1975 AMC Pacer

If Ford’s Mustang had stolen the hearts of Canadians away from the economy-minded Rambler, then American Motors was determined to win  back the market with a radical new people-first vehicle. At a time when passengers were routinely being shoehorned into a long-hood, short-rear deck envelope with seating as an afterthought, Pacer represented a completely new way of thinking about urban vehicles.

Richard, (Dick) Teague was American Motor’s Vice President of Styling. He was a small car champion and world renowned for his savoir-faire in the world of compact design. The design guru began to doodle during a meeting with Group Vice President of Product and Design, Gerry Meyers, in June 1971. 

What unfolded before his colleague’s eyes was a passenger car concept so advanced that it looked like nothing ever seen on four wheels. It embodied common sense concepts that were missing from current design:  a capacious cabin, a low beltline for good vision, a fast slope and a built-in centre roll bar for maximum security. For all the world, it resembled a football married to a set of radials. Top management was intrigued and gave Teague and his team of designers the green light to explore the concept to its fullest. The top-secret project quickly came to be code-named Amigo.

As the brilliant concept unfolded, novelty met reality. Drawings as early as September 1, 1971 show that the mid-ship engine and the rear-facing seat for passengers were dropped for more conventional arrangements. Some things didn’t change, though. It held its groundbreaking cab forward design and the roll bar concept. Amigo carried its freestanding five-mile-an-hour bumpers from the first sketch right through to production.

While under development, potential variants of the Amigo were explored. An attractive pickup truck was sketched out, as was a smaller Gremlin-like companion vehicle with a neo-classic, bustle-back trunk.

Artist Brian Parrish created this four-door Pacer. Used with permission.

A four-door sedan version was discarded; it looked too much like a giant sausage on wheels.

A 1975 Pacer pickup truck was cobbled together and sold in Holland.

When the first full-sized tape drawing went up on the studio walls it carried the name Town Car. The vehicle now featured headlamps sunk deep into the outer edges of the front fenders.

By the time the design was translated into the first clay mockup it sported dual headlamps. A later variation carried hidden headlights.

A full-sized, fibreglass pushmobile was shipped to Atlanta, Georgia in 1972 for evaluation by an elite group of people who had been invited to a special mixed make marketing clinic. Those who came were all current owners of compact and sub-compact cars and under the age of 35. This was the target market that AMC wished to lure into its corporate fold. Guests had no idea what company might build this vehicle. From February 3 through 6 they viewed the car and filled out questionnaires.

This is  a 1977 Pacer mockup.

The 2 540-millimetre (100-inch) wheelbased Amigo was presented with both a flat-floored interior and with a transmission hump. Either way, Amigo had a vast cabin, shamefully larger than Ford’s mid-sized Torino and Chevrolet’s Chevelle.

Those who attended fell in love with the unusual little car and a whopping 93 percent of clinic participants swore that Amigo was their dream car. They begged the unidentified manufacturer to build it so they could buy it.

Pacer was favourably compared to Volkswagen, a 1973 Super Beetle is seen here.

Management was skeptical. A second clinic was organized in Dallas and once again, an overwhelming number of those who attended said this car would be their first choice if it were on the market. Lots of folks remarked on Amigo’s cuteness and compared its distinct design favorably to that of the immortal VW Beetle.

The Pacer name was finally chosen in June of 1973. It was pulled from the corporate shelf of American Motors’ long and distinguished history. The Pacer name had once graced a Hudson model.

A running prototype was cobbled together using a 1972 Matador’s underpinnings. 

A rotary engine was under development, to be shared by the Pacer and Chevrolet's Vega.

Gone was the fast slope because the slim rotary engine under joint development by GM and AMC was scrapped because of its poor gasoline economy. Pacer power would come from AMC’s trusty 4-litre  (232-cubic inch) six banger. In a bid to stay ahead of pending legislation from Washington, steel side-impact bars were welded into the doors.

            Sales were absolutely phenomenal when Pacer hit the market on February 25, 1975. Billed as America’s first wide small car, it swept the nation by a storm. At a time when stagflation had all but crippled the economy, consumers had to have a Pacer.

The AM Van might have been produced if AMC hadn't tied the knot with Renault, an automaker with vans of its own.

Jim Alexander worked in Product Planning at American Motors. He remembers that folks stood in line at AMC dealers to trade in their Lincolns and Cadillacs for the swanky little cars. No one cared if it looked like a goldfish bowl on wheels. It was small and ritzy; it was hot and distinctively identifiable. Pacer was the most unique automobile design of the 1970s. 

