The AMC brand has been associated with some truly unique cars over the years. While the AMX/3 may not be the most unique AMC ever, you can make a strong argument for it being the most beautiful.
The AMX/3 made its debut at the 1970 Chicago Auto Show. As we say in the business, this car was not “a runner” — just a pretty fiberglass shell. However, AMC did make plans to build the car, and sent the body molds to Italian sports car maker Bizzarrini. The resulting steel-bodied prototypes featured AMC’s 6.4 liter V8 engine married to an Italian 4-speed transaxle. BMW drove the AMX/3 and said it was the most neutral handling car they had ever tested! Unfortunately, like so many other installments of Cool Cars You’ve Never Heard Of, this one has an anti-climactic ending. AMC decided to cancel the program after only five cars were built (“AMC AMX”).
Speaking as a designer, I find this car very striking. The character line obviously sets it apart from, say, a Corvette or a Ferrari. The proportions are befitting of the Italian workmanship, looking like a cross between a De Tomaso Pantera and Mangusta. One small point: I would love to see this car in a warm silver; I get the feeling that the yellow paint is not doing this shape complete justice…
“AMC AMX.” Wikipedia. 21 Jul. 2010. Web. 28 Jul. 2010.
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An AMC collector bought one of the AMX/3 static display cars. He’s had molds made and he’s making body copies and building a mid engine chassis using as many AMC parts (390V8) as possible – since the working prototypes used AMC switchgear and controls. You can follow his progress (he hopes to eventually sell replicas) at amx390.com