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By
My80Volare ~ Kevin Imhoff
The
existence of American Motors Company, or AMC, is one
of the shortest life spans of any major American car
company. It was only in existence for 33 years,
although its roots and legacy go beyond that
timeframe. AMC’s roots date back to the early
1900’s, before they were actually formed. In that
early time of automobile manufacturing, independent
carmakers such as Nash, Studebaker, Auburn and
Hudson served a focused market of small car drivers
not covered by the likes of Ford and General Motors.
Many of these small independent companies met their
demise, usually through buyout, during the Great
Depression, and by the end of World War II, only a
handful remained. The merger of two of these
independent automakers, Nash-Kelvinator Corporation,
and Hudson Motorcar Company formed American Motors
in 1954. Nash president George Mason had envisioned
a different merger prior to the formation of
American Motors. He realized that in the post-war
economy, the remaining independents would have to
merge to stay alive. Mason had approached Studebaker
and Packard to join in the merger, but was declined.
Studebaker-Packard would merge, and went their own
way. They would eventually fail in the mid-sixties.
With AMC now formed, all of the old Hudsons would be
dropped from the lineup, either for being dated, or
just not doing well, in the first year of
production, which was 1955. The new Hudsons were
based on Nash bodies, with design features to keep
them different. Hudson production also moved from
Detroit into Nash’s main plant in Kenosha, WI. Six
months after the merger, Mason fell ill and
unexpectedly died. The next day, Mason’s assistant,
George Romney, assumed Mason’s positions as
president, CEO, and general manager. At the end of
1955, American Motors closed its West Coast plant to
move all production to Kenosha. This move increased
production, but still ended the year with a $6.9
million loss.1956 brought out a new car, with the
introduction of the Rambler. While this was not a
new name, the car came out with no mention of either
Nash or Hudson. The press raved about the new
Rambler with its improved power, larger interior,
and smoother steering. The rest of American Motors
lineup however, carried the dated styles of 1952.
Due to the losses experiences in 1955, AMC could
only retool the Rambler, and give the others minor
facelifts. Again, the company saw a loss; this time
it was $19.7 million. Late in the 1956 model year,
AMC introduced their first V8 engine, a 327 cid, and
was featured in a limited production,
high-performance Rambler Rebel for 1957. With the
new engine, and new car, Romney ended 1956 full of
hope for the company. He noted that a sales increase
of only 30,000 vehicles would turn a profit for the
company for 1957. A year later though, AMC suffered
a net loss of over $10 million. The sales reduction
was due to the senior car line, as the Rambler sales
increased. 1958 saw a redesign of the Rambler, and
the Nash and Hudson lines were dropped.
The line up for 1958 included the six cylinder
Rambler, the toned down 250 cid V8 rambler, the
“Ambassador by Rambler”, the “new” Rambler American,
and the Metropolitan, a low investment import. AMC
finally saw a profit when 1958 ended just over $26
million in the black. And because of the previous
year loss, it was tax-free. 1959 and 1960 saw only
minor changes with the Rambler line up, just to
enough to keep them fresh. Again, the company ended
those years with a profit, and for the first time
ever, had over $1 billion in sales. Romney was quite
pleased with the Rambler, having its fourth straight
year of sales increases. He then decided to
something most would have thought impossible. He
wanted the Rambler to get a spot in the “low-priced
three”: Chevy, Ford and Plymouth.
For 1961, The American got a facelift, but kept the
same interior and inner door panels to keep cost
down. The Ambassador received a completely different
front end, and kept the rest of body pretty much the
same. And even though AMC finally reached third
place in 1961, it was still an off year with sales
dropping below the billion-dollar mark.
1962 saw the Ambassador as it was known dropped, and
put on the smaller Rambler Classic wheelbase. With
the two cars being basically the same, the Classic
was offered with the six-cylinder engine, while the
Ambassador received the V8. AMC remained in third
place for 1962 even though styling was a carryover
and the rest of the market improved. This was partly
due to AMC’s new foreign operations. The man that
put AMC into third place, Ed Anderson, resigned at
the end of 1961 however. He was tired of being in
the engineering department, and had, for years,
wanted to be promoted to Vice-President of Styling.