It was only the second American production automobile to ever sport rack-and-pinion steering. It was one of the first to feature electronic ignition as standard equipment. The passenger door was nearly four inches wider than the driver’s for ease of entry into the rear of the poshly appointed passenger compartment. Pacer was exceptionally wide for a small car, 1 577 millimetres (61.2 inches) in the front track. To emphasize its width, wickedly clever TV advertising showed a Chevrolet Nova parking inside of a Pacer shell.

Instrument panel of the right-hand drive Pacer for the British market.

AMC’s light-hearted, offbeat brand of humour pervaded the whole concept. Extra cost items were listed out in a comprehensive brochure entitled “Open Wide and Say Pacer Options.” The average purchaser cheerfully dug into the bank account for a full $1,000 worth of extra cost goodies to dress their Pacers to the nines.

In its first full year on the market the little Pacer sold 117,245 units. Everybody on AMC’s management team had reason to be pleased.

 

A smartly styled station wagon joined the sedan in 1977. A year later the nose was redesigned to take AMC’s V-8 engine. During its six-year run, a total of 280,859 Pacers left the factory.

Pacers were so darned lovable that just about everyone made a toy or scale model of them. Racing Champs has issued a 1:64 scale 1977 Pacer; Corgi has a Pacer Rescue Car and even our old childhood friend, Tonka Toys, made Pacers for the Tonka car carrier.

AMC Pacer by Tonka Toys.

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Copyright James C. Mays 2004
All rights reserved.

1979 AMC Concord

The 1979 AMC Concord featured a waterfall grille and rectangular headlamps.

 American Motors was a feisty little company. The last of the independent North American automakers took on The Big Three as well as all international competition with a great deal of flair. The company had long specialized in small cars and niche marketing. When it strayed, AMC got into trouble. The manufacturer nearly failed in the 1960s but reinvented itself with a stylish compact.

The 1970 Hornet was designed by AMC's in-house stylist Chuck Mashigan.

The classic Hornet design offered an almost endless number of variations. Its body was the basis for the sub-compact Gremlin. The Hornet spawned the SC/360, the Sportabout and the Hatchback. A Cowboy pickup truck was nixed at the last minute because there was no place to build it but American Motors of Canada, Limited did create a special Canada-only Green Hornet model. 

The 1972 Canada-only Green Hornet cashed in on the popularity of the comic book hero. A total of 300 of the limited edition model was built.

The company generated profits because its products shared common platforms. It didn't hurt that AMC purchased Jeep. That helped the economy of scale as costs dropped and revenues rose. AMX and Javelin shared much in common. Matador and Ambassador shared sheet metal, too.

All AMC vehicles in 1972 came with a simple, iron-clad 100-word warranty that covered everything but the tires. (Tires were covered by the respective manufacturers.)

In 1972 there were no new products in dealers' showrooms. That would have meant disaster for an ordinary automaker but AMC was ready to pull an amazing rabbit to pull out of the corporate hat--one that astounded the industry as it pioneered the first bumper-to-bumper, all-inclusive warranty.  A caring, common-sense pitch appealed to consumers and sales rose dramatically. Motor Trend magazine honoured AMC for its groundbreaking guarantee with a special Car of the Year Award.

The next year, the warranty was extended, much to customers' delight.

The 1974 AMC Matador two-door coupe was beautiful.

Then AMC found itself in hot water when the Matador coupe appeared in 1974. It didn't share many parts with anything else in the corporate Stable. Worse, it didn't sell.

The 1975 Pacer from American Motors was the most unique car of the 1970s.

The following year, Pacer bowed to the public. Initially the most distinctively different vehicle of the decade was a hot seller but customers shunned the thirsty six-cylinder engine when an oil embargo from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) brought gasoline rationing to Americans.

Pacer, like the Matador coupe, shared virtually no parts with any other AMC cars, either. The company's top brass had pinned its corporate stars on the stylish duo but those hopes would be in vain.

The Ambassador was the corporation's flagship from 1927 to 1974.

The full-sized Ambassador had been retired at the end of the 1974 season. Javelin was nixed. Gremlin and Hornet desperately needed replacing or at least be given massive facelifts. Dwindling sales meant fewer dollars for retooling and no new products translated into ever-declining sales. The cycle was downward and vicious. Worse, it the cycle was fast.

