1982 AMC Concord "Sundancer" - an Ultra-Rare '80s Convertible 

As a former owner of an '81 AMC Spirit GT, a '65 AMC 330, and a '73 Levi's Gremlin, I am a true fan of these cars!

Another rare, limited-production early '80s AMC was the Eagle Wagon with a VM Motori inline 6-cylinder turbo-diesel engine. Unlike most other diesels of the era, it was actually faster and more powerful than AMC's gasoline-powered inline-6 engine. Apparently only seven or eight of them were built.

The heart that went into this comes through. Well done!

There are many fantastic automotive content creators out there, but darn, this is really one of the best. It's so wonderful to have a new video from you, Joe! I hope you and the Ambassador are doing well. I saw a 77 Granada today and about died from excitement. I love the honest, normal, underloved cars you described in the closing of this film.

I had a custom 1982 Monte Carlo Convertible made for a Chevrolet to show to media to see if they wanted to make an SS Convertible offering. It took about 3- minutes to put the top down but it was a true convertible with an upgraded suspension and frame. I wish I still had it.

OK, watching this video blew my MIND. The 1982 AMC Concord Sundancer was my first car! My dad got it, and this is NO 💩, from Burt Reynolds! My dad was a PBSO Deputy, and his partner Tommy Ryan was one of Burts oldest friends in Jupiter, FL. He mentioned he was looking for a car for me, and he got it for around $1000 in 1985. I drove that car, with the EXACT SAME color scheme as that one... for a while watching the video, I told my wife there was a possibility that THIS CAR was the one I drove through High School until I went into the Army in 1990.... but I had replaced the radio with a JVC, and mine was the 6 Cylinder version. I LOVED that damn car, so much fun... good times, man. It started having problems and I got a Ford Escort GT, and while I was in the Army, Dad sold it for a few bucks in West Palm Beach. That was great to watch, what a throwback to so many memories... Glad I looked this up randomly tonight!

Aside from eagerly awaiting "The Last Independent Automaker," I was sold at 0:19 when the Pierre Cardin Javelin came on: I owned one in the 90s, and the amazing interior was not faded. The 401 was so hopped up, I could never cruise up to a red light for fear of stall, so always timed those lights to get the sail-through green.. Our Concord was a workhorse that often gave a push or jumper cable boost to cars in winter's ditches. One time, it sunk axle deep during a Saturday night's blizzard at the edge of a mushy country driveway, and could not get out. Leaving it until a tow could be had on Monday, resulted in a solid block of ice all up inside the wheel housings. Defrosted up on the lift for a day, when it was lowered and they key turned - it was ready to go home without a sputter. Should have been an Eagle! There were others, but this post is about the exciting Sundancer. There weren't many convertible's left since the Eldorado was hyped to be the end of it all. I had one of those, but if I had it now, I'd trade it for this or the Eagle version. The recent rare sale of one on BAT was a highlight: noticed the square upholstery buttons on the honey leather; nice touch, who has ever done that? Perhaps the cowl shake could have been eliminated if time, money, want, and of course, higher production numbers had allowed so, by beefing up the side to side area behind the rear seat as Mercury did on the 1971 - 1973 Cougar convertibles, resulting in high praise from Consumer Guide for those years, as it made it a virtual solid steel wall down to the floor panel. But every past auto treasure has it's "what-if?" AMC, the company that dared to be different - and not shy about it, with the then-best new car buyer guarantees, and with some of the most memorable, even humorous ads. All of this with the shallowest pockets for retooling. What's not to respect?

As a young AMC Hornet owner I'm happy to see the culture is getting some well deserved attention! I can't wait for the documentary!

Great job as always Joe!!! Your passion for all things AMC always shines through yet you also point out the flaws in their products. Really looking forward to your documentary of AMC!!!

This was an awesome video! I can tell you put a lot of effort into this and it shows! Keep it up!

Such a great video and a good summation of the Concord’s history and the convertible conversion era for context! Other rare/rarer AMC models are the ‘71 Matador Machine, the ‘82 Spirit sedan that sold barely more than 100 units, and some of the fleet specials AMC built over the decades in very small runs. But the Sundancer added a fair amount of magic to a car line that deserved to have a little attention cast on it. It’s too bad that AMC’s choice to drop the 2-door Concords and Eagles (as well as the Spirit sedans and Eagle Kammbacks) after 1982 probably also doomed the project. It’s funny because Lancia also sold a car with a similar roof arrangement as the Beta Zagato. Motorweek recently released their test of the model. And even they sold more examples than AMC probably sold Sundancers.