He was told that if he was unhappy, he should leave,
so that’s what he did. Then, in February of 1962,
George Romney asked for a leave of absence to run
for Governor of Michigan. Roy Abernathy was then
promoted to president, and Richard Cross was named
chairman.
The entire Rambler line, minus the Metropolitan, was
restyled for 1963. A few of the changes were curved
side windows, new door handles, and smaller wheels.
The entire line up was named Motor Trends “Car of
the Year”. The 1964 line was the strongest ever,
with a slight redesign of the Ambassador, and a
completely new American. While they continued to
make money, they were also getting more competition
in the compact and mid-sized markets from GM and
Ford. The end of the 1964 fiscal year saw a slight
decline in sales. The drop was credited to a poor
mix of models, selling too many low priced cars, and
not enough higher priced models. Abernathy wanted to
change AMC’s image now. In effort to be more
competitive with the “big three”, the 1965 line up
would start getting bigger, with more powerful
engines, and more options. In response to the new
Ford Mustang, the Marlin, a new fastback model, came
out in February 1965. It sold only 10,000 units
however, and proved to be no competition for the
Mustang. It seemed what people wanted was something
more compact.
AMC continued to move into higher price ranges
through 1966, by dropping the Rambler name from the
Ambassador and Marlin, and adding more options, such
as cruise control, and even throw pillows to match
the seat covers. The Classic received minor changes,
and the American got a facelift. A new 290 cid V8
also was introduced, and was put into the American
to create the Rambler Rogue. The 1966 models sold
poorly however, partly due to design, and partly
because of something even worse: rumors. Abernathy
was spending so much money; it was difficult for the
company to turn a profit. This started people
talking about AMC struggling, financially ailing,
and strapped. These rumors started to have a
snowball effect on the company, and by the end of
the year, the public was seeing AMC as an automotive
looser.
AMC entered the 1967 model year with a slight
restyle of its cars, and the Classic was dropped and
replaced with the Rambler Rebel nameplate being
brought back. Abernathy was forced to resign,
William Luneburg was named president and CEO., and
Roy Chapin Jr. was named board chairman. While the
1968 model year looked bleak, many felt reassured
with the new management team. Another attempt to
compete with the Mustang was made, with the Marlin
being replaced by the new Javelin. The Javelin was a
compact, sportier car that appealed to the younger
crowd. A smaller, two-seater version, dubbed the AMX
was also produced. The Rebel, Ambassador, and
American were all back again, but the American was
the only one with the Rambler nameplate. The
American would be the only returning car to have a
two-door sedan available, and the Rebel was the only
convertible model available. There would be little
profit in 1968, but there was profit.
The Rebel, Javelin, and AMX would all be carryovers
models, with the only changes being in equipment and
trim for 1969. The American was rebadged as the
Rambler, and the Ambassador was redesigned to its
largest size yet. Halfway through he model year, a
limited production Rambler was released with a 390
cid V8, performance parts, white paint with red and
blue accents, sport wheels, fat tires, and was
called the SC/Rambler. Initially, only 500 of these
cars were planned, but due to high interest in the
car, 1,512 would end up being made. But this would
also be the last year of Rambler production, as the
last one ever made in America rolled from the
assembly lines in June 1969. The Rambler name
existed from 1950 to 1969, and 4,204,925 were built.
Other new cars were introduced during the 70’s, as
well as the expansion of AMC. The Hornet, a small
car designed to compete with the compacts of the
day, and the first American made compact dubbed the
Gremlin, were released in 1970. The Gremlin was
basically a Hornet cut off at the rear tires, and
was marketed towards the younger crowd. But the
biggest news for 1970 came with the purchase of
Kaiser Jeep for $10 million. While this may have
seemed like a bad move for a company losing money,
Roy Chapin knew there was potential. After all, the
only thing missing from AMC was a truck.
A new slogan came out in 1971. “If you had to
compete with GM, Ford, and Chrysler, what would you
do?” The brochures and TV ads provided the answer,
actually, a separate answer for each line of cars.
