Cut a Foot. Added 390.

AMC had spent years building sensible cars.

Ramblers. Economy. Practical transportation for people who wanted the thing to start every morning and weren’t particularly worried about frightening the fellow in the next lane.

Then came the Javelin, proving AMC could build a legitimate pony car with the right proportions, V8 power and enough attitude to park beside a Mustang or Camaro without needing an explanation.

AMC’s next move was more interesting.

It cut a foot out of it.

The Javelin rode on a 109-inch wheelbase. The AMX used 97 inches, and the rear seat disappeared along with the extra length.

That wasn’t just a styling trick. Shortening the wheelbase changed the proportions, pulled the whole car tighter around the driver and turned the Javelin idea into something Detroit barely offered at all: a two-seat American performance car.

In 1969, that put the AMX in mighty thin company. The Corvette was essentially the only other American production two-seater playing anywhere near the same game.

That’s a long way from Rambler.

AMC didn’t waste the opportunity by putting an economy six under the hood, either. Every AMX came with a V8.

The 290 made 225 horsepower, the 343 stepped up to 280, and at the top sat the engine everybody remembers: the 390 with 315 horsepower and 425 lb-ft of torque.

Now you had roughly 3,100 pounds of short-wheelbase AMC with a big V8 trying to rearrange the scenery.

A four-speed manual came standard, while AMC’s Shift-Command automatic was available for buyers who didn’t need a clutch pedal to prove anything. The Go Package added better suspension, power front disc brakes and performance tires, because stuffing a 390 into a short car works better when the rest of the thing can keep up.

AMC even put Craig Breedlove to work in specially prepared AMXs for speed and endurance record runs.

That wasn’t decoration. AMC was still trying to convince people that the company known for sensible Ramblers could build a serious performance car, and letting Breedlove beat on one at speed was a pretty good way to shorten the argument.

The AMX never became a huge seller. Only 8,293 were built for 1969, and the reason wasn’t hard to find.

Two seats made it special.

They also made it less useful.

A Mustang, Camaro or Javelin could carry a couple of extra passengers. The AMX left the back seat at the factory and made no apology for it.

That was the whole point.

AMC took twelve inches out of the Javelin, kept the V8s and created one of the strangest little performance cars Detroit put on the street.

Cut a foot. Added 390. Left the back seat at the factory.