AMC Parked For Years. Will It Start? This Project Car Needs To Get Moving!!

[@brentallen15]

From a time when cars still had a personality.

[@whatsnewonthemountain]

I started as a mechanic at an AMC / Jeep dealer in 1974. Remember the Hornet and Pacer. The boss had a Cherokee Chief with the 401. Still remember the first CJ7 in ‘76. Those were the days. Bought my first tool set from Sears for $200 and it had everything I needed at the time. I still have most of that stuff.

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

That's fantastic! Keep wrenching 🔧

[@ThisIS_Insane]

In 1972 bought a '72 Gremlin trade-in car with the 4.2L, 3 Speed manual (and I added a quadraphonic stereo, CB radio w/SSB and an amplified Vox microphone, with Twin Hustler gutter mounted twin antennas). The previous owner got married, and his wife had twins, sooo... That car was amazing, could drive from Colorado Spgs., to St Louis on one tank of gas, and was light enough for me to push it, if need be. NEVER STRANDED ME, or broke down in a way that I couldn't recover/fix what was wrong. at 92,000 it threw a rod and I had it re-sleeved, and drove it until I got T-Boned by a doctor in a BIG Ol' Oldsmobile Toronado, within about 30,000 miles later. I actually cried over losing that car. Was driving thru Texas, and it was hot (of course), and my car died. I got out and checked around, to find burnt points. Got out a book of matches and a nail file. You know the drill - clean up the points and gap it with the matchbook cover, slap on the distributor, and fire it up. I did, and It did. I made it to the party in plenty of time.🥳👏👍

[@tswinter1]

Your wife's a sweetheart Kenny !! More Mrs Wrench please !! 😊

[@genedunn9283]

What a sweet survivor car! Gotta love a straight 6 with a 3-speed manual!

[@donmunro144]

I was surprised that it took so much to get her fired up. Those 258s are bullet proof. Not an amc guy but that is really a nice ride.

[@jeffogden2982]

Be different and build the six.

[@webman1956]

It never ceases to amaze me how low tech the cars were back then. When you opened the hood with all that room and everything easy to get to with no computer crap for the most part. I have two trucks, a 2022 Silverado Custom and a 2008 Ram 1500 and when you open the hood and look to compare them,even though it`s only 16 years between them it looks like 40 tech wise and room to work. New ain`t always better.

[@TheREALOC1972]

That's why I've never owned a car newer than 1985. everything on them is simple and I can fix them with not much more than a 1/2 inch wrench, 9/16 wrench and strait screw diver

[@webman1956]

@@TheREALOC1972 I have a 1995 Chevoret 2500 pickup with a 350 motor. and it looks like shit but everywhere I stop when I drive it, I have people wanting to buy it. It only has 175,000 miles but the motor sounds smooth as silk and it doesn`t burn oil. I will never ever sell it since it`s a farm truck.

[@webman1956]

@@TheREALOC1972 Also I have a 2008 Ram 1500 and a 2022 Silverado and if you park all three side by side, you can see the shade tree mechanic getting less and less with each one and there is not much I can do with the 2022 but change the oil and battery.

[@TheREALOC1972]

@@webman1956 and changing the oil is IFFY....My next door neighbor has a 2020 Ford Escape and asked me to change her oil, I had to take half the underneath off just to even get to the oil filter and drain plug, After I did it I told her "never again".

[@webman1956]

@@TheREALOC1972 Yeah they got this stupid hard plastic cover over everything, and the plastic is useless as a skidplate so not sure of the purpose is other than just being a pain in the ass to take off every oil change.

[@donaldhackler5242]

That was great! Thank you very much. My grandfather used to buy cars that weren’t running and fix them up.

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

Thanks for watching 🔧

[@TheDeadMan3848]

11:39 😮 Thanks Kenny

[@dean9498]

Wow...I had an AMC Hornet. It was dark green. Aka-the green hornet. Cool car,many good memories.

[@keltecshooter]

I always liked that body style, its a keeper for sure 😊

[@michaelborne5452]

Kenny leave the AMC alone if parts are available the 401 is still AMC and worth the swap thanks for keeping the old cars alive

[@zipoleon16]

Good looking car Mr. Wrenching!

