Memories, AMC Matador
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Wow, make's my first car (74 Vega ) look like a Ferrari
The piece of crap burned a quart of oil a day, I looked like a mosquito foging truck going down the road.
The piece of crap burned a quart of oil a day, I looked like a mosquito foging truck going down the road.
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Marksman
Member
So, that's a Matador. One of the uglier creations of
AMC along with the even uglier Pintolike abortions whose name escapes me at the moment. The Vega was a real piece of crap too, my sister had one while in college the fenders rusted off the car. All cars best forgotten from an era when American carmakers were turning out vehicles of the lowest quality ever. The imports saw the opportunity to whip American carmaker's asses by giving the car buying public higher quality automobiles and the rest is history. I stopped buying American cars several years ago, all of my rolling stock wears the Honda brand. Honda's are built in America, an excellent value for the money and feature legendary reliability and resale value. I've spent less on repairs of Honda autos than any other car I've ever owned. When a Honda has needed repair, it has been fixed right the first time every time and at a reasonable cost. Change the timing belt and the plugs and they seem to run forever. My Honda Pilot is the best SUV I've ever owned and cost $5K less than other maker's comparable models.
AMC along with the even uglier Pintolike abortions whose name escapes me at the moment. The Vega was a real piece of crap too, my sister had one while in college the fenders rusted off the car. All cars best forgotten from an era when American carmakers were turning out vehicles of the lowest quality ever. The imports saw the opportunity to whip American carmaker's asses by giving the car buying public higher quality automobiles and the rest is history. I stopped buying American cars several years ago, all of my rolling stock wears the Honda brand. Honda's are built in America, an excellent value for the money and feature legendary reliability and resale value. I've spent less on repairs of Honda autos than any other car I've ever owned. When a Honda has needed repair, it has been fixed right the first time every time and at a reasonable cost. Change the timing belt and the plugs and they seem to run forever. My Honda Pilot is the best SUV I've ever owned and cost $5K less than other maker's comparable models.
I drove a '71 Matador unmarked car - remember it well. One night, the radiator came loose and fell backward into the fan, it ruined everything on the front of the motor - A/C compressor, power steering, alternator, water pump, etc.
jag312
Member
When I was a young man I dated a girl whose father drove an AMC Gremlin. He thought it was a sports car, and he was very proud of it. One day he asked me what I thought of it. I told him that the Gremlin wasn't a sports car and was an embarrassing piece of junk. He didn't like me after that. If he is still alive today, I'm almost willing to bet that he's driving a Pontiac Aztek.
elcruisr
US Veteran
When I first entered the military and was at DLI in Monterey I remember the OSI guys all had brown Matadors. They stood out like a searchlight in that town when they were trying to do undercover work.
gunlovingirl
Member
My sister used to drive a Gremlin. Also had a friend who had a Javelin. imho, the Matador was one butt ugly car!
JcMack
Member
The mid 70's provided us with a picture of what was to come. If anyone had any foresight we could have avoided today's hard times. It started to become easier to import steel from countries we helped rebuild after the war. The result was the failure of antiquated steel mills built here at the beginning of the 20th century. The auto industry provided us with gas guzzling rust buckets that easily provided a logical pathway to European and Japanese imports that we eagerly bought after the "gas shortages" of the mid 70's. I know blah, blah, and blah. It just seems most in this country including our fearless leaders, can't see past the end of their noses. Witness that fact by looking at who was just elected president.
Back on topic AMC tried to be ahead of it's time in styling and innovation. IMHO they failed miserably. My ex wife was fond of Gremlins and I bought her 2, back to back. The Gremlins had a habit of the rear floor pans rusting out to a point where you had to check the rear seat once in a while to make sure the kids didn't fall through the floor as you drove. What was the name of the little 2 door wagon looking car? The passenger door was 4" longer to provide easier entry to rear seat. Unfortunately if someone parked next to you on the passenger side the extra door length meant you couldn't get that door open far enough to squeeze in. Great innovations like that Doomed AMC.
Back on topic AMC tried to be ahead of it's time in styling and innovation. IMHO they failed miserably. My ex wife was fond of Gremlins and I bought her 2, back to back. The Gremlins had a habit of the rear floor pans rusting out to a point where you had to check the rear seat once in a while to make sure the kids didn't fall through the floor as you drove. What was the name of the little 2 door wagon looking car? The passenger door was 4" longer to provide easier entry to rear seat. Unfortunately if someone parked next to you on the passenger side the extra door length meant you couldn't get that door open far enough to squeeze in. Great innovations like that Doomed AMC.
