Re: [AMC-List] Blasphemy (AMO Conours Judging)

["Swygert, Francis G MSgt 436 CES/CECM" <Francis.Swygert3@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I'm not so sure the judges didn't look under the hood of the Chevy
powered Hornet so many years ago. I think the incident did bring the
question of what to do with non-AMC powered cars to the fore-front, and
it caused a stir within AMO, but I don't think it did any more than
bring up more questions. I would never have asked for the award back,
even if I thought an award was made by mistake. I'd have to hear quite a
tale to return an award, that's for sure! 

In this case the car was entered in the correct class -- modified AMC.
It is still an AMC without an AMC engine, isn't it? If I had been
judging I'd have considered it just that and went on, probably knocked
some points off because the Chevy engine doesn't look as good in the
engine bay than an AMC engine, but that's about it. If everything else
was well done, it could still be a winner, and even the engine bay could
conceivably get a better score than an AMC powered car if the
craftsmanship and detail was that much nicer. Apparently someone
complained and raised the question about it not being AMC powered. 

This did bring the question up of how much "foreign" content can be
allowed and still call it an AMC, and how much content is the engine? In
my view if the body is AMC, the car is AMC. It would certainly be
registered that way in most states, regardless of what's under the hood.
I've been told that some states allow titling custom cars by the make of
the engine. I believe that only applies to fabricated cars, or cars that
don't have a previous title though -- not sure. A number of cars were
turned away just a couple years ago and not allowed to enter judging
because they had "foreign" power plants. This ticked a lot of people
off. My car, for example, a 63 Classic with a Jeep 4.0L, would be
allowed in a modified class, but someone with a Chevy V-8 wouldn't be
allowed to be judged at all. One could easily argue that the EFI 4.0L
was never used in a 63 Classic, so it's just as "foreign" as the Chevy
V-8. The same could be said for a 401 Pacer. So how foreign does it have
to be? Transmissions and rear axles are often changed (GM 700R4, Ford
9", Chrysler 8.75", etc.) and allowed in the AMC classes. Even those
cars should be in the modified class, but most would pass inspection for
restored since no one checks that hard -- if it has all stock appearance
it's generally allowed. No one crawls under the car to check the rear
axle and trans, though at least for the highest class or two they
should.

It took a few years, but the eventual response was the creation of the
new "non-AMC powered" class. So the answer to the question is it's a
modified AMC if it has AMC power (or a derivative of such, like the Jeep
4.0L), and if it has another manufacturers power plant it goes into the
"non-AMC powered" class. Nothing happens fast in a club that has one
general meeting a year (which is many national car clubs), and it takes
time to collect opinions through the newsletter/mail and disseminate it
to board members too. I think the new class solves a lot of problems and
will draw a few more people into the AMC world. It's better than turning
people away, IMHO! Besides, if Joe Schmo has a Rambler with a Chevy
engine in it, he still needs a lot of AMC specific parts (glass, door
seals, trim, etc.). So if he wants a nice looking car, he'll be buying
things. The car will also be preserved for parts if nothing else, though
few cars are mangled to the point they can't be returned to stock. That
is unless a Mustang II or some other goofy suspension has been installed
(that's a pet peeve of mine -- nothing wrong with the stock suspension
in comparison to an MII, which is difficult and expensive to graft in).


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