The Revolution of the AMX

William Jason
SubmitYOURArticle.com
February 19, 2011

William Jason
http://musclecarmonster.com

The American Motors Corporation or AMC was one of the car manufacturers to join the battle of producing muscle cars. One of its models was the AMX, introduced to compete with the only other two-seater in the market, the Chevrolet Corvette.

The AMC AMX (American Motors Experimental) was first released in 1968, the first steel-bodied, two-seat model since the Ford Thunderbird. AMC sliced a foot of its Javelin body to eliminate the rear seats to make it a two-seater sports car. Accompanied with its release is the setting of 106 world speed records in a Texas track. Craig Beedlove, the World Land Speed Record holder modified the handling, power and speed of the car in his shop. Special red, white and blue "Craig Beedlove" editions were built in honor of his accomplishments.

The AMC AMX Curb weight was about 3,100lbs. The AMX had a power-to-weight ratio of 9.8lbs/bhp when equipped with the 390 cid engine. This enabled the car to blaze thru ¼ of a mile in 15.2 seconds. The interior boasted reclining bucket seats, woodgrain interior trim, carpeting, 4-speed manual transmission, E70-14 Goodyear polyglas tires and a heavy duty suspension. Its engine options ranged from 225bhp to 315bhp. And for a price of $3,245 it was pretty reasonable at that time.

Few changes were made in the AMC AMX, in 1969. Though the base price increased by $50, new features were added in the car. Changes to the dashboard were included plus a 140mph speedometer. The "Big Bad AMX" option was also made available that year, which allowed the buyer to include wild colors and body colored bumpers. Another optional package made available was the "Go Package", which included E70 redline tires on six-inch rims, power-disc brakes, handling package and twin -grip differential.

In 1970, the AMX base price increased to $3,395. This included a standard 360 cid V8 engine at 290bhp. The front end tail lamps were also restyled. The AMX was called the best version of a blend of muscle car and sports car that year. 1970 would also be the last year of the two-seater AMX production. The new version of the AMX, which was released in 1971, then the top of the line Javelin, was assembled with four seats.

All in all this was a decent muscle car, but could never top the popularity of the Mustangs and Chevelles due to their powerful branding and advertising campaigns.

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William Jason has admired classic cars ever since he was a young child and you can read his blog at: http://musclecarmonster.com/