VW. You forgot to mention the Levi's denim interior option! Complete with orange Levi tags on the seats.
You're close -- that four-cylinder was used by Audi, Porsche, and AMC (so, VW Group, but not in VWs). There were differences in the head, manifolds, induction, and tuning.
I had a black Gremlin X Levi's edition with a 304 three speed. Never have seen its twin. Was told when I bought it that the dealer ordered it special. Bought it for $400. It ran great for two years. I blew it up and sold it to the junk man. Wish I had it still
My '73 just had the 258 I6 but it had the Levi's interior. Using Plastic-cote paints and vinyl dies, I transformed it into a black with bright blue interior, but kept the denim and the blue carpet original. I added a flip-up rear deck hinged to the back of the rear seat. With the front seats flipped forwards and the passenger propped up a bit with a baseball bat, this would convert the back of the car into a recliner shaped bed, handy for camping. For the exterior, I painted her flat black and lit her up like a Christmas tree. You couldn't miss it going down the road at night, but slip into a shadow and shut off all the lights and the car would turn "invisible". (See my other comment for info on my tranny swap.)
Fun hotrod anecdote: the 199" Gremlin engine shared the same external dimensions as the 258" inline 6 installed in the jeep. Very easy engine swap for almost an additional liter of displace. The Gremlin also had a cavernous engine bay that would easily accommodate the 304" AMC V8. The transmission bellhousings were identical. Only some minor fabrication of mounts required. Due to its very rigid chassis, and gargantuan torque on hand, the Gremlin was very competitive in amateur SCCA racing. IF, one could get sufficiently sticky and wide enough tires underneath.
There's a few 2JZ swapped Jeeps out there. Not sure all of what's required but the Supra's transmissions were made by the same company Aisin. My Cherokee always took off pretty good with the stock 4.0l but if you're doing all that work. You might as well go a little further and make something really cool. That or a Barra swap.
I put a B/W T-10-s out of a V8 Rebel in my 258 powered '73 Gremlin. Because mine originally had an automatic, I had to change out the left strut rod bracket for one that had the hole for the clutch bellcrank bushing, cut a hole in the floor for the shifter, modify the wiring for the backup light, and change my starter solenoid to one for a car without a neutral safety switch. Other than those mods, it was a straight-forward swap. But the bellhousing on my sister's 232 '70 Hornet had a different bolt pattern and was decidedly smaller in diameter.
It's so nice to hear praise for the much maligned Gremlin. In so many cases it's overlooked that it was a huge sales success!. The Gremlin also has a good reputation in the used car field, with a higher trade in value than the Pinto and Vega.
My family used to race AMC cars and once won a race in reverse! The transmission broke 3 laps from the end but my cousin was so far ahead he just used the only gear he had, reverse, and won!
While most of my friends were tooling around in Z-28s and the Trans Am, I was rockin’ a 75 Gremlin...😤 Yeah, my school bus yellow Gremlin was a real “babe magnet”....😂
Correction from 9:12 about Australian sales. This was limited to a one-of-one right-hand-drive Rambler Gremlin for market evaluation. AMC didn't build this car. Rather, AMC exported it as a complete knock-down kit to its Australian partner, Australian Motor Industries, based in Port Melbourne, to evaluate whether AMI could sell it alongside the Hornet, Matador, AMX and Javelin in the country. All these only sold as Ramblers in Australia. The Rambler name continued rather than establish the new brand of AMC and having confusion with AMI. Lots of simple local components to save on high import duties. Did not proceed beyond one. Ramblers in Australia being more luxury specced and costly than locally built Ford Falcons, Chrysler Valiants and well as the market leading GM Holden. All locally made normally six cylinder cars of at least 3.3 litres with smaller numbers of V8 optioned cars. The NSW state government was the biggest buyer of Ramblers for Police use and high up politicians. AMI an interesting company being the only Australian car producer with substantial Australian ownership. Started with assembling Standard Vanguard's then Mercedes Benz fintail 220 models then Triumph and Ramblers. Their biggest success was the early assembling of Toyotas starting in 1963. So highly regarded by Toyota that Toyota bought them out to concentrate on Toyotas. The one of one Rambler Gremlin so rare that it was purchased by a noted AMC collector and exported to the US around 2000.
A rare Australian assembled Rambler Javelin by AMI ; ruclips.net/video/B60i3wiw43w/видео.html Paying extra for a Rambler in Australia, buyers wanted something extra to justify the cost. Another earlier but still rare car ,; ruclips.net/video/5cHeOs2uCeA/видео.html
You are correct there mate. It was here for evaluation, even to the point of being displayed at the Sydney motor show. AMI were probably more interested in assembling Toyota's though at the time of rapidly escalating fuel prices.
The AMC Gremlin is truly a very good car and is one that I feel deserves more love and respect. It and the Pacer are two of my favorite AMC cars. It’s sad that the Gremlin is under appreciated and that people consider it one of the worst cars, despite how successful it was, but I’m sure there are others out there who love this car. Lesson to take away from this: Looks are not everything, it’s your personality is what truly matters most.
This video was quite entertaining with the old promotional scenes, and it's an interesting take on the legacy of the AMC Gremlin. As a teenager in the 1970's we thought the Gremlin was odd styling with the triangular profile, but I never had any personal experience with them as they were a less-numerous model. A friend's parents had a Chevy Vega which was extremely problematic, being susceptible to major engine damage in the case of coolant overheating. Vegas and Pintos were common enough in the 1970's but almost never seen on the road any more. I'm still driving a 40-year-old Toyota in 2023, which says something about brands and build quality and longevity.
My mother had a basic 74 Gremlin three speed manual. It had almost no options, just button hub caps, AM radio and a torquey 232ci 6 cyl engine. It was quite reliable compared to competing Vegas and Pintos but also easy and cheap to fix.
Thanks for the memories! The ugly Gremlin was very popular. When I was in high school in the early 80s the good old Gremlin was one of the 5 most popular hand me down beaters my teenage friends drove. Just for the record, the other 4 were VW Beatles, VW Karmen Ghias, Ford Mavericks, and Chevy Impalas (or one of the other GM equivalents).
I had access to a stripper Maverick, and lived in the town where the Gremlin was made. The Gremlin was a more robust vehicle in engine and chassis (the Maverick was adequate nonetheless), but Gremlin could not be considered a four-place vehicle unlike Maverick. The Gremlin back seat was unusable for any but small children.
Vega’s rusted on the showroom floor and burned oil at 20k and Pinto’s blew up. The Gremlin was definitely the best of the three 70’s American small cars.
