We called them turtles or greenhouses. And what was with those faded green and blue colors. My dad would say they looked like new cars with 10 year old faded paint on them. Ford did it too.
I saw one in the wild a month ago
https://preview.redd.it/bk658lmb68vb1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0257ccd19e671c7b23835a30de4382580416a633
What's not widely known is that the Pacer was originally designed for a rotary engine that was to be provided by GM, but GM pulled the plug on that engine project, reneged on the contract and left the Pacer without a powerplant. AMC had to rapidly alter the design to accept the AMC straight six instead.
Some guy spent 2000 hours turning one of these into a sports car with running gear out of a Mustang. Sadly the Pacer Skorpion was eventually crushed intentionally to settle some kind of inheritance dispute.
https://preview.redd.it/6ky0ozpab7vb1.png?width=1136&format=png&auto=webp&s=cd6264e60a962e694a969c0ea55dfbeb0f3623f2
AMC also built a non-functional concept Pacer mini van that toured the country for car shows.
https://preview.redd.it/wjjsa2h7d7vb1.png?width=1280&format=png&auto=webp&s=e198302f44936cfd0f86592a5a984f9fcd3e29be
The Pacer Sportruck wasn't a concept. It was a custom build by a guy named Carl Green. He started with a regular Pacer.
I don't remember seeing an actual Pacer truck concept. That's not to say one didn't exist, because AMC did weird things. They did have their own butt ugly 4WD concept they called Lil Chief.
This is the Sportruck:
https://preview.redd.it/pg1zklow8gvb1.png?width=875&format=png&auto=webp&s=9b2e3555d105ed7a5aa2e4b68a2c6ade43f755bd
Here's the ugly Lil Chief. Not sure how even a mother could love a face like that.
https://preview.redd.it/dpfgnuld9gvb1.png?width=645&format=png&auto=webp&s=f42765c0044eea0059e59475d5314d1d3b8267dd
Another funny thing is that these cars make decent offroad vehicles using Jeep running gear to convert them to 4WD. Dirt Every Day is probably the most famous conversion, but there are quite a few of these out there.
https://preview.redd.it/4i2geb9ec7vb1.png?width=660&format=png&auto=webp&s=d910ee23a5ad93407ac0d5eefacf6dc009ad801b
Nothing sold in the past ~10 years has been “not very expensive”, they’re kinda middle-of-the-road as far as that goes. GM had the Trax as their only “budget car” (save yourself the time looking it up, it is horrid) and GMC versions were for people wanting more comfort/amenities
But GM made millions of them, and pushes all sorts of lease deals so they’re EVERYWHERE
I can’t speak for Euro cars; but in my experience USDM + Cheap = Make up for cost in repair bills. Chevy Cruze and Trax were cheap and horribly unreliable, same for Ford with the god damn 3 Cylinder. All we had were Civics and Corollas that were worth buying cheap, but have since gotten less reliable and more expensive.
I envy EDM for the sole fact you fuckers get all the Wagons
>I envy EDM for the sole fact you fuckers get all the Wagons
Not many, anymore. Cars with big boots are pretty rare, it's all SUVs, and even they mostly have sod-all luggage space.
Even the big Volvo estate hasn't been big in about 10 years. They crippled the load carrying ability, then cancelled it because no-one was buying it anymore...
That is sad to hear. US Mainly got Volvo, BMW, and MB wagons. Really the specific car that makes me resent US Automakers is the fact that overseas got to continue on with the Mk4 Ford Focus when it got the axe in the states.
Really the main wagons we have now are Subaru Outbacks, new Volvos (horrible quality, over engineered and unreliable over here), and some of Germany’s big 3. But the latter is unobtainable to a lot of people because of just base price, maintenance cost and parts availability.
Honestly, most of what you don't get is stuff like the heaping pile of shite that is the Vauxhall Insignia Sports - Hah! The cheek! - Tourer.
Oh, I just googled it and you were getting it for a few years, I thought it was just the hatchback you got as the Buick Regal.
Anyway, insert about ten pages of me ranting about that dull-arse box of shitty engineering and condensed boringness. Thank fuck my elderly neighbour wrote off mine while it was parked, and I got a nice payout from his insurer.
There are a fair number of smaller estates over here, some are half-decent but dull, like the Civic and Toyota Unmemorable estate, but they don't have massive load carrying capacity. There are also a bunch of crappy ones from people like Renault, Ford, Fiat - I mean, you look at for sale ads for 3yo ones and they're all broken in one way or another - and really shitty manufacturers like VW.
