I was at the Auto Zone today and just minding my own business when in came this car. Even though it has two wheels too many there were reasons I could not ignore it. I had been reading comments all week it seems about AMC’s sins and mistakes. I just wanted to prove that they are still alive (perhaps in my mind only) and well.
The odometer has mid seventy thousand miles and the owner says he has no idea how often it’s turned over. Looking at the interior condition, it may not have been often.
He does know that he has a 258 and a slush box and that it saves a lot of gas compared to his truck. I was drawn to it because I owned a ’78 model of the same color. Brougham anyone?
It’s remarkably well preserved when you consider it’s a daily driver. He asked that I not shoot the right side as there is a little ding. He is certainly right and I didn’t.
A little elbow grease and fresh paint anyone?
Shampo interior, paint job, vinyl top is “ok”, I notice the window is open, does the AC work? But a little repair and it will be good to go for another 30 years or so.
I like the interior. It’s got more style than my daily driver.
Mom bought a 1979 AMC Concord shortly after dad died and she moved in with us.
The 1970 Duster was about shot – floor rusted through.
I looked around at many cars and the Concord won. Metallic brown sedan – NO vinyl top and no silly C pillar glass. Tan interior, PS, PB, Auto, A/C, 258 6, AM radio. A very nice car. She paid something like $4,700 – not cheap, but was such a better value for the money than the stripper Aspen we looked at and much cheaper than a Nova.
She drove that car until September 1990, when she decided she couldn’t drive anymore due to her eyesight. I sold the car – now showing rust – to the same man I sold our 1981 Reliant to 2+1/2 years earlier for $500.
She loved that car – the ONLY new car she ever owned – her and dad never could afford a new car – and enjoyed it to the full.
These were good cars. Fast? no. Stylish? not really. But solid cars that never let you down. I would take one of these over the junk the Big 3 were making at the time.
One of my two favorite vehicles. Actually it was pretty fast but it had tall gears and definitely was not quick. Decent mileage and pretty reliable. Had it in Guam so there certainly was some rust. Sold it to buy my other favorite. A 1981 Datsun King Cab. That vehicle lived several lives.
Good find, Lee. It is rather unfortunate these weren’t more popular back in the day. I remember seeing a fair number of these as fleet vehicles. In fact, the GSA had a Eagle wagon from the early 80’s on their auction site recently….I really thought about it!
I worked for Civil Service until June 1980, at the federal records center in the St. Louis area. Most of the motor pool fleet were Strippo Concords! I know of what you speak, and I loved driving them.
As a new USN Ensign in ’83, I drove one for some ‘official business’…
Ahh, military transportation. As an Army 2d Lt, I was given the task to find transportation for the Officers Wives Club to go to a Christmas Concert in Denver. Later, a Colonel’s wife complained about the cleanliness and rough ride of the “school bus” I had chosen. I later told my boss I chose the school bus because the motor pool was out of cattle cars…
And people say young butter bars have no social graces.
; )
A GSA staple vehicle in the late ’70s/early ’80s. I remember driving a green ’78 Concord with a tan vinyl pleated interior – GSA car – with blackwalls and AMC dog dish wheel covers. No slingshot off the line, but would hum along at 65mph with no complaints. A good highway cruiser. AMC seven-main bearing sixes are strong engines and smooth.
Yes, the GSA in Denver had scores of these that I drove. I remember the A/C would freeze up on long trips and you would have to drive an hour with it turned off so it would defrost. They were replaced with stripper Fairmonts, which at the time, seemed an improvement. The Fairmonts had tighter steering and ride and a larger greenhouse.
1978-1983 AMC Concord and its concurrent competitor, the 1978-1983 Ford Fairmont / Mercury Zephyr, were the last members of a major class of American car, the front inline-6, rear-drive, sensible compact sedan.
From the ’39 Stude Champion, right through fifties Rambler/Lark/Falcon/Valiant and seventies Hornet/Nova/Maverick/Aspen to the final Concord/Fairmont. Obsoleted by more efficient front-drive compacts. It’s still the right size for a proper car, with wheelbase, length, height, width just right to hold five adults and their luggage.
This Concord is a nice example of why these cars were so popular and durable for nearly half a century. In March 1981 Popular Science did a comparison test of the RWD Concord and Zephyr vs the FWD Aries K-car and Citation, that really captures this transition. PS was crazy about the K-car, “it’s easy to forsee the time when the Aries will be the big car of the Chrysler lineup.” High praise for AMC’s 258 six: “We highly recommend this well-proven power plant over the standard 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine for this car.”
That standard 2.5 they refer to was none other than the GM Iron Duke.
No,not a GM engine, AMC bought the 2.5 ltr. 4 cylinder from Volkswagen-Audi group.
Actually both of you are correct. AMC started using a Volkswagen-Audi 4 cyl engine and then switched to the GM Iron Duke when the contract expired.
I like these a lot better than I did when they were new. I like Mike’s point about how these were the end of an era. When compared with the Fairmont, the Ford felt relatively modern, while the Concord had a definite old-school feel. Much like a Falcon would have compared to a Lark.