The Hornet came out with two models; the Sportabout,
a compact station wagon, and the SC/360, a high
performance Hornet based on the success of the
SC/Rambler. It was equipped with a 360 cid V8,
styled wheels, and side stripes. The Gremlin also
had a new line, the X package. This had bucket
seats, carpeting, slotted wheels, side stripes,
painted grill, and wide tires. The Javelin was also
new, being longer and wider, but not much heavier.
The AMX was a trim package for the Javelin this
year, instead of being a separate car, the Rebel was
replaced by the Matador, which was essentially just
a facelift of the 1970 Rebel, and the Ambassador was
a carryover with a different grill and trim. The new
addition, the Jeep, was fine tuned, and their
engines were replaced with AMC engines. The Jeep
assembly line was streamlined and Jeeps were
distributed to AMC dealers to improve the Jeep
dealer body. AM General, which was in charge of
production and sales of military and postal
vehicles, became its own subdivision.
The remainder of the 70’s didn’t see a whole lot of
major changes, but did see the introduction of new
models. In 1972, the Borg-Warner transmission was
dropped and replaced with a smoother shifting
Chrysler unit. All stripped down models were
dropped, and most cars received better interior
trim. The SC/360 Hornet was dropped, but Rallye and
X packages were added to it. AMC also came out with
the “Buyer Protection Plan”, a warranty plan for new
car buyers. Sales and profits increased that year.
1973 had the release of the Hornet Hatchback, and
the Gremlin received the Levi’s interior that
featured door panels and bucket seat covers made of
Levi’s blue denim. The Sportabout got a new interior
design by Aldo Gucci, consisting of Gucci’s
trademark red and green stripes on beige background.
Pierre Cardin designed the Javelin’s interior, and a
Trans-Am Victory Javelin was offered to celebrate
its victory in trans-Am racing. Jeep pickups
received new bed boxes and tailgates, and the
Quadra-Trac full-time 4-wheel drive system was
introduced. Once again Profits were up.
The Matador coupe was new in 1974, but looked
nothing like the previous Matador. Like the Hornet
and Gremlin, it was offered with the X package, and
Jeep released a new two-door version of the Wagoneer
called the Cherokee. Car sales went up in 74,
but earnings were small due to slow sales of the
Matador, and tooling cost to produce it. The Pacer
was released in 1975. It was small, wide, and its
design was something no one had ever seen before. It
was rounded, and had a lot of glass. The original
design called for a rotary engine that was going to
be purchased from GM, but at the last minute, GN
bailed out. AMC had to widen the fenders to fit the
232 cid six cylinder motor into it. The Javelin and
Ambassador were missing from the lineup this year.
Losses were at $27.5 million.
Everything was a carryover for 1976, except for a
new Jeep addition. The CJ-7 was introduced with a
10-inch longer wheelbase than the CJ-5. This gave
engineers room for an automatic transmission.
Quadra-Trac and a fiberglass top were both available
for the CJ-7. Again, AMC saw a loss; this time it
was over $46 million. 1977 saw few changes. The
Gremlin had a new Custom model, which included a
four-cylinder engine. This engine was long overdue,
and without time to develop its own, AMC purchased
the entire design from Audi. The Pacer got a wagon,
and Hornet added an AMX model. Jeep was doing well.
The Cherokee got a 4-door model, making it just a
younger, sportier Wagoneer, and the Wagoneer was
doing very well being the only luxury 4-wheel drive
station wagon in the market.
The Hornet became a new car in 1978, receiving a
facelift, and being moved up market a bit. With its
new changes, it was also renamed to the Concord to
give it a more “luxurious” sound. The Pacer received
a V8 option to help pull its excessive weight
around, and the Gremlin received a new GT package.
But what AMC really needed was a new look.
Unfortunately, it would never happen. Jeep was doing
so well, that they were being rushed through
assembly to meet demand. This would result in
quality control problems.
The Gremlin was discontinued in 1979, and replaced
with the Spirit. It came in a liftback and sedan
model, but was still basically a Gremlin with a new
roof, grill and back panel. An AMX model of the
liftback Spirit was also produced. The entire
Matador line was gone, and the CJ and Concord would
receive Silver Anniversary editions. Renault bought
into AMC, and an agreement was made to sell Renault
cars in AMC dealerships in America and Canada. Jeep
sales had just barely outsold car sales that year,
and when the year was over, AMC had seen its second
biggest profit in its history.