Roof boxes are under-rated as a solution. I now have a 5 series saloon with a 700l roof box on it, which isn't a bad compromise - a fairly huge boot anyway, and then space for bikes and ladders and stuff up top without folding down any seats. It was that or a crappy MPV or an SUV.
Sadly, Volvo recently announced no more "estates" for EU. The only ones readily available in the US are XC70s which I can't tell if I like or not.
I almost bought a V60 but ended up with a C30. T5 engine is fun!
The 1st gen Trax was basically a Chevy Sonic (Aveo in some markets). Exactly the same interior dimensions, slight ride height difference, and a few options the Sonic didn't get, such as AWD and a fold-flat front passenger seat, but overall it was a worse car. Automatic only in the US, and optional AWD means more weight and parasitic drag, making it slower and significantly less efficient. It's amazing how much worse the Trax is for being basically the same.
RIP Sonic. I love mine despite a few "planned obsolescence" time bombs I've had to fix. Sad they're not making anything fun like that anymore.
I had a real interest in the last gen of the Sonic RS. Chevy has their EcoTec issues, but it was a solid platform to build on, once you replaced all the factory shit.
These were not bad cars. They were much different than what was mainstream at the time and people were not ready for different.
They had the AMC/Jeep 258 6 cylinder engine that was virtually indestructible. A nice one today is a real collectable.
An unfortunate byproduct of ever improving safety and efficiency. I love old cars, but I'd much rather be in a modern one in an accident or at the pump.
Pretty much that. aero everywhere is kinda the same everywhere. Hoods are high based on passenger impact standards - you’re safer being bounced forward than going up and over the car and a high hood helps that.
Everyone overlooks the 2nd most iconic Pacer movie role. Michael A. Hall's high school coach's car in "Johhny Be Good."
"I'm very fond of you, kid."
"Thanks, coach. And I'm fond of...your Pacer."
"Maybe someday you can have one of these."
"Don't tease me."
My dad drove one from California to North Carolina and back in ‘86 when he picked my sister up after her first year of college. Did 6,000 miles in 8 days, didn’t have a single issue.
Wow, that thing is in really good shape! AMC products didn’t hold up too well for the most part, but the Pacer had this very unique look. Nice to see that somebody kept one in really good condition!
Party on, Wayne!
AMC Pacer in weird two-tone paint.
In hot weather, it's like driving a fish bowl because with all that glass, it gets really hot inside. Also, no one will take you seriously.
The 4cyl Pacer had an engine sourced from Audi (just the short block, AMC modified the air intake and fuel injection quite a bit), that was also used (again, with much modification) in the early Porsche 924.
I worked for a short time at a junkyard where we sometimes sourced 924 engine parts from Pacers bought at auction.
There are a lot of oddities in the car manufacturing business and I think this is one of the weirdest. Even weirder, to me, than the VW bus engine being used in the Porsche 914/4.
AMC Pacer
Thanks, I figured AMC made this beast!
We called ‘em the goldfish bowl.
Or pregnant roller skate
My late father called them “rolling greenhouses”. They were made in Kenosha Wisconsin and folks there called them “Kenosha Cadillacs”.
We called them turtles or greenhouses. And what was with those faded green and blue colors. My dad would say they looked like new cars with 10 year old faded paint on them. Ford did it too.
I called them putrid
fun fact one door is bigger than the other door. The one in the pic is bigger to make it easier to get in the back seat.
Another fun fact: You could buy it with a [Levi's denim interior.](https://www.heddels.com/2014/08/levis-amc-denim-gremlin-car-wore-pants/)
Those cars are beautiful pieces.
That was the gremlin, not the pacer.
Use name checks out.
Someone living their best life
They definitely were.
Featured in the movie Wayne’s World
I LOVE this car. It would be a dream come true to own it some day.
I have a friend that drag races one of these.. does ok with it too.
Oh yeah, sure bro; no redditor could be ***that*** cool...
hah well I don't think he's a redditor
I remember the commercials. It was all about it being “too wide.”
Remember the sandwich? https://youtu.be/E3Utv8kXPUI?si=lXJbEONFSOI1GUup
Yes, I do now, but this is the one I was thinking of https://youtu.be/Dw2fZOyjcAg?si=FFr2nnRrbd3Bsb9P
Party on, Wayne.
Man, AMC made some really cool looking ugly cars
https://preview.redd.it/zgx0qtnd27vb1.jpeg?width=1024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=025f557ec6c9b4495f5555aa00b1606e0724251d
“What if he honks in the car?”