Joe, Welcome back.😁 There's no dancing around it, this Concord may not be Concours-quality but your feature length video certainly is. 👏👏👏👏 I have blood relatives that owned AMC cars (Ambassador, Matador, Javelin and Sportabout) back in the day but I had never heard of the Sundancer🤔

The waiting for a new car review video was well worth it. Congratulations are in order and thank you my friend!

My how I have missed your videos. Thanks for posting. I would have never known that this car ever existed unless you made this video.

There is another exceptionally rare AMC - the Gremlin 401-XR, with only 21 built.

Dear LORRRT that cowl shake @:56 lol Still love this cool car, I miss AMC 😢

Thank you for covering the Concord and particularly the sundancer, I now ask that you have a special feature on the gremlin!!

Nice to have you back Joe. Look forward to the documentary

Welcome back Joe, I’ve been missing this!!

A Joe Ligo AMC tribute just in time for the holidays. Truly a reason to give thanks. With the 2.5 litre Iron Duke that Sundancer is most capable of 0-60 in yes and more than likely top speed.

The guy I work for just bought one of these. It's the eagle sundancer in that bronze/caramel-ish color. It's in rough shape but man is it cool!

Wow well the Eagle broke ground with their AWD versions. Decent compact sign. But never knew they tried this hard wow great effort for that time!! 👌🏼

I have two Sundancers and truly love showing mine at car shows and just cruising and seeing the attention it gets. I have many other models of AMC's that I enjoy cruising including my high school car a 65 AMC Marlin.

You may like it or not but it is a privilege to drive such a rare car.

I’ll never forget visiting my grandparents in WA and AMC had a bunch of models on display at the mall in the early 80’s.I loved the 4wd car idea as a kid.

That´s exactly what this car needed, tidy-up the body , engine and the interior and Bob´s your Uncle your friend has a unique, cool ride, which get´s to live on! P.S. the Concord obviously wasn´t compact enough for the previuos owner, with all those ding´s and scratches to it´s body..😊

I got an AMC GremlinX as a teenager. LOVED it! Still enjoy thinking about it and fun teenage years. 😎 Never heard of this car, but seems cool for the time.

Very nicely produced..

I'm glad your friend is restoring the AMC. Please share when he is done

You’re back, Joe! Great video as always. Looking forward to the upcoming AMC series. Happy to help support that effort.

Such a beautiful video! I just love your sense of humor and attention to detail. The quality of this just blew me away, and it gets me even more excited about the upcoming AMC series!

Epic!!

Wow. It's nice to see a new video from you again. You haven't put one out in a good while

Joe don’t leave us hanging like that man. Great video as always

Nice video! I'm glad to see this car is being restored. It's rare, unusual and cute enough that it deserves to be preserved and pampered. But it is a pity it didn't have the 6 cylinder. FWIW, I owned an 83 Eagle wagon for about 5 years from 1990 or so to 95. I liked it in spite of it's many flaws but eventually the headache of keeping everything working grew to be too much and I traded it in on a new Mustang convertible.

I had a dark green 1980 Concord that I bought when it was about two years old. Looking at old photos, I still think that it looked great. I remember in those years that people would ask me about the similar AMC Eagle. I don't think the Concord ever entered the popular imagination as much as the 4-wheel-drive Eagle did.

i always love learning about old cars i don’t know about. i have always wanted a rwd iron duke car. i liked the challenge of trying to make it faster. i had my eyes on the camaro. but now that i know the concord had one and is a comfortable car to drive i want one. great video as always. can’t wait for your next one. edit: great music choses as well

I like the happy ending and the lack of snarky commentary! Well done.

Glad to see another video from you man. Keep the great work!

I was a 14 yo in 1982 and I was into cars heavily back then with all the brands and all new releases but I have never seen a AMC Concord Sundancer. Can't believe after 40 years and this is the first time seeing one. The half targa/convertible top reminds me of the coach built BMW 2002 and 3 series Baur.

