1974 AMC Ambassador: Was its styling ruined by bumper regs?

1974 full-sized low-priced cars

Readers of Indie Auto can offer feedback either by commenting or by sending a direct message here. Recently a reader used the latter route to defend the looks of the 1974 AMC Ambassador, calling it a “very handsome front end.” The reader went on to suggest comparing the car with its competitors — all of whom were also required to meet new 5-mph bumper rules.

That’s a good idea. However, before doing so let’s talk about subjectivity. Car styling is ultimately a matter of personal taste. If a reader really likes how a 1958 Edsel looks, it doesn’t matter if other people don’t. We like what we like. Indie Auto is a journal of opinion, so I will tell you what I like. Readers should feel free to offer their own views — with the recognition that we may sometimes need to agree to disagree.

Ambassador noses out the big Chevrolet

The Ambassador grew more than any other full-sized low-priced car when adding 5-mph bumpers. The 1974 sedan was 8.2 inches longer than in 1972, which was the last year before the feds began phasing in the new bumper rules (go here for further discussion).

As with its competition, the Ambassador’s growth partly reflected a bigger rear bumper. However, the addition of an unusually long nose contributed to the car’s extra length. Up through 1973 the AMC had a fairly flat front end.

1972 AMC Ambassador

1974 Ambassador and other AMCs
1972 (top) and 1974 Ambassador (Old Car Brochures)

The design team managed by Richard Teague had to work around one limitation not shared by most of its competitors. For 1974 the Ambassador shared the same front bumper with the Matador sedan and wagon. Up until then the Matador had a modest nose, but for 1974 it got much bigger. Even with a cleaner grille beginning in 1975 it still looked exceptionally long.

1972 Matador should have been an Ambassador

1976 AMC Matador wagon
1972 (top) and 1976 AMC Matador (Old Car Brochures)

One could argue that AMC designers were at an additional disadvantage because they had to somehow integrate beefier bumpers with old sheetmetal. However, Chevrolet was in the same boat, yet the length of its cars only grew 2.8 inches between 1972 and 1974.

One advantage the full-sized Chevrolet arguably had over the Ambassador was that its front bumper already extended fairly far out from the sheetmetal. In addition, designers made only evolutionary changes to the car’s basic look, which included a modest V-shaped front end. In contrast, the 1974 Ambassador’s front end represented a major shift in stylistic direction.

1972 Chevrolet Impala

1974 Chevrolet Impala
1972 (top) and 1974 Chevrolet Impala (Old Car Brochures)

Ford and Plymouth get a new look with 5-mph bumpers

For 1973 the big Ford received a reskinning. That allowed designers to come up with a more angular look that would better fit with 5-mph bumpers. Even so, the car’s overall length grew by 6.3 inches. That was the second largest increase aside from the Ambassador.

1972 Ford LTD

1974 Ford LTD
1972 (top) and 1974 Ford LTD (Old Car Brochures and Old Car Advertisements)

Meanwhile, the Plymouth Fury was the only full-sized entry that offered a brand new body for 1974. This resulted in 5-mph bumpers that looked better integrated than any of its competition.

Interestingly, even though the Fury had the flattest front end, the car’s overall length still went up 5.6 inches over 1972 models.

1972 Plymouth Fury

1974 Plymouth Fury
1972 (top) and 1974 Plymouth Fury (Old Car Brochures)

The Plymouth shared one disadvantage with the Ambassador. The Fury appears to have used the same front bumper as the big Dodge.

1974 Dodge Monaco
1974 Dodge Monaco (Old Car Brochures)

So how did the 1974 Ambassador rank?

If we go by how well the Ambassador sold in 1974, the redesign was not successful. Output for the entire full-sized, low-priced field dropped by 37 percent but the Ambassador fell by 49 percent.

The Fury saw an even steeper decline — 55 percent. That was eye-opening given the Plymouth’s new body. Nevertheless, I don’t think AMC had a whole lot to brag about. Ambassador production was already so low that it didn’t have much farther to drop. In 1973 only 49,000 units left the factory compared to 261,000 units for the Fury.

1965-74 full-sized low-priced production

I don’t think that the Ambassador’s styling was the most important factor in its collapse. As discussed here, the bigger problem was that AMC was vainly trying to compete in the full-sized field with a stretched mid-sized car. The Ambassador could have done much better if it had been repositioned as a mid-sized or a compact luxury car.

In addition, Indie Auto commentator Henry Alfred Duryea (2020) strikes me as on target in suggesting that the Ambassador’s front end looked better than the Matador’s.

Even so, I’d still argue that AMC designers jumped the shark with the 1974 Ambassador. That snout was too long. The 1973 Matador’s more modest nose shape would have nicely captured the brougham look without being overwrought.

In short, adding a 5-mph bumper didn’t help the Ambassador’s front-end styling. However, this wasn’t the reason why the car ended up with a Jimmy Durante-sized nose.

NOTES:

Market share and production figures were calculated from base data found in the Encyclopedia of American Cars (auto editors of Consumer Guide2002) and the Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1946-1975 (Gunnell, 2002). Dimensions are from Gunnell, the Automobile Catalog (2020) and automaker marketing materials.

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Standard Catalog of American Cars 1946-75

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