I was born in ‘62 - the only bad thing I remember about the Gremlin is that it was funny looking. That’s a lot better than the Pinto which had a reputation for exploding and the Vega for falling apart almost instantly (my uncle bought a new one that rusted through the fenders in a year).
I just inherited a 77 AMC gremlin from my dad. He had 4 of them at one time and we picked this one up a few years ago as a father son project. It's a Gremlin X Levi's edition. I never liked them as a kid but since we got this one I've fallen in love with the little turd. It gets so much attention when ever I drive it. I have an 05 GTO that's super clean and loud as shit. It definitely stands out but it dosent get half the attention the Gremlin gets. It's crazy how many people have stopped me at a gas station or at a red-light and give me a thumbs up. People claim they hate Gremlins but from what I see people actually love these little cars. I'm planning on swapping in a 6.0 ls2 and 4l80e with a trans brake that inhave from another project. It's going to be a quick little car once I'm done. Especially with a little sniff of nitrous on top.
The Grelim (and AMC as a whole) was a winner. Unfortunately many of my era consider it to be a loser. Thanks for this video - informative and enjoyable.
Mitsubishi built the then-Willys Jeep under license during the American occupation. They incorporated so many changes over the years it is considered a different branch of the Jeep line. Ssangyong started building the Mitsu Jeep.
In the 1970's, a gentleman named Amos Johnson raced the Gremlin in IMSA races, taking several championships in the car. He and his red, white and blue Gremlins competed at the Daytona 24 and the Sebring 12 hour races, although I don't remember how they placed. As I recall he took a class win in an AMC Spirit at the 1979 Nürburgring 24 Hour.
I liked the Gremlin TV commercials. They had a comical theme to them, as did VW's with the bug. The Pinto and Vega commercials were more traditional advertising.
I bought new a 1972 gremlin 258 six cylinder. Towing a small pop up camper and getting 26 mpg on interstate highway. I always enjoyed the car. Traded in for a 1977 Hornet with a 304. V8.
I owned a Gremlin X for a short time when I was stationed at Clark AB, Philippines 1974. It was a fun car and the Philippine roads were notoriously bad. I didn't have any trouble selling it when i left. I had also owned a VW, a Corvair and a 66 Mustang. Mustang was the best with Gremlin 2nd.
My first car, as a teenager, was a 1973 Gremlin and man was that thing a tank! I was rear-ended once, while waiting to make a left turn, by the driver of a Buick LeSabre. While the collision demolished the front end of the Buick it just put a V shaped dent into the back of my Gremlin and I was able to continue driving it.
I LOLed when I read your account. My Gremlin was rear ended by a Renault LeCar in Chicago. The LeCar was nearly totaled, the only damage to the Gremlin was torn vinyl woodgrain if I remember correctly.
Great, informative video as usual, but I must issue a small correction; the Gremlin was never sold in Australia. The Hornet was assembled locally by AMI (Australian Motor Industries), alongside Toyota and Triumph products. A single, right hand drive test car was built by a Rambler dealership under instruction from AMI, using a combination of local and imported parts, but it remained the only example built. In the USA, the Rambler name had been phased out in 1969 in favour of AMC, however Australia retained the Rambler marque until AMI switched exclusively to Toyota in 1976 and all sales of the brand ceased. Because of this, the solitary Australian Gremlin was actually badged a Rambler Gremlin and the prototype still retains that identity, despite being exported to the USA in the 2000s. There, it has undergone a full restoration and is regularly displayed at car shows, surrounded by Australian flags and with a September 1970 copy of Australian motoring magazine Wheels, which featured the prototype Rambler Gremlin on the cover.
Don't forget that that 258 I-6 engine had so much torque and was so reliable that it was the staple of Jeep's reputation for reliability for years to come.
In the early 1970's, I worked as a mechanic at a dealership that sold Pontiacs, AMC cars and Jeeps. Many of their inline 6 engines burned oil very badly and the cure was to replace the valve stem seals. I must have replaced thousands of them. Otherwise, I thought they were great little cars, so much so, I bought a Hornet Wagon.
I've owned a VW Beetle, a Pinto - actually a Mercury Bobcat station wagon - and a Gremlin. The Gremlin dealt best with my lousy American maintenance. The Pinto/Bobcat had the German designed OHC engine that didn't have big enough supply channels to the overhead cam - at least at lazy American oil change intervals. You could see the scoring on the cam shaft before I got rid of it. The Beetle got driven lots of short distances - like a mile to and from work - in the cold Chicago winter, and the oil never really got hot enough to drive out the water. It was only about $400 to get the two German guys to rebuild the engine, however. It was a Super Beetle, with those fragile rear trailing arms, one of which bent in an incident with an I beam stuck in the ground to protect a fence. The Gremlin, with its ancient technology 6 cylinder and live rear axle, stood up to my abuse just fine. And it had the best heater. I even managed to rebuild the carburetor, a very simple 1 barrel. I didn't realize it was cracked until it became unreliable again, and I started to rebuild it again. But it was on $32 for a replacement carb. Those were the days.
The Gremlin wasn't a bad car. It was much better than the Pinto or Vega. One great thing about the Rambler is the front seat folded back flat making the car a giant bed. When it came out my parents had a Mercury Marquis that was 18 ft long had a 429 v8 that got about 8mpg.
I grew up in Chicagoland, a stone's toss south of Kenosha, so AMC vehicles were thick as fleas. In high school a friend of mine bought a used Gremlin. It was reliable, efficient, and in the early 80s could smoke new Mustangs and Camaros (which were woefully underpowered at that time). On the rare occasions it needed work it was dirt simple. Above all it was a fun car. There are few cars from my youth I would care to own now, but I'd grab a Gremlin in a heartbeat if I had the swag.
I, personally, conisder the AMC Spirit/Eagle Kammback to simply be a renamed continuation of the Gremlin. It maintained the same size and proportions, simply with restyled front/rear fascia and more conventional rear-quarter windows.
