It’s pretty hard to find a car I’ve never seen before, this is a new one on me and I dig it. https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1968-AMC-AMX-VON-PIRANHA-EDITION-260105
AMC made a lot of cool cars, one of them was The Machine. I spotted this one at a car show in Springfield, IL:
AMC made some decent looking smaller/midsize cars, the Javeline comes to mind. They worked with what they had, and if they didn’t have it they went to GM or Ford. Interesting company
Motor Trend article about the Von Piranha Edition of the AMX with the roofscoops: The 30-Year Mystery of the Von Piranha 1968 AMC AMX Every once in a while a car appears seemingly out of thin air and stirs up a big pot of healthy conversation. Usually, this frenetic firestorm of full-fledged verbal combat gets bolstered by a few factors, the most agitating of which is the fact that a lack of vital information exists on the subject car. Then add to the mix its sudden appearance after 40-plus years of non-existence, and you have a recipe for some serious conversational conflict. This bizarro AMX is one of those cars. While cruising the Internet one night, keeping an eye out for thought-provoking muscle for sale, I ran across an interesting modified car. This particular AMC was a hot-rodded two-seater with styling cues based on typical modifications drag and road racers did to their respective rides. It was definitely an intriguing piece, especially to anyone remotely interested in late '60s muscle. Which I am. I was immediately hooked. The car in question was a 1968 AMX. The seller's description of the car was very succinct, obviously working off the basic information he had obtained on the car. Clearly, he was not the original owner. He knew it had been a Denver, Colorado-based AMC dealer that sold the car, but had no info on the exact one. Possible links to a well-known local racer as well made it more interesting, as did the fact that it's a true Go Pack car with low mileage. Before I knew it, the car was all over social media, with digital magazines and forums linking the auction for all to see, and then lashing together their best take on the car. Lots of people had opinions on this AMX. Some believed it was truly a worthwhile piece of AMC history, while others said it looked like a crude backyard hack job made of hardware store parts, with the body scythed by an amateur's cutting wheel. It got heated as opposing opinions were tossed into the ring. Whatever this creation was, it definitely had people talking. We needed more info. Enter Mike Singer. Click here to read the full article
Von Piranha Edition: 1968 AMC AMX 390/Go-Pack One of 22 modified from new by Thoroughbred Motors in Denver, Colorado. The so-called Von Piranha package added roof and C-pillar scoops, as well as the hood cutouts seen below. Under the hood is a 390ci V8 that was factory rated at 315 HP and 425 lb. ft. Ribbed rocker covers and a non-factory air cleaner join a Von Piranha-branded Group 19 (AMC’s parts book) R4B Edelbrock intake manifold. Twist is passed to a Shift-Command Borg-Warner M-12 3-speed automatic and then a Twin-Grip (LSD) rear end. The latter item was part of the Go-Pack, along with power-assisted front disc brakes, upgraded suspension, thicker sway bars and heavier duty cooling. Click magazine to read more
With the exception of the early Javelin I find AMC's styling awkward and bland. Red white and blue stripes or decals and a hood scoop don't help much.
I’ve seen tons of Rebels, Machines and Javelin, and they lack in the styling department……but never seen this Piranha…..
This Marlin got my attention. It had some really cool details in the styling. Another neat AMC at the same show.
I was about to add the Marlin, but Walt beat me to that. I once found a local backyard with THREE of them sitting in various stages of disrepair. It wasn't the best part of town, so didn't knock on the door.
I love the 67 Marlins! I have one that is pretty clean & many folks would drive it like it is, but I am going to restore it back to its original colors of White w/Red. There should be a law that people who can't do bodywork correctly can't have access to Black Paint! LOL God Bless Bill https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...ar-transport-hauling-open-or-enclosed.614419/
When we lived in Medway, MA there was a show-quality Marlin that lived about four houses from us. The owner would take it for a drive a couple of times each year. I never had the chance to talk to him about it.
What I find kinda funny is they state the hp and tq of AMC’s 390 like it’s ground pounding Buicks ‘70 350 4bbl was the same 315 hp and 410/15 torque, but NOBODY talks about that engine
