Spring time has hit the Pacific Northwest, and even way up in Richmond, B.C., the flowers are in full bloom, like this AMC Concord DL. Isn’t it just dazzling? Especially so with that white vinyl roof, including its odd insert and mini-window. This was shot on April 2 by nifticus, so maybe it was being readied for an Easter Sunday outing. Now if only AMC could resurrect itself….
This 78 works at our local Wal-Mart.
Delightful! Actually, I am not sure I ever saw one of these fitted out like this. That yellow and white says “70s” like few other combinations.
Rear
Inside
Great find! I always wondered what was wrong with the original Concord 2-door’s roof treatment. That looked just fine…
The Concord might have been the biggest brougham fail of the 70s. An upright grill, hood ornament and padded roof was always going to look out of place on a small car, but layering these flourishes on top of a thinly-disguised Hornet made this mishmash worst than most.
This car reminds me of another icon of the 70s, the powder-blue tuxedo with a ruffled shirt. Both were mutant offspring of parents who never should have mated: 60s mod and Gilded Age formal. Both were design dead ends that briefly had their day in the sun but are best forgotten.
Disagree on the fail, AMC sold a heaping pile of Concords and they were perfect for the intended mission, given their budget constraints at the time (ie. they didn’t have one).
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/cars-of-a-lifetime/coal-1980-amc-concord-little-green-concord-you-dont-know-what-i-got/
It was also perfect for my intended mission, which was to drive a car that cost virtually nothing.
That being said I don’t know what I would have done had my Grandfather’s Concord looked like this one. First order of business would be to get rid of those hubcaps and whitewalls, which is what I did with mine. Maybe rip the padded roof off and spray the whole car rattle can flat black?
If you remove the padded roof you’ll find there’s actually a full-size rear side window underneath the padding! Rather than tool up for a different window AMC just used trim to cover up most of the old Hornet 2-door glass to create a low-cost “luxury” opera window.
When I was all of 14 years old, my older brother got married.
Guess what? We all wore said monkey suits.
As a 14 year old, I really thought I was stylin’!
The end of sartorial style for men.
Plus ca change…
I’m dizzy…
I actually owned an orange Hornet briefly, in the sense of physical possession though I never titled it. And I think some of the Concord restyling details were among the best of the era. However, I am quite sure that this particular Canadian Concord is the ugliest car ever featured on CC. I’d say at this point, we should just let AMC rest in peace.
I love it. Crazy as it might seem, I also have a certain affinity for Mustang II Ghias, Monza Town Coupes and K-based Lebaron coupes. There’s just something endearing about a little car trying to puff itself up into Broughamhood.
That nails it. Back in the day, Broughamhood was considered desirable, therefore even little regular cars did their best to broughamize (broughamify??) themselves. And heck, why not? Today Broughamhood is out while sportiness in in. Thus even little regular cars now have increasingly huge wheels, high beltlines, plunging rooflines and aggressive grilles (for instance even an entry-level, Diesel-powered Audi A1 will try hard to suggest that it can kick ass almost like a RS6 does). But there is no longer anything endearing about that IMO. It’s mostly boring and impractical.
I hadn’t really thought the concept through to the present, but you’re absolutely right. For example, I have a coworker who drives a 2005-ish Hyundai Accent, which looks exactly like what it is: a small entry level economy car. Today’s Hyundai Accent is an overstyled Sonata wannabe. Silly. Everything old does become new again, one way or another.
Good observation. I’d suggest that today’s obsession with sport started in the Rear Spoiler Epoch – the 90’s.
Yes it was a milestone, definitely!
Most readers here will be more knowledgeable about the North American market than I am, but from a European perspective I think the roots of that obsession might even be traced all the way back to the 1st gen VW Golf GTI. Until then, sports cars were mostly, well, sports cars, ie. powerful, fast, expensive, impractical, low and elegant machines (that’s childhood memories, I’m thinking Alpine A110 here, or early Porsche 911). The Golf GTI turned things upside down. It gave credence to the notion that a basic econobox, designed to please as many people as possible, could be sporty as well. Once that highly attractive notion had taken root (and basically every European carmaker had started making their own Golf GTI wannabe), it was just a small step to the next level, namely that economy cars SHOULD be sporty – or at least look like it. We’re kind of stuck with it now.
