Cars - AMC Ambassador

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	Cars - AMC Ambassador

The AMC Ambassador was an automobile produced by the American Motors Corporation (AMC) from 1958 until 1974. The vehicle was known as the AMC Ambassador, Ambassador by Rambler, and Rambler Ambassador at various times during its tenure in production. Previously, the name Ambassador had applied to senior top-trim level Nash brand cars. Throughout its life, the Ambassador represented AMC's premium North American offering.

Ambassador by Rambler, 1958-1961

Following George Mason's unexpected death in the fall of 1954, George Romney (whom Mason had been grooming as his eventual successor), succeeded him. Romney recognized that the Nash and Hudson brand names no longer had any appeal in the marketplace, and that AMC's future rested with its Rambler models. While development of an all new Nash Ambassador was almost complete, designers were also working on a Hudson equivalent. Pre-production models used in early photographs show models badged as both Nash and Hudson Ambassadors (the V-shaped grill of the 1958 model was taken from the stillborn Hudson version). Before releasing the new 1958 models, Romney and senior management made the decision to end both the Nash and Hudson brands.

Rambler would be sold as a stand-alone make of American Motors. However the public associated the name with small, economy models, and it was decided that the larger Ambassador would be marketed as the Ambassador by Rambler rather than as the Rambler Ambassador to lend an air of exclusivity, despite the fact that the car bore both Rambler and Ambassador nameplates.

The 1958 Ambassador was a substantially longer car than the Rambler Six and Rebel V-8, although both lines shared the same basic body, styling and visual cues. AMC stretched the wheelbase from 108" to 117" and added nine inches to the body, all ahead of the cowl. Model identification was located on the car's front fenders and rear trunk lid. Super trim level Ambassadors featured painted side trim in a color that complemented the body color; Custom models featured a silver anodized aluminum panel on sedans and vinyl woodgrain panels on station wagons. Ambassadors came in four-door sedan, four-door hardtop sedan and four-door pillared and hardtop station wagon body styles.

Model offerings remained constant, except for the departure of the hardtop station wagon after 1960. Styling remained related to the the high volume Rambler line from 1958 through 1960.

In 1961, however, the Ambassador received a unique front fascia design overseen by AMC's in-house design department headed by Edmund Anderson. It consisted of a trapezoidal grille and headlights that floated in a body-colored panel, while the front fenders arched downward and forward of the leading edge of the hood. Different than anything attempted by other other American carmakers, AMC's marketing department promoted the look as "European". While the special design was meant to distinguish the Ambassador from the lower-priced Ramblers, it was neither a consumer success nor well received in the automotive press. Its failure helped to further cement the idea that the Ambassador best served AMC as an extension of the Rambler line rather than as a uniquely styled stand-alone model.

Rambler Ambassador, 1962-1965

Declining sales pushed AMC to fold the Ambassador into the Rambler line beginning with the 1962 model year. The 1962 Ambassador emerged as a well-appointed Rambler Classic, trimmed from the 117" wheelbase of 1961 down to the 1962 Classic's 108", and the line included a two-door pillared sedan for the first time.

Romney left AMC in 1962 to become the governor of Michigan. Meanwhile, a completely redesigned Rambler lineup appeared, following Romney's philosophy that Rambler's best chance for survival lay in smaller cars that had the greatest number of interchangeable parts. This lineup was introduced in September 1962 for the 1963 model year. The Ambassador's shape was made smoother, and considerable cross-platform interchangeability between it and the Classic, and even the Rambler American, was achieved. Wheelbase was increased to 112".

Succeeding Romney as CEO was Roy Abernathy, who began planning for a larger, more elegant Ambassador for the 1965 model year.

1964 introduced minor trim changes and options. The "electric-shaver" grille on the 1963 model was replaced with a flush-mounted design, and the engine and transmission options were widened. A two-door hardtop body style was added for the first time since 1957.

By 1965, AMC shifted its focus away from compacts, based on Abernathy's belief that AMC could take on the "Big Three" automakers if their products were made more mainstream. The Ambassador's wheelbase was lengthened four inches, this time to 116".

AMC Ambassador, 1966-1974

Because the Rambler name was still associated so strongly with compacts, for 1966, the Ambassador was the first model badged as being a product of AMC. During these years, Ambassadors were available in base 880, midrange 990 or highline DPL trim levels.

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Cars - AMC Ambassador

Ambassador by Rambler, 1958-1961

Rambler Ambassador, 1962-1965

AMC Ambassador, 1966-1974

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