[@letzrockitrite8469]

Mom and Dad (it was mom's daily driver) had a 68 javelin with a 343 v8 ... nice machine right out of the factory

[@johnchapman3446]

Sounds good....wish you were ready to pull the motor. I am looking for a 258ci. Keep up the good videos.

[@curtishill6490]

Wow she looks solid!! Gotta love the pooch💯 can't go wrong with a straight 6 normally! They're still using the same 250s and 300s to pump water on the cranberry bogs as when I was there in 85! Thanks Kenny and take care🙏✌️

[@thomask4836]

Dear Mrs. Wrenchin' , Happy Mother's Day! Tom

[@larryg.9187]

Wow... I like the car... The three speed manual, the two door hard top, the inline six... Very nice... Let me share, I bought a running and driving 1973 AMC Hornet Sportabout X, Gucci interior, in January this year, 2024... Body is rust and dent free, has : 258 I6, automatic, tilt steering, sport steering wheel, independent reclining front seats, Italian flag colors on the seats and door panels, double G headliner, roof rack, mag like wheels... Needs paint, but I'm happy overall. Best regards AMC 🇺🇸 ✌😁👍

[@robertdiehl9003]

I would luv to have that car as a daily driver. Beautiful motor...

[@TimTurner115]

She is nice. Thank you Mrs. wrenching. Happy Mother's day ma'am

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

Thank you!

[@darwin9141]

Had a friend long ago that had a hornet with a 360 in it and it was fast.

[@careyward3405]

Good to see it running. It will be cool when you are done with it.

[@russellthomson5571]

I bought a trade in AMC Hornet from the Ford dealer in Newport RI in 1982 and after replacing the rear diff I drove it across Canada sleeping the back. Had to leave it in Canada as the auto gear box would only do 1st gear. Wish I still had it now!

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

That's cool. It must have been a good time. Thanks for sharing your experience & watching the channel. Keep wrenching 🔧

[@Taillighttim26]

That's one hell of a classic that is the first time I've seen one that close it still runs too runs really good too

[@paulputnam2305]

Hey Kenny, that was fun. Thank You.

[@THEDRAGONBOOSTER8]

Great video .Nice car and your wife seems like a nice person..

[@rustybumperclassics6342]

Cool little car

[@Sludge73]

Nice unit! I'd drive that just like it is. The V8 will be fun too. Cant wait to see more.

[@billsmith2212]

A guy in the neighborhood had a SCRAMBLER with a 390 . Insane machine ! I had a Matador ( from Spain - LOL ) with a 258 , no A/C . There were issues with it running hot . Never overheated . I put in an oversize radiator , shroud , flex fan and spacer to put the fan closer to the radiator . Reverse flush , including the heater core and removed a freeze out plug to flush the block . There was something left from the block was cast , possibly sand ? And different thermostats . The heat would warp the exhaust manifold . It might have cracked at some point . I even put an OEM unit on . If there was a heat riser , it was knocked open . I think I changed the water pump at some point . At 99 K , the neck on the torque converter broke while I was driving . I think I sold it at about 130 K as a running parts car .

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

Thanks for sharing! Keep wrenching 🔧

[@chuckgladfelter]

FWIW I had a 1974 Chevy C-10 with the 350 and it had points too. GM had electronic ignition in 1975. It actually was a 350 with 4 bolt mains with a 2 bbl carburetor.

[@HowardJrFord]

Ford , GM and AMC went to electronic ignition in 75 . Chrysler offered electronic as an option in 72 and it came standard in all Chrysler corporation cars in 73 .

[@CommonMapTurtle]

Kenny, spraying all that carb cleaner and then not putting the air cleaner back on is asking for a backfire to shoot flames out of the carb! These 232/258 7-main bearing sixes were some of the most indestructible engines of all time!

[@meeeoooow]

Love the AMCs. Lots of potential in that hornet.

[@kotjmf1968]

That is a really nice example of an uncommon sight!

