Was there ever a better muscle car than a 72 AMC Gremlin?

[HopeHoops]

Poll question: Was there ever a better muscle car than a 72 AMC Gremlin?

Sorry, couldn't resist.

[revolution breeze]

1. With the Levis denim interior

Mine was blue but faded to a gentle shade of purple! I loved that car!

[Capn Sunshine]

11. Like this.

This car always looked to me like they asked a kid with a box of crayons to draw a car.

[revolution breeze]

17. Yes this was my baby!

It was my first car, bought in 1984 for $300. I drove it for three years, it was great for taking to the French Quarter. No matter how drunk they were, my friends could always find my car!

[Deep13]

2. That car was available with a V-8.

Even with its 258c.i. straight six is had quite a bit of power. The Gremlin was heavier than it looks, but still it was a small car with a pretty good size engine.

[HopeHoops]

6. Hell, you could get a V-8 in a 71 Maverick. I had a 70 with a straight 200 and it was PLENTY!

I'm not even sure how they would FIT a 305 in a Maverick. That's basically a 5.0 liter and I had one of those in a two-ton 84 Colony Park wagon and IT kicked ass. We called her "The Enterprise" and anything less than 80 mph was "coming out of hyperspace".

And as for the Gremlin, it was heavier because it was MADE OF STEEL. These bullshit alloy cars they ship from Japan are junk and the main reason for the metal change isn't mileage - it is to avoid deterioration in transit from the sea salt. As for AMC, they were way ahead of their time. The Pacer was ugly as sin itself, but the Ford Tempo brought the "no square lines" concept into the mainstream in 83 or so and all of the other manufacturers caved eventually to the streamlined design that AMC introduced more than 10 years earlier.

(Pssst. The correct answer was "Halloween joke")

[guitar man]

9. 302

The V8 for the 71 Maverick was a 210hp 302, they were pretty snappy in a car that light actually.

Had a friend I went to college with that I helped build a nice street maverick. Since it came with a 302, a 351 Windsor was pretty much a bolt in fit. We built him a 351 "Clevor" which is a 351 Windsor with Cleveland heads. It shelled the stock rear end pretty quick so we modified a 4.10 9" Ford trak-lock (posi) from a truck and fixed that problem. Never had it on the dyno but it was somewhere north of 400hp without a doubt :evilgrin:

[HopeHoops]

12. "Bolt fit" sure, but there wouldn't be much leg room for working on it!!!

I used to sit on the radiator of my Maverick when I worked on it - legs on either side down in the wheel wells.

[jobycom]

10. My 72 Maverick had a 302.

Bad Ass. I could bark the tires when the automatic shifted into second. Of course, the fact that it always had bald tires helped.

[HopeHoops]

13. Hell, I outran Cameros with my 200 straight 6. Kick ass car. Ugly as hell, but so what?

It could corner and go through territory most people wouldn't even consider taking a car - and frankly, I took it places most Jeep owners wouldn't go.

[gratuitous]

3. Yes, the AMC Pacer

Talk about a chick magnet! Whoo hoo!

[HopeHoops]

7. "Hey hot mama! Ja wanna go for a ride in mah love machine?"

Way NOT to get laid.

[rug]

4. It's bested only by the Yugo.

[HopeHoops]

8. That's Yougoslavian for "Americans will buy ANYTHING". On another note: The Chevy Nova.

GM couldn't figure out why the Nova wasn't selling in Latin America. It wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that "No va" means "won't go" now would it?

Coke had a similar problem in China where "coka cola" means something really unmentionable involving an animal of the bovine variety.

[MrScorpio]

5. I had a 74 Gremlin

4 Cylinders of fun.

I had a great time tooling around the city in that puppy.

[MiddleFingerMom]

14. People only THINK the 72 AMC Gremlin was a muscle car...

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... because of all the Beach Boys' songs written about it.
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[madinmaryland]

15. I had a 74 Monte Carlo with a V-8 big block 454. Hell of an engine.

Gave it to my friend who stretched his neck a couple months back. Gotta find out what happened to that engine.

[PJPhreak]

16. My dad had one of those,a 72 painted that putrid Cream Green.

As far as Hot Rods go,the Other "Quality American EnconoBox" of that Vintage actually makes a Nice 'lil Grocery Getter!

I Would'nt Kick This Outta The Garage...