1978 AMC Gremlin GT from North America - Comments

Jerry,

Good to hear that you still have the GT. I saw you a few years ago on a visit to Virgina from Illinois. Glad you are doing what you can to save the cars and parts. I'm still working on my 72 canvas roof car. It is rust free, but I could use some parts for the top. If you ever decide to part with some parts on those rag top cars, please let me know. Woody.

I have a lot of AMC cars, but am working on a 77 Gremlin X now... sun orange (code 7Z) with a black interior. I also have a 76 Gremlin which is fish belly (actually lime spray) green. It has a fresh coat of paint and I plan to put it back together with a Mustang T-5 five speed tranny. Gremlins can be fun and will be more collectible as the years pass.

Joe.

Being a '77 HornetAMX enthusiast, I have to say, Just as AMC Honored the Hornet in it's last production by dressing it up and decking it out with all the custom tricks of that era, I am glad to see the Gremlin got the same treatment at its retirement party!

The only one that I have ever seen in real life was packed in the middle of a row of other 'Parts Cars' at a wrecking yard on Columbia Blvd. This was over 15 years ago, I was scouting out AMC parts for my 1977 HornetAMX, when we noticed this little Gremlin that seem to have something like the '78 AMX package: (Air Dam/Flares/Gauges/Color-Keyed bumpers, and the use of Blacked-out Trim) And it appeared to be an original, factory installation!

Unfortunately, with most pieces missing and/or damaged and the car packed in tightly with other salvage cars. We checked around, (this was B.I., or Before Internet) both in reference books and asked Veteran AMC people at AMX club meetings (Like Max Frye, R.I.P.) and learned about the 1978 Gremlin GT. Never to actually see one in person, ever again! I wonder if it is still there? I seriously doubt it.

I am the owner of a 1978 Gremlin. This is not the GT model, but it is rare because it has the 4 cyl. 2L Audi engine. I purchased this car from the previous owner and I have no idea if he was the original owner or not. I have owned the car for about twenty years. I bought it just to have a second car around in case it was needed. I have two sons and they were in their late teens and early twenties about the time of purchase. Of course they needed to borrow the car quite frequently and they didn't take care of it like I take care of my automobiles. Fortunately they never had a wreck in it therefore the body is still in pretty good shape. We live in North Texas and rust is not a serious problem like it is in other locations. The engine has about 80,000 miles and because the exhaust manifold had a hole burned through it, the car has been setting up for about the last 14 years. I have started restoring it and believe me, finding parts for that engine is nearly impossible. It has the automatic transmission and factory air and the interior is in really great shape. I have been gathering parts from the internet and ebay for the last two years and I hope to finish the restoration by next summer. After I complete the project I will put some pictures on a website.

Why bother restoring that terrible engine? Didn't AMC install the 2.5 Iron Duke in the Gremlin for a few years?

I think the Iron Duke was used later, in the Spirit through 1982.

This is one of those cases where the rarer car is worth less: there were a lot more 6-cyl Gremlins than 4-cyl ones, but the sixes are still more desirable, for obvious reasons.

You guys may be right about the value of the 4cyl Audi, but I am not restoring the vehicle for the value. You see, I like to own things that are very rare, and most of all I enjoy working on them. When was the last time you saw a ‘running’ Gremlin with a 4 cyl.? I just think it’s unique having something that very few people have. By the way that Audi engine is one of the smoothest running engines that I have ever worked on, when it is tuned properly.

Just one more comment. I think the 4 cyl. engine that AMC used in 1977 & 1978 on the Gremlins get a bad rap because it didn't have a lot of power. I don't think power was the purpose for the 4cyl. I am including some history below.

1977. It was also the year that AMC introduced the availability of a Volkswagen/Audi-designed 2.0 L I4 engine, the first time a four-cylinder engine was available with the Gremlin. The engine was the same one used in the Porsche 924, although the Porsche was fitted with Bosch fuel injection instead of carburetors on the AMC models. This engine provided improved economy, but was not as powerful as the standard six-cylinder engines the Gremlin carried over from 1976.

This information can be found on the website below.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMC_Gremlin.

I just bought a 1977 gremlin with the 2.0 L engine in it. it's a little rough, but not a lot of rust. one of the seats is in bad shape, but the others are OK. I had a 1972 gremlin with a 304 and a t10 4 speed trany. I beat many cars because they waited till I shifted to 2nd gear they were shocked when I still had a ton of get up and go all because I put in the 4 speed. does anyone have any idea how many of the 2L engines are still left on on the road or in storage as in not scraped? I was going to put a 327 or a 304 in it, but I don't have the heart to get rid of a rare car. there were less than 8,000 made in 1977. any ideas on how many are left?

I have an ad for the 1978 Gremlin. " If you want it any racier, paint a number on the door". Look at the front of the 1978 AMX. The Gremlin and the AMX look very similar. The '78 GT Gremlins are so rare, and I would love to see any Gremlin in person! I have only seen two Gremlins. One from the early seventies and one from the late seventies.