The Jeep line needed better fuel economy for 1980,
so part-time four-wheel drive became standard, and
Quadra-Trac became an option. The 2.5 liter 4
cylinder purchased from GM in 1979 was also made
standard equipment, along with a four-speed
transmission. The Cherokee and Wagoneer both
received Laredo packages to lure in new buyers. A
new four-wheel drive car was introduced, called the
Eagle. This was essentially a four-wheel drive
Concord. The eagle was available in two or four door
sedan, and a station wagon. It also had a full-time
four-wheel drive system that would sense when one
wheel was slipping and provide more power to the
other wheel. It was good for light-duty off-road
driving, but not for anything requiring a low range.
The eagle sold very well, and the other cars did OK,
but AMC suffered a tremendous loss that year, partly
because of the recession/inflation. Even the Big
Three reported losses that year.
A new pickup based on the CJ was introduced in 81.
This was named Scrambler and gave AMC an
introduction into the compact pickup market. It was
only available as four-wheel drive and sold well.
The Pacer and AMX were dropped, and two new Eagle
were introduced, the SX/4 and Kammback. The SX/4 was
basically a four-wheel drive Spirit liftback, and
the Kammback was a four-wheel drive Spirit sedan.
Also introduced was a new four-wheel drive system.
Select-Drive allowed the driver to disconnect the
full time four-wheel drive and operate in two-wheel
drive to increase fuel mileage. 1982 saw mostly
management changes. Renault was now 46% owner of AMC
and Renault executive Jose J. Dedeurwaerder became
AMC president. The car lines were all carryovers,
but offered better fuel economy.
AMC was selling the Renault LeCar, Fuego, and the
new Alliance as AMC/Renault’s in 1983. They were
also tooling for production of their own 2.5-liter
four-cylinder engine that would be totally designed
and built by AMC. The Spirit sedan and liftback were
dropped, and the D/L and GT were offered as separate
models. Concord two-doors was also dropped. The
Eagle line lost the Kammback and two-door sedan, and
the rest of the line was carryover.
For 1984, an all-new Cherokee was introduced. It was
smaller, lighter, given a new suspension, and an
optional shift-on-the-fly four-wheel drive system
and Renault built 2.1-liter turbo-diesel. The CJ-5
was dropped, as were the Eagle SX/4, Spirit, and
Concord. Eagle also got the optional
shift-on-the-fly system as well. The Alliance was
back along with a hatchback model dubbed Encore. But
things were also starting to look bad for AMC.
Renault and Eagle sales started to slip, and rumors
were circulating that Renault wanted to sell its
share of AMC. They had lost over a million dollars,
and there were labor disputes at Kenosha and the
Toledo Jeep plant where Jeeps were being sabotaged.
AMC lost more money in 1985. Jeep brought out a new
truck. The Comanche. This was based on the Cherokee,
and available in two or four-wheel drive. CJ-7
production ended early in 1986 to allow the Brampton
plant to retool for its replacement, the Wrangler.
Car sales were terrible, but losses were not as bad
as they could have been. Halfway through 1986, AMC
started to produce Chrysler automobiles at its
Kenosha plant. While this was unusual, it was a way
for the company to make money. The Eagle was back
for 1987, but with no mention of AMC. It was also
decided that Renault products would be built in
Europe, as they couldn’t afford to retool for
production in America.
March 1987 marked the release of the news that
Chrysler was going to buy AMC. It was strange
though, as it would seem that AMC was sure to make a
profit, and Renault was bailing out. The purchase
price was $1.1 billion, and it was agreed that
Renault parts would be bought for five years for use
in the new Premier. The final year of car sales was
not good. There were less than 25,000 Alliances
sold, 4,564 Eagles, and only 192 Premiers. By fall,
AMC was named the Jeep/Eagle Division of Chrysler
Corp. The Eagle station wagon would be produced in
1988, with more standard equipment, to help get rid
of existing stock, The Renault Medallion was renamed
Eagle Medallion, and the same was done with the
Premier. The Jeep pickups were dropped, and
production for the Eagle ended Dec. 14, 1987. This
was the last car made by the last independent
carmaker.
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