The Gremlin was introduced by AMC (American Motors Company) on April 1, 1970. It was hailed as the first modern sub-compact car built entirely in the United States. The design of the car was virtually identical to the Hornet from the front door forward, but from there back, things ended quickly. For the first two years of production there were both 2 door and 4 door models offered, but the 2 door variety wasn't very popular, so it was discontinued. The sticker price for the 2 door business coupe model in 1970 was $1879. Because of its low price and being so "different", the Gremlin was an instant success with young people. Gremlins were produced until 1978, and a total of 671,475 cars rolled off the production line.
There is an active group of Gremlin fans today. While looking for information on the AMC Gremlin I was amazed at the number of web pages devoted to this car. While it is a much-ridiculed automobile, there is a core group of Gremlin-Lovers out there. I saw Gremlin Dragsters, Gremlin art cars, and a great many lovingly restored Gremlins. The Gremlin lives!