Editing AMC AMX (section)

==1969==
[[File:69AmX.jpg|alt=1969 AMX with Go Package in Bittersweet Orange metallic|thumb|1969 AMX with Go Package in Bittersweet Orange metallic]][[File:1969 AMX black with red stripes VA f.jpg|thumb|1969 AMC AMX]]
[[File:1969 AMC AMX Big Bad Green at 2009 Potomac Ramblers meet 2of3.jpg|thumb|right|1969 AMC AMX in "Big Bad Green"]]
[[File:1969 AMC AMX Big Bad Green at 2009 Potomac Ramblers meet 3of3.jpg|thumb|right|1969 AMX interior with the center panel "Gauge package"]]

The AMX's full second model year saw only slight changes, except for a $52 increase in its base price.<ref name="stuffworksAMX"/> The five-spoke Magnum 500 steel road wheels were no longer chrome plated, but now came with a stainless steel trim ring. The racing stripes were now available in five colors. The interior featured a revised instrumentation with the 0–8000&nbsp;rpm [[tachometer]] moved to match the [[speedometer]] that was now calibrated to {{convert|140|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}. Interior door panels were revised, carpeting was upgraded, new [[leather]] upholstery was optional, and the gas pedal became suspended.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.oldcarbrochures.com/static/NA/AMC/1969_AMC/1969_AMC_Full_Line_Brochure/1969%20AMC%20Full%20Line-32-33.html |page=33 |title=1969 AMC Full Line Brochure |website=oldcarbrochures.com |access-date=16 November 2012}}</ref> Later production cars received a hood over the instruments in front of the driver. Trunk capacity was {{convert|9.7|cuft|L|0}}.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.oldcarbrochures.com/static/NA/AMC/1969_AMC/1969_AMC_Full_Line_Brochure/1969%20AMC%20Full%20Line-44-45.html |page=45 |title=1969 AMC FullLine Brochure |website=oldcarbrochures.com |access-date=16 November 2012}}</ref>

Starting in January 1969, all manual transmission AMXs came with a [[Hurst Performance|Hurst]] floor shifter. The center console-mounted three-speed "Shift-Command" automatic remained optional with "1", "2", and "D" forward settings. The "D" mode was for fully automatic operation, but the driver could shift manually through all three gears by starting in the "1" setting for first gear with no upshift, then the "2" setting for second gear with no upshift, and finally to third-gear in the "D" setting.<ref>{{cite web |title=1967 AMC Ambassador Engineering |url= http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1967-1968-amc-ambassador3.htm |website=auto.howstuffworks.com |author=((Auto Editors of ''Consumer Guide'')) |date=11 October 2007 |access-date=16 November 2012 |archive-date=12 June 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110612132148/http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1967-1968-amc-ambassador3.htm }}</ref>

A "Big Bad" paint option for $34 became available in mid-1969. The neon brilliant blue (BBB), orange (BBO), and green (BBG) exteriors included color-matched front and rear bumpers, as well as a unique slim bright lower grille moulding for the front bumper and two vertical rubber-faced painted bumper guards for the rear. The factory-painted 1969 AMXs were 195 in BBB, 285 in BBO, and 283 in BBG.<ref name="lyons&scott">{{cite book|last1=Lyons |first1=Dan |first2=Jason |last2=Scott |title=Muscle Car Milestones |year=2001 |publisher=MotorBooks International |isbn=978-0-7603-0615-4 |pages=90–92 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=nUkf0FM0u6UC&pg=PA92 |access-date=16 November 2012}}</ref>

''Popular Mechanics'' wrote that the 1969 "AMX preserves the status quo this year, being virtually unchanged, and remains an absolute delight to drive."<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Kilpatrick |first=Bill |title=Personal Cars: High style combined with speed 'n' sport |magazine=Popular Mechanics |date=October 1968 |volume=130 |issue=4 |page=109}}</ref>

