SHUT UP AND DRIVE

Some of my favorite trolling sites for AMC cars for sale. 

coming soon

What is the current market for AMC cars?
AMC ONLINE PRICE GUIDE

a Second Price Guide

a Third Price Guide

LOOK UP THE AREA CODE IN AD

WARNING EBAY AMC OLD CAR SCAMMERS!

Please note the MONTHLY Shut Up & Drive Lists (100+ AMCs For Sale) was discontinued in 2009 after a 11 year run, as it got extremely time consuming to put the lists together.

Common Sense Buying And How This Mess Started (from 2002)

1. Shut Up & Drive. This came about in the 90's due to some idiot Dallas Cowboys inbred fan who called me up asking if 'I could help him find a AMX' as 'he had looked for years' for one. Way too many people sit on their asses and don't get involved with the AMC hobby. 
2. How to find YOUR 'AMC Dream Car'. First, place 'wanted ads' in YOUR AREA publications like Thrifty Nickel, Auto Trader, and Green Sheet, Auto Hunter and such. Why? People do not know you exist, much less are looking unless you let them know. Sure the ads cost some money, but again, chances are you will have a number of calls from people who have a AMC vehicle sitting in their garage, field, warehouse, barn, and they see your ad and call. You START LOCAL, THEN GO REGIONAL, THEN NATIONAL with your search. The ad is simple: *AMC wanted, 1968-74 Javelin/AMX, any condition, all calls returned, PH#123-456-7890*
   You would be surprised the cars that exist in your region that you do not know about, and these ads flush them out. Yes, you will have both high dollar overprices pieces of shit people call "restored" and it looks like they painted it in the rain drunk, you will have cars professionally restored that pop up, and you will have beaters and sleds too, GO LOOK AT ALL OF THEM. And if you pass on them, please email me the information so I can spread the word here with the SUAD Lists and help others!!

3.  Secondly, you can join, and support a non profit national club like AMO, NAMDRA, or AMCRC. AMO and AMCRC/Rambler club both have a MONTHLY AD FORM full of cars and parts for sale.  Many times, if you contact the chapters of these organizations, some of the members have cars for sale, and would rather sell them to a fellow AMC fan, not some snotty nosed minimum wage burger flipper who will drop a 350 Chevy in it. Type yourself up a nice wanted letter, make copies, and send it to them, asking if they can put it in their next scheduled newsletter, or read it at next scheduled meeting. There are also online places you can copy this to, see my "message boards" section of this website!
   
   The AMC Market.
   AMC vehicles were marketed by AMC sort of what you see Saturn, Kia and Hyundai doing today. They knew they were not Cadillacs, Lexuses, SUVs and the like and they stayed in, and sold, a lot of cars in their niche, a lower end market. You could buy a new 70 Gremlin for $1998.00 for instance. FACT: AMC vehicles are not worth a lot of money 30+ years later, regardless of how many might remain. VERY FEW AMC'S REACH THAT PINNACLE AND SELL FOR WHAT THEY "SHOULD" BE WORTH, OR WHAT "WE" THINK THEY SHOULD BE WORTH. MYTH: The longer I hold onto my car, the more it will be worth. BS. If that is true, click on http://www.carsinbarns.com and tell me these cars are worth a lot of money, or hell, click on my own 'AMC PHOTOS/photo gallery' here and 80% of those 'collectible' AMCs have been crushed. Is it a shame? Yes. Can they all be saved? No, get real. It is a damned HOBBY folks, not Wall Street...have fun!!! AMC values have always lagged behind the Big 3 and will probably always do so. The lack of a "parent company" and a "parts crisis" don't help much either. Many AMC Muscle Cars sell way below the $25,000 mark, with more than 70% selling below the $20,000 mark, even restored to perfection. The cars deserve a better fate, believe me, but be realistic. If you wish for a "Investment" AMC, good luck, however, please keep in mind the parts situation, and you can easily frop $10k into a concourse paint job, and restoration costs are $75/cheap to $150/average per hour.  If you want a price guide, go to your nearest large bookstore and pick up Old Cars Price Guide, which echoes my sentiments.
   
   So how does this explain Ebay? Only a idiot would think ebay is a market barometer. "Oh, I saw a Rebel Machine sell for $35,000 on there, therefore all Rebel Machines are worth $35K". No, the car did not sell for $35K, the "buyer" walked away. Many cars are "shilled" on ebay, and it is out of control, and ebay rarely stops it, although it is illegal! You have Joe Blow put his AMX on ebay for sale, then he calls his friends and family, who then "bid up" the vehicle in a effort to draw a higher price. Auction houses do this too. But for ebay, here is a file I highly suggest everyone read before bidding:
   Ebay Policy: Shill Bidding
   
   Good News?? Lots of it. It is a great time to be a American Motors owner 20 years after the fall of AMC. 
   
