AMC Gremlins
I was going to talk about Gremlins in the AMC
topic I made in the classics section, but since
there were a lot of heated responses by some of the
people there, I decided to put it here in
hatchbacks (since it is a pretty important part of
hatchback history).
Anyway, I use to own a '66 AMC Rambler and I grew
up in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where AMC HQ built just
about every AMC in the U.S. up intil 1987. Both my
mom and my aunt had Gremlins, my grandmother had a
Pacer and my dad had an Ambassador. SO I've
decided to restore a '74 Gremlin I've recently
found for sale.
It's in great shape, ahs only 50,000 original
miles on the clock, the old v6 is running strong,
and only needs some cosmetics to bring it back to
glory (new windshield, hammer out a few dents, new
paint, new interior upholstery, etc.). Well, I was
just wondering if any of the hatchfans out there
have also restopred Gremlins (I hear they're one of
the most popular classic cars to restore for the
under-25ers) and I was interested in finding some
tips on increasing performance and fuel economy.
So far I'm planning on getting a K&N air filter and
adding a performance muffler and exhaust tip.
topic I made in the classics section, but since
there were a lot of heated responses by some of the
people there, I decided to put it here in
hatchbacks (since it is a pretty important part of
hatchback history).
Anyway, I use to own a '66 AMC Rambler and I grew
up in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where AMC HQ built just
about every AMC in the U.S. up intil 1987. Both my
mom and my aunt had Gremlins, my grandmother had a
Pacer and my dad had an Ambassador. SO I've
decided to restore a '74 Gremlin I've recently
found for sale.
It's in great shape, ahs only 50,000 original
miles on the clock, the old v6 is running strong,
and only needs some cosmetics to bring it back to
glory (new windshield, hammer out a few dents, new
paint, new interior upholstery, etc.). Well, I was
just wondering if any of the hatchfans out there
have also restopred Gremlins (I hear they're one of
the most popular classic cars to restore for the
under-25ers) and I was interested in finding some
tips on increasing performance and fuel economy.
So far I'm planning on getting a K&N air filter and
adding a performance muffler and exhaust tip.
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It's been some time since I've seen one on the roads. I'll be keeping an eye out now. Lurkers, let's hear from you.
carlady/host
And I guess I answered my own question since I found that JCW also has a conversion kit for the smaller displacement 6 cylinder that includes a massive 4 barrel intake manifold and a customized 4-barrel carb. Together they run a little under $600, so they won't be in my gremlin anytime soon, but for the power and performance of a v8 with the efficiency of a 6 I probably will install the kit in 6 months to a year from now. This reminds me of how cool it was that AMC made the gremlin X with a 304 8-cylinder. I mean, nowadays it's pretty damn hard to find a compact hatchback with a v6, much less a v8. As far as I know the only company's that make them are BMW and VW (??? and GTI GLX). And I've even seen gremlins maxed out with an AMC 401 v8, which for you modern folks is a huge 6.6 litres.
carlady/host
To clarify a couple of inacuracies from former messages, the Gremlin's 6 cylinder engine was a straight 6, not a V6, and I'm almost certain that it came from the Nash side of the Nash-Hudson merger, not Hudson. That engine was indeed durable, as was pointed out, but the flip side was that it was also rather heavy for a car of the Gremlin's dimensions. The front end weight detracted from the car's handling and traction. The heavier V8 version only exacerbated the weight distribution problems of the 6.
The Gremlin was developed on a very tight budget, and AMC did a very commendable job with the money it had. While it was fairly competitive for its time, the Gremlin had design compromises due to it's being essentially a chopped off compact made to compete with new from the ground up sub compacts. In addition to its heavy engine, which was less fuel efficient than the competing 4 cylinders, the back seat room, especially leg and foot room, was very tight, even by the sub compact standards of the '70s.
Similar comments as were made for the Gremlin could be said of Chrysler with its Plymouth Duster/Dodge Demon, which were coupe variations based on the Valiant 4 door.
Fortunately for AMC, all of its competitors had serious flaws of one type or another. The VW Beetle, for all of its vaunted strong points, was an old design, and among it's numerous weaknesses was the fact that its already underpowered, noisy engine couldn't adapt well to the tightening emission standards; the Vega and the Pinto were plagued by design serious design defects, some (though not all) of which were compounded by abysmal build quality; the Duster and Demon had the some of the same design compromises as the Gremlin; and the Japanese cars, though not too bad for their day, didn't have nearly the quality of later models. For example, I owned a '70 Datsun 510, which developed somewhat of a cult status, and it was the worst car I've ever owned, although it's possible that mine may have been a lemon.
The thing that bugged me was how the steering deteriorated on that car. The ball joints (and probably many other parts) wore somewhat quickly. I remember having to do a lot of steering just to go straight. Very sloppy steering. Hopefully you can find a way to address this in your restoration so the car can be a fun drive.
carlady/host
Later in life, some friends and I rented a Hornet (I think). It was a two door hatchback, 6 cyl, auto. That thing could smoke it's tires and I got it up to about 115mph! That was the fastest I had ever gone up until then.
Worst car I ever owned!
carlady
Speaking of Levi interiors, my sister had a Dodge Colt (I think) in the late 70s that was white and had a "denim" motif. I recall that the vinyl roof was light blue.
I used to drive on Main street between Somerville and Bound Brook, NJ as part of my commute to work. It was not uncommon to see a Pacer in the morning. I'd always smile when I saw it.
My first car was a 74 Pinto ... without carpeting! Sold that and got my parents '72 Scamp. Then on to a succession of VWs.
The "Cooper" for my name is because we used to have a '66 Mini Cooper S. A rare one, too, with the 970 cc engine. Now my wife has a '66 Austin Mini Moke. (I must really be strange.)
carlady/host
I know cartalk.com voted it one of the 10 worst cars ever, but it lasted well over a decade, and was very dependable.
carlady/host
Pulled into a van show which were popular back then with these vans painted in mucho expensive paint jobs.
Well i knew how to spot bad work from doing the renovation part of painting these old cars and when my Gremlin pulled onto the field the hoots and hollers were fun for the first five minutes...I was paid minimum wage minus! Overtime was free in those days so my body and paint looked kinda...well it was really bad!
But i knew what to look for.
Van #1 Nice paint but Plastic here..here and here.
After looking at about 4 Vans with great airbrush i was being given free beers etal!
I left when they all got together and started a revolt on the bodyshops...
Paint should be done AFTER the BODYWORK has been done.
Whyford, trip down memory lane
Good luck on restoration. Watch out for the electrical problems