The longer I think about it, the 1970 Hornet was the best looking car AMC ever built, and its good lines just kept giving for years and years, as it got modernized multiple times. Even in its final versions, this was a well proportioned, good looking car.
The AMC 6 was a good engine, and it was coupled with a Torqueflite, I believe.
The AMC 6 was a good engine, and it was coupled with a Torqueflite, I believe.
Which makes the combo of the two as reliable as an anvil and twice as fast. But often that’s all you want in a family car.
Twice as fast as an anvil? Are we talking falling on Wile E. Coyote anvil?
Variation on a couple of old jokes… got a car that’s underpowered and a bit slow in accelerating but very reliable?
“Its as reliable as an anvil and twice as fast.”
“Its as solid as the Rock of Gibraltar but twice as fast.”
I believe a previous comment here, after being sorted out by those more knowledgeable than I, established that mine (78 model) probably had a 727. I honestly don’t know if we just said the same thing or not. It certainly was Mopar and it certainly was good.
I really did not like getting rid of it but it is hard doing AC repair out of a car. I knew I would be doing something like that when I retired from the Navy. The Datsun King Cab with three speed auto and 4 cyl that I bought did yeoman duty. Put a contractor shell (side windoors) on it and a trailer behind it and ran it for well over 200k in Houston traffic. Couldn’t own it and the Concord.
Many times a truck will get a job when a car leaves you still looking.
Yes these had the venerable Chrysler 727 backing up their 258s. When Borg Warner decided to get stop production of their slushbox family AMC and IH both replaced them with the near bullet proof 727. Definitely a better choice than going with GM who supplied a number of the other parts and subsystems for both companies, and Chrysler too. Dirty little secret is that GM produced more parts on an International light line vehicle (Scouts, pickups and Travelalls) than IH did but thankfully transmissions were not one of them.
LOVED the growl (grunt?) these sixes made in Gremlins et al in the support classes for IMSA in these years!
Eric, I think the 258 got the 904 Torqueflite. If you painted this one dark metallic green it would just like the one I had. Never should have GIVEN it away, because it was still on the road years later.
I think so too; still a reliable box. If memory serves me right, the A727 usually ended up behind big blocks, and heavy-duty or hi-po small blocks.
The info I have shows both as being offered behind the 258 in the Concord. I know IH backed the AMC 6 with the 727 but it wouldn’t surprise me if AMC used the 904 particularly in later years.
It would be interesting if the Concord (in any variation) got the 727, since all Chrysler A-bodies powered by a slant-six or the 273/318 got the 904.
The only exception were the Dusters/Swingers/Demons/Dart Sports that came equipped with the 340/360 high-performance engines that got the heavier-duty 727.
I got the 727 as a heavy duty box in a 265 Valiant with tow package standard models got the biodegradable Borg/Warner
The 2wd cars got the 904 behind the 258, Eagles with the 258 got the 998 or the 904 if they had the 151.
I was thinking mainly of how Chrysler used them in their cars. It may well be that AMC did it a bit differently.
I always liked the parcel tray underneath the dash, and wish more cars had them.
That isn’t so much a parcel tray as it is the AC system and I think the non-AC cars didn’t get a shelf down there.
So when do we find an early, flat-fronted Hornet? I’ve been looking for years; I did pass one in a small town in the boonies, but I (stupidly) felt like I was in a hurry. Where have they all gone? The original Hornet was substantially better looking than the Concord; very clean indeed.
I spotted a ’72 2 door on CL in the Seattle area a couple of weeks ago. Based on the pix it looked like a well preserved example, asking was $1200, I called too late 🙁
As we may have mentioned in the earlier AMC posts, by the time we get into the mid 70’s, Dick Teague’s styling direction takes a few new turns. This is the next to the last truly modern (almost Bauhaus) compact from any American manufacturer. Only the Fairmont and clones were more Bauhaus.
I can really remember the mid 70’s versions clearly and by the time the Fairmont (and to be honest the X and K cars, too) comes along, you could really tell these cars were from a different era. We wanted the new, but AMC was still offering the old…
Now, (collectively) we’ve changed our minds.
I was struck with a thought the other day upon pondering a W body Impala going down the road. Just like these end-of-the-road Hornets, the Impy is a relic from another time. It gets panned by all of the critics, but there’s a loyal buyer base out there.
I wonder if we will be all misty about the W body Impala in 30 or so years…
@Geozinger:
“I wonder if we will be all misty about the W body Impala in 30 or so years…”
I know I will, my friend, I will…
While I certainly prefer the Hornet’s more pure styling, you gotta admit, AMC did a nice job with the front end on the Concorde.
Rare car here and its in good nick good find Lee.
A little bit of history here. The Concord/Hornet began life as a concept vehicle called Cavalier in 1965:
Looks like they were considering suicide doors, that would have been bad a**
IIRC, the doors were interchangeable side to side and front to back. I.E., the driver’s door was also the passenger rear door. The bumpers were interchangeable, too. But AMC had already been doing that on production cars.
