By the 1970s, independent automaker American Motors Corp. was slipping into design senility, which took some effort during this era of malaise cars and questionable quality.
While the big three — Ford, GM and Chrysler — had the funding to attract new talent and turn out popular vehicles able to feed the car-buying public’s appetite, AMC was like crazy Uncle Charlie who showed up at the family gatherings but never sat at the adult table. When he told a story, everyone cringed except the kids, who laughed at Uncle Charlie’s inappropriate comments. But in this case, Charlie was designing cars instead of spinning yarns.
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