Richard (Dick) Teague was the company's vice president of design. Teague was the longest-serving style chief in the industry and was known as the Dean of Design in Detroit. He knew half a dozen ways to skin a rabbit. He and his boys were about to perform yet  one more magic trick that would stand the entire automotive industry on its proverbial ears.

The 1978 AMC Concord hatchback.

The faithful Hornet would get a new lease on life, reincarnated as a high-class contender in fancy ball dress. Stylists and engineers rolled up their sleeves. The versatile envelope took on a formal, posh look as it was fitted for opera windows and a padded landau roof. Headlamps, nesting in square bezels added to the ritzy look, as did the squared-up, tartan weave grille. Taillights were sophisticated affairs housed in a gracefully understated rear cove. The upscale exterior look was complete with classic colour-keyed wheel covers and a stand-up hood ornament.

The interior of the 1979 Concord offered 'civilized comforts and thoughtful conveniences.'

Inside the cabin, no expense was spared to move the compact into the luxury league. Fabrics were rich velveteen for sedans and a soft-feel vinyl for wagons and the Hatchbacks. Tasteful woodgrain applique was applied to the instrument panel. Upholstered and  faux wood-trimmed doors were fitted with handy map pouches.

Engineers contributed a highly reworked suspension that gave a "big car" ride. There was no money for new power plants but AMC's trusty sixes had enjoyed a solid reputation around the world since their introduction in 1964. Just to cover all the bases, the corporation's 5-litre (304-cubic inch) V-8 was available.

Marketing ensured there were options galore, ranging from air conditioning and sunroofs to sports packages and performance options.

The 1978 AMC Concord wagon.

Christened Concord, dealers were delighted. Offered as a two-door and four-door sedan, a four-door wagon and a three-door hatchback, consumers could chose among four swank models to drive.

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Public response was terrific. AMC produced 121,293 of the luxurious compacts in its maiden year. That figure was nearly double Hornet's production the year before.

For 1979, Concord was updated with four rectangular headlamps and a majestic waterfall grille. A new Limited model was introduced, replete with leather seats and a Niagara of power options.

This was AMC's 25th anniversary and a special edition was fielded to mark the event. Still, sales were down in North America--ever so slightly--as 102,853 units were produced in Kenosha, Wisconsin and Brampton, Ontario.

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Copyright James C. Mays 2002
 All rights reserved.

1970 1/2 AMC Gremlin

April Fool’s Day 1970 was picked as the launch date for
American Motors’ subcompact car.
 Gremlin listed for $2,398 f.o.b Brampton, Ontario.

"What would you do if you had to compete with GM, Ford and Chrysler?" was the question burning everyone’s lips at American Motors in 1968. Like little Suzie, the last of the independent automakers was in trouble deep. Its Rambler line had tumbled from a dizzying 35,273 cars produced in 1965, holding a full 5.3 percent of the market, making it one of the most popular automobiles in the Canada to land somewhere near the bottom of the heap. Things were bad enough that when Studebaker folded its tent in 1966 in Hamilton, Ontario, pundits and industry analysts alike predicted American Motors would follow in short order, joining Studebaker in that great Scrapyard in the Sky.

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American Motors top brass vowed to the public it was here to stay and the company was committed to building automobiles. It could reach back to an automotive heritage that began with the construction of the first Rambler in 1902. Top brass acknowledged that the company had been most successful when it reached for and claimed the title of economy king and publicly pledged to return to those small, economy roots. In order to stay afloat, AMC divested itself of its profitable Kelvinator appliance business--after 33 years--and then sold REDISCO, the corporate finance arm.

Weighing in at 2,633 pounds, the 1970 ½ Gremlin
was the first subcompact built by a Big Four automaker.

In order to stay competitive, the team had to deliver products that were exciting to the public—and those products had better arrive quickly—one right after the other. The new head of the firm, Roy Chapin, announced there would be a new model from AMC every six months. The pace was dizzying—even for the auto industry. The luxurious fastback Marlin was unceremoniously dumped and replaced with a sizzling pony car, the Javelin. Javelin was hot and it was followed by the stunning two-seat AMX sports car.

With scarcely enough time to catch their collective breaths, dealers took down the old Rambler signs and hung out the new corporate logo. They saida final ‘goodbye’ to the faithful Rambler and popped the champagne corks for a smartly styled, all-new compact called Hornet.

