1966 AMC AMX Prototype

Post World War competition between manufacturers was tough. For the independent automobile producers, times were even tougher. By the early 1950's, competition had become so fierce that two of the largest independent automobile manufacturers, Nash and Hudson, merged to form American Motors in an attempt to compete with Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler. The production was shifted to Kenosha, Wisconsin, the home of Nash. By merging, the companies could share their knowledge and technology, while spending less one research and new product development. When the companies first merged, they kept their respective nameplates on the vehicles that they produced. By 1958, American Motors was no longer using either the Hudson or the Nash names. The Rambler name from Nash was adopted and used for a number of years.

During the close of the 1950's, the AMC Company prospered partly due to their compact products which were virtually uncontested in performance and price. The Big Three seemed to respond by moving some of their products down-market and intruding on AMC's territory. AMC responded by investing over $300 million into new engine designs, new facilities, and new body styles. A wider array of models were offered which were accompanied by numerous bodystyles, engine options, and a price tags.

The 1965 Marlin was a strong attempt by AMC to move into the muscle car market. Dick Teague, AMC's vice-president for styling, continued to entice the company to develop their products, take risks, and design sporty and attractive cars. The result was a series of 'AMX' sports cars, with the 'X' representing 'experimental.'

At the 1966 Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) conference in Detroit, AMC introduced a prototype that had a fiberglass body and was void of engine or drive train. The design was complete with a 'rumble seat', rear seats that could fold-up, and rear windows that could flip up. The rumble seat raised many safety concerns and proved to be rather unfeasible. None-the-less, the fold-up rear seat design was rather creative, allowing for the passengers to sit in the rear of the car while enjoying fresh air.

The AMX was instantly popular and symbolized the bold attempts the company was willing to take. The company decided to produce a muscle car, the Javelin. Later, a production version of the AMX was produced, which shared many styling cues and mechanical components from the Javelin. The name AMX persisted through 1970 but later became an option on the Javelin. The Javelin stayed in production until 1974.

This is the original 1966 AMX prototype 'pushmobile' which was shown at the SAE conference.

By Daniel Vaughan | May 2008