BarbC
Member
I had a boyfriend who tried to leave me his Gremlin when he went off to college. I broke up with him.
DeathGrip
US Veteran
JcMack,are you thinking of the Pacer and Pacer Wagon?
Merry Christmas,D.G.
Merry Christmas,D.G.
66TAS
Member
JcMack
Member
Yes that's it thanks. I didn't remember two different models, I thought they were one in the same.
DeathGrip
US Veteran
I used to have a '66 Country squire and wen't to pass a Pacer wagon Christmas eve of '79 when she decided to turn left.Ouch,Her front bumper meet mine and took a chunk of my fender with it,scraped the whole side of my wagon.Totaled the Pacer.Spun her like a top.I just eased my wagon off the side of the road and went back to check if she was OK.She was fine.She swore she used her signal and the insurance co. made it a no fault claim.
Merry Christmas '79
D.G.
Merry Christmas '79
D.G.
truckemup97
Member
Walter Rego
Member
My mom had a 1970 Dodge Coronet that my brother and I had talked her into ordering with the 440/4 bbl engine "just like the Highway Patrol had Mom, so it must be a good one". She remarried and the scoundrel she was married to gave it to someone he owed money to from another of his bad business deals. So he replaces it with a 73 Matador which was a butt ugly orange with white vinyl top. I suspect it was because AMC had pretty loose qualifications for financing at the time. He had a tow hitch added to it for some reason and the frame got all tweaked. Then, it got repo'd and he disappeared sometime later. Good riddance to the car and her husband.
I sure did miss that 440 CI Dodge as a 16 year old...
I sure did miss that 440 CI Dodge as a 16 year old...
Stevie
Member
I bought an AMC Jeep J20 pickup a year and a half ago.
Needs a bit of cosmetic work. However it runs and drives like new.
Needs a bit of cosmetic work. However it runs and drives like new.
palmetto99
Member
My first car was a '75 Vega wagon. Not sure how good of a car it was, one month after I picked it up a Ford LTD ened it's life at an intersection. So sad. Next up was a '76 AMC Gremlin. You can say what you want about the looks, that was one tough car. If I remember, it had an in-line 6 cyclinder (260 c.i.?) and had plenty of tourque. I sold it to a friend's mother in 1983 when I had a chance at a nicer car ('75 Old's Cutlass) and she drove it up until about 1990.
By the way, AMC did race the Gremlins in the Trans-Am series. I didn't know that until many years later. Still strikes me as kind of funny.
By the way, AMC did race the Gremlins in the Trans-Am series. I didn't know that until many years later. Still strikes me as kind of funny.
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Ahh, the Matador. I remember looking at one as my first 'new' car in 1974, but decided on a Hornet. I kept it 10 years. Well worth the $2300.
Bob R
US Veteran
When I was looking at my first new car I trried to get AMC to build me a high performance Gremlin (is that an oxymoron?). I was looking at a 343, 4 barrel, headers and 4 speed. They wouldn't do it so off I went and bought a new 240Z.
To this day I thank the suits at AMC for not building me a Gremlin.
bob
To this day I thank the suits at AMC for not building me a Gremlin.
bob
My first car was a AMC Rebel. Good enough car but I sold within a year when I was able to buy a 67 International Scout. That thing could climb about anything.
I was going to school in Laramie Wyo when I had the scout. One of my classmates had a built up Ford pick-up with huge tires, big engine etc. He was always giving me crap about my scout and how much better his Ford was. So one day a bunch of us were out in the parking lot when he started giving me crap again so I challenged him to a climbing contest. Off we all go to a fairly steep hill outside of town. He made it about 1/2 or maybe a little farther up but that was it. I went to the top of the hill turned around and drove over to where he was and I said maybe next time I might even put in 4 wheel drive. Look on his face was priceless and the guff he got from the other guys was even better.
Top speed was about 45 MPH unless I wanted to stop at every gas station then I could get up to about 60.
I was going to school in Laramie Wyo when I had the scout. One of my classmates had a built up Ford pick-up with huge tires, big engine etc. He was always giving me crap about my scout and how much better his Ford was. So one day a bunch of us were out in the parking lot when he started giving me crap again so I challenged him to a climbing contest. Off we all go to a fairly steep hill outside of town. He made it about 1/2 or maybe a little farther up but that was it. I went to the top of the hill turned around and drove over to where he was and I said maybe next time I might even put in 4 wheel drive. Look on his face was priceless and the guff he got from the other guys was even better.
