Blueprint Series No. 18: 1969 SC/Rambler

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This is perhaps, one of the most unusual muscle cars ever made. Dinky little American Motors sure had balls with this one. Let’s face it, AMC’s performance image wasn’t even “your father’s car.” It was more like “your grand parent’s car!” American Motors (aka Rambler) had been selling the “American” since 1958. It was a cheap, light weight, dependable, plain little sedan. It was so plain that it was almost completely forgettable!

By ‘69, the Rambler name just wasn’t making it anymore and the company was in the process of reinventing itself as “American Motors.” As a final farewell, the company offered a “performance” version of the little Rambler America called the “SC/Rambler” or Scrambler. It came with a 315 hp 390 cid engine, 4-speed, performance gears, mag wheels, fat tires, a red, white, and blue stripe package, and an odd-shaped little shaker hood scoop.

This was probably the ultimate “silk purse out of a sow’s ear” muscle car. It was almost like the “Revenge of the Nerds” for the street muscle car scene. The 3000 pound Rambler was surprisingly quick and no doubt caught many a SS Chevelle, Mustang, or Corvette off guard. Odd as it was, there was something charming about this little wanna-be muscle car.

You gotta hand it to American Motors (Rambler), they REALLY tried! Wanting to jump into the emerging pony car market, AMC came out with the Javelin in 1968. It was a “nice” pony car, but needed something more. So AMC shortened the chassis, restyled the body and unleashed the AMX. what was cool about the AMX was that it didn’t look like ANYTHING else on the road, it was completely unique. And it was a true “sports car” in the sense that it did not have a back seat, it was a 2-seater only!

Weighing in at 200 pounds less than a Javelin, AMC packed all the hot hardware they could think of. The car handled well and had a very under-rated 390 engine that responded very well to hot rod tricks such as headers, a larger carb, hot ignition, and taller gearing. Hurst Performance of Warminster, PA. actually offered a heavily modified version of the AMX that was as close as you could get to an all-out Super Stock car for the street. All it really needed was a set of slicks and it’s mufflers uncapped!

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