Don’t forget the Italian (Fiat Abarth), French (Renault, Simca) and German (NSU) fast-forward go-kart econoboxes WAY before the VW Golf GTI.
The GTI was a VW wannabe fast car like the other makers already had Viva GT, Escort GT Mini CooperS huge list really, as usual VW was late to the party not a trend setter.
Spoilers front and rear were being fitted in the late 60s to various factory hot rods.
The build quality and durability was what made the original GTI a great car.
They were built for the long haul.
It was certainly a well built car. But contemporary German built Fords and Opels were just as good. And they offered hot versions of their Golf competitors (Escort Mk2 and Kadett C) in the seventies too.
Of course, the VW Golf Mk1 GTI is a little legend, but it didn’t just fall from the sky as an entirely new market concept (an attractive and powerful version of a compact family car).
Here you go….
Can I just admit that I preferred the original Hornet? The luxotreatment never worked on these, imho.
You’re not alone, Jim.
Mixed emotions with this one. It’s certainly more fun than c5karl’s ruffled blue tux above, but no more stylish.
It pretty much sums up everything good and bad about the 70’s in one car.
Gawd I’m a sucker for cars like this.
Concorde was reaction to Granada/Monarch and GM RWD fancier X bodies. Nova Concours, Skylark, Omega Brougham.
Sold well for AMC in it’s first year, over 100K, and for them it was a hit.
You forgot one of the grandest GM Broughams, the Pontiac Pheonix 🙂 .
The brougham treatment works quite well here.
A friend of mine in college got a totally broughamified Buick Skylark, white half roof over tan. We all thought we were just the shit in that thing.
Yum!
I love a yellow car, and while this isn’t my favorite year of Concord/Hornet (to me, that grille looks like it’s too big for the car), I could live with it.
Can’t remember seeing one of these with a white vinyl roof as tan seemed to be more common.
And I agree with many here, not really a “fail” for AMC but maybe compared to the numbers of Granadas sold.
I think the author was using the Millennial slang term ‘fail’ for “I don’t like it”
i.e. “Epic Fail” used all over the net.
Our pastor had one of these, black on black (of course). He smoked like a chimney and had one of those bean bag-window-type-ashtrays that was always overloaded with butts. Whenever I see one of these that car instantly comes to mind first! He drove it for many years until he passed.
These were VERY popular back in the day, at least where I lived. I remember seeing more coupes than sedans for some reason. We actually had two AMC dealers across the street from each other – literally! (Ironically I ended up working for one of them in 2003. They became a Jeep dealer in the early 90’s and were quite successful, even though they were in a small town.) I still remember their lot in the early 80’s always having a fresh row of brand new Concord DL’s to sell. The older folks in the neighborhood loved buying from them for the sheer convenience, I’m sure. And they had a great reputation. (The dealership – not so sure about the AMC’s LOL!) So for me these cars – and AMC’s in general – are somewhat special to me.
Is it just me or am I sensing a whiff of nostalgia about AMC here? There might be something strangely attractive about an American automobile manufacturer which wasn’t one of the Big Three but nonetheless managed to soldier on until as late as the mid-1980s.
Well, with help from Renault and France, they lasted from 1977-87. 😉
By 1985 or so, the local dealers had tagline “See your Chicagoland Jeep-Renault dealers”
I am of two minds on this car. Like some others, I thought the early Hornets were the best styled. The inside however was far superior in the Concord with those great seats with those smoothed in headrests and plush upholstery.
The Hornet (and Gremlin) standard bench seat was the worst imaginable, a real back breaker. No lower back support at all, it was like sitting on a park bench but less comfortable. The Concord and Eagle seats were a big improvement.