Awesome! A superior and [IMHO] acurate video essay of the Gremlin! Right in line with my current reading and viewing of information on the ACTUAL history of AMC, not the "lets see who can cococt the mosy glib insults." At 71, I have never been more than an end user of the automobile. My interest in AMC now is only academic as having been an owner of an AMC Javelin, which at the time, was the only decent car I could afford in College. Now studying the company's history more closely I can say that your facts hit each nail on the head of accuracy I've, recently, indpendentaly learned. And, if you're wondering, at no time does your "soft spot" for the Gremlin show through. To support and demonstrate highlights of the Gramlin is not to promote it. It didn't need it. And after hours of videos and reading I've discovered something new about the Gremlin in your video. Indeed, in my home town of San Leandro, CA, there was a railroad crossing on a curve between two popular boulevards. I had to be careful to slow down on that corner as the rear of the Javelin, especially in the rain, could "skate" as much as 12" around that corner! I didn't know theJavelin had that in common with the Gremlin! Now I don't feel so alone...
This car has always reminded me of the BMC/BL Austin Allegro. The reception and the demise. Even concept designs are similar with other features appearing on related models. Is it just me?
Just you and a few Brits. Allegro a much higher cost development cost than the much more cost effective approach of AMC taking an existing Hornet design and making it shorter by a new design behind the B pillar. Nothing of the Allegro body work shared with an existing car. Something like 80% of the development cost of the Gremlin already existed. Have you missed that major point of the Gremlin development?
Thank you for this fair look at the Gremlin. i was born in' 62. i always thought the Gremlin was the ugliest car ever. Followed closely by that rolling fish tank called the Pacer! i can't say that i love AMC, but the Gremlins don't look ugly now that you've called them quirky!:-) Much thanks 🙏
My Aunt had one. She drove like Mr. Magoo, over curbs and across lawns at 30 mph because she didn’t speed. At a little over 100,000 miles she asked me to change her clutch since it was slipping. She would wait for red lights at the top of a hill just sitting there sliding the clutch the whole time. I was amazed at the size of the clutch, it was bigger than a v8 mustang clutch. The flywheel was drilled to fit a variety of clutches, from a tiny one to the huge one she had. She drove it a long time after that. All the pintos and vegas I knew were junked before 50,000 miles
AMC was an interesting company in general. Sadly, they were just too small to maintain operations indefinitely, being swallowed by Lee Iaccoca's Chrysler in the late 80s, bought for their Jeep-Eagle division.
I have a '79 Spirit GT and often get "What is THAT?" When I ask the person if they've heard of AMC, they usually say "no" until I invoke the Gremlin (and AMX and various Jeeps) and then explain that the Spirit is an evolution of the Gremlin and shares a significant portion of the structure and parts.
My wife and I saved up for a NEW car from my Navy pay. November of 1973, we took our $2500 cash and drove 150 miles to Cincinnati to buy one. Test drove a Vega, Pinto, then the Gremlin. All about the same price but the Gremlin had the others beat by far. Asked the salesman how much he could come down from the sticker price if we paid cash and took the one we drove with us. Well...none. We talked some and I sensed he was being honest about selling immediately after arrival so we ordered one with the colors we wanted (yellow with tan interior) and no options. 3 speed with a 232 cu in 6 cylinder. Picked it up 2 months later for $2159. Just shy of $2400 with tax, title, transportation, and dealer prep. Best car we've ever owned. I should have paid an extra $100 for Ziebart though. Figured I'd wear it out before it would rust out. The back wheel wells trapped road salt and got quite rusted. 174,000 trouble-free miles, 12 years later, sold her still going as strong as the day we brought her home from Cincinnati. Sorry, I rambled. I loved that car.
I had a '73 Gremlin. I swapped out the automatic tranny with a Borg Warner T-10-S that I acquired out of a Rebel. With the rather heavy flywheel, also from the Rebel, when I dumped the clutch, the engine would barely slow down at all. With this set-up, I was able to pull wheelies in both first and second gears while being powered by nothing more than the totally stock 258 cid inline 6. That car was an absolute blast to drive, and I would say that it was probably the most reliable car I've ever owned.
Back in the day I thought they were good looking and wanted one, especially the Levi version. Didn't understand the "Localized" and "Not localized" gas cans at the beginning tho, anyone know what that meant?
@@owenshebbeare2999 lots of other Ramblers assembled in Australia by AMI Port Melbourne but more the luxury or a few performance ones. Lots more cars than Holden's and Ford's made in Australia too. Lots of BMC the Leyland, Chrysler and VW air cooled cars. Toyotas, Nissan and Mitsubishi. If you add assembled cars it gets a very long list. But only one Gremlin. Unwanted here at the price expected.
Nearly right on both counts. Earlier I had posted part of the story ; Correction from 9:12 about Australian sales. This was limited to a one-of-one right-hand-drive Rambler Gremlin for market evaluation. AMC didn't build this car. Rather, AMC exported it as a complete knock-down kit to its Australian partner, Australian Motor Industries, based in Port Melbourne, to evaluate whether AMI could sell it alongside the Hornet, Matador, AMX and Javelin in the country. All these only sold as Ramblers in Australia. The Rambler name continued rather than establish the new brand of AMC and having confusion with AMI. Lots of simple local components to save on high import duties. Did not proceed beyond one. Ramblers in Australia being more luxury specced and costly than locally built Ford Falcons, Chrysler Valiants and well as the market leading GM Holden. All locally made normally six cylinder cars of at least 3.3 litres with smaller numbers of V8 optioned cars. The NSW state government was the biggest buyer of Ramblers for Police use and high up politicians. AMI an interesting company being the only Australian car producer with substantial Australian ownership. Started with assembling Standard Vanguard's then Mercedes Benz fintail 220 models then Triumph and Ramblers. Their biggest success was the early assembling of Toyotas starting in 1963. So highly regarded by Toyota that Toyota bought them out to concentrate on Toyotas. The one of one Rambler Gremlin so rare that it was purchased by a noted AMC collector and exported to the US around 2000.
Likely these later 1976 Matador models were the last Rsmblers assembled by AMI in their Port Melbourne plant ; ruclips.net/video/REJRKCa1_Hw/видео.html
I had a girlfriend who's dad had one of these, it seemed a good car. By the way it wasn't just the US who had petrol rationing, I was stationed in Germany and we had odd and even numbered days and no Sunday driving allowed apart from emergency services
Gremlins were everywhere! I was more a fan of Vegas that had been V8 swapped - yes, even during the gas crunch hot rodders loved to find a Vega with a bad engine and swap in a hot small block 350 for burnout fun. It was a fun and weird time that seemed like we needed to buck the gas crunch because our beloved muscle cars would be extinct in the future - so live for today!
I've seen dozens of Gremlins sold for $250 or less in driveable condition. They weren't great cars, but they weren't bad cars at all other than the styling and the light rear end which could get away from you quickly, especially with the slow manual steering many had. From an act of desperation AMC brought forth a winner and played it well for as long as they could. Perhaps America's last truly exciting car design before the 'malaise' era came along.
