We love cars and the styling, power, and everything else that falls under that umbrella, but that doesn’t mean the hobby isn’t without a sense of humor. After all, who knew an underpowered car from Germany would end up being popular, if not collectible over time? Irony has a way of finding its way into our hobby, and perhaps no other car better exemplifies this than our Pick of the Day, a 1976 AMC Pacer. It is listed on ClassicCars.com by a dealership in Downers Grove, Illinois. (Click the link to view the listing)
My memory of the Pacer when new is not sharp because I was a kid. I remember my kindergarten teacher had one, and I knew it was built by a company called American Motors, but nothing beyond that. In later years, the Pacer was the butt of jokes, an odd-looking car from a decade that had plenty of laughable machines. Or was it because it was yet another unusual car from AMC? Yet the movie Wayne’s World brought the fishbowl-on-wheels to a new generation in the early 1990s, creating fans that never knew the car existed. Since then, it’s likely that the Pacer stopped being a disposable car and became a collectible curiosity. Though it’s been awhile since the movie, the Pacer continues to be a minor collectible among other underpowered Malaise-era vehicles like the Pinto and Vega. Perhaps the Pacer is the 1961 Plymouth of the 1970s?
Certainly the Pacer deserved a better fate. By design, the Pacer had a lot going for it, including contemporary styling, plenty of space, and visibility beyond reproach but, from an engineering POV, the Pacer lost what would have made it technically interesting as it was created to be powered by a General Motors-designed rotary engine, but GM cancelled the engine program and AMC was forced to use its straight-six, which required re-engineering the pacer’s front end. This, combined with the Pacer’s weight (it ended up being about 500 pounds heavier than intended), resulted in poor fuel mileage though, it should be pointed out, rotary engines were not known for their fuel efficiency either. A V8 eventually appeared, as did an extended wheelbase wagon. After six model years, the Pacer was put to rest after 1980.
This 1976 AMC Pacer, which was originally sold new in Nashville, looks like a quintessential Pacer due to its Sand Tan paint with matching two-tone interior. Powering it is the optional (and welcome) 258cid six paired with a column-shifted automatic transmission. With a visual walk-around, it appears this Pacer lacks any of the fancy trim packages that were available at the time — this is simply basic Pacer transportation in all its Malaise-era goodness. Note the lack of air conditioning, so hopefully you live in a place that’s not in the Sun Belt. And don’t let the lack of FM radio frequency bring you down because there are so many solutions to be had, especially in this era of smart phones.
So, here is where more irony comes in: what does it take to obtain a nice example of one of the most polarizing American cars in the past 50 years? $19,988. Chuckle all you want, but this car belongs in MOMA as much as your garage.
To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, check out Pick of the Day.
Kill it before it breeds. AMC made the ugliest cars of an ugly era.
1976 – FOUR OF US DROVE FROM ALBUQUERQUE TO JUAREZ AND EL PASO FOR CHRISTMAS SHOPPING…WE HAD SO MUCH CRAMMED INSIDE AND ON THE LUGGAGE RACK, THE BORDER AGENT JUST WAVED US ON…. THE CAR WAS SPACIOUS ON THE INSIDE AND PEOPLE JUST STARED. MY FRIEND LIKE IT SO MUCH, HE BOUGHT ANOTHER ON THE NEXT YEAR.
I had a Pacer X of that year bought used around 1986/1987 for just 500 $! And was driving fine except for a trouble at the starting engine that once I had to substitute. I think the supposed high (?) consumption question was just psychological warfare on the market… I miss it, my loveliest car!
…one of the absolute ugliest cars of its era – the Pacer looked like a Fishbowl on Wheels! AMC was know for doing avant-garde cars – they had to offer something different than the “Big Three” back then to try and increase their sales volume – but the Gremlin, and then the Pacer, were two really unfortunate vehicles…!
Those AMC Pacers were the UGLIEST cars ever produced by the American auto makers !! I would not want one at any price . The AMC Concord was a decent design and outsold the Pacer by a wide margin . American Motors did produce some stylish cars , but the Pacer was something else ! Happy Motoring !
This is without a doubt , one of the most ” unusual ” designs for an American car ! What I think they were trying to accomplish was a futuristic design like no other automaker , but it was quite ugly , in the eyes of most people . It looks like something a grade school student would draw up ! Sales were probably mediocre at best . No thanks !!
Well, i still love the Pacer styling! No other car looked like it in 1976! To a 13-year old like myself, it looked like a Jetson’s spaceship! Even my mother, after seeing the commercials and specs, wanted to buy one that year. So, I was excited about it! However, she ended up keeping her Chevy Nova, which I also liked, but I wanted a rounder, different looking car! ☹️ Although there’s been so much criticism from the media against the Pacer for so many years, some Pacer owners I knew at the time never had a complaint about them! Anyway, I feel that part of the animosity against the Pacer was the Big Three trying to take AMC off the market which ironically it ended up happening!
No air, $19000. No sir.