American Motors had quite the line-up in 1967. While they are always remembered for the later Javelin and AMX, 1967’s line-up included the Ambassador and its derived Marlin, now for ’67 based on the Ambassador platform, the Rebel and the Rambler American. Within the American model-segment were the Rogue two-door hardtop and convertible and it turns out that the convertible is a bit of a rarity. So for review, here is just such an example, it is located in Lakeville, Minnesota and available, here on eBay for a current bid of $4,150. Thanks to Russ D. for this tip!
The Rambler Rogue, or just the Rogue, was introduced in 1966 and continued as part of the Rambler model offering through 1969. The marketing intent of the Rogue to fulfill the role of a “sporty”, compact Rambler and therefore it was only offered in two-door mode, hardtop or convertible. As the seller claims, there were only 921 Rogue convertibles assembled in 1967 and that was it, the convertible version was discontinued for 1968.
The seller states that this Rogue has been sitting in storage for sixteen years and while not driven, it has been started. Unfortunately, the exterior mages are not very complete so we need to make do with what was provided. The finish appears to be white but it is actually a shade known as “Hialeah Yellow”. The car is covered in just enough garage grim that the condition of the finish is not obvious – it looks rough in places, as in a poor repaint, but then again, that may be caused by the lighting and the dirt. From what can be seen, rust is a problem; how extensive is unknown though the seller claims that it is “mostly in the rear quarters” and the trunk floor too. The body panels appear to be straight, and not misaligned, with the trim pieces intact. There is only one partial image of the convertible top and it’s difficult to discern its condition. Nice to find are the Magnum 500 style wheels.
Besides the rareness of this Rogue, its attraction factor is further enhanced by its 225 gross HP, 290 CI, V8 engine, connected to a four-speed manual transmission. The seller states, “When it was parked there were no issues with the car. It ran well, drove nice and the top worked”. He further adds that it started right up last Fall, but it has not been tried since then. One problem is the front brakes, apparently, the drums are fused to the brake shoes so the wheels will not turn but the car is on dollies so it can be moved around. The mechanical difficulty is probably minor, he suggests leaking wheel cylinders, but it may take some convincing to free the brakes. This Rogue is rather stripped as it has no power steering, no power brakes and no A/C.
There is no mention of the interior in the listing write-up but the images show it to be in fair condition. It looks like some black vinyl upholstery repair is in order, but that’s about it. An interesting twist on the bucket seat interior is the inclusion of a fold-down center armrest, between the seats, but there is no center console present. And yes, the original radio is still in place!
This is a nice looking car, a well-done styling job for a marque that was known for some “memorable” designs. But then again, that was mostly the case with the Big Three and a half in the late sixties, similar styling themes abounded. There are three bids tendered for this Rogue and six days to go with the auction. The mileage, though not claimed, is listed as 65K miles, so considering that item, the rarity of the convertible body style and, of course, the V8/four-speed combination makes this car one to watch; it may end up being quite the buy, would you agree?
P.S. Note what appears to be an AMX in the upper right portion of the first photo.
I’m thinking about taking a look at this car. I’ll be driving up that way on Thursday, back to my cabin in Hayward. Rust will be the enemy to research. As always, ‘Have Magnet, Will Travel’ ……………..any input from folks familiar with this model would be appreciated. Items or areas to look closely at?
Check the trunnions in the upper front suspension. Replacement parts are expensive and few people know how to work on them. A quick check is the front springs should be straight. If they’re bowed the trunnions are worn.
Another front-end issue would be the strut rod bushings. I don’t think anyone has reproduced the pre-1970 rubber bushings, NOS are too old to last, and poly bushings are so stiff they’ll kill your kidneys and may bind up the suspension. A workaround I’ve seen is to use a rubber/poly combo with rubber in the rear position, poly in the front. This link shows it for pre-1965 models but should work for later trunnion-based models as well:
https://www.sr-ix.com/AMC/Strut-bushing/index.html
The rest of the engineering is pretty much bog-standard Detroit practice. I think I even see an electric wiper motor under the hood.
Aside from that it looks like this car has some rust issues, and as you say, rust is the enemy. To state the bleeding obvious there is always more than what you see on the surface. Especially on a convertible make sure there is no significant chassis rust – note there are no underside photos in the ad.
AMC Guy, thank you for that information. It’s details like those that help us determine if a project is worthwhile, or something we’d rather leave alone. 👍
if you have the trunions and thrust bearings, I have to tools and know how
My blood runs Matafor red
Les
So rare it’s Grail level for an AMC! PS, PB were semi bolt on, so they can always be added.
Are those colorado plates?
Minnesota I believe.
Correct.
They only made less than 40 of the 1967 V8 Rogue convertibles with the 290 and 4 speed. I have owned two of the 8 that are currently known to exist. About 20% of the Rogue convertibles were 8 cylinders and 80% of those were automatics. ( I keep the Rogue registry). This car has the rarest 225HP 4bbl version of which only two others are known at this time. If I didn’t already have a garage full of rare AMC’s I would be the high bidder on this car.