Sad to see AMC is a fallen flag in USA auto makers. I admired their cars from across the pond in the UK. I would have loved AMC to still be turning vehicles out of Kenosha
I just asked my dad what he thinks of this car and he said he and his friends found one broken on the side of the road when he was younger and got guns out and shot it up. Man he was really stupid back then.
You forgot the one thing everyone forgets: The pinto wagon (which was actually more popular for most of the run) did NOT have the "mobile barbecue grille that seats four" issues due to it's longer frame/body allowing for the gas tank to be put in a more protected location. It's this particular omission that's part of why it's rep has stayed so bad over the years.
With the 258 cubic inch 6 and 2 barrel carburetor and Torque Command Automatic Transmission it would be a great performer almost rivaling an economy V8.
As an Australian what’s the difference between the Gremlin and the Pacer? They look the same to me! Gremlin was never sold in Australia! Australian Motor Industries AMI make one RHD prototype but abandoned the project! AMI assembled Ramblers and a few Hornets in Oz!
I never thought of the Gremlins being all that ugly. In fact, they look sharp when decked out with big, white-letter tires and racing stripes. Seems like they were equipped with a simple, but punchy engine. I subbed. This was good.
So the Gremlin shared it's chassis with the Spirit, which shared it's platform with the 4WD Eagle coupe...? Suddenly, I feel like building a turbo-charged Jeep I-6, and making an AMC into an AMA! (American-made Audi) ;)
My first car was a plum-colored '74 Gremlin with the small inline 6 cylinder and an automatic transmission. The back window instead of a hatch made the cargo area less convenient.
The Pacer was not a sales smash. It sold well initially but then sales rapidly declined. It was designed to use a GM supplied rotary engine. When GM cancelled the program, AMC went with their 6 cylinder engine which necessitated engineering changes and resulted in lower mileage. Other than that, it was an advanced car.
Thanks - another great tale!
Thank you very much! :D
Didn't expect to see you here.
@@BennysBenz makes sense, they do similar things and very well indeed.
looked at buying a 1983 AMC Eagle 4wd 4spd stick-shift station wagon after graduation from UW, but picked another car instead
#mistake
Honestly, the Gremlin looks pretty cool to me, I have to admit, I like the design.
Yeah. I'm trying to think of how I thought of it back in the 70's. I was aware even back then that it was looked down on, but I think I recall not seeing what everyone else was seeing, and thinking it an okay car, style wise. Putting aside the "Chariots of Fire" aspect of the Pinto, I think that car was a lot uglier than the Gremlin. Those Pintos and Vegas looked like they were ready to fall apart brand new.
The Gremlin was considered odd looking because of the groundbreaking design.
At the time of introduction there was no such thing as a hatchback or as designer Dick Teague termed the design "Kammback."
From the B-pillar forward it was a Hornet. AMC had experience with chopping existing chassis down with the original 2 seater AMX essentially a shortened Javelin as the Gremlin in a sense was a wheelbase chopped Hornet. Make no mistake the Gremlin had a better than decent track record. It was simple and relatively well built. The motors were bullet proof. It was just fashionable to bash AMC - the little guy...
I guarantee that wasn't the case with the people who owned them.
@@audieconrad8995 A friend of mine drove an old Hornet, he had no complaints about it.
@@rodchallis8031 so did I friend.
Yup. Not the underpowered detuned v8 though
Well said MacVeigh, The Gremlin was "Cheap and Cheerful", and a reliable useful car too. Your doing a good job on setting the record straight, much appreciated.
Owned one late 70s 232 ,3 speed,positive traction rear end,made great place to sleep,bucket seats ahead back seat folded down,beautiful memories.
The Gremlin was never assembled in Australia. One Gremlin was test built for possible sale, but that was the only one sent down the production line. The Hornet version was the model that AMC ended up building in Australia.
AMC was pretty awesome, cool designs which made do with what parts were on the shelves. they really were putting it out there compared to the big three dinosaurs. who can forget The Man With the Golden Gun? anyone who was important in Thailand drove an AMC seemly, even Dracula. best humble classics!
I personally knew the stunt driver from the 007 movie
Thank you, it's nice to hear an honest telling of the Gremlin story. The people who put together those lists of the worst cars and include the Gremlin literally have no idea what they are talking about. All they are interested is getting clicks and views.
I like Gremlins, I liked them when they were new and still do.
One of the things that most people overlook when it comes to the Gremlin is that unlike the earlier Hornets that came standard with the 232 I6, Gremlins came primarily with the 258 I6, which was not only more powerful and had a lot more torque, but was also far more reliable, so much so that it was a staple in Jeeps which were well regarded during the era for their high reliability. Next, look at all the hatchbacks that followed. How many of them have the same basic shape as the Gremlin? Engine compartment in front, passenger area, truncated (short) cargo area in the rear. The Gremlin wasn't so much ugly as it was ahead of its time. The Gremlin was a great car with a great design idea, that was the forerunner of a major niche in the automotive industry that has learned to follow in its footsteps!
@@kenjackson8078 While I would argue about the differences between the 232 and 258 (they were basically the same engine) I agree about the shape of the Gremlin. If it had a hatchback and front wheel drive it would be much different than cars of ten or twenty years later.
My first new car was a 1976 Gremlin . . . it gave good service and I miss it after all these years.
I like your Studebaker avatar.
Overall, an honest, accurate and positive documentary of the Gremlin. For once, the author isn't making fun of this superb automobile. The Gremlin and its sister, the Hornet, were the two best cars sold during the seventies.
The Gremlin also had a 304 V8 option for a few years. The later models could be had with a 4 cyl that I believe was sourced from VW. You forgot to mention the Levi's denim interior option! Complete with orange Levi tags on the seats.
You're close -- that four-cylinder was used by Audi, Porsche, and AMC (so, VW Group, but not in VWs). There were differences in the head, manifolds, induction, and tuning.
I had a black Gremlin X Levi's edition with a 304 three speed. Never have seen its twin. Was told when I bought it that the dealer ordered it special. Bought it for $400. It ran great for two years. I blew it up and sold it to the junk man. Wish I had it still
My '73 just had the 258 I6 but it had the Levi's interior. Using Plastic-cote paints and vinyl dies, I transformed it into a black with bright blue interior, but kept the denim and the blue carpet original. I added a flip-up rear deck hinged to the back of the rear seat. With the front seats flipped forwards and the passenger propped up a bit with a baseball bat, this would convert the back of the car into a recliner shaped bed, handy for camping. For the exterior, I painted her flat black and lit her up like a Christmas tree. You couldn't miss it going down the road at night, but slip into a shadow and shut off all the lights and the car would turn "invisible". (See my other comment for info on my tranny swap.)
