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Fancy Hornet: 1979 AMC Concord Wagon

This cool, blue beauty is a 1979 AMC Concord Wagon. I grew up referring to these cars as “Hornet wagons with chrome”, but in all fairness.. no wait, that’s basically what they were! This fancy Hornet is listed on eBay with no reserve and a current bid price of just under $1,800, a heck of a deal! This Concord is located in Las Vegas, Nevada.

I’ve never seen a Concord, or Hornet, or AMC in general, this color before; it’s Wedgewood Blue. Beautiful. This car is supposedly a survivor, all original and the seller has done an incredible job in providing over 50 great photos – amazing! That’s a rarity in and of itself.

There appears to be some rust as you can probably see in the rocker panels, but the seller says that there is no rust and has never been any, nor any rust repair. There is sure something wonky going on in both rocker panels. It looks like there may be a trim piece missing on the bottom of each side? Maybe that’s it.

The interior is amazing in this car. For a car with almost 100,000 miles on it this one sure looks like it’s in great condition. The seats are perfect, literally factory-fresh. There appears to be some fading or wear on the silver trim on the dash, but that’s fairly normal for these cars. Has anyone restored that silver finish on their dash? I was just wondering how you did it, if anyone has done that during a restoration. The Concord was made well into 1983 when it was dropped from the lineup.

This clean-looking critter is AMC’s famous 258 cubic-inch inline-six with 110 hp. The seller has included a YouTube video showing a cold start and they also put two water bottles on the engine to show how smoothly it idles. That reminds me of an old Chrysler Turbine video showing how smoothly that engine idled. Wait, did I just compare a ’79 Concord Wagon to a Chrysler Turbine?! GAA! This really does look like a nice example. You can’t get much of a car for $2,000 anymore, surely not one this nice and with this much head-turning-ability. Have any of you owned a Concord?

Comments

  1. Avatar Al

    I see it has the inline 6, I wonder if it has the overdrive option?
    This (at least the one I had) had incredible power between the time I shifted into overdrive and when the overdrive engaged.
    I see that it is for sale for roughly what I paid for 1978 hornet Sportabout in 1978.

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    • Avatar Blyndgesser

      Sorry but it’s an automatic.

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  2. Avatar RoselandPete

    I seem to remember seeing a news program years ago about the Chrysler turbine. I think they balanced a nickel on its end while the motor was running to show how smooth it was.

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    • HoA Howard A Member

      Hi RP, that was Packard’s claim, as well. On their straight 8’s, it’s said you can balance a nickel on the head while idling. Never tried it, but my Packard 8 was smooth running.

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  3. Avatar Sam

    This could be alot of fun. Home improvement center runs and cruise-ins every weekend. Nice to see the original radio…wire in an aux jack. Our family has driven from NW Indiana to Door County Wisconsin for 60 years. Seemed like every other car on the road was an AMC from Illinois state line to Port Washington. The Concord would morph into the 4wd Eagle.

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  4. Avatar J Paul Member

    I never realized how tiny the back doors of these are, relative to the fronts. Now I can’t un-see it!

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    • Avatar Al

      The thing I liked about the back seat, was that it flipped forward and left a large space for my Golden Retriever, Charley. I never tried to sit in the back seat, so if the doors were small Charley never complained.

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  5. HoA Howard A Member

    These were nice cars, probably some of the last really good AMC’s. Clearly, a young family in mind, ( Big Mama always complained about those back doors, sorry, you want BIG women, come to Wisconsin) If you want a car like this, I doubt you’ll find a nicer one.

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  6. Avatar Jamie Staff

    Dang. I would be going after this if it were closer. Grew up with a 1971 Hornet Wagon that just barely would fit my go kart in the back, so Dad could take me up weekends to the plant he worked at so I could race around the parking lot! Good Times!!!!

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  7. Avatar Mitch Ross Member

    If it were a stick shift, even a 3 speed, I would be bidding. I already have an automatic one. Still looking for a ’78 Stick Concord.

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  8. Avatar Brad

    To spruce up the silver trim around the instrument panel, go to a hobby shop and look for a paint marker that matches the trim pieces. Keep a steady hand, and try not to have too much paint on the tip, otherwise it will bleed from the surface that you’re applying it to. It will look factory fresh !

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  9. Avatar angliagt

    Do they even have hobby shops anymore –
    the ones that sell plastic model kits?

    Like 0
  10. Avatar angliagt

    Auction “ENDED” – with no bids?

    Like 0

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