The Rambler American was an automobile manufactured by the American Motors Corporation (AMC) between 1958 and 1969. The American was the second incarnation of AMC's forerunner Nash Motors second generation Rambler compact which was sold under the Nash and Hudson Motors marques from 1954 and 1955.

The American can be classified in three distinct periods: 1958 - 1960, 1961-1963 and 1964-1969. During the entire length of its production the car was sold under the Rambler brand name, and was the last Rambler automobile manufactured.

1958-1960

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The genesis of the Rambler American began when AMC President George W. Romney felt that AMC was in need of a small compact during the Eisenhower Recession of 1958. AMC had retained the tooling from its 1955 model Rambler, which was slightly modified and then used for the basis of the American, available only as a two-door sedan in its first season. The AMC sold 30,640 American's during the abbreviated 1958 model year. In 1959 AMC sold 91,491 units , ahving added a 2-door station wagon. In 1960 the line added a four-door sedan and sales increased to 120,603 units.

1961 - 1963

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The second generation Rambler American was achieved through a heavy restyling of the previous years model under AMC's styling Vice President Edmund Anderson. While mechanically identical to the 1960 model, Anderson's restyle resulted in a car that was shorter in its outside dimensions, but increased in its trunk capacity. The line added a two-door convertible, hardtop coupe, and the wagon became a four-door model.

1964 - 1969

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For its third generation, the American emerged with what would be its only completely new design. The new styling was far more attractive than the previous models, and was the work of famous designer Dick Teague, who would go on to design AMC's famous muscle cars Javelin and AMX in 1967-68. The wheelbase grew by six inches (106"). In 1966, the American featured more squared-off front and rear styling, making the car seem more modern, and that year saw the introduction of the new 199 cubic inch overhead valve inline Six, which AMC would use well into the 1970s. The car continued to received minor annual updates until the American program was discontinued at the end of the 1969 model year. Actually the 1969 model dropped the American part of its name, and was simply called, Rambler. Other than this change, the car was virtually identical to the 1968 American.

In addition to attractive styling, the third generation American offered excellent durability and an unusually smooth ride, thus it could still hold its own against its competitors from Ford, GM, and Chrysler.

For 1970, the American was replaced by the AMC Hornet.

References

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AMC vehicles | Rambler vehicles