Fun hotrod anecdote: the 199" Gremlin engine shared the same external dimensions as the 258" inline 6 installed in the jeep. Very easy engine swap for almost an additional liter of displace. The Gremlin also had a cavernous engine bay that would easily accommodate the 304" AMC V8. The transmission bellhousings were identical. Only some minor fabrication of mounts required.
Due to its very rigid chassis, and gargantuan torque on hand, the Gremlin was very competitive in amateur SCCA racing. IF, one could get sufficiently sticky and wide enough tires underneath.
You could drop a Javelin 401 into the Gremlin since the blocks were the same size and weight. Made for a very fast little car.
There's a few 2JZ swapped Jeeps out there. Not sure all of what's required but the Supra's transmissions were made by the same company Aisin. My Cherokee always took off pretty good with the stock 4.0l but if you're doing all that work. You might as well go a little further and make something really cool. That or a Barra swap.
The 4.0 Jeep six is based on the 1964 era AMC six. I'm liking AMCs more and more.
@@timothykeith1367 Yep! A Jeep 4.0 and five speed would almost be a bolt in for a Gremlin, now THAT would be fun!
I put a B/W T-10-s out of a V8 Rebel in my 258 powered '73 Gremlin. Because mine originally had an automatic, I had to change out the left strut rod bracket for one that had the hole for the clutch bellcrank bushing, cut a hole in the floor for the shifter, modify the wiring for the backup light, and change my starter solenoid to one for a car without a neutral safety switch. Other than those mods, it was a straight-forward swap. But the bellhousing on my sister's 232 '70 Hornet had a different bolt pattern and was decidedly smaller in diameter.
It's so nice to hear praise for the much maligned Gremlin. In so many cases it's overlooked that it was a huge sales success!. The Gremlin also has a good reputation in the used car field, with a higher trade in value than the Pinto and Vega.
My family used to race AMC cars and once won a race in reverse! The transmission broke 3 laps from the end but my cousin was so far ahead he just used the only gear he had, reverse, and won!
While most of my friends were tooling around in Z-28s and the Trans Am, I was rockin’ a 75 Gremlin...😤 Yeah, my school bus yellow Gremlin was a real “babe magnet”....😂
Correction from 9:12 about Australian sales. This was limited to a one-of-one right-hand-drive Rambler Gremlin for market evaluation. AMC didn't build this car. Rather, AMC exported it as a complete knock-down kit to its Australian partner, Australian Motor Industries, based in Port Melbourne, to evaluate whether AMI could sell it alongside the Hornet, Matador, AMX and Javelin in the country. All these only sold as Ramblers in Australia. The Rambler name continued rather than establish the new brand of AMC and having confusion with AMI. Lots of simple local components to save on high import duties.
Did not proceed beyond one. Ramblers in Australia being more luxury specced and costly than locally built Ford Falcons, Chrysler Valiants and well as the market leading GM Holden. All locally made normally six cylinder cars of at least 3.3 litres with smaller numbers of V8 optioned cars.
The NSW state government was the biggest buyer of Ramblers for Police use and high up politicians.
AMI an interesting company being the only Australian car producer with substantial Australian ownership.
Started with assembling Standard Vanguard's then Mercedes Benz fintail 220 models then Triumph and Ramblers. Their biggest success was the early assembling of Toyotas starting in 1963. So highly regarded by Toyota that Toyota bought them out to concentrate on Toyotas.
The one of one Rambler Gremlin so rare that it was purchased by a noted AMC collector and exported to the US around 2000.
A rare Australian assembled Rambler Javelin by AMI ;
ruclips.net/video/B60i3wiw43w/видео.html
Paying extra for a Rambler in Australia, buyers wanted something extra to justify the cost.
Another earlier but still rare car ,;
ruclips.net/video/5cHeOs2uCeA/видео.html
You are correct there mate. It was here for evaluation, even to the point of being displayed at the Sydney motor show. AMI were probably more interested in assembling Toyota's though at the time of rapidly escalating fuel prices.
Nice comment John! 😉
The AMC Gremlin is truly a very good car and is one that I feel deserves more love and respect. It and the Pacer are two of my favorite AMC cars. It’s sad that the Gremlin is under appreciated and that people consider it one of the worst cars, despite how successful it was, but I’m sure there are others out there who love this car.
Lesson to take away from this: Looks are not everything, it’s your personality is what truly matters most.
This video was quite entertaining with the old promotional scenes, and it's an interesting take on the legacy of the AMC Gremlin. As a teenager in the 1970's we thought the Gremlin was odd styling with the triangular profile, but I never had any personal experience with them as they were a less-numerous model. A friend's parents had a Chevy Vega which was extremely problematic, being susceptible to major engine damage in the case of coolant overheating. Vegas and Pintos were common enough in the 1970's but almost never seen on the road any more. I'm still driving a 40-year-old Toyota in 2023, which says something about brands and build quality and longevity.
My mother had a basic 74 Gremlin three speed manual. It had almost no options, just button hub caps, AM radio and a torquey 232ci 6 cyl engine. It was quite reliable compared to competing Vegas and Pintos but also easy and cheap to fix.
My first new car was a very basic '74 gremlin. I thought it was kinda cool. Loved it and drove it for 7 years
Thanks for the memories! The ugly Gremlin was very popular. When I was in high school in the early 80s the good old Gremlin was one of the 5 most popular hand me down beaters my teenage friends drove.
Just for the record, the other 4 were VW Beatles, VW Karmen Ghias, Ford Mavericks, and Chevy Impalas (or one of the other GM equivalents).
I had access to a stripper Maverick, and lived in the town where the Gremlin was made. The Gremlin was a more robust vehicle in engine and chassis (the Maverick was adequate nonetheless), but Gremlin could not be considered a four-place vehicle unlike Maverick. The Gremlin back seat was unusable for any but small children.
VW Beatles LoL
@@qasdex Oops, autocorrect. :-)
These where never produced in the UK but RHD conversions by C.T Wooler of Andover in Hampshire where done under an official agreement with AMC.
I literally just come here to get to know more about my favorite Cars 2 character Grem!!!!!! 😢🖒😭👌
Vega’s rusted on the showroom floor and burned oil at 20k and Pinto’s blew up. The Gremlin was definitely the best of the three 70’s American small cars.