===California 500 Special===
The "California 500 Special" is a version of 1969 AMXs sold only by Southern California American Motors Dealer Association members. It was part of a marketing campaign to commemorate the 1969 season at the [[Riverside International Raceway]].<ref name="AMX500-barrett-jackson">{{cite web |title=1969 American Motors AMX California 500 Special |url= https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1969-AMERICAN-MOTORS-AMX-CALIFORNIA-500-SPECIAL-15368 |website=barrett-jackson.com |year=2006 |access-date=5 December 2019}}</ref> They would serve as [[Safety car|pace car]] and the dealers would sell replicas.<ref name="AMX500-perience">{{cite web |title=1969 AMX 500 Special |url= http://www.amx-perience.com/articles/1969AMX500Special.php |website=amx-perience.com |access-date=5 December 2019}}</ref> All were finished in Big Bad Green with black stripes and included the 390 Go-Pac, automatic transmission, air conditioning, power steering, adjustable steering wheel, tinted windows, radio, light group, visibility group, and a saddle leather interior.<ref name="AMX500-perience"/> The cars also featured "Trendsetter Sidewinder" exhaust side pipes in place of the molding strips on the rocker panels and were identified by brass plaques mounted on the hood blisters that had crossed checkered [[racing flags]] and the words 500 Special.<ref name="lyons&scott"/> A total of 283 AMXs were built in Big Bad Green for the 1969 model year; however, the exact number of California 500 Special versions is unknown, with only an estimate of 32.<ref>{{cite web |title=1969 AMC AMX California 500 Special |url= https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/20582/lot/301/ |website=bonhams.com |date=17 January 2013 |access-date=5 December 2019}}</ref><ref name="AMX500-barrett-jackson"/>

{{clear}}

===Super Stock AMX===
[[File:1969 AMC AMX SS Hurst at Kenosha show.jpg|thumb|right|1969 Super Stock AMX]]

AMC also introduced the Super Stock AMX. To maximize quarter-mile performance, the 390 engine was equipped with twin Holley carburetors and 12.3:1 compression-ratio cylinder heads, plus [[Aftermarket (automotive)|aftermarket]] ''Doug's'' headers and exhaust system, and the tires were drag slicks. [[Hurst Performance]] carried out several additional modifications.<ref>{{cite web|title=SS/AMX webpages|url= http://www.ssamx.com/index.html |first1=Mike |last1=Weaver |first2=George |last2=Gudat |quote=This site is dedicated to the old SS/AMX warriors... |access-date=5 February 2011}}</ref>

American Motors rated the car at {{convert|340|hp|kW|abbr=on}}, but the [[National Hot Rod Association]] (NHRA) rated it at {{convert|420|hp|kW}} and shuffled it among various competition classes that included SS/G and SS/D. The Super Stock AMXs were also put in SS/E class by NHRA based on the car's {{convert|3050|lb|kg|0|abbr=on}} weight and estimated {{convert|405|hp|kW|abbr=on}} and ultimately slotted into the SS/C class.<ref name="Shaw">{{cite web |last=Shaw |first=Tom |title=Incredibly Well Preserved Original 1969 AMC Super Stock AMX Has Just 23 Miles on the Odo |url= https://www.hotrod.com/articles/incredibly-well-preserved-original-1969-amc-super-stock-amx-has-just-23-miles-on-the-odo/ |publisher=Hot Rod |access-date=20 September 2020 |date=31 March 2016}}</ref>

Most of the cars were prepared and custom-painted by AMC dealers to be campaigned at big racing events where they ran in the low 11s on the tracks.<ref name="Shaw"/> The best recorded quarter-mile was 10.73 seconds at {{convert|128|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}.<ref name="howamx390">{{cite web|url= http://musclecars.howstuffworks.com/classic-muscle-cars/1969-amc-amx-390.htm |title=Classic Muscle Cars: 1969 AMC AMX 390|author=((Auto Editors of ''Consumer Guide'')) |website=howstuffworks.com |date=21 June 2007 |access-date=26 June 2010 |archive-date=29 April 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100429235451/http://musclecars.howstuffworks.com/classic-muscle-cars/1969-amc-amx-390.htm }}</ref>

The Super Stock AMX was meant for the race track and lacked comfort equipment such as a heater. The car could be ordered in all white or vertical bands of red, white, and blue, distinguishing numerous AMC competition cars of the day. The base price was $5,994, approximately $1,900 more than a fully loaded 1969 AMX. Moreover, the factory [[warranty]] was unavailable for these cars.<ref name="howamx390"/>

