Whacky AMX-R muscle car had fold out ‘dickie’ seat

Remember ‘dickie’ seats?

The term stemmed from horse-drawn carriages of a century ago and were used by guards who rode shotgun on mail coaches.

The earliest cars were essentially just motorised carriages and the dickie seats, as they were called by the Oxford English Dictionary in 1801, became quite popular.

No longer the place of armed guards, they were often occupied by children — or other members of a family.

Not for nothing were they even sometimes called ‘mother-in-law’ seats.

The dickie seat heydays were mainly throughout the 1920s and ‘30s, before they fell out of favour as the auto industry chose comfort and safety for the ever-growing market.

The last British car with a dickie was the Triumph Roadster, built from 1946 to 1949 and io the US, they last featured in the 1938 Chevrolet and the Ford, Dodge and Plymouth of 1939.

The Americans called them ‘rumble’ seats.

So it was a huge surprise when 20 years later American Motors Corporation (AMC) unveiled its first prototype featuring a dickie seat, or “Ramble Seat” as it was dubbed – they had earlier Nash and Hudson models called Ramblers.

Designers Brooks Stevens and Jim Jeffords liked the idea for AMC’s new AMX two-seat muscle car and they’d call it the AMX-R.

They built a prototype in late 1967 and it was sent to the House of Kustoms, which had worked on previous AMC prototypes.

There, the rear deck was rebuilt to accommodate the fold-open seating and an air dam was created to channel airflow over the roof and rumble seat occupants.

The AMX-R was also given a rear suspension upgrade, the car was lowered and the 14-inch wheels were changed for 15-inch Spyder wheels.

As well, the car got a coat of custom paint and the AMX-R was given unique and more plush upholstery and unique “AMX-R” and “Jeffords” scripts were added to the exterior.

1968 AMC AMX-R prototype – with Ramble seat

Jeffords and Stevens intended to build a limited number of AMX-Rs and distribute them via AMC dealerships.

To whet buyer appetite the AMX-R featured as a pace car at several Trans Am races.

AMC also entered into a marketing partnership with Playboy Enterprises to broaden the AMX’s appeal among a youthful, trend-conscious audience.

The introduction to AMC dealers was equally distinctive, with meetings held at nine different Playboy Clubs, ensuring dealer engagement and enthusiasm for the new model.

Then came the bad news: AMC ultimately decided not support the idea, and only one prototype was ever produced.

What influenced the decision were safety and product liability concerns and there was a strong negative reaction from consumer advocate Ralph Nader regarding the exposed exterior seating concept.

Nader, of course, was the chap responsible for the demise of GM’s Chevrolet Corvair in 1969.

He probably noticed the AMX-R‘s Ramble seat was designed for two people – but had just the one long lap seatbelt to keep them in place.

Occupants would have needed to be very close friends.

However, while the AMX-R was making its PR rounds back in 1968, Darryl A. Salisbury, of Vicksburg, Michigan, had just returned from five years of overseas service with the US Air Force.

His dad showed him an article on the AMX-R in an issue of Rod & Custom magazine that ended with, “How would you like to have one sitting in your driveway?”

Little did Darryl Salisbury know that one day that’s just where it would be parked . . .

In 1984, he was president of the American Motors Owners Association when the AMX-R was displayed at the club’s annual convention.

By that time, the car was owned by the Brooks Stevens Museum, and it was for sale.

Salisbury inquired about buying the car and six months later, the museum curator called to say he believed Salisbury would be a great caretaker for the AMX-R.

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He and his brother-in-law Brian Moyer began restoring the car.

The AMX-R was complete and despite its very low mileage, was in poor condition from years of basement storage before Stevens owned it.

Even today, the former show car shows just 5200 miles (8320km).

The restoration took 10 years, but the award-winning outcome justified the effort.

Meanwhile the regular AMX was launched in 1968.

It was positioned as “the only American sports car that costs less than $3500,” with advertisements showing a racing driver on the starting line, and claiming the car’s ability to reach speeds of up to 125 mph (200km/h).

Some automotive journalists described the AMX as a “handsome two-seater with American-style acceleration and European-style handling” while some said the AMX was among the best-looking cars produced in the US.

AMC optimistically advertised it would limit production of the AMX to 10,000 units for 1968 – but as it turned out only 6725 were built that model year.

They never quite made it as a muscle car and though they’re quite rare today, Darryl Salisbury’s beauty remains the world’s one and only example of an AMX-R.