It's a shame that AMC went out of business. They had some really good cars, I've owned a few of them.
I was born in ‘62 - the only bad thing I remember about the Gremlin is that it was funny looking. That’s a lot better than the Pinto which had a reputation for exploding and the Vega for falling apart almost instantly (my uncle bought a new one that rusted through the fenders in a year).
I just inherited a 77 AMC gremlin from my dad. He had 4 of them at one time and we picked this one up a few years ago as a father son project. It's a Gremlin X Levi's edition. I never liked them as a kid but since we got this one I've fallen in love with the little turd. It gets so much attention when ever I drive it. I have an 05 GTO that's super clean and loud as shit. It definitely stands out but it dosent get half the attention the Gremlin gets. It's crazy how many people have stopped me at a gas station or at a red-light and give me a thumbs up. People claim they hate Gremlins but from what I see people actually love these little cars. I'm planning on swapping in a 6.0 ls2 and 4l80e with a trans brake that inhave from another project. It's going to be a quick little car once I'm done. Especially with a little sniff of nitrous on top.
You see that concept looks really good.
The Grelim (and AMC as a whole) was a winner. Unfortunately many of my era consider it to be a loser. Thanks for this video - informative and enjoyable.
The Gremlin X package was sharp looking, and a v8 equipped one would really hustle especially when a 4bbl carb and dual exhaust was added.
Thee👈 original "hothatch." I say that as a GTI owner. 🚘
2:02 That's a Mistubishi logo on the front of that Jeep!
Gotta love the cars lined up at gas stations with their engines running!
Mitsubishi built the then-Willys Jeep under license during the American occupation. They incorporated so many changes over the years it is considered a different branch of the Jeep line. Ssangyong started building the Mitsu Jeep.
In the 1970's, a gentleman named Amos Johnson raced the Gremlin in IMSA races, taking several championships in the car. He and his red, white and blue Gremlins competed at the Daytona 24 and the Sebring 12 hour races, although I don't remember how they placed. As I recall he took a class win in an AMC Spirit at the 1979 Nürburgring 24 Hour.
Please, take me back to 1950's America. Not 60's or 70's, just the 50's. Glorious.
I liked the Gremlin TV commercials. They had a comical theme to them, as did VW's with the bug. The Pinto and Vega commercials were more traditional advertising.
I bought new a 1972 gremlin 258 six cylinder. Towing a small pop up camper and getting 26 mpg on interstate highway. I always enjoyed the car. Traded in for a 1977 Hornet with a 304. V8.
I owned a Gremlin X for a short time when I was stationed at Clark AB, Philippines 1974. It was a fun car and the Philippine roads were notoriously bad. I didn't have any trouble selling it when i left. I had also owned a VW, a Corvair and a 66 Mustang. Mustang was the best with Gremlin 2nd.
Nicework on Doing a Video on the AMC Gremlin, There a Video Documentry on the AMC Pacer that you can find on RUclips.
My first car, as a teenager, was a 1973 Gremlin and man was that thing a tank! I was rear-ended once, while waiting to make a left turn, by the driver of a Buick LeSabre. While the collision demolished the front end of the Buick it just put a V shaped dent into the back of my Gremlin and I was able to continue driving it.
I LOLed when I read your account. My Gremlin was rear ended by a Renault LeCar in Chicago. The LeCar was nearly totaled, the only damage to the Gremlin was torn vinyl woodgrain if I remember correctly.
Great, informative video as usual, but I must issue a small correction; the Gremlin was never sold in Australia. The Hornet was assembled locally by AMI (Australian Motor Industries), alongside Toyota and Triumph products. A single, right hand drive test car was built by a Rambler dealership under instruction from AMI, using a combination of local and imported parts, but it remained the only example built. In the USA, the Rambler name had been phased out in 1969 in favour of AMC, however Australia retained the Rambler marque until AMI switched exclusively to Toyota in 1976 and all sales of the brand ceased. Because of this, the solitary Australian Gremlin was actually badged a Rambler Gremlin and the prototype still retains that identity, despite being exported to the USA in the 2000s. There, it has undergone a full restoration and is regularly displayed at car shows, surrounded by Australian flags and with a September 1970 copy of Australian motoring magazine Wheels, which featured the prototype Rambler Gremlin on the cover.
I liked the Gremlin styling and the fabulous I-6 engine. The half hatchback was a pretty reasonable compromise.
Don't forget that that 258 I-6 engine had so much torque and was so reliable that it was the staple of Jeep's reputation for reliability for years to come.
In the early 1970's, I worked as a mechanic at a dealership that sold Pontiacs, AMC cars and Jeeps. Many of their inline 6 engines burned oil very badly and the cure was to replace the valve stem seals. I must have replaced thousands of them. Otherwise, I thought they were great little cars, so much so, I bought a Hornet Wagon.
I've owned a VW Beetle, a Pinto - actually a Mercury Bobcat station wagon - and a Gremlin. The Gremlin dealt best with my lousy American maintenance. The Pinto/Bobcat had the German designed OHC engine that didn't have big enough supply channels to the overhead cam - at least at lazy American oil change intervals. You could see the scoring on the cam shaft before I got rid of it.
The Beetle got driven lots of short distances - like a mile to and from work - in the cold Chicago winter, and the oil never really got hot enough to drive out the water. It was only about $400 to get the two German guys to rebuild the engine, however. It was a Super Beetle, with those fragile rear trailing arms, one of which bent in an incident with an I beam stuck in the ground to protect a fence. The Gremlin, with its ancient technology 6 cylinder and live rear axle, stood up to my abuse just fine. And it had the best heater. I even managed to rebuild the carburetor, a very simple 1 barrel. I didn't realize it was cracked until it became unreliable again, and I started to rebuild it again. But it was on $32 for a replacement carb. Those were the days.
The Gremlin wasn't a bad car. It was much better than the Pinto or Vega. One great thing about the Rambler is the front seat folded back flat making the car a giant bed. When it came out my parents had a Mercury Marquis that was 18 ft long had a 429 v8 that got about 8mpg.
I grew up in Chicagoland, a stone's toss south of Kenosha, so AMC vehicles were thick as fleas. In high school a friend of mine bought a used Gremlin. It was reliable, efficient, and in the early 80s could smoke new Mustangs and Camaros (which were woefully underpowered at that time).
On the rare occasions it needed work it was dirt simple. Above all it was a fun car.
There are few cars from my youth I would care to own now, but I'd grab a Gremlin in a heartbeat if I had the swag.
