AMC models

American Motors Corporation (AMC) was formed on 1 May 1954 by the merger of Nash-Kelvinator and the Hudson Motor Car Company. Its headquarters were in Southfield, Michigan, and its main plant in Kenosha, Wisconsin. George W. Romney took over after the death of George W. Mason in 1954.

Romney's focus on compact Rambler cars brought AMC its first profitable year in 1958. In the late 1960s the company entered the performance market with the AMC Javelin pony car and the two-seat AMC AMX, followed by muscle cars such as the SC/Rambler, the Rebel Machine and the Hornet SC/360. In 1970 AMC bought Kaiser Jeep and launched the Hornet and Gremlin; the Pacer arrived in 1975 and the four-wheel-drive Eagle for 1980. Renault agreed to take a stake in 1979 and became the principal owner in 1980. In 1987 Chrysler bought Renault's stake and the remaining shares. See also Nash, Hudson and Jeep.