This guy pulled into a rest area I was just getting ready to pull out of today, and, of course, I had to extend my stay a bit. Dude was towing his recent acquisition—this 1971 Gremlin V8—back to Florida. According to him he had left a "if you ever want to sell this car..." note on the car in Michigan a couple years ago and the owner finally got around to being ready to part with it.
The car is all original except for a lot of the soft trim that has been replaced in the last couple years. Supposedly it was bought new by the seller in '71, driven for a few years, then parked for a long, long time. In the last few years he finally took it out of storage, lifted the body off the frame, replaced some aged soft parts, cleaned it up and started driving it again before deciding to sell.
It's exceptionally well preserved. From 10 feet it looks restored, but a closer look shows just the slightest hint of patina. Supposedly it was stored inside its whole life and has only 24,000 miles on it, and I absolutely believe it. It has a very unique, time capsule condition that gives it way more presence IMO than a restored car.
The dude was justifiably excited and eager to share his enthusiasm. And he's not really even an AMC collector. He's just "always loved Gremlins." He absolutely landed his dream catch with this thing.
The only thing that could make that more awesome would be if he were pulling a fly and drive and road-tripping the Gremlin home.
I dig that color.
Yeah that's a find for sure! I'm not usually a Detroit guy but Gremlins are really cute. I like quirky. And small and light, relatively speaking.
I've done fly and drive home, but it was for a 20 year old motorcycle that a friend on the relevant forum had carefully checked out. It worked out fine, but for a 40 year old car ... the trailer was probably the smart move IMO.
That's a beautifully hideous car.
Only thing better would be if it had a four speed transmission to go with the V8. It looks to be in amazing condition.
My sister and her husband bought a new Levis Gremlin back in the day. I thought it was fun to drive, they were quirky cars but they had their charms.
It looks like the Volvo C30, especially from the back.
JG Pasterjak said:
lifted the body off the frame,
The Gremlin, like all "small body" AMCs, is based on the Hornet, and as such has a welded unibody construction without a separate frame.
Russian Warship, Go Berkeley Yourself said:
JG Pasterjak said:
lifted the body off the frame,
The Gremlin, like all "small body" AMCs, is based on the Hornet, and as such has a welded unibody construction without a separate frame.
I'm assuming he meant they pulled the subframes out. Sounded like it needed some soft brake and fuel lines after sitting for so long.
In reply to JG Pasterjak :
No subframes that unbolt.
Don’t get it wet, either.
For a car I hated, from a company I loathed, I sure love that!
To be fair, I've come a long way in my appreciation of all things AMC. The only ones now I struggle with are the coffin-nosed Matadors, and "some" Pacers. But even the Pacers are winning me over.
When I was a teenager, my best friend would drive his parent's Gremlin. The doors and rockers were so rusted you could watch the road go by. In the winter, you avoided the windrows of snow because the doors would scoop them up and feed them inside. Also, on left hand turns, you had to hold the door closed so you didn't fall out. If I remember correctly, it was a 73 or 74, and this was about 80 and 81. His family also owned a Pacer, Hornet, and a Matador.
A look at the interior brings home just how awful the interiors of American cars were back then. The Forest Service green and those hubcaps really give it a low-rent look, but it's an awesome car because of it's condition.