One of my favourite American cars. 😍
The Gremlin was my dream car when I graduated from High School in '71. Never got one though.
I, personally, conisder the AMC Spirit/Eagle Kammback to simply be a renamed continuation of the Gremlin. It maintained the same size and proportions, simply with restyled front/rear fascia and more conventional rear-quarter windows.
Agreed, they really were restyled Gremlins, and you could even get all wheel driver on the Eagles... basically a factory all wheel drive Gremlins.
Awesome! A superior and [IMHO] acurate video essay of the Gremlin! Right in line with my current reading and viewing of information on the ACTUAL history of AMC, not the "lets see who can cococt the mosy glib insults." At 71, I have never been more than an end user of the automobile. My interest in AMC now is only academic as having been an owner of an AMC Javelin, which at the time, was the only decent car I could afford in College. Now studying the company's history more closely I can say that your facts hit each nail on the head of accuracy I've, recently, indpendentaly learned. And, if you're wondering, at no time does your "soft spot" for the Gremlin show through. To support and demonstrate highlights of the Gramlin is not to promote it. It didn't need it. And after hours of videos and reading I've discovered something new about the Gremlin in your video. Indeed, in my home town of San Leandro, CA, there was a railroad crossing on a curve between two popular boulevards. I had to be careful to slow down on that corner as the rear of the Javelin, especially in the rain, could "skate" as much as 12" around that corner! I didn't know theJavelin had that in common with the Gremlin! Now I don't feel so alone...
This car has always reminded me of the BMC/BL Austin Allegro. The reception and the demise. Even concept designs are similar with other features appearing on related models. Is it just me?
Just you and a few Brits.
Allegro a much higher cost development cost than the much more cost effective approach of AMC taking an existing Hornet design and making it shorter by a new design behind the B pillar.
Nothing of the Allegro body work shared with an existing car.
Something like 80% of the development cost of the Gremlin already existed.
Have you missed that major point of the Gremlin development?
Always enjoy your videos, thank you!
The Gremlin is my favourite car!❤
U thinking bout da javelin
My father owned a brown Gremlin and it was friggin awesome.
Thank you for this fair look at the Gremlin. i was born in' 62. i always thought the Gremlin was the ugliest car ever. Followed closely by that rolling fish tank called the Pacer! i can't say that i love AMC, but the Gremlins don't look ugly now that you've called them quirky!:-) Much thanks 🙏
If you think the Gremlin was ugly* obviously you have never seen an early 60s Plymouth Valiant
*not saying the Gremlin was a thing of beauty
My Aunt had one. She drove like Mr. Magoo, over curbs and across lawns at 30 mph because she didn’t speed. At a little over 100,000 miles she asked me to change her clutch since it was slipping. She would wait for red lights at the top of a hill just sitting there sliding the clutch the whole time. I was amazed at the size of the clutch, it was bigger than a v8 mustang clutch. The flywheel was drilled to fit a variety of clutches, from a tiny one to the huge one she had. She drove it a long time after that. All the pintos and vegas I knew were junked before 50,000 miles
AMC was an interesting company in general. Sadly, they were just too small to maintain operations indefinitely, being swallowed by Lee Iaccoca's Chrysler in the late 80s, bought for their Jeep-Eagle division.
Simple, reliable, durable, economical.
I have a '79 Spirit GT and often get "What is THAT?" When I ask the person if they've heard of AMC, they usually say "no" until I invoke the Gremlin (and AMX and various Jeeps) and then explain that the Spirit is an evolution of the Gremlin and shares a significant portion of the structure and parts.
The video segment introduced by the phrase, "In the 1960s..." shows films exclusively of 1950s freeways and cars. What's that all about?
My wife and I saved up for a NEW car from my Navy pay. November of 1973, we took our $2500 cash and drove 150 miles to Cincinnati to buy one. Test drove a Vega, Pinto, then the Gremlin. All about the same price but the Gremlin had the others beat by far. Asked the salesman how much he could come down from the sticker price if we paid cash and took the one we drove with us. Well...none. We talked some and I sensed he was being honest about selling immediately after arrival so we ordered one with the colors we wanted (yellow with tan interior) and no options. 3 speed with a 232 cu in 6 cylinder. Picked it up 2 months later for $2159. Just shy of $2400 with tax, title, transportation, and dealer prep. Best car we've ever owned. I should have paid an extra $100 for Ziebart though. Figured I'd wear it out before it would rust out. The back wheel wells trapped road salt and got quite rusted. 174,000 trouble-free miles, 12 years later, sold her still going as strong as the day we brought her home from Cincinnati. Sorry, I rambled. I loved that car.
Aaaaaah the days when 3.3 litre straight six was considered an economy engine
Otto! there's a gremlin on the side of the bus!
I had a '73 Gremlin. I swapped out the automatic tranny with a Borg Warner T-10-S that I acquired out of a Rebel. With the rather heavy flywheel, also from the Rebel, when I dumped the clutch, the engine would barely slow down at all. With this set-up, I was able to pull wheelies in both first and second gears while being powered by nothing more than the totally stock 258 cid inline 6. That car was an absolute blast to drive, and I would say that it was probably the most reliable car I've ever owned.
That was another excellent masterpiece. AMC would probably still be with us today if Chrysler didn't take over the company in '87.
Learned to drive in one of these. 1979. Wish I had it today.
Great work mate
Back in the day I thought they were good looking and wanted one, especially the Levi version. Didn't understand the "Localized" and "Not localized" gas cans at the beginning tho, anyone know what that meant?
Built under license in Australia???
I don't think so... incedently I do recall Aust Army Ramblers at Keswick Barracks Anzac Hiway Adelaide.
Not sure about the UK either.
Only one evaluation right hand drive Rambler Gremlin assembled by AMI in their Port Melbourne factory.
Yep, definitely never built in Australia . The original Holden, Falcon, few Jeeps, and some others, but definitely never these.
@@owenshebbeare2999 I think the Rebel/Matador (large sedan) was built in Australia
@@owenshebbeare2999 lots of other Ramblers assembled in Australia by AMI Port Melbourne but more the luxury or a few performance ones.
Lots more cars than Holden's and Ford's made in Australia too.
Lots of BMC the Leyland, Chrysler and VW air cooled cars. Toyotas, Nissan and Mitsubishi.
If you add assembled cars it gets a very long list.
But only one Gremlin. Unwanted here at the price expected.
