AMC (American Motors) Matador History
History
The Matador replaced the Rebel for 1971 as AMC's mid-size, initially in sedan, wagon, and two-door hardtop form. For 1974 AMC gave the two-door an entirely separate, dramatically aerodynamic fastback body — a long sloping hood and deeply tunneled headlamps — an unusually bold move for a cash-strapped automaker that usually shared sheet metal between body styles.
The Matador had a notable competition and fleet life. Penske Racing campaigned factory-backed Matadors in NASCAR from 1972–1975, scoring five wins (including Bobby Allison's 1975 Southern 500 at Darlington) and pioneering disc brakes on oval stock cars. The sedans were popular police cars — the LAPD bought 534 in 1972 — and appeared as squad cars on TV's Adam-12 and Emergency!. A coupe even featured in the 1974 Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun.
Luxury trims followed — the Oleg Cassini coupe (1974–1975) and the Barcelona (1977–1978) with a padded landau roof and opera windows — but added safety-bumper weight and a costly emissions recall hurt the car. Sales collapsed and AMC dropped the Matador after 1978.
Generations
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First generation · 1971–1973
Photo: “1973 AMC