{{clear}}

===Pikes Peak cars===
[[File:1969 AMC AMX Pikes Peak car at Kenosha show.jpg|thumb|right|1969 AMX Pikes Peak pace car]]

The [[Pikes Peak International Hill Climb]] used 1969 AMXs as pace cars for the [[Hillclimbing|hillclimb]] race to the summit of [[Pikes Peak]] that was held on 29 June 1969 in [[Colorado]].<ref name="pikespeak">{{cite book|last=Mitchell |first=Larry G. |title=AMC Muscle Cars| year=2000 |publisher=MBI Publishing |isbn=978-0-7603-0761-8 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=JHVaQFDrx_MC&q=1969+Pikes+Peak+Hillclimb+Pace/Courtesy+AMX&pg=RA1-PT70 |page=126 |access-date=21 March 2012}}</ref>

The AMX Pace and Courtesy cars were used by racers (including [[Bobby Unser]]) to practice the week before the race up the mountain.<ref name="pikesamxs">{{cite book |last=Gunnell |first=John |title=American Cars of the 1960s: A Decade of Diversity |year=2005 |publisher=Krause Publications |isbn=978-0-89689-131-9 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=_apeyhD-Dj8C&q=1969+Pikes+Peak+Hillclimb+Pace/Courtesy+AMX&pg=PA77 |page=77 |access-date=21 March 2012 }}{{Dead link|date=July 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> There were 12 (10 according to some sources) pace/courtesy AMXs, and all were equipped with the "390 Go-Pac" option and finished in "Frost White" with red stripes and red interiors.<ref name="pikesamxs"/>

Many AMC and Jeep vehicles have participated in the annual race, winning class titles and setting records. However, the only two-seat AMX officially raced in the hill climb was a 1969 model by Larry G. Mitchell in the 1987 "Vintage" class.<ref name="pikespeak"/>

===AMX-R===
[[File:Car show view from Gilmore bus 9 (1143620025) AMX-R.jpg|thumb|AMX-R at the 2007 Gilmore Car Museum car show]]

The original AMX's "Ramble" seat idea was considered for possible production.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Strohl |first=Daniel |title=Ramble(seat) on |magazine=Hemmings Muscle Machines |date=November 2009 |url= http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/2009/11/01/hmn_feature7.html |access-date=26 June 2010}}</ref> A working prototype was built in 1968 from a regular AMX by James Jeffords, a designer-customizer, and was named the AMX-R.<ref name=amx-r>{{cite magazine |url= http://www.hagerty.com/lifestyle/hobby_article.aspx?id=34642 |last=Peterson |first=West |title=1968 AMX-R |magazine=Hagerty Lifestyle |date=1 May 2007 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110721013126/http://www.hagerty.com/lifestyle/hobby_article.aspx?id=34642 |archive-date=21 July 2011 |access-date=21 March 2012}}</ref> Jeffords was also head of the Javelin Trans Am Racing Team for AMC.<ref>{{cite book|last=Mitchell |first=Larry G. |title=AMC Muscle Cars |publisher=MBI Publishing |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-7603-0761-8}}</ref> Together with industrial designer [[Brooks Stevens]], they decided to also "plush up" the interior, add custom paint treatment and hood with Jeffords's name in badge form, as well as a modified suspension as part of their plan to offer an optional Ramble seat for 500 production cars.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Let's Hear It For Javelin! American Motors tries to become king of the hill |magazine=Car & Driver |year=1968 |volume=14 |number=3 |page=104}}</ref> The prototype was prepared by Dave Puhl's House of Kustoms in Palatine, Illinois.<ref name=amx-r/> However, numerous problems prevented serial production, including safety and [[product liability]] concerns, AMC's refusal to sell him the cars to modify, as well as the adverse reaction from [[Ralph Nader]] to the exposed exterior seating idea.<ref name=amx-r/> The AMX-R's special blacked-out hood treatment would later be offered as a "shadow mask" option on 1970 AMX models.