After the merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and Hudson Motorcar Company, the new American Motors Corporation struck out on an ambitious path, which looked very promising. But it didn't take long for clouds of doubt to form, as Packard (after its merger with Studebaker) declined George Mason's offer to merge the two new companies into a powerhouse combination to duel the big three.
Still, AMC looked like a winner. The company was stronger after the Nash/Hudson merger, despite the quickly fading influence of the dated Hudson component.
It was in 1958, four years after the merger, that AMC began turning a profit, and they continued to do so for two more model years without making any substantial changes to the lineup. In 1962 the Metropolitan was dropped. In 1963 an all new Rambler Classic debuted, receiving the Motor Trend "Car of the Year" award. The good years were at hand.
But the company had already decided, under the leadership of Roy Abernethy, to begin thinking in another direction from that which had spelled success for AMC. Ignoring the old tenet that dictates one should "dance with who brung ya," the company leadership now wanted more powerful, bigger cars instead of the economical, practical vehicles that had been their bread and butter.
So, in 1963 the Rambler Classic got the big V-8 engine formerly reserved for the Ambassador. In 1964 a new hardtop called the Rambler Typhoon was introduced, boasting an all new power plant. The engine was an overhead valve six that lasted longer than any other engine manufactured by AMC. That engine, developed to its fullest, ended its successful run in 2004 in Jeep models sold by Chrysler Corporation. In 1965 a new Ambassador was introduced, as well as another all new Classic. And in mid-year another new model was introduced: the Marlin. By now the name "Rambler" was being dropped from most of the model designations, and the trend toward bigger and more powerful cars was accelerating.
The Marlin failed miserably, largely due to its having grown noticeably bigger than initially planned. It was intended to compete in the "Pony Car" market of Mustang and Camaro, but the Marlin was so big by comparison it had no influence in the intended market.
Despite the unfortunate Marlin the company's new direction did ultimately result in some very interesting cars. Models and option packages emerged to produce viable contenders in the growing performance car market. The Javelin replaced the Marlin, and raced with some limited success in the TransAm series against the rival Camaros, Mustangs and Cougars.
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