   Good news is if you do indeed buy a AMC, you will find fellow AMC fans are the best and you will discover the vendors on my Planet Houston Vendors List will bend over backwards to find you the NOS, used, or reproduction parts to get your car looking, and running, great. Yes, there are a lot of reproduction parts on the market, and yes, there are also a lot of things that will sadly never be reproduced. 
   
   You will have a unique piece of American Automotive History, and something **different** than those sheep who drive Mustangs which look like Pacers, riceburners, SUVs and the like. 
   
   You will have stares, thumbs ups, smiles, waves, when you drive your AMC vehicle, and you can't put a price tag on that. 
   
   An AMERICAN car built by AMERICANS. 
   
   You will have a car that stands out at any car show or cruise night you attend. American Motors built some of the greatest automobiles on the planet, bar none, and it is a testimonial as just how well they were built that so many survive 10, 20, 30+ years later. 
   
   Many AMC & Rambler owners buy these cars for the sheer love of the marque, and you will not find another group of people more loyal to their vehicles.
    
   You will also find like I have when you drive your AMC that it gathers a crowd with nice comments when you stop, whether to buy gas, stoplight, restaurant, or wherever your travels will take you, someone, no...EVERYONE, has a Rambler or AMC story they wish to share! 
   
   Please remember that many cars will never be "restored" to original, and should you decide to buy a AMC vehicle, keep that in perspective. It is not to say you can't build a great car, it is saying it might take a little longer, and cost more than your average brand x you can easily find parts for. I have no qualms about "altering" a AMC vehicle. I build them for my own personal tastes, and you should too. In other words, don't lose sight of what you wish to accomplish with the car, and most of all have fun with it. I have seen way too many people thru the years want to buy a "original" car. Remember this when considering a "original car". Just like our bodies, everything will wear out eventually. You will have to eventually go thru the engine, trans, brakes, suspension, interior, paint and body. So you pissed away $10K on a original AMC, suddenly you have pissed away $15K more fixing 30 year old shit that has given out, and you have a money pit on your hands..This goes for AMC, Chevy, Ford, Pontiac, and many more makes!
   
   

4. Don't Get Taken!! (THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU WILL READ HERE)
   
   1. Beware of BOGUS CARS. If the car is being sold as a "one of a kind" then that is what it should be! And don't be afraid to do a little title searching, the few dollars spent should be well worth it.
      The two easiest AMC musclecars to fake are the Mark Donahue Javelin and the Trans Am Javelin. AMC built them not only in Kenosha but also instructed their dealerships to build them at the dealership itself to 'increase sales; (it didn't 70 Javelin sales sucked, about 1/2 of 69 sales; the 70 AMX you could not give away). You can easily add a rear ducktail spoiler to any 70 Javelin, and along with a Ram Air hood, no one will ever know. So allegedly all Donohues were built between December 69 thru April 70 but there are documented cars built outside both windows. Yes, there was column shift cars built. Yes, there are two documented 304/4barrel "M" code cars known to exist. You can paint a 70 Javelin r/w/b. AMC did at their dealerships, and it was endorsed by AMC. You can still buy NOS and reproduction metal door tags and punch in any damned code you want there. (See my Vendors List, that company stamped the data tag  DeWayne Ashmeade's Best of Mopar show BBB 70 Donohue for instance) I have "built" about a dozen "Donohues" myself in 25+ years.  You can't "clone" a 68-70 AMX, or a Rebel Machine, Hurst SC/Rambler or SC/360. The VIN prohibits this. (Yes, you can rebody or re-VIN a car as some do). Not so with the 70 Donahues and Trans Am Javelins sadly. The 6th digit of the VIN should be a "8" for the 71-74 AMXs, see production figures here on my website. See production figures concerning the SC/360 also. If someone claims they have this and that, simply ask them to prove it. 
      
   2. If you are really interested in a car, but want some time to check out the info you have gathered on it, or to think it over, ask the owner about putting down a deposit. It shows that you are interested, and most sellers will be willing to wait a extra day, but remember, DON'T IMPULSE BUY!!!!
      
      
   3. Keep alert of market prices for that particular model and relative condition of what you are buying. Know the average prices on a average car. This will keep you paying too much for a not so hot car! And keep your budget in mind. If you want a $5000 "driver" then GET a $5000 "driver" not a "$5000 RARE & COLLECTIBLE" project car!
      