[@Leroy63]

Kenny, I'm glad I found your channel. Those inline 6 cyls. are bulletproof, I put a Pontiac 301 in a 73 Gremlin many years ago for a nice little sleeper car. Man was it fast and fun. Look forward to seeing what you do with this. I enjoy the channel, keep the great videos coming.

[@benjamincresswell3713]

A friend had a brand new Levi edition Purple Gremlin 304. We put a Holly intake & 600 4bbl, Hookers, 10.5" Javelin clutch & customized a Bell hsg to put a Borg Warner T-10 behind it. He bought a Hurst "Super Shifter" & got the driveshaft shortened. It was very quick! Dan; if you see this look me up! I still have my 69 GTX. ben/ michigan

[@thejconstantine3081]

I got to be real this channel as one of the best car channels I've ever seen

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

Thank you very much for the compliment. I appreciate you watching. Keep wrenching 🔧

[@glennfields8121]

Great job brother! Little Kenny, you still amaze me. A great job by Meg (Mrs. Wrenching) too and of course we can't forget an appearance by Gigi. "Keep wrenching".

[@steveo4048]

I work in a Chrysler dealership up in the Great White North, and got one of the new 2023 Dodge Hornets 2 months ago. It isn't running either. At least with that one you have, you can check on various components. The one I'm working on rolls over into limp-mode without warning, and spits out a Tolstoy novel full of DTC's affecting 20 different computer modules. A smidge jealous of you right now. Love the content. Always look forward to a new episode. Cheers.

[@allhailinternalcombustion]

We used to overlook those cars a lot back in the days when we had $500 Chevelles, Cutlasses, and Camaros. Nice to see one still around. Hope you get time and space to do more to it in the near future.

[@glennfields8121]

Happy Mother's Day Meg!!

[@mannywilliams6409]

Had one almost like it but mine had a blue driver's side door. Learned how to do a lot of basic mechanics on that car!

[@Pantherman1979]

Nice 😀. Those wheel center pieces look remarkably like the ones that were on my father's 1979 Plymouth Horizon.

[@jthonn]

I didn't care much for those back in the day, but I would die to have it today. It is in beautiful condition. Yes you are right, I would restore it back as original as possible. Worth more that way, and it is hard to find those old cars in that shape anymore. You can always find a toy, if you see what I mean. Man you bring me back in time Kenny, I graduated High school in '79.

[@LesReeves]

I got out of the education gaol in 74 went straight to work at a dealership as an apprentice mechanic (small town only two mechanical shops so didn't have much choice.)

[@jthonn]

@@LesReeves I hear ya, back in the day you could apprentice and learn from the best and be a dang good mechanic. Now you need a degree in computer science before you turn a wrench.

[@FixIt1975]

An old Hornet. I remember those, neighbor across the street from where i grew up had one. It was yellow but not that yellow, more pale yellow with black vinyl top. I was probably about 10 so, 1985ish? I couldn't tell you what motor was in it but he had the Hornet and she had a green Volare wagon. And his mother in law had a really old Chevy Caprice or Impala, it was a huge car with tiny woman driving it

[@TheGenerationX894]

I dont have spark....the hornet starts. I lmao because ive had that happen with piints ignition as well. Glad you were safe and had your hands and arms out of harms way. Nice ol car!

[@privatedata665]

The body looks decent on the hornet , nice start ! I'm an LS fan but a 401 would be cool too .

[@jeffryblackmon4846]

Better yet- an Oldsmobile 455 engine.

[@invisableobserver]

It would be great to LS swap it, tho' it will need cooling, suspension, rear end & brake upgrades for an LS swap, maybe the trans tunnel enlarged also. Might be easier on an AMX or Javelin body.

[@keithrimmer3]

What a great car Kenny

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

Thank you! Keep wrenching!

[@michaelbolton2741]

Keep the Six, restore the car. ❤

[@gilbertwashburn7095]

Hornets are cool that's in good shape that'll be fun thanks for the video

[@robcurtis4888]

Nice Old car looks good 👍

[@billthecomet8391]

I would leave it as is

[@FixIt1975]

Yeah, me too, leave the inline 6 in it

[@LesReeves]

Only things I would do to get reliability would be electronic ignition & fuel injected carb setup.