Top speed was about 45 MPH unless I wanted to stop at every gas station then I could get up to about 60.
ambassador
Member
Whats a Matador! That was a commercial,in the day.
jag312
Member
My first car was a 1954 Jaguar XK120 SE. It was originally the personal car of Charles Hornburg, the Jaguar importer for the western United States. I developed a lot of mechanical skills keeping that car running. I loved driving that car. The sound from the competition exhaust system was fantastic, especially when I was driving through a tunnel. The car was lethal to drive on wet pavement. The narrow Dunlop 6.00-16 tires had no wet traction, and it was like driving on ice. I still own the car. The only time I got a bigger thrill was when I first drove a Ferrari, a 1967 330 GTS. The pictures are what my car looks like, only my car is light gray with black interior.
I had a AMC Ambassador at one time in my life. It spent it's life as a LAPD Undercover Interceptor. And it was a very fast car for its day in American iron. It had a 343 small block in it with a 3 barrel carb. Yes a true 3 barrel carb. It took 3 carb kits to rebuild the carb. And thats all that was wrong with it. It had water cooled cast iron headers on it, dual oil filter setup, 6" thick radiator, locked rear end with two speed function. Everything on the car was super heavy duty. The old drum brakes filled the wheels completely and were vented.
I should have kept that car. Talk about a battle tank!
I should have kept that car. Talk about a battle tank!
jframe
Member
I've got a friend who's really into Pro Street type drag cars. You know, the ones with the huge rear tires and tubular frames? He always said that ANY car could look better with a narrowed rear end under it, and large by huge tires, but we got behind a Matador one time. He looked at it and over at me, and he said " I just don't know"
jframe
Member
B.T.W., not my first car, but DEFINITLY the one I miss the most. 2003 Mach 1 Mustang, 32V DOHC V-8 with 300 HP, five speed, 4.10 gears, and a factory functional Shaker hood, just like the old days. If I'd have had the money when I traded, I'd have kept it AND bought my new body style Mustang too!
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m1gunner
US Veteran
Not many were made, but the AMX was a true performance car. Available with a high output V8 and a tricked out auto transmission or a beefy 4 speed.
The Gremlin wasn't a beauty contest winner, bun not many cars of that era were. The Gremlin was a shortened Hornet. Very safe, especially for younger drivers, in that it was heavy and had a lot of metal protecting the passenger area.
The 232 cid 6 cylinder would easily go over 200,000 miles, and the chrysler transmissions were bullet proof. Just keep everything serviced and it would get you there and home again every time.
As far as AMC being ahead of its time, don't forget the Sportabout. It was a hatchback 4 door mid sized stationwagon. Several manufacturers make a clone of it today, including Mercedes Benz.
The Gremlin wasn't a beauty contest winner, bun not many cars of that era were. The Gremlin was a shortened Hornet. Very safe, especially for younger drivers, in that it was heavy and had a lot of metal protecting the passenger area.
The 232 cid 6 cylinder would easily go over 200,000 miles, and the chrysler transmissions were bullet proof. Just keep everything serviced and it would get you there and home again every time.
As far as AMC being ahead of its time, don't forget the Sportabout. It was a hatchback 4 door mid sized stationwagon. Several manufacturers make a clone of it today, including Mercedes Benz.
oldfella
US Veteran
My first (and last) AMC car was a 1974 Station Wagon - I traded it couple of years later for a 1976 Lincoln Continental Town Car. About two weeks later I received a call from the dealership, saying that the guy who bought the ACM was furious, the whole transmission fell out 
Bob R
US Veteran
My father was a die hard Rambler fan. The first car I can remember was a pale green Nash sedan which we had in Alaska. While there he bought a 1958 Rambler wagon which took us through Germany in the mid 60's.
Once we returned from Germany he bought a new Ambassador. AKAIK that was the last Rambler he bought.
After Germany he was a VW and Chrysler fan.
bob
Once we returned from Germany he bought a new Ambassador. AKAIK that was the last Rambler he bought.
After Germany he was a VW and Chrysler fan.
bob
J. Galt
US Veteran
This is embarrassing, but I have to defend the Gremlin.
I had one in the later 70's when I was young and poor. It was not the most dashing car, but it was completely reliable. M1Gunner is right; that straight six was a very good engine. I took it camping and SCUBA diving, driving it on dirt roads, through fields, and over many campgrounds. Between the folded down rear seat the roof rack I could carry a respectable amount of gear. They were really underrated little cars.
I had one in the later 70's when I was young and poor. It was not the most dashing car, but it was completely reliable. M1Gunner is right; that straight six was a very good engine. I took it camping and SCUBA diving, driving it on dirt roads, through fields, and over many campgrounds. Between the folded down rear seat the roof rack I could carry a respectable amount of gear. They were really underrated little cars.