      
   4. Know everything about that model. Obviously, this is less important if looking for a matching numbers car, but knowing where to look for common rust areas can be invaluable. If nothing else, you'll look all the more informed and therefore better able to talk down the price. As for 'matching numbers' these ain't Vettes people. If the 68 AMX has a 390 in it, there is no way to tell whether it came out of a 68, or 69. Same for many other years.
      One of the biggest problems I have seen thru the years is that people just don't really know AMC. There is no such thing as a AMC BIG BLOCK. They are all small blocks, from 290, 304, 343, 360, 390, 401. Some fool might think the car has a 401 but all you have to do is crawl under the engine and look at what is cast on the block either side of the motor mount, as all AMC engines appear the same!
      
      
      
   5. Approach cars WITH CAUTION that are described as *COLLECTORS ITEM* or *RARE* or *MINT* or *NUMBERS MATCHING* or *ALL ORIGINAL* or *FRESHLY PAINTED* or *NEVER RACED* my personal favorite: *RESTORED*. Think about that, you see these words in ads all the time. Restored? To whose standards? It is not like we have a AMC Restoration Handbook to do it right! Rare? This is how you cook steak. Mint? Something I put in my iced tea when it is 109 degrees, something you might chew on after dinner. I'll let Earl Scheib paint my car when he is drunk and can call it restored. You might spend $250 for a 1968 date coded radiator cap. These words CLOUD the issue that the CAR COULD BE A RUSTY PIECE OF SHIT IN NEED OF SOME SERIOUS RESTORATION. It's possible to "Restore" a Chevette, but would YOU want to? If you want to see how often these damned words are ABUSED, go to www.ebay.com then search on the following words: 
      Rare=265978 items found for rare
      Mint=200446 items found for mint
      Restored=735 items found for restored
      No Reserve=56713 items found for no reserve
      NR=Your search returned too many listings. Please refine your request by adding more words in the search box (for example, "fountain pen" instead of "pen").
      Original=120980 items found for original
      NOS=27431 items found for nos
      Didn't know the NR would TILT the ebay search!

1. Put it in writing. Be sure the car has a clear title, unless you are buying a car to race off road only, then no problem. I can tell you numerous horror AMC stories of people who have bought a car with a title someone botched, and then they find they are stuck with it.

2. DON'T BUY A CAR YOU WOULD NOT WANT TO KEEP!!!!! This sounds stupid, but many, many, people have laid down cold hard cash for cars that really didn't interest them other because of perceived "Market Value" or "Rarity" or because they get to bidding on a car on www.ebay.com and have a limited time frame to bid, and they have NOT checked out the car, the ARE BUYING BLIND. You are ONLY RELYING ON THE SELLERS DESCRIPTION, "you" have not looked at this car up close, "you" do not know if it smokes when started, or whether it pulls to one side, or brakes mushy, or drips oil or other fluids, or front end clunks!!! If you buy a AMC vehicle, don't like it and want to sell it but can't, you
   are up shit creek. So avoid the problem and buy what you like! Yes, I hear from people who have had a positive ebay car buying experience, and I'm damned happy for them. It is not like that for everyone however, see 'ebay buying horror stories' file here on my site. 

Lastly, please remember THIS LIST IS A FREE SERVICE FROM PLANET HOUSTON AMX.
*Please be courteous when calling numbers listed here!!!
*Note "posting date" of each list, the higher the SUAD number the fresher the leads!
*The WORST thing someone can tell you when calling is the car is sold. The BEST thing is that it is still for sale. Suggestion? When calling, say: "Hi, my name is Joe, and I am calling about a vehicle that was posted for sale on so and so date and was wondering if it is still for sale?" *Great Transportation services available from CDI TRANSPORTS OF HOUSTON, listed on my Planet Houston Vendor List, they have transported over 50+ cars for me thru the years, great rates and service, ask for Hugh for a FREE RATE QUOTE. *Most importantly: DO NOT IMPULSE BUY, TAKE YOUR TIME, DO YOUR HOMEWORK ON THESE CARS, KNOW YOUR CODES, RUST AREA, OPTIONS, PAINTS, ECT. People are still looking and wanting, the same things they wanted back when the market was hot for AMC in the late 1980s: no rust, low miles, unusual paint/trim/options, originality and so forth. *This list is intended to give people options when it comes to buying a AMC, and to let them know that AMC is STILL, and has been, of of the biggest bangs for the bucks when it comes to classics.  Happy hunting and if you come across something and do not know what all to look for, give me a call with the numbers and I will tell you whether someone has something of interest, whether the car is priced right, overpriced, under priced, where to look for rust, engine codes, paint, trims,
options, and hopefully coach you thru what might become the best car you have ever owned and enjoyed! I've personally owned 326 of them, 14 currently, with more on the way. 

*Feel Free to use the SUADS to determine insurance purposes, or market value of what similar cars were selling for at that point in time.

AMC Estate Sale