American automakers began entering the subcompact car market in 1970. Both Chevrolet and Ford had all-new cars for 1971, the Vega and the Pinto, respectively. Fledgling American Motors went a different route with the Gremlin, which was a chopped Hornet that made it the most interesting-looking of the bunch. But it came with an inline-6, so it was potentially peppier than the Chevy or Ford. The seller has a 1970 Gremlin that looks like a Levi edition, but it may be a tribute, as that option was not offered by AMC until 1973. Located in Palm Desert, California, this interesting runabout is available here on eBay for $12,000 OBO.
AMC found 671,000 buyers for the quirky Gremlin between 1970 and 1978. It was replaced by the Spirit in 1979, which was mostly the same car but with new sheet metal. AMC was always trying to boost sales by coming up with one gimmick or another, and the Levi Edition is an example. That included upholstery and other interior pieces with materials provided by the Levi’s blue jeans people. The car even wore the Levi logo on the front fenders.
We think we’ve seen this Gremlin before, but that was five years ago, and the car was in a different state. The odometer readings vary (78,000 then vs. 73,000 now), and both cars have white paint under the hood, indicating both listings reflect a car that had its color changed to yellow. And both listings say the car was in the movie “Blow” as a prop. The body stripes don’t quite match those in the AMC ads, suggesting they may have been added with the repaint, and the older Levi materials inside are admitted retrofits per the seller.
This interesting set of wheels is being sold by the brother of the owner, who has moved overseas and left the Gremlin behind. We’re told it runs great with a 232 cubic inch inline-6 and an automatic transmission. Some recent work was done, including replacing a variety of gaskets, the radiator, and a rebuild of the carburetor, along with some tinkering on the brakes. The body and paint have held up, though perhaps not at an award-winning level. Air conditioning vents have been added under the dash (the unit needs attention). And a few of the gauges don’t work. What we have here is Gremlin Déjà vu!
I like the little car. Seems like it make a good driver and get a lot of attention. The price seems a little high for a driver quality. But AMC‘s are hard to find.