[@FixIt1975]

@@LesReeves you're limited on what you can do with the carb though. On the smaller Ford inline 6s, the intake manifold was cast one piece with the head. It can only be unbolted on the big 300 straight 6

[@dalemichael7992]

I love your stories especially the one about you and your buddies would bump each other on the road, we did that to what fun and when we got caught the police would just yell at us and yes take the beer and weed and tell us to go home. this was upstate NY.

[@davepike6170]

What a beautiful Hornet Hatchback! Call me one of the guys who begins to "freak out" when mention of replacing the engine with something different! This car is excellent as is! I'd fix that harmonic balancer and whatever else, and keep that trusty six in it, myself. I don't understand why almost everyone who's fortunate to find a good six cylinder AMC, or Chevrolet Nova, has to remove the six and add a bigger engine, as if they must do it! I owned a '76 Hornet Sportabout wagon years ago, with a 258, 1bbl. six and automatic transmission, perfect as it was, no more engine needed. After that I had an '81 Concord DL 2-door coupe, 258 six and a 2bbl. carb. Ran great, plenty quick enough.

[@rodneybrand8521]

Hey Kenny..i would leave the color alone at least till you get the other motor in ..a friend of mine had a hornet 3 speed on the floor..i put a 302 4 speed in it and changed the rear end..it was a hoss we ended up putting power brakes on it because it didn't want to stop..lol..it was a lot of fun driving because people eyes would pop out when they couldn't pass it..

[@knoester7714]

Good looking old Hornet

[@TheREALOC1972]

I just bought a 73 Hornet 4 door, It's a cool little car. The interior is like new, the engine is decent enough, the paint is good except the roof, It had a vinyl top on it and the guy I bought it from just ripped it off so I'm going to have to cut and buff the paint and then sand and repaint the top, I think im just going to do the roof in white truck bed liner, it;s a 4 door so it will never be worth much and I;d not building a trailer queen, I;m building a daily driver/ weekend fun car.

[@danielsellers8538]

As you said earlier, neglected it needs a dam good engine clean & service 😊

[@johnnylightning1491]

Don't get rid of that 199, 232 or 258 whatever that 6 banger is, it's a great engine, but then you probably know that. Keep the good stuff coming buddy.

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

Thanks for watching 🔧

[@bossatronking3426]

"Mrs Wrenching" love it L O L

[@raybrindos4514]

74 was the last year for points. 75 went with the Ford Duraspark.

[@MrBeard-ig5zc]

Go with the 5.3 Better gas mileage. More power. Easy to fix. Easy to get parts.. easy to soup up.

[@wigletron2846]

Can't go wrong with a 5.3

[@dans_Learning_Curve]

Had a 1980 Dodge Colt. It still had points! Had a parts guy aruge with me that it was electronic ignition.

[@JeffinTD]

Door handles on those are known to break where the hinge pin passes through the arm that leads to the linkage. Be sure to keep them lubricated. Nice old Hornet.

[@jensenwilliam5434]

Thank s

[@bobby9195]

Love that car

[@ronsena8595]

Very cool car.

[@pontiackid72pa]

bad ass lill hornet , dont see many of them around anymore

[@mckeazer]

Cute car

[@DonFarmer-sh7ml]

3 pedals the way God intended

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

😃 thanks for watching 🔧

[@randallmunson9909]

102"wb "Lightning Rod" class car at Santa Fe Speedway back when. Great old gal, must be the last one left. I haven't seen one in years.

[@patdavis2540]

Someone is going to give you a lot of money for that vehicle.

[@robertdiehl9003]

Sweet ride..

[@martinjay5906]

Perfect situation with bad tires, I vote for a burn out !!

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

😎

[@shawnbelford3433]

It's actually a pretty good looking car. Looks like a combination of Pinto, Duster, Baracuda, and Vega! That 6 cylinder is a great engine had 1 in a '72 Gremlin!

[@ThisIS_Insane]

ME,TOO!!!

