Vehicle Description
1968 AMC AMX
In the 1960s the one thing American Motors needed was an attention
getter, something to pull the younger "in crowd" into the dealer
showrooms. After the Rambler Tarpon, a sporty concept car that
evolved into the not-so-sporty Marlin, American Motors unveiled the
AMX concept at the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) convention
in Detroit at Cobo Hall in January 1966. The car made its public
debut on February 18 at the 58th annual Chicago Automobile Show.
The AMX displayed at that show, a two-door sports coupe with a rear
"Rambleseat," was a non-running fiberglass concept car.
For consignment, a rare one indeed this AMC AMX from 1968. AMX was
supposed to stand for American Motors Experimental but was actually
the name of a French WW2 tank! No tank here, just great design from
American Motors which definitely brought the younger crowd into the
AMC showrooms.
Exterior
Like life, this car is coated in Bittersweet Orange paint, which
presents very nicely. Also, on this hood are dual stripes racing
forward and rearward and are actually painted on in black just like
the factory would have done. Upfront single round headlights are
framed up top by the front quarters, and below by a shiny bumper.
The original grille is noted with the horizontal ribs and an AMX
badge on the driver's side. Steel panels are good and rust free,
and gaps are well minded. All brite-work is maintained nicely with
no rust or dulling, and a horizontal ribbed stainless rocker trim
runs from wheel well to wheel well adding some bling to the bottom
of the car. A fastback rear deck swoops downward and utilizes small
flying buttresses from the B pillars to frame the rear window. On
the very back is a horizontal strip of red which houses the
taillights, and is framed below by another mirror like bumper. Also
noted are big round bezels on the B pillar, and AMX badging in the
center just in case you forgot! 14-inch Magnum 500 wheels are on
all 4 corners and are wrapped in raised white letter BF. Goodrich
radial T/A's on all 4's as well.
Interior
Original buckets and door panels are clean, door panels are wrapped
in tan vinyl and have a stitched embossed forward-facing arrow
pattern in them. The buckets, the only seats in the passenger
compartment, utilize the same tan Ventileer vinyl and have a waffle
pattern for the inserts and smooth surrounding bolsters. A simple
centrally located console in brown, houses the automatic shift
lever, and right above is the original dash in tan and brown. An
original radio is seen in the middle. A trio of deep round gauges
fronts an original wrapped steering wheel complete with the AM
badge in the center of the tri spoked steering wheel. Headliner is
nicely preserved and is a textured ribbed pattern, and flooding the
floors below is gold carpet, which shows in good original
condition. This also covers the rear cargo area in lieu of a rear
bench. A shout out to the trunk which is covered with a smooth
shiny black vinyl liner and topped with an original spare.
Drivetrain
Within a restored engine bay is the original turquoise colored
block in 390ci V8 format. It is topped by a 4-barrel Holley
carburetor, and backed up by a Shift Command 3-speed automatic
transmission. On the rear axle is a 2.87 gear setup. Slight
corrosion on a few parts, but nice, shiny and supple hoses all
around, and very clean and nicely kept overall under the hood.
Undercarriage
Some slight areas of surface rust, but very minimal, and mostly
sound floor pans, rockers and unibody construction underneath.
Independent coil springs for the front suspension and leaf springs
for the rear, as well as drum brakes all around. A stock exhaust is
installed.
Drive-Ability
This 390ci V8 fires right up, and after a warmup period it was off
to the test track where it was put through the paces. Here it
performed well, with solid acceleration, decent handling, and good
cruising.
Not often seen in these parts, this car had a short run as American
Motors was in the throws of taking its last gasps, although this
car was really a breath of fresh air. It's nicely designed small
flying buttress rear fastback, slight bulbous rear, and pony car
features, was enough to garner its fans with its contemporary shape
of things to come. (See the ubiquitous Pacer!)
VIN DECODE
A8C397X290479
A-American Motors Corporation
8-1968
C-Automatic Floor Shift
3-AMX
9-2 Door Hardtop
7-AMX Trim Group
X-390ci V8 4bbl
290479-Kenosha, WI Sequential Unit Number
DOOR TAG
BODY R022424-Kenosha Body #
MODEL 6839 7-1968 AMX 2 Door Hardtop, AMX Trim Group
TRIM 832A-Tan Ventilear Vinyl
PAINT 50A-Calcutta Russet Poly
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 600 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,
Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia
on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is
www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914.
Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the
vehicle in person.