I loved my old Concord with the inline 6. That thing was safe, roomy, powerful and comfortable. I am glad I didn't have this "convertible" though. Had it been just a Targa top only with the I-6 and a redesigned dash, I think it would have been a hit.

Made a handsome car look even better

I appreciate you bringing this rarity to us and sharing it❤❤❤

AMC, was really cursed with terrible decisions. 19:33 Curiously, the ground clearance of this Renault Alliance convertible seems better than on modern SUVs

Great video! Planning on watching your others.

Yes putting the top down takes some effort but, people still have to do even more to put their top down on a Jeep CJ....a lot more work and you can't store it in the Jeep, so if you get caught in the rain without the top, you are stuck driving in the rain until you can get your Jeep under some cover to put your top back on.

I've been peripherally aware of these but never saw one in this depth.

Well done!!! I love all your videos but you really did a fantastic job on this one. I can’t wait for the 2024 documentary!!!

I clicked on the thumbnail because I know this car! Had a lovely chat with the current owner at a local cruise-in this past summer. Happy to see it's "RU-vid famous" now. 😎 Great video!

Gotta say this channel is a boon for those outside the US with a thirst for AMC

Fantastically done video, thank you.

Wind tunnel testing? Shirley you jest! The Concord was a much nicer looking car than the Hornet, but just as dated. Looking forward to AMC-ing your 2024 documentary. Kenosha rules 👍

Great job, Joe!

for a car that's been used, its looking good. I'm glad she's getting some love

what a wonderful and unusual car. as for the AMC Concord / Eagle models being at the low end of the collectable spectrom. the Eagle verant has come up in value do to its ability to be off roaded. i have seen 1 or 2 Concords that have been modified with V8's and such. but nothing restored stock. it's a shame as they were very good cars for their time.

OMG that cowl shake is crazy. Such an interesting car.

Great video with a lot of details about the often overlooked AMC's. I have never seen one of these before. I did own a new ($8200.00) 1982 Eagle Sport in a beautiful dark blue paint with the gold sport stripping. It had the 4 cyl auto and would go anywhere, from a 12" snowfall in Ohio to the loose sands on Daytona Beach (that monster type trucks were stuck in), it never spun a tire even if you floored it even with the factory whitewall tires. It didn't have the power to spin 4 wheels it just went. It was a nice little car that I wish I still owned today.

I saw one at Carlisle one time. This video is the second time I've ever heard anything about it. Thanks

Excellent video Joe!

Great Video, well done! Good quality and informative! I own (too many) Sunchasers, but like you say, they are not worth alot in todays market, but they are very different and enjoyable! I run the Griffith FB registry as well.

Just googl'd "Chop Top AMC Pacer". Was not disappointed! Also love your vids. Somewhere between Hagerty and RCR. A fine channel with videos catered to the discerning automobile historian.

Please do a follow-up video when this car is restored.👍

Muito bom, apesar da AMC não ser muito conhecida aqui no Brasil, eu a descobri através do RU-vid e gostei muito da história da companhia . Parabéns pelo projeto 👏👏👏👏

You nailed it with this video! Always loved AMCs. The Hornets, Ambassadors, even the Nash era! Heck my dream car is a '56 Hudson Hornet. (Nash based). Now i think i really like the concord. LOVE seeing it restored. It deserves it. My 1982 chevy first-year diesel squarebody is although still a "generic" brand truck, it has a very rare drivetrain and almost as rare like some of the AMC models. Something about owning Unique and rare vehicles just makes me so happy.

Fantastic sound to hear that rubber band unwinding as the mighty Sundancer flies past.

My Friend in San Francisco owed a Sun Dancer, He had me re-paint it in order to keep the body in tact from rusting away, , I wasn't impressed with the power train, But it's style was highly attractive 🇺🇸♥️🇺🇸 ‼️

Very nicely done. Thank you for doing your part to preserve history. I'll take your appeal for support into serious consideration.

I remember visiting an AMC dealership in late 1981 or early 1982 with my dad, and being genuinely worried that he seemed to like a four door Concord D/L in the showroom so much! But Dad was a GM, and more specifically Pontiac, loyalist, and we ended up with an '81 Phoenix, which was a good car until the rear axle fell off in the early 90s. Now, of course, I would love to have the Concord myself. Or for that matter the Phoenix. Love this time-capsule Sundancer. I too like AMCs and other independents, and in 2007 finally got into an old car via an independent, a 1962 Studebaker Lark six. I kept that car a decade. Now I have a '61 Lark V8, which I hope will be ready for the road next year.