Three home runs in a row weren’t enough for American Motors. There were more steel beauties on their way up to bat. Ever the pioneer, AMC was the first of the Big Four automakers to enter the subcompact market with a domestically built vehicle. It is absolutely true that head stylist Richard (Dick) Teague designed the tiny car on the back of a Northwest air sickness bag.

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The look was brilliant—Teague sawed off the back of the Hornet and added massive reverse-slant C-pillars that gave the design an unforgettable wedge-shaped profile. A wide, wrap-around grille and oversized flares at the wheel wells added to the sassy looks. Tooling added up to a mere $8 million, chump change around Motor City.

Just to be on the safe side, the Gremlin’s overall design was subjected to a probability study. Marketing invited 1,000 owners of compact and imported cars to view small cars and included the yet unnamed Gremlin among the groupings. The reaction was overwhelmingly favourable. The public had no idea who the maker of this cute little car was but they wanted to buy it.

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Gremlin was AMC's foot soldier, off to battle
 the mighty Volkswagen.

 On April Fool’s Day of 1970, the adorable Gremlin bowed to the public. Highly unique from stem to stern, this subcompact boasted a generous six-cylinder engine. Advertising took on Volkswagen head-to-head. Designed to win back a good percentage of the market being gobbled up by imports--primarily Datsun, Toyota and VW--Gremlins were displayed on university campuses throughout Canada to create awareness and drum up interest among young buyers.

At only $2,398, the car was billed, tongue-in-cheek as the first domestically-built import, “the kind this country has needed for a long time.” Gremlin offered twice the power and double the fun of Volkswagen’s 57-horsepower engine; claimed to be a regular gas grouch delivering 495 miles on a tank of regular fuel and boasted a smaller turning circle than a Beetle. A Gremlin was only 2.5 inches longer than a VW, too.

The entry-level price got one a basic, two-seat runabout. There were no frills whatsoever. The flooring was rubber and the rear window was fixed into place. Only a handful of people bought the unadorned stripper. Buyers could upgrade to the four-passenger version and lots of Canadians did exactly that. 

Whether one bought the two- or four-passenger Gremlin, under that long, bubble-blistered hood lurked AMC’s tried and true 199-cubic inch, six-cylinder engine that scuffed up the asphalt faster than snow melts in April. With a seven main-bearing crankshaft, the mill was virtually indestructible. All 128 horses were mated to a three-speed manual transmission or an optional automatic shifter.

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Gremlin interiors were smart and stylish.
 The bucket seats were optional.

Like Mattel’s Barbie, Gremlin could be had with an tasteful extra-cost accessories tailored to drivers' needs. AMC’s frisky little fellow was given 30 carefully selected optional equipment items including a very fast 145-horsepower motor, power steering, power brakes, a remote control mirror, electric windshield wipers and washers, air conditioning, tinted glass, an AM push-button all-transistor radio, a block heater, a roof rack, rally stripes, full wheel discs, bucket seats and a twin-grip differential. In addition, there were seven complete option packages available. 

American Motors workers caught Gremlins in the factory anddeep-dipped them in rustproofing before triple-painting the little rascals in any of 13 colours, including Classic Black, Frost White, Matador Red, Hialeah Yellow Bittersweet Orange, Bayshore Blue, Sea Foam Aqua, Mosport Green, Tijuana Tan and Sonic Silver. If those weren’t enough, the ultimate hues were borrowed from cousin AMX and left the factory floor wearing Big Bad Blue, Big Bad Green and Big Bad Orange.

The 1970 1/2 AMC Gremlin was 161 
inches long—only 2.5 inches longer 
than a VW Beetle—

and rode on a 96-inch wheelbase.

The smallest AMC offering got off to a good start in an abbreviated model year, racking up 12,618 builds in Brampton, many of them headed south to the United States. Things would get even hotter in 1971 as 26,348 Gremlins scampered out the doors of the Brampton, Ontario factory, scooting all over the continent for fun and frolic with their new owners.

The subcompact that looked like a sports car, loaded like a wagon and turned on a dime turned out to be the single best-selling model AMC ever built. Though it has been more than three decades since the last Gremlin rolled out the factory doors, they’re still occasionally seen on the nation's highways and byways. This writer spotted one yesterday and that made him grin from ear to ear. “Long live Gremlin!” he was heard to shout as he waved and honked from behind the wheel of his Ambassador wagon. 

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Copyright James C. Mays 2006 All rights reserved.