Plan B Forum

When I first got married in 1973, my wife and I faced a conundrum. We needed a car, but had very little money and a modest income. Perversely, however, my wife was unwilling to buy anything "used." I would normally have just bought a 4-5 year old car and been done with it. But we had to get something new.

The solution? A brand-new, ordered from the factory, 1973 AMC Gremlin X. We ordered it in dark, metallic green with gold trim. 258c.i. in-line six, and three-speed stick on the floor. Sporty? You betcha. I think we paid about $2,300 for it. While buying a Gremlin may seen foolish, the alternatives were (mainly), a made-from-compressed-rust Chevy Vega, or a self-immolating Ford Pinto. And the Gremlin was a bit cheaper than either of them.

The first new car I'd ever owned, it was loved but not very...well...good. The big six was a pig. It combined the virtues of no power and lousy fuel economy. The highest speed I was ever able to achieve was a little over 80mph, and at that speed there was no doubt that you were approaching the outer limits of the car's capabilities. The ride was ridiculous. I was constantly hitting my head on the roof of the car as we bounded over both minor and major bumps in the road. When rounding any bend, God help you if you ran into any imperfections in the road. The rear end would bounce out like a basketball over bumps and potholes. When the factory (bias-ply) tires were worn out (about 15k miles) I splurged on a set of new radials and they dramatically improved the car's handling and reduced road noise considerably.

The back window - in fact the whole back of the car - would be instantly covered with dust the first time you drove the car after washing it. The aerodynamics must have been breathtaking - worse than the proverbial brick.

A mere couple weeks after we bought the car, we spilled a couple quarts of my mother-in-law's award-winning ragu in the back seat, and the aroma of that sauce remained with the car until its demise. I don't think we ever could have actually sold it with that aroma.

When the car was about two years old, it was the fatal victim of a sneeze. A driver going down my street had sneezed just as he reached the Gremlin, pulled down on the steering wheel, and took out the car, pushing it into a utility pole. We had to put it to sleep.

I now understand that these early 70's Gremlins are becoming somewhat popular for enthusiasts on a budget. At least that's the rumor.

So I am retroactively cool. I'm so proud.

Pah tell me about it. My first car was a 1959 Ford Anglia, never coo in it's day, but, with effort, surprisingly reliable. I drove it into the ground. I've always fancied getting one again as a "hobby car". But then Harry Potter came out.

The Gremlin was my first new car. My first car was a Hillman Minx.

A GI had brought it back from England. I didn't even know what a Hillman was.

And I wish I hadn't learned.

The solution? A brand-new, ordered from the factory, 1973 AMC Gremlin X. We ordered it in dark, metallic green with gold trim. 258c.i. in-line six, and three-speed stick on the floor. Sporty? You betcha. I think we paid about $2,300 for it. While buying a Gremlin may seen foolish, the alternatives were (mainly), a made-from-compressed-rust Chevy Vega, or a self-immolating Ford Pinto. And the Gremlin was a bit cheaper than either of them.

For about the same money, I recall you could have gotten a Ford Maverick, a Dodge Dart/Plymouth Valiant, or possibly a Chevy Nova.

I don't think so. I paid around $2,300 and those cars would have been several hundred dollars more.

I picked up this little tidbit from Widipedia: "A 1973 Gremlin purchased by Consumer Reports was top-rated in a group of six subcompact models tested for the June issue. That car had relatively few sample defects and proved reliable over a long-term test."

I have to say I'm stunned.

It took me many years to learn (and I still haven't quite got it) that sometimes it is often better to pay more on the front end to get a better quality product. Then I won't get tired of it as soon, and trade it for something else. In hindsight, I probably should have gotten something that I really wanted, rather than settling for the Gremlin, just because it was new and cheap.

I really lusted after a Pacer for a few years after that, but I could never justify the higher price. I knew nothing of the problematic mechanicals, but I loved the spacious cabin, especially in the "wagon" version of it, and I thought the seats were superior to anything else in the price range.

A 340/automatic/PS/PB Duster would have been ~$2650. I suspect that a base-model (slant 6, 3-speed, manual brakes/steering) model might have come in under $2200!