1978 AMC Gremlin Reviews

Had to rebuild transmission. Oil leaks due to being 33 years old on original gaskets! Other than that, it's just routine maintenance.

These cars were very unfairly criticized. Keep in mind, they were the least expensive cars on the market, and therefore are not luxurious, cushy or state of the art.

You got a very strong, durable and uniquely styled car for little money. They were quick, though not as good at MPG as the Pinto and Vega competition, but much safer. They sold half a million in its 70-78 run with almost no styling changes - a major success for a small company!

Mechanically the car is great. Very few problems. Mechanical parts are easy to find.

Rust. What 70's cars didn't have it. Body parts are hard to find. Since they were cheap most found there way to the crusher. Reproduction parts for most AMC's don't exist.

Interior again the car was cheap. What do you expect.

If you would have told me in 1980 that I would be taking this car to car shows 30 years later, I would told you that you were crazy, but that is where the Gremlin can be found every weekend, weather permitting.

Don't expect expect the guy in the 57 Chevy and the 65 Mustang that is parked next to you to be too excited, but the public that come to the shows will be. 95% of the population owned one or their best friend did.

While the Gremlin X's are the best ones to own, any Gremlin is a collectors items. If you find one that has a good body, buy it, take it to shows. You will be noticed and you will have fun, but you better have a sense of humour because they will laugh at your baby. Real men drive Gremlins.

Electrical system shorted out, smoke & melting, headlights stopped working, while driving.

Drivers side floor rusted away.

Leaf springs wore out, had to be replaced, and then something else in the suspension went wrong so the tire scraped the wheel well if too much weight was in it.

Ignition suddenly stopped working, had to be replaced.

Water pump went out a couple times - partly because someone did a cheap repair that messed up the cooling system.

Radiator had to be replaced.

Muffler and exhaust pipes had to be replaced.

Transmission was wearing out, very tricky to shift gears.

Rear window trim came off.

Seats were getting to be like sitting on a grid of wires, chunks of foamy stuff missing.

It had a unique, cool shape, had a unique name, and I didn't see many others.

It had a tough exterior. I hit a deer on an interstate highway head-on at full speed, and it only messed up a couple parts close to the front of the car. I could also blast right through snow drifts at regular highway speed when I had studded tires in back. However, the rear wheel drive is a drawback for driving on anything slick.

The rear window that doubled as a hatch was awkward and somewhat fragile, not a practical design. It wouldn't stay open, either, also awkward.

It needed alignment of the wheels unusually often.

Driving this car felt like work. It was very loud and it always felt like it was working hard to go fast. The dark, plasticky seats made it really hot in summer. Even after I fixed the hole in the floor, the interior was kind of like an un-insulated, drafty room. The glass fogged up a lot in the winter. I got used to the sticky shifting, but no one else was able to get it to shift so it was hard to sell after a test drive! It took more effort to turn the steering wheel than most cars. The gas gage said it should have an eighth of a tank when it was actually empty.

There were also too many times when a normal trip was interrupted by sudden car problems.

Gas mileage wasn't good.

Since I started with the car as a project vehicle anyway, it needed quite a lot to bring it back to normal running condition, which has yet to happen. Things that have been replaced so far :

Water pump was bad originally, when car was previously owned. Replaced it.

Carburetor was balky. Replaced with used one.

Gas lines have failed, both rubber and original steel lines. Replaced some of both.

Carburetor quit working, bought new one, still not installed.

Engine started knocking slightly, suspect sticking valve gear.

Rust has started to show on the car in several places, noticeably in the door corners, front windshield pillar, and around the rear tail lights.

This is a VERY rare model of Gremlin, only 1 of less than 1,000 known to have been manufactured as a GT in 1978.

The car is worth saving, I actually drove it home after I purchased it, I put air in the tires, rocked it to break the brakes loose, then drove it 9 miles to my house, where it's revival was started, and still ongoing.

The car has many options like a floor mounted gauge package and body aero package around wheel wells with a front air dam.

The paint is Sun Orange with black interior and is striking in appearance.