I would love, love, love to find one of these lower trim level Concord (or even an older Hornet) coupe. It’s been a MM fantasy of mine to strip out the AMC six and drop in a SBC (LT1 or newer) and appropriate hardware to beef it up for mild street/strip duty. I may have mentioned this before here. True-blue AMC enthusiasts will hate me for it, but it’s my dream…
Seeing these cars again, particularly in this unaltered state, reminds me of how much the later AMCs were almost like a British-style kit car industry, The Chrysler trans, the Ford ignition, the myriad GM parts and pieces all speak to a builder who was further and further out on the edge of survival.
Glad to see this survivor, though. We need reminders like those. Actually, Detroit does…
A Jeep four-cylinder would be a natural. Same genetics; and what AMC should have done ten years before it did, for its small-car line.
I’m with the folks on the opportunities lost. The Hornet/Concord, once so ubiquitous, now gone…as with other locales, our local Feds had a big motor-pool of them. Right up to 1983; they were literally the last customers for a car line and marque slated to die.
Never drove or rode in a Hornet; but my Gremlin was more than acceptable as a daily driver. With the practicality of having the rest of the car, it would have been a great Poorhouse Special…I was in such straits at the time.
A lot of similarities, both in styling and market and means, between AMC’s exit from the passenger-car biz, and Studebaker’s, sixteen years earlier. The final clean, no-nonsense styling; the conservative, reliable powertrains; the death watch; government sales….and the end.
At the friday night street drags (during my teens) I once saw a completely stock appearing brown 69 Rambler American, which had a 454 and was tubbed out. I forget what times it ran but it was very fast, so your idea has some merit.
The only one on the ‘bay right now:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1979-AMC-CONCORD-2-DOOR-/200782829618?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item2ebf96d832
The featured car is approximately the same color as the one that sat in my parents garage a few years somewhere around ’84-’86 period. My dad always traded old cars although he wasn’t a “car guy” so to speak. I have no idea where he got his nor what became of it.
All I remembered about it was the disgusting color, 258 L6, depressing plain interior, & lack of any options other than the L6, automatic, & full wheelcovers. I supposed it served its purpose but it was depressing to ride around in. Three big squares on the intsrument cluster with the right-hand blank one proclaiming “we were too cheap to order a clock”. I remember the thing not having holes for a radio either — I was probably seeing a block-off cover.
Yeah I know even many of my beloved GM models didn’t offer a radio as standard equipment so I can’t really argue the radio issue but this car reminded me of Kix cereal: it was technically food but it was no treat to eat. My dad’s old ’67 Chevies (6 cylinder Biscayne & 6-cylinder Bel Air) had fewer appointments than the Concord but I always thought they were beautiful, cool cars — this was through 11-13-year old eyes who had not yet begun to favor GM.
I do appreciate Lee for posting this car because I’m amazed at what a difference the Brougham treatment does to the inside of the Concord — it looks a whole lot more livable than the benches my dad’s car was equipped with.
Now, car people miss the old AMC cars. Back in 1983, Car and Driver was going “these old AMCs are dead, the Alliance and other new Renaults will bring them back”. Thinking that the future looked bright. Who knew?
Predictions are a crapshoot. At various times, the Wankel was going to revolutionize the auto industry; the Japanese were going to own us; GM was going to be broken up; GM was going to own Chrysler (several times).
Volkswagen’s Westmoreland plant was going to start a new chapter on import cars (it did, but not the way predicted). And, of course Franco-American Motors was going to be the World Beater.
Everyone at the time knew what the AMC Hornet platform was: a conservative, obsolete, dated compact car which was kept in production for lack of any other options on AMC’s part. Stripped out for the government motor pool or gussied up to fool Grandma…it was heavy, slow, and wildly obsolete. Build was getting better; after 12 years in production, it ought to have. Factory Ziebart treatment was a gimmick; proven so once the Asian brands offered SERIOUS corrosion protection.
Yet, today, we miss it. Why? Because, in concept, Americans love underdawgs. Even as AMC was tottering towards its FINIS line, Studebaker fan clubs were active – and members lusting over boxy Commanders and Daytonas with Chevy engines.
Those people then, didn’t buy Studes fifteen years earlier; and they didn’t buy AMC cars in 1981 or 1982. Very few did…because while Americans love the IMAGERY of the underdawg, they’d rather put their money on a winner.
that 81 concord reminds of my 83 Concord. Except it was claret red with red interior. I learned early on driving it home how loose the steering was. I think I compacted my knuckles a good 1/8 inch from gripping the pizza crust thin steering wheel rim. That was my first long drive getting home from grandpa’s house. The Ziebart rust proofing and extra galvinized sheet metal really worked. Before we had the sent to the bone yard 6 years ago. The car only very minor surface rust on the dent front valence panel under the front bumper. The death of that car was a broken rear leaf spring shackle.
I can vouch for the tough american slogan of the time period. My brother hit a deer in the left front fender of the car. It only needed only a headlight assembly and fender to be back in business. Ironically the donor fender was off of an Eagle including the fender flares.
I miss the simplicity of that car.
Still miss that nice low end torque that bolted the car quickly up 25 MPH across a intersection.