How bizarre that someone dropped a lot of money on the Sundancer conversion, and paid for power windows/locks too, but didn't get A/C or the six cylinder. I wonder if this is the only one of these with an Iron Puke left in the world?

I had a Celica Sunchaser, to this day my favorite car.

You got me on this one ! there's not many vehicles I haven't seen this being one

It's​ funny that you said that​ this car was an economy car. Well, I say that​ because back in '82 I was sitting in my dad'​s boxy four-door rear wheel drive Corolla in the cold Canadian winter thinking wouldn't​ it be nice to be in a large muscular car like that AMC Eagle. That tbing's got the size, the weight, and most of all, it's​ 4-wheel drive. At least we wouldn't​ feel under powered and fighting to get grip when getting​ on to interstate highway when we made our way down to NYC from freezing cold Ontario every​ year. The Eagle was one of my favorite​ cars. Besides that I would​ have​ preferred to be in the Volvo 240 GL. I think was attracted to mid-size sedans, and the Eagle was a great representation of an American mid-size sedan that was comfy as well. Very unlike the rather cramped '81 Corolla​ I had to get used too '​coz my dad said he'd always buy a Toyota​ if he could.

God I would love to see you do a vlog type video during Cruisin The Coast.

It strangely looks nice

Wow is that ever cute. I never knew they existed. I would totally drive that car to the afterparty.

Great video!

So many could have been stories in the car industry This was a good one 👍👍👍

Never owned a Concord, but that was because I was so happy with my Hornets. I had a '77 Hatchback with a "Hutch" - cool tent option from AMC. Wife had a '75 Sportabout wagon. Both very good cars.

Bravo! Well done!

Wow thank you never heard of it!!! It takes me back

What great content. Thank you.

Interesting video, also, love the music. Been following JD Eicher for many years. Very surprising to hear his music here.

Nice video. AMC did produce a convertible in 1967 as an Ambassador. One year only door handles too. Nice looker!

I had a 1977 AMC Pacer D/L had all power options including desert package A/C 258 Straight 6 Automatic PS/PB Tilt wheel Cruise Rear Defrost Power Windows/Locks dealer installed cloth int Am/Fm 8 track/cb radio Mine was two tone red/white paid 50.00 for it and the A/C worked and the owner converted it over to EFI and I got 20 MPG. It lasted very well and wqas cheap to fix.

I almost bought a Toyota sunchaser a few years back. I love funky cars. I really like the amc one

Man! the way that thing flexes

Someone lend Joe an AMX/3. Please.

Great video. I could practically smell the cigarette smoke when he first showed the interior

Great production values. If this is what you're doing with the documentary, it's gonna be great.

20:50 my car from the 80's. Boy does that bring back memories.

Great video, thank you

If showed up in one of these at a car show you would blow everybody mind. Never heard or let alone seen one of these

I was in college when the Concord came out. The thick redesigned front seats made the back extremely tight. The price, for a car that first came out in 1970, seemed unreasonable to me for all the rococo interior parts.

I’d love to own that Concord.😊

Outstanding video. You're a pro. Great quality content. You took such great care in creating this and it shows. This is such an underrated channel. Good luck with the project. Except 2024 is too long to wait. But I know it'll be perfect so, Godspeed.

I am conflicted watching this video, as my memories of the Concord are not pleasant. I sold auto parts in the 80's & 90's and I remember the suffering of owners needing to know if they had an AC Delco or Autolite distributor in order to get the right parts; trying to keep that damn plastic valve cover from leaking oil; trying to figure out a way to get the headlights shining level again after the plastic headlight buckets warped or broke. They were the cheapest car on the buy-here-pay-here lots, which meant they were bought by the most desperate, tertiary/quaternary buyers who had neither the time, money, facilities nor care to keep them going. Any prior AMC product is a far better, happier investment; the Concord is a rolling warning sign about cutting costs just little too much. That said, I knew nothing of the existence of the Sundancer until now and am very happy to see it. Excellent video.

I like the Concord Sundancer, it's something special.

I will always love my AMC's no matter what they were!♥

lovely story... thx

Love my 64 Ambassador.