1970 AMC Hornet SST review from North America

Interior plastic parts of poor quality, and are the weakest part of the car. Dashboard get squeaky, trim cracks, that sort of thing.

Seats are poorly padded, with inadequate springs.

AMC drivetrains are exceedingly simple and reliable, parts are widely interchangeable amongst years and models, there is room to work on them and components are generously sized. With good maintenance 250,000 miles without major overhaul is reasonable.

The "little" 232ci six produces more torque than many small V8's; a smallish number of 304ci V8 models were produced, but all of AMC's V8s fit easily, including 390's and 401's.

It seems little known that AMCs lesser models, Gremlins, Hornets, Concords etc, share nearly all performance parts with the AMX, Javelin and others; with disk brakes, anti-roll bars, urethane and factory or aftermarket suspension parts makes for superb handling.

Hornet styling is underappreciated; they age well, lines are clean, and very modern when pointless trim is removed. Rather huge tires and wheels fit front and rear and really fill out the chassis (they shipped with skinny 75-series tires!)