https://www.hemmings.com/stories/article/rogue-ressurection-1967-amc-rambler-rogue
Hi Mark, I’m confused, I found a 69 amx on eBay for $35,000, in the background I saw a rambler American convertible that looked like a 68 or 69 but wasn’t sure, I told him I don’t need another amx because I’m in the process of buying a 70 pro street amx with an 1,100 hp AMC 401for $15,000 which if you know what a pro street amx would cost to build is a total steal with a perfect body, he said that car will never be for sale, 4 hrs later he emailed me again and said the American is his wife’s car and she’s willing to sell it, he hasn’t told me a price yet, that’s why I research to see the condition its in now compared to back 100% original or pro street it, I’ve always been in the more money than brains category so now at 67 I need to think what ill leave my son and granddaughter, I was born in 53 and my father from the first car I remember pictures of and I remember riding in was a 53 Nash American, he traded his cars in every 2 yrs, until AMC went out of business so I know AMC products well, I’ve had 5 amx’s 1) 68 2) 69’s a 73 javelin amx, a fully loaded 79 spirit black amx with buck skin courdaroy interior, p/s p/b p/w air, sunroof 304 v/8 that I’m so sorry I ever sold, a 73 gremlin Levi edition I got from my father, a 68 rambler American that had a motor out of a super stock 69 amx running in the low 10’s in the early 80’s with a 4 speed, the only shifter that fit the bench seat was a Hurst shifter out of the old Plymouth gtx, looked like an ed Roth cartoon with the shifter sticking out of the roof, fun to shift that car until 3rd gear synchronizer went, instead of fixing it I put an automatic in then sold it, boy the mistakes we make when we don’t know things, with that being said the confusing thing is the guy that owns this rouge convertible said there were only 30 made and only 4 known to exist, another article on this section I saw your reply said there were 904 produced, my issue is restoring the car I love pro street but a car that rare I would restore back to original, do you have anymore info than I’ve found contradicting each other, P.S. he said his car is the one that’s at the top of this page on Hemming’s, but without research I can’t tell, any help would be appreciated, thank you Mark!! Just in case you want to look the amx is on eBay, its a 69 blue with a 1/24 scale model painted same color as the car itself, the American sits in front on 1 pic, asking people about cars in the background if their for sale has gotten me some good deals on a lot of cars, I bought a 72 pro street pinto for $7,000 in excellent condition, he said he hadn’t thought about selling it but if I was interested he could, the one I keep my eye on is a car I saw the front end of a 69 corvette in the background of a motorcycle he advertised, I asked if the vette was for sale, come to find out he’s a collector of muscle cars, the rarity of this car is why I asked, I could see a Baldwin motion hood on the car, he said the car is a 69 big block with 30,000 orig miles, blue with blue interior, he sent me pics of the car, it looks brand new like no one ever sat in it, he didn’t know if the car is restored or orig, it has the complete Baldwin package, valve covers, breather, hood, l e m a n s style gas filler, he wants $40,000 he said its not advertised and he won’t unless somebody knows about the car, he won’t take less than $40, I called Joel Rosen personally, if you know anything Joel is the creater of Baldwin motion in the 60’s and 70’s, I asked the guy who owns it if it was an original motion car and his response was if it is there’d be a 1 in front of the 40, I asked Joel how to determine if its real, he’ll do research for $2,500 but also told me if its orig there’d be a 2 in front of the 40, that was 3 yrs ago when I 1st called the guy, 6 months ago I called him and the cars sitting in his home garage covered up hasn’t moved hasn’t sold, that’s a chance I might be willing to take, as I told you the AMC cars I’ve owned I’ve also owned 7 corvettes ranging from 58 to 80, knowing prices of vettes especially big block 69’s $40,000 actually is a good price with 30,000 orig miles, he said call back anytime I want, that’s one I definitely will pursue when I figure out what I’m doing with the AMC cars, sorry for rambling on Mark but cars are a passion I’m sure you know, do yourself a favor if you’re into cars like me, if you see a ad with something interesting in the background don’t be afraid to ask if its for sale, you never know!!!
Hi again mark, I just read the hemmings article and you’re name appeared as a rouge specialist, if the one on the hemmings article in red and black was you’re car then from what I understand he said that car is the one he owns, unless you still own it, his name is Dean, now I’m more confused than ever, he told me his car is the one in the hemmings article, I don’t know him and he doesn’t know me so I don’t know if he’s just saying its the car in the article to get an astronomical price but if he’s lying then it might just be a standard American convertible which there’s a lot of them left, if you could help me with this because I don’t want to waste time on research for nothing if its not a real rouge convert 290 4 spd, again if you can help me Mark I thank you!!!
Mark has to be a very brave man to have taken on a project as big as this. Great job Mark. Looks magnificent. I used to see one in the same colour scheme as this, running around Durban, South Africa. Don’t suppose it was a V8, most likely a six. My friend had a Sport About, I think it was called, and he tried to buy the convertible but couldn’t get enough trade in cash on the Sport.
Given the amount of rust you can see I would definitely check the underside. My mother had a 67 American 220 with only 70,000 miles in 30 years of ownership , but sitting in our concrete floor garage took its toll ; even though the body was rust free , the floors and reinforcements were toast.
how do i make an offer or buy a car i like????? second request
The car is on ebay, you’d bid there. As for strut bushings, I’m pretty sure I bought mine from Kennedy American a couple years ago as the ones on my Hurst Rambler were dry rotted. Wasn’t very hard to do. Check underside for sure, some cars had no protection, others had full and many had undercoating in wheel wells only. Based on the bubbling in quarters I’d be curious what underside is like. If it was good when parked, it must have been damp storage. Car is worth saving anyways, it certainly has my attention. There was a black over red convertible at local show 2 months ago, 290/auto, nice to see.
Who cares about the Rambler Rouge with the guy has a 70 AMX in front of it !!! I’d be drilling him and his wife for that jewel . Just bury that dam rambling Rambler nobody is going to want them in 10-15 years because there basically a brick with zero performance or drive ability .