AMC V8 ENGINE HISTORY

October 2013 Hot Rod magazine issue has a good article for AMC v8 reference. Pages 148-154. Has a chart with all 290-401 internal specs and charts for overbore and cubic inch combos using stock cranks. In case anyone needs this info

I can't believe you did not mention the red / white & blue '69 S/C Hurst Rambler Scrambler (in the Rogue body) . It was very fast ...0 to 60 in 6 seconds and low 14's in the 1/4 mile in "Stock" form. I bought one in 1974 at age 19 with the motor apart ; the engine block still under the hood and the cylinder heads were in the trunk. I built the engine with 12 to 1 TRW pistons , Crane cam , headers , an unusual Edelbrock intake that had the carburetor at a slight angle with a Holley 850 dbl. pump and a Mallory distributor from an FE Ford (they were interchangeable) These cars were very light , well under 3000 lbs. and I lightened it further in several ways including removing the hood hinges to make it a 4 pin lightened lift off hood. I hated the red sides and blue magnum style wheels so I painted the sides matching white while leaving the rest of the car original with the blue stripes and then added Keystone wheels. This car was so fast , it was almost undriveable wide open through the gears due to the light weight / horsepower ( It did break the tire loose a lot .at speed going into 3rd gear ...I did nail mailboxes once and got lucky other times) . The horsepower was guessed to be , by a number of mechanics and the AMC dealer next door to my work to be well over 400 . ( I wish I could post a picture of it).

AMC was formed by the merger of Hudson and Nash-Kelvinator. The AMC 250 V8 was only used in late 1956 Hudson Hornets, which were restyled Nash models. The earlier 1951-1954 first generation "Fabulous" Hudson Hornets, like the successful NASCAR cars and the Paul Newman-voiced animated character in "Cars," used a 308 cubic inch inline six cylinder engine.

I love AMC‘s. I’ve had three javelins with 343 and 360 engines. My first ride in a muscle car was in the 1968 javelin with a hopped up to 290 in the car. I’m starting to really like now is the Adam 12 401 matador I like that police car.

Also with the tall deck blocks was the new dogleg exhaust port heads. Flowed better than the earlier version rec ports. The 401 came out in '71. '72 and later the cranks were made to mate with the torque command (Chryler torqueflite) transmissions.

Some of the best unknown and unloved by the general public cars yet some of the best.

Growing up in the early sixties we had a lot of AMC's living in southern Wisconsin. We had a 61 and a 66 both with the 327. Reliable, Only problem I ever seen with those cars was a U-joint. Those cars had an enclosed drive shaft. Drop the rear end to change a U-joint.

American Motors was a name change made after Nash Kelvinatot bailed out the moribund Hudson in a merger. It was a publicly owned company until Chrysler bought out their largest shareholder. The history of the company is not really complicated. Very well presented. Thank you.

AMC was a profitable company when it was bought out by Chrysler. AMC did have hard times, but it did not go broke. Lee Iacocca wanted the Jeep line and bought up AMC. I say this with no bitterness, yes the pacer was financially devastating. The 327 shared the center exhaust port on the head ( they couldn’t exhale efficiently). The ‘65 Marlin could come with 10:1 compression and Holly 4b from the factory.

AMC is alive and well in my driveway, 78 cj 7. Had a bunch of of jeeps, first one with factory v8. I would like a pacer too if i could find one! Thanks.

The first OHV V8 in an AMC car was supplied by Packard, a 320 cubic inch piece developing an advertised 208 horsepower (the 320 in the base Packard Clipper developed an advertised 220 HP), and was used in Nash Ambassadors and "Hash" Hornets. One can only speculate what a step-down Hudson could have done with the 352 or 374 dual carb set-ups with the Isky cam?

The Rebel Machine was the replacement for the discontinued Hurst 390 Rambler SCRambler that featured the short deck V8. (SS396 Novas secretly wished they were SCRamblers). The SCRambler was a large cubic inch version of the Rambler Rogue that also featured a 4 speed and Hurst shifter. Actor James Garner raced off road in one. Bring on the Cadillacs!👍

These V8 history series videos are doing well. I think they will also do well as a slow burn. I think people will reference these quite a bit over the years.

I worked at an AMC Dealership in 1971 (lube rack guy). The owner of the dealership was into racing so there was one service bay with a lift set aside for a drag racer being built by the shop mechanics. What a car! 1969 AMX full tilt Racecar! 390V8 made about 550 HP it was a very fast car. It also helped that one of the mechanics, Dale Jordan was an experienced Drag Racing driver. This dealership was in Inglewood CA, we raced at Lions Drag Strip in Long Beach. We won our class enough times to have an impressive trophy case in the showroom, Mr. Worley was very proud of it. Oh heck, I just told you the name of the Dealership....Bob Worley Oldsmobile/AMC/Jeep. Fun times! I like the smell of Nitro exhaust!

70's era "mid block" 304/360/401 AMC V8's are absolutely ridiculously strong, especially with the forged 401 guts. But the block itself was just a masterpiece for what AMC had to work with.. The things AMC could do with so little money is what makes them my overall favorite American automaker. I've broken a lot of small block Ford and Chevy's, but I've never been able to destroy an AMC mid block beyond repair. Awesome video thanks for sharing it! AMC rarely get this kind of love & history anymore

Wow《☆》They had more engines than I realized. I had a 77 JEEP CJ7 Renegade 3 speed floor shift manual transmission. The 304 V8 in it only had around 160 hp and didn't rev very high. It was pretty Torquey tho. You could let the clutch out without your foot on the gas pedal. Unfortunately I had to trade it in 1979 for a Datsun B210. I traded Fun for Economy✌🏼😎☯️

I am surprised you did not comment on the Renault acquisition, followed by the assassination of Renault's president as a part of the corporate failure. I believe that certainly contributed to the final collapse. On the plus side, my daily driver is an 89 Jeep, still running the AMC 6 cylinder--and that engine was used in Jeeps well into the 2000s.. I believe it ranks (perhaps along with the VW aircooled 4) as one of the longest produced engines in automotive history.

AMC V8s always impressed me with their engineering seemingly better that that of the Big 3. I recall that exhaust manifolds were machined to fit without the need for gaskets.

thank you Mr. IRON very good series

Trivia: the last carbureted vehicle model sold in United States showrooms was 1991 Jeep (Grand) Wagoneer, using the venerable 1970 V8 redesign, obviously under Chrysler tutelage by this point.