[@haneyoakie14]

@@ThisIS_Insaney Dad’s 73 Gremlin had the 232. Great motor! Flintstone car body. By the end it had just carpet for a floor. Drive through a puddle, and you got 2 inches of water soaking the carpets. If you ran some body over, you could look down to see if it was someone you knew.

[@ThisIS_Insane]

@@haneyoakie14 I never had a leak anywhere. Unless I left a window down!! One guy had it out for me during one winter, and I found a big chunk of ice in the driver's front seat! Seems I dated a girl he couldn't get to go put with him. Southern end of lake Michigan is really cold, and I had to go to work! I hated that. 🤣🤣🤣

[@ThisIS_Insane]

@@haneyoakie14 Miner had bare metal down by the rocker panel, but I waxed the crap out of that car, and it never did rust. I lived in Chicago - "Rock Salt City"!

[@vicpetrishak7705]

Could that be a faded Yellow Cab sticker on the door ?

[@robertdiehl9003]

Very enjoyable video.

[@jackiemay9471]

i think the colour suits the car i like it

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

Our grandson named it Bumble Bee because of the color, when he was a baby. We shortened it to Bumble. My focus is to get it up & running. Then, I will figure out the paint. Thanks for watching 🔧

[@jackiemay9471]

@@WrenchingWithKenny he liked the transformer film vw bug it turned into a camaro now a AMC

[@rosch1964]

very good, i love the hornets´... own a years ago... good luck

[@gillgetter3004]

Had a CJ5 with same engine four speed think it was 76

[@davidmc1489]

Had a 4dr 71 hornet i bought from my aunt....best a/c in that thing... Live in the rust belt....and it turned to a green n brown pile of crust.... 😥

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

That is a sad tale 😞 keep wrenching 🔧 thanks for watching

[@TheGenerationX894]

Hey Kenny, just put a procharger on that inline 6 hornet and itll be more than anyone can handle!!

[@snubbelbuff1471]

OCEANS OF SPACE!!

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

Right?! What a difference from vehicles now. Thanks for watching 🔧

[@snubbelbuff1471]

@@WrenchingWithKenny The warmest of greetings from sunny Uppsala, Sweden!

[@Wiencourager]

Points were probably oxidized and took a while to make decent contact

[@haneyoakie14]

2:25 what if the yellow Hornet actually had yellow Hornets? You might have some Gremlins in there too? They might be Rambling around.

[@Javelinjoe73]

Love to have that car

[@Bertuslouw76]

That 6 cylinder engine doesn’t sound bad. It appears to be in fairly decent condition.

[@Tmax-ub5br]

The best engine is already in the car.

[@timkis64]

those amc straight 6 engines would go quite a while if properly maintenenced & were'nt abused.i guess thats why so many ended up in mail delivery jeeps.adaquate torque & reliability for fleet use.

[@petepeabody8905]

I prefer the original 232 6, or is it the big 258 6.. Either way it cool the way it is

[@deetee3153]

Hey Kenny, what am I asking you now? What engine is in the Hornet currently?

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

I believe it's a 258 6 cylinder

[@ThisIS_Insane]

"4.2 litre", as they stated on the back of the Gremlin.

[@TAVOAu]

7:40 , nope, got no spark : Engine fires up on 5 😁

[@MidnightPolaris800]

Thats too bad your doing a generic ls swap

[@chimeragaming56]

sounds sweet

[@artlife6210]

so the existing sod is fair game..donuts!!

[@WrenchingWithKenny]

😂😂😂

[@jeffryblackmon4846]

Give the points a Mortske Flick!

[@KendrasEdge757]

He said “shut it off. Shut it off!! Turn the key backwards!! Yes, off.” 🤣 🤣 and that car came with the best MODERN theft deterrent system which is that third pedal on the left along with “that weird lever in the middle on the floor” lol most youngin’s have no idea how to operate that car 😝 😜 😂😂😂😂

[@geraldstephens6612]

Will you get a chance to compare the AMC Hornet with new Dodge Hornet?

[@edmamon4655]

Maxi Blue

[@dennissecor8092]

Great job your wife has the magic touch lol, your videos are always great!