AMC called that color “Saxon Yellow” in ’80. Ask me how I know 🙂 …
How do you know that? (You’re welcome)
I remember seeing one just like this on the Vancouver craigslist awhile back, probaly the same one was cheap and looked super nice
Concords had to be driven to be appreciated. They were a very nice car. I drove a 1982 on occasion when it was new and was very impressed.
very ahead of their time
I had a near base ’73 Hornet hatchback in bright red – a very sharp looking car that was a hoot to drive despite it’s 232 cid. Handled very well and was a perfect size.
A few years later I had a near base Concord for work – everything was very familiar despite the updated dash and front/end clips. But AMC obviously had worked on the NHV; the car was quieter and felt more luxurious in all it’s systems.
My father was a huge AMC fan after he got 100k miles out of his 1965 Rambler American 440 in only three years of driving. I grew up in the 70s being carted around in it or my mother’s ’69 Javelin.
He bought a new ’79 Concord DL Wagon, 232 cu in I6, chocolate brown with the faux wood paneling, paid $6500 for it IIRC. That car was perfectly fine for the little family hauler it was. It liked to eat starters up about every 25,000 miles, but other than that it was a reliable car. I passed my driver’s test behind it’s steering wheel so it will always be remembered fondly (even though I was completely embarrassed being seen in it in High School).
I know everyone only thinks of the 258, but I have always liked the 232 AMC six better. I just don’t like undersquare engines. To me the bore should always be larger than the stroke,
Is this Dafodil yelow?
http://edward-carnewsviews.blogspot.com/2011_12_01_archive.html
Thumbs up !
Re the DAF illustration – what is the deal with the yellow head lamp (bulbs/lenses)? I see them on occasion on French automobiles; Citroëns and the like. What does she have in her hand, anyway?
Introduced in France before WW2 started, so that the local troops could see the difference between their own population and the enemy.
Of course, during the war it only helped the Germans: French vehicles were sitting ducks….
Nevertheless, using yellow lamps lasted until 1994. Thus, cars built after that year don’t have them anymore.
Wow! Never knew that.
Thanks for sharing this, I had no idea! I do remember these yellow lamps, when I was a kid no one wondered why we had these while foreign cars had white ones – voilà, that was just the way it was. Then I guess some schmo in an office decided they had to disappear. Now it is the license plates’ turn, nationally-styled ones are slowly but surely giving way to EU-wide ones.
Classic Benz, imported from France.
And a more humble 1970 W115 from France.
Love that shade of yellow. The 78 was the best looking, I think. The refreshes didn’t add anything.
Ironic that the Concord was AMC’s broughamed version of the Hornet, yet the Hornet was advertised as “The Little Rich Car”. They had the concept right in their hands back then, but in what universe was your upscale little rich Hornet SST more luxurious with plaid upholstery?
So Brendan Saur, how about a current Dodge Dart with retro Concord elements ? We’ve seen your 2017 Impala….
I’d drive that car exactly the way it is. The Concord was a vastly underrated car at the time and even now.
Years ago one of my old bosses had the 1978 version of the Concord. When I was younger, these were not on my radar, not by any means. But I have to admit, once I got in one, I was impressed at how nice it was. I’d been in older Hornets (and cheaper ones, too) and the Concord was much better inside.
As much as I’d love to stuff a SBC in that car, I think the 258 and TorqueFlite would be just fine to cruise around in…
I like it. I don’t know why–I don’t normally like yellow cars, or vinyl roofs, or over-broughamification on cars that don’t call for it. But for some reason I like this one. Maybe it’s the perfect storm?
I just thought of a question that’s so simple, I don’t know why anyone else hadn’t thought of it. Or maybe they have and I missed the memo. Since Jeep was the real money maker for AMC by the 80’s why didn’t they just tailor the size of the company to survive on them alone and just drop passenger car production? I mean think how prosperous they would have become in the 90’s during the SUV craze. They might even still be with us today and revered as the Pioneer of said vehicles with a lot of public goodwill.