I find it kinda ironic there are complaint about styling when every other american car looks like a box
Did anybody besides me notice Dana Elcar in the TV ad?
Yep. Absolutely.
At no time Ever has a gremlin bean built in Australia, the last Australian built Rambler was the Rebel.
Nearly right on both counts.
Earlier I had posted part of the story ;
Correction from 9:12 about Australian sales. This was limited to a one-of-one right-hand-drive Rambler Gremlin for market evaluation. AMC didn't build this car. Rather, AMC exported it as a complete knock-down kit to its Australian partner, Australian Motor Industries, based in Port Melbourne, to evaluate whether AMI could sell it alongside the Hornet, Matador, AMX and Javelin in the country. All these only sold as Ramblers in Australia. The Rambler name continued rather than establish the new brand of AMC and having confusion with AMI. Lots of simple local components to save on high import duties.
Did not proceed beyond one. Ramblers in Australia being more luxury specced and costly than locally built Ford Falcons, Chrysler Valiants and well as the market leading GM Holden. All locally made normally six cylinder cars of at least 3.3 litres with smaller numbers of V8 optioned cars.
The NSW state government was the biggest buyer of Ramblers for Police use and high up politicians.
AMI an interesting company being the only Australian car producer with substantial Australian ownership.
Started with assembling Standard Vanguard's then Mercedes Benz fintail 220 models then Triumph and Ramblers. Their biggest success was the early assembling of Toyotas starting in 1963. So highly regarded by Toyota that Toyota bought them out to concentrate on Toyotas.
The one of one Rambler Gremlin so rare that it was purchased by a noted AMC collector and exported to the US around 2000.
Likely these later 1976 Matador models were the last Rsmblers assembled by AMI in their Port Melbourne plant ;
ruclips.net/video/REJRKCa1_Hw/видео.html
I had a Gremlin X with a V8 and a 4 speed, wish I never sold it......
I didn't know I wanted this video
I had a girlfriend who's dad had one of these, it seemed a good car. By the way it wasn't just the US who had petrol rationing, I was stationed in Germany and we had odd and even numbered days and no Sunday driving allowed apart from emergency services
I can also remember here in the UK getting ration book for petrol I didn't need it as the situation fadded away very soon.
@@johnmccallum8512 I didn't know about the ration books in the UK John.
@@jimfrodsham7938 I don't think many people remember them they were only arround for about 6/12 months
@@johnmccallum8512 British Forces in Germany were issued fuel coupons anyway so we probably wouldn't have known unless relatives told us.
My first car in ‘84 was a used Hornet wagon. Man, that was a sneaky fast car.
Despite the 'Brewster McCloud' film, the Gremlin still looks like just half a car.
Gremlin was never sold in Australia. The Hornet and Ambassador were assembled in Australia,
It was the smallest car you could fit a 401 cubic inch V8 into. Making it a crazy hotrod.
Did we ever get the Hornet itself in the UK?
Gremlins were everywhere! I was more a fan of Vegas that had been V8 swapped - yes, even during the gas crunch hot rodders loved to find a Vega with a bad engine and swap in a hot small block 350 for burnout fun. It was a fun and weird time that seemed like we needed to buck the gas crunch because our beloved muscle cars would be extinct in the future - so live for today!
WOW very interesting super kool ,1st class great info.,,, AAAAAAAAAAA++++++++++++ again great video I liked it a lot ,keep up the great work.
We’re these really built under license in the UK? How were they branded there?
I've seen dozens of Gremlins sold for $250 or less in driveable condition. They weren't great cars, but they weren't bad cars at all other than the styling and the light rear end which could get away from you quickly, especially with the slow manual steering many had. From an act of desperation AMC brought forth a winner and played it well for as long as they could. Perhaps America's last truly exciting car design before the 'malaise' era came along.
I hate to be nit-picky, but 'Economic' means referring to money -- 'Economical' means saving money.
Sad to see AMC is a fallen flag in USA auto makers. I admired their cars from across the pond in the UK. I would have loved AMC to still be turning vehicles out of Kenosha
I just asked my dad what he thinks of this car and he said he and his friends found one broken on the side of the road when he was younger and got guns out and shot it up.
Man he was really stupid back then.
You forgot the one thing everyone forgets: The pinto wagon (which was actually more popular for most of the run) did NOT have the "mobile barbecue grille that seats four" issues due to it's longer frame/body allowing for the gas tank to be put in a more protected location. It's this particular omission that's part of why it's rep has stayed so bad over the years.
Since there never was a 4-door Pinto, there isn't anything to forget.
@@falcon664 Yeah, I always forget they didn't actually shoehorn extra doors into the wagon model. Still an important differentiation.
@@Morgan_Sandoval Yes, the wagon had a better arrangement.
Excellent as usual
Calling it a Gremlin was interesting.
With the 258 cubic inch 6 and 2 barrel carburetor and Torque Command Automatic Transmission it would be a great performer almost rivaling an economy V8.
I want to get a gremlin as my first car:)
1:53 not the production Marlin more like an early concept
As an Australian what’s the difference between the Gremlin and the Pacer?
They look the same to me!
Gremlin was never sold in Australia!
Australian Motor Industries AMI make one RHD prototype but abandoned the project!
AMI assembled Ramblers and a few Hornets in Oz!
Overall, a good, comprehensive review.
Memories my friend...i had an orange 1972//was nice But Heavy on gas for the 6 cyl engine,,,but had no problems with it
The public must have liked the look, they sold well. I always thought they looked sporty, especially the X model with the V8.
Discuss the rise and fall of British leyland and rover group
I never thought of the Gremlins being all that ugly. In fact, they look sharp when decked out with big, white-letter tires and racing stripes. Seems like they were equipped with a simple, but punchy engine. I subbed. This was good.
So the Gremlin shared it's chassis with the Spirit, which shared it's platform with the 4WD Eagle coupe...? Suddenly, I feel like building a turbo-charged Jeep I-6, and making an AMC into an AMA! (American-made Audi) ;)
My first car was a plum-colored '74 Gremlin with the small inline 6 cylinder and an automatic transmission. The back window instead of a hatch made the cargo area less convenient.
The Gremlins I say had an opening, dinged rear window hatch. Optional?
The Pacer was not a sales smash. It sold well initially but then sales rapidly declined. It was designed to use a GM supplied rotary engine. When GM cancelled the program, AMC went with their 6 cylinder engine which necessitated engineering changes and resulted in lower mileage. Other than that, it was an advanced car.
I had a black&gold gram x 6cly 3 speed wish I still had it very dependable and roomy