Originally intended as a 500 unit halo model to generate some buzz, AMC’s SC/Rambler wore a bold and patriotic color scheme and backed up that flash with a 390 V8, Hurst shifter, and more. This 1969 AMC SC/Rambler in Fairmont, West Virginia emerges after a reported 20 years of storage for an auction here on eBay. AMC’s underdog status behind the “big three” (Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors) inspired deliberately brash and polarizing styling choices. White bread with mayonnaise wasn’t going to cut the mustard, so to speak, and AMC pulled all the levers on the SC/Rambler. Thanks to WesternPARegion for some details, and to reader Curvette for spotting this storage unit find. With a few days left, the auction needs one optimist to fan the flames with a $19,999.99 opening bid.
The seller bills this as a “period correct” 390, but cannot validate if it’s this SC/Rambler’s born-with mill. If original or equivalent, the hot 6.4L makes a stout 315 HP and 425 lb-ft of torque, good for a 14.3 second quarter-mile on the way home from the dealer. The T-10 four-speed manual gearbox and Hurst T-handle shifter “appear to be original,” according to the listing.
When new, tri-color headrests topped the otherwise plebian seats, part of a spartan interior contrasting the in-your-face paint job. Dealers begged for more and AMC cranked out 1512 one-year SC/Ramblers. At just under $3000, the SC/Rambler landed a hair cheaper than Plymouth’s budget brawler, the 383 Road Runner.
Oddly, our own Jim ODonnell featured an SC/Rambler with a brown left front fender here in 2023, but the New Jersey location and other details suggest it’s a brown fender coincidence and not the same car. A novice may suspect the wheels survived an attack by a misguided rattle-can-wielding 14 year-old, but blue wheels were part of the SC/Rambler package.
“Insert air here,” seems to be the message of the blue arrow graphic, originally pointing into a mailbox scoop. A “390” callout, and other graphics added some fun as shown in this picture from NAPAOnline. There’s only one way to do this AMC right, and that’s the full restoration it was denied for two decades. Are you bold enough to restore this extroverted muscle car?
A group of us back road deviants would get together on Saturday night outside of town at a deserted stretch of highway that dead ended into nowhere after it’d been bypassed by the new highway. The usual tomfoolery followed of course but everyone stopped in their tracks one night when one of the crowd showed up with one of these. They gave him a ration about buying a fancy painted Rambler until it took a down couple of guys that were all hat and no horse(or car in this case).
Don’t know that anyone other than a hardcore AMC fan would pay that much for this but as has been pointed out before there’s a backside for every seat out there.
Always liked the stout AMC packages they offered the customers 🏁
She is a mess. Boy, I hope there’s an end-of-the-rainbow buyer out there for her!
Always preferred the more subdued “B” Paint Scheme on these.
One in similar condition once came up for sale about :20 minutes from my place – Still regret not taking a swing at that.
Got to buy them when you find them as the saying goes.
“B” paint on eBay right now. at the price asked for this “A” and restoration costs the “B” could be a better option.
Another in the long list of Rambler/AMC duds, but by golly, this was our “middle finger” to all the other fast( small block) cars. While the Javelin was needled right from the start as a performance car, AMC thought a “sleeper” would be a hit. It wasn’t. Not to say, many a Chevelle or Mustang didn’t get their doors blown surprisingly off by this R,W,& B themed Rambler American, and most were pounded into the ground, to the point you see here. By the 3rd or 4th hooligan, there wasn’t much left. While at the AMC reunion , the swap area had a bunch of separate SC parts, and some claim there are more clones today than original ones, but this was our moment in the sun, although a setting one. The 1970 SC/360 Hornet was another short lived wonder, and AMC slowly drifted from the high performance thing, but we sure gave it a shot. With AMC a distant memory for most, I don’t see much interest in restoring it. Since money isn’t an issue today, it has to be nicer than this for any interest.
The Hornet SC/360 was only offered in 1971.
In high school the local county constables were “herding” 390 Galaxie 2bbls. They were incredibly slow. So most of the fast cars at school could out run them. Some were even so bold as to start the race right in front of them. I was coming down the hill and a good view of the intersection below..2 buddies from school were lined up and ready to go at it. Sitting in the corner gas station was one of the counties finest in his new Matador police cruiser. When I saw the Matador I yelled “,don’t do it!” But being in my car at least 1/4 mile away they didn’t hear me. They were both nailed within 3/8 of a mile. Those AMC big engines RAN!
A lot of work here and the price is to high. The floors look solid and looks like no signs of rust. I think this one can be saved.
One of these exact cars sits in Southwest Lincoln, Nebraska
I politely disagree with Howard. I believe there are plenty of AMC fans out there that would love to restore this little gem, just with a lower starting price.
100% agree! Sorry Howard.
I recently bought a ’81 Spirit 390, with the soul (good chassis parts) of a ’79 AMX underneath, so there are converts still to be made, Howard.
It’s okay, I suppose being the BFs punching bag isn’t all bad. I’d like to agree with you, but I just don’t see it. I think there is interest in cars like this if turnkey, strictly for their quirky appeal, but the days of restoring a car like this have gone the way of common sense. True Rambler/AMC fans diminish with every funeral.
seller is going for the throat with a 20k opening bid. most likely scaring off many potential buyers. you can bet it going to take at least 50k to bring it back from the dead and the seller seems a bit wishy washy on the engine info. good luck
Back in 1969, I remember seeing one of these new in our Rambler dealer’s showroom on Congress Ave. in Austin,TX. I seem to recall a different, mailbox-like intake scoop though.
One of my high-school buddies had started to work for the telephone company and splurged for a new 1969 copper-colored AMX! It was awesome…
One can see the holes where the scoop is attached.
I remember those had small dual English racing mirrors