Vehicle Spotlight: AMC Javelin AMX
American Motor Coporation, or AMC, was always the forgotten little brother of the big name auto players. GM, Ford, and Chrysler dominated the nation with sleek designs and performance numbers. Meanwhile AMC focused their efforts on producing family-oriented vehicles that were more practical for everyday life. At the end of the day, they were an American car company that had some pretty hot motors. The years 1968 through 1970 are often recognized as a point during the horsepower wars when everyone was giving their all and leaving little to spare. AMC joined the fight in 1968 with the AMC AMX. And despite living in the shadow of the much more popular names, they proved that they had what it took to play with the big boys.
The AMX was basically a sports model of the AMC Javelin. Aside from badging, they were nearly identical in appearance. This concept debuted in 1965 and really knocked people out of their seats. In fact, one of the major differences between a Javelin and an AMX was that the AMX was only a two-seater. It was a rehash, aimed to capture a place among the pony car craze of the time. But was often referred to as the poor man’s Corvette.
Packing a Punch
Despite the passive-aggressive term of endearment, the AMX really was a full-on contender. In terms of displacement, owners of this fine ride had 4 engine options: 290 cu in, 343 cu in, 360 cu in, and of course the 390 cu in engine. All were fitted with four-barrel carburetors from the factory and could be configured with either an automatic three-speed or a four-speed manual transmission.
Yes, the biggest engine available was 390 cubic inches, which even by today’s standards seems pretty big. But during its time, it would have to face off with considerably larger engines like the 429, 454 and 440. Perhaps the leading advantage of this platform is that it came off the assembly line at a weight of about 3,000 pounds. When you take its light weight into consideration, those 325 ponies that the 390 was capable of producing, suddenly stand up better to the competition.
The AMX was still a bit behind the top dogs but not by much. Fitted with the 390, it was capable of a 5.7 second 0-60 and a 14.4 second quarter mile time. It was more than a full second behind the Corvette in the quarter mile. But it was nearly identical to the performance of an SS Camaro fitted with a 396. In fact, that version of the Camaro had the same exact 0-60 and quarter mile times off the factory line.
The potential of this platform didn’t go unseen. After modifications were made to the engine and chassis, it proved itself as a force to be reckoned with. American professional race car driver Craig Breedlove, his racing-partner wife Lee, and backup driver Ron Dykes, were able to push the car to set 106 world speed records at the Goodyear track in Texas.
Born to Stand Out
For those familiar with the AMC brand, particularly the AMX, it’s hard to think about them without also envisioning the wildly vibrant red, white, and blue paint job. These were the Super Stock edition of the car and were a bit more radical than the originals. They were fit with modifications from names like Doug’s Headers, Hurst Racing, and Crane Cams. They featured high compression cylinder heads, running the engine on a 12.3:1 compression ratio. It was advertised to produce just 340 horsepower but the NHRA did test them to make 420 horsepower. When power like that is crammed into something like the AMX, they jump from a somewhat respectable 14.4 second quarter mile all the way down to a 10 second elapsed time. That’s just ridiculous—and that red, white, and blue paint scheme ensured bald eagles followed it all the way down the track.
For the first run, the AMX only survived three short years. Many speculate that low sales were to blame. In the late 70s the badging did reappear on a version of the AMC Spirit. But like all things of the era, it was easily forgotten. Ultimately, this version of the Javelin was a bold move made by designers at AMC. They pushed themselves from the norm to try their hand as a performance leader during the most legendary era of production cars in the United States. The moniker AMX itself is a direct indication of that, as it’s short for “American Motors Experimental.”
