AMC Spirit Reviews

The transmission bearings are weak!

After sitting for 23 years in storage, we added new gas and fuel filter, and it fired right up. Our friends think it's homely.

Heater core blew up two weeks after purchase, and it soaked the interior with glycol. Dealer warranty.

I had a heck of a time with the clutch. It turns out that the clutch pedal bracket was made from stamped steel, and it would bend allowing slack in the cable. The slack could not be taken up, and the throw out bearing would burn up. This was the reason I got rid of the car.

My brother in law purchased the car and had a solid steel clutch bracket fabricated, and never had a problem with the clutch again.

I bought the car new in Oklahoma City. It was Candy Red with tan vinyl interior. The bucket seats were comfortable and it drove solid.

The engine was responsive, but had a hard time moving the heavy car. I was impressed with the fuel economy at the time, close to 30 mpg, and with a 21 gal. tank, that was a 600+ range on a tank.

No A/C, but only my wife complained.

I took good care of the car, and competed all the maintenance on time, and it never let me down.

I think if it had been a V8 auto car, I might still have it. My brother in law drove it for a year, and sold it to buy a Fiero, which he blew up after a month.

Should have kept the Spirit!

Rear window squeaked.

Carburetor needed replaced.

Rear springs needed replaced.

Silver paint was very thin.

My parents bought my new silver with black vinyl interior 1979 Spirit sedan (Gremlin rear) for me to drive in high school.

It was a 2.0L with automatic. A/C, manual disk brakes, power steering. AM/FM radio.

The car came with very skinny Firestone non radial tires. My parents replaced them with larger radials on a set of factory rally wheels. The car was not the coolest for a guy in high school. The fact that I had a new car was cool. Everyone still called it a Gremlin. I drove it very very hard. Trying to keep up with friends with V8's you had to keep it floored most of the time. It was a fun car to drive, just very slow. Handling was good for the time. I could drive circles around guys in Impalas or Delta 88's.

The Holley carburetor had to be adjusted often. It would develop a large flat spot at take off. The dealer replaced the carburetor to fix the problem.

The rear glass hatch window would sometimes squeak .It was maddening at times. Silicon spray fixed it for a time. but it always returned.

After about two years of hard driving the rear springs began to sag and cause the rear wheels to hop over bumps. New shocks did nothing to fix the hop. The dealer replaced the springs.

One of the best things about the car was the dealer. They provided free service for oil changes and a loan car free for the day when your car was in the shop. When I left the lights on and ran the battery down, they sent their road side assistance truck at no charge to jump me. This was 1979 remember. common today but very rare then.

I kept the car 4 years and traded it in on a low mileage M G B. Big mistake. Should have kept the A M C.

Brakes.

Radiator.

Dimmer switch.

Tires.

Alternator.

Rear main seal.

Lifters ticking.

Carb.

Hood hinge sprung (due to not latching hood all the way down).

This was my first car. I paid the princely sum of 200 bucks for this gem. Over the course of 8 years it has served me well. It sits around a bit during the snowy winters common up in the Wisconsin north woods due to the extreme lack of traction.

I get quite a few comments on the car. It is a unique design and there weren't many Spirits with the AMX appearance package. It has a pleasing shape for an early 80s car.

Car handles decent for being nose heavy. Brakes stop the car well enough.

The engine I think is pretty well used up, it ticks and even before the main seal went out it used some oil. The 1 barrel carb doesn't do much for performance and gas mileage isn't the best. After taking the carb off I found it wasn't the original. Some hillbilly had filed the bolt holes on the carb to get it to fit.

It seemed like every spring the car kept getting worse mileage, this year it was down to a big block like 12 mpg. I finally swapped it out for one off of a 77 ford with a 300 six, mileage improved to about 20 mpg if I really baby it. Still not that great when compared to my AMC Eagle that gets 25 mpg out of the same engine in a heavier car. I think this may be partially to due with the fact that the carb is too big for the motor, and the motor itself is just plain worn out.

Seats are comfortable enough, but the vinyl really sticks to the body on a hot humid day, making long trips a back drenching affair. The rear seat is not comfortable at all unless you're either a midget or a child.

As far as reliability goes, it hasn't been too bad considering the amount of miles and the age of the car. I probably have about 400 into the car total for the past eight years, so I can't complain. The car has left me stranded once, and that was because I jumped it on a very rough road and the fan decided to kiss the radiator. It had just made a 3 hour trip prior, and had zero problems beyond the usual oil consumption.

Bottom line, if you want a car that is easy to work on and reliable, plus unique looking, this car may be for you.