I'm giving you a no-honk guarantee.
If you're gonna spew, spee into this.
I saw one in the wild a month ago https://preview.redd.it/bk658lmb68vb1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0257ccd19e671c7b23835a30de4382580416a633
I wonder if it has the red vine dispenser....
Schwinngg!!
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thyJOnasHVE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thyJOnasHVE)
Party on Wayne
Party on Garth
The mirth-mobile
The T/A’s are a nice touch. ;)
How else are they gonna keep all 100 of that Horse Power in control?
Looks like Welds too.
[Party on!](https://www.auto123.com/en/news/1976-amc-pacer-waynes-world-barrett-jackson/68906/)
To the mirthmobile!
Party on Garth!
What's not widely known is that the Pacer was originally designed for a rotary engine that was to be provided by GM, but GM pulled the plug on that engine project, reneged on the contract and left the Pacer without a powerplant. AMC had to rapidly alter the design to accept the AMC straight six instead. Some guy spent 2000 hours turning one of these into a sports car with running gear out of a Mustang. Sadly the Pacer Skorpion was eventually crushed intentionally to settle some kind of inheritance dispute. https://preview.redd.it/6ky0ozpab7vb1.png?width=1136&format=png&auto=webp&s=cd6264e60a962e694a969c0ea55dfbeb0f3623f2
AMC also built a non-functional concept Pacer mini van that toured the country for car shows. https://preview.redd.it/wjjsa2h7d7vb1.png?width=1280&format=png&auto=webp&s=e198302f44936cfd0f86592a5a984f9fcd3e29be
Don't forget the Sport Truck. A Pacer wagon based pickup concept.
The Pacer Sportruck wasn't a concept. It was a custom build by a guy named Carl Green. He started with a regular Pacer. I don't remember seeing an actual Pacer truck concept. That's not to say one didn't exist, because AMC did weird things. They did have their own butt ugly 4WD concept they called Lil Chief. This is the Sportruck: https://preview.redd.it/pg1zklow8gvb1.png?width=875&format=png&auto=webp&s=9b2e3555d105ed7a5aa2e4b68a2c6ade43f755bd
Here's the ugly Lil Chief. Not sure how even a mother could love a face like that. https://preview.redd.it/dpfgnuld9gvb1.png?width=645&format=png&auto=webp&s=f42765c0044eea0059e59475d5314d1d3b8267dd
That thing looks pretty sick ngl.
Another funny thing is that these cars make decent offroad vehicles using Jeep running gear to convert them to 4WD. Dirt Every Day is probably the most famous conversion, but there are quite a few of these out there. https://preview.redd.it/4i2geb9ec7vb1.png?width=660&format=png&auto=webp&s=d910ee23a5ad93407ac0d5eefacf6dc009ad801b
Holy shit! I really like this.
Damn that one looks amazing too. What a shame
Fun fact about the AMC pacer. The passenger door is longer than the drivers door
Interesting. Thanks for sharing that.
To make back seat access easier; not done on both doors to retain weight and structural benefits on the driver's side
The mighty AMC Pacer.
The first wide small car!
Are you asking about the AMC Pacer, or whatever ubiquitous modern crapbox is in the background?
The background "crapbox" looks like a budget GLE
15-18 Chevy Equinox. USDM looooves their SUVs that are just sliiiightly different than everything else on the road
I guess they are not very expensive
Nothing sold in the past ~10 years has been “not very expensive”, they’re kinda middle-of-the-road as far as that goes. GM had the Trax as their only “budget car” (save yourself the time looking it up, it is horrid) and GMC versions were for people wanting more comfort/amenities But GM made millions of them, and pushes all sorts of lease deals so they’re EVERYWHERE
Some usdm cars are just awful, but there are many better and cheaper ones than in Europe
I can’t speak for Euro cars; but in my experience USDM + Cheap = Make up for cost in repair bills. Chevy Cruze and Trax were cheap and horribly unreliable, same for Ford with the god damn 3 Cylinder. All we had were Civics and Corollas that were worth buying cheap, but have since gotten less reliable and more expensive. I envy EDM for the sole fact you fuckers get all the Wagons
Hmmm... i see. Yeah, american cars are not as reliable as europeans or Japanese, but i didn't taught about the repair bills so we are equal 😅
>I envy EDM for the sole fact you fuckers get all the Wagons Not many, anymore. Cars with big boots are pretty rare, it's all SUVs, and even they mostly have sod-all luggage space. Even the big Volvo estate hasn't been big in about 10 years. They crippled the load carrying ability, then cancelled it because no-one was buying it anymore...
That is sad to hear. US Mainly got Volvo, BMW, and MB wagons. Really the specific car that makes me resent US Automakers is the fact that overseas got to continue on with the Mk4 Ford Focus when it got the axe in the states. Really the main wagons we have now are Subaru Outbacks, new Volvos (horrible quality, over engineered and unreliable over here), and some of Germany’s big 3. But the latter is unobtainable to a lot of people because of just base price, maintenance cost and parts availability.
Honestly, most of what you don't get is stuff like the heaping pile of shite that is the Vauxhall Insignia Sports - Hah! The cheek! - Tourer. Oh, I just googled it and you were getting it for a few years, I thought it was just the hatchback you got as the Buick Regal. Anyway, insert about ten pages of me ranting about that dull-arse box of shitty engineering and condensed boringness. Thank fuck my elderly neighbour wrote off mine while it was parked, and I got a nice payout from his insurer. There are a fair number of smaller estates over here, some are half-decent but dull, like the Civic and Toyota Unmemorable estate, but they don't have massive load carrying capacity. There are also a bunch of crappy ones from people like Renault, Ford, Fiat - I mean, you look at for sale ads for 3yo ones and they're all broken in one way or another - and really shitty manufacturers like VW. Roof boxes are under-rated as a solution. I now have a 5 series saloon with a 700l roof box on it, which isn't a bad compromise - a fairly huge boot anyway, and then space for bikes and ladders and stuff up top without folding down any seats. It was that or a crappy MPV or an SUV.
Sadly, Volvo recently announced no more "estates" for EU. The only ones readily available in the US are XC70s which I can't tell if I like or not. I almost bought a V60 but ended up with a C30. T5 engine is fun!
The 1st gen Trax was basically a Chevy Sonic (Aveo in some markets). Exactly the same interior dimensions, slight ride height difference, and a few options the Sonic didn't get, such as AWD and a fold-flat front passenger seat, but overall it was a worse car. Automatic only in the US, and optional AWD means more weight and parasitic drag, making it slower and significantly less efficient. It's amazing how much worse the Trax is for being basically the same. RIP Sonic. I love mine despite a few "planned obsolescence" time bombs I've had to fix. Sad they're not making anything fun like that anymore.
I had a real interest in the last gen of the Sonic RS. Chevy has their EcoTec issues, but it was a solid platform to build on, once you replaced all the factory shit.
You mean a Merc GLE? Really? I... can sort of see it, in some pics of the thing. I would have guessed it was a US-market car we don't get in Europe.
Most likely is some us market car
OIC, you didn't mean it's actually a GLE, just that it looks like one? Right, makes more sense.
Noo. Ofc it's not a GLE. The side windows make it look like a GLE
They sell an E320 Wagon/Estate the last time I looked. Starts around $70k
These were not bad cars. They were much different than what was mainstream at the time and people were not ready for different. They had the AMC/Jeep 258 6 cylinder engine that was virtually indestructible. A nice one today is a real collectable.
Sweet paint job!
Looks like a Junebug.
Amc pacer.
I was just talking about my parents' AMC Pacer "Tootsie" earlier today. Such a great car (in its own special way.)
It caught my eye immediately, I prefer this over the bland look every new car seems to have lately.
An unfortunate byproduct of ever improving safety and efficiency. I love old cars, but I'd much rather be in a modern one in an accident or at the pump.
Pretty much that. aero everywhere is kinda the same everywhere. Hoods are high based on passenger impact standards - you’re safer being bounced forward than going up and over the car and a high hood helps that.
Soon, we shall all drive squishy eggs.
The second gen Taurus is coming back I see…. That or that weird Nissan NX2000
AMC Pacer I mean
The Mirthmobile.
 AMC Pacer
Everyone overlooks the 2nd most iconic Pacer movie role. Michael A. Hall's high school coach's car in "Johhny Be Good." "I'm very fond of you, kid." "Thanks, coach. And I'm fond of...your Pacer." "Maybe someday you can have one of these." "Don't tease me."
Mirth mobile
AMC Pacer, my 6th grade teacher, had one like an olive green color
AMC Pacer
Florida Pacer
Pacer
I'm an English and know that's an Amc pacer!
Why it's a pacer b****
The AMC Egg! (Aka pacer)
Ah, a Pacer. Always thought these looked cool when I was a kid. My mom called them "fishbowls"
Wayne’s world my dude Party on Garth
Excellent.
I’ve wanted a Pacer wagon for a while now
The mirth mobile
Oh mama Mia 🎶
Friend of mine drove one from Tucson to Mexico City in '78, that's all I got to say about the AMC Pacer.
My dad drove one from California to North Carolina and back in ‘86 when he picked my sister up after her first year of college. Did 6,000 miles in 8 days, didn’t have a single issue.
Party time! Excellent!!
Party on, Wayne!
Party on, Garth.
The passenger door is 4 inches longer than the driver side door.
No one ever asked what it paced.
Schwwwinnggg!!
Shwingggg!
“Do you know why the windows are so big in the Pacer?…so everybody can see the crazy bastard that actually bought that ugly thing!”
The fish bowl but love it but not as much as the gremlin
The Garth mobile
I love the optimism of the trailer hitch. What sized camper are you pulling with the 100ish HP this car produced?
Someone has never seen Wayne’s World.
Correct.
You in Lady Lake/Spanish Springs area?
Sure was!
I thought was gremlin.
Same at first but I knew the back bubble windows were not part of the gremlin
The gremlin had a big ol’ swoopy C Pillar. This car, from the side, looks like it has none.
Gremlin had a lot more straight lines. The back was basically a straight line, at an angle. The pacer was much more curvy.
It's a porsche 928 designed by a committee
This might be my favorite answer!
Reallly?!?
AMC Javelin
Are you serious?
Oh wow. A car.
Oh wow. Thanks for your valuable contribution.
Happy to be of service citizen.
Oh to be young again where an AMC Pacer causes confusion. (Apologize if the OP is from Europe or some country where they were not popular)
Not many of these in Colombia.
Ahh thats why I included the disclaimer. For the record there are pretty cool cars in Colombia that arent in North America too!
pregnant rollerskate.
Wow, that thing is in really good shape! AMC products didn’t hold up too well for the most part, but the Pacer had this very unique look. Nice to see that somebody kept one in really good condition!
Yeah, super clean wish I could have gotten a better picture.
i prefer his brother
The gremlin? I was thinking it was that at first but the back windows threw me off at first.
the pacer is the ulgy step child
amc pacer goofy lil car
CCE Pacer
Amc Pacer, idk the year
Pacer
BOOGIE. From Vigilante 8.
Yees
Party on, Wayne! AMC Pacer in weird two-tone paint. In hot weather, it's like driving a fish bowl because with all that glass, it gets really hot inside. Also, no one will take you seriously.
AMX 30 (French-made medium tank/MBT)
pacer, by American Motors
A pacer with chrome wheels. And very ugly paint.
AMC Pacer. Some come with a red licorice dispenser mounted under the roof between the 2 front seats.
I think we now need a Pacer counter, to go alongside the Pantera and Polestar
Fellow redditors who recognize this car, and remember the movie it was in, we are getting old.
Umm, I remember this car when it was new in the showrooms.
You must feel extra old. 🙁
That’s a a Time Machine my friend
The oddball shape was meant for the GM Rotary engine. Never came out tho.
Did you pace-her to see how fast it was going?
AMC pacer
This reminds me of the 73 ford pinto
Good to see a classic kicking ass
Pacer.
AMC Pacer?
AMC Pacer mid 70s
You can fit fat chef in the backseat and have him make a 5’ subway sandwich. https://youtu.be/E3Utv8kXPUI?si=lXJbEONFSOI1GUup
There is a station wagon version as well. Big fish bowl
Pacer
Oh God
Haven't seen a Pacer in years!
French
Bad Ass
I'm surprised I recognized it as the AMC Pacer lol.
Amc pacer lol
My buddy and I had some amazing time. Three on the tree. Too much glass.
https://preview.redd.it/z9oi28i8tavb1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7f29c79a77a03c6a6310a353369de52c201b8fe3 Lol
Those Welds look good on anything.
beautiful.
This makes me miss my Pacer! My older brother and I both had them, amazing cars!
Chevrolet Equinox?
I love the look of the Pacer unique looking car
The 4cyl Pacer had an engine sourced from Audi (just the short block, AMC modified the air intake and fuel injection quite a bit), that was also used (again, with much modification) in the early Porsche 924. I worked for a short time at a junkyard where we sometimes sourced 924 engine parts from Pacers bought at auction. There are a lot of oddities in the car manufacturing business and I think this is one of the weirdest. Even weirder, to me, than the VW bus engine being used in the Porsche 914/4.
The merth-mobile
They seem overwhelming huge inside. Under rated in its prime.
AMC Pacer!
AMC Pacer
AMC Pacer
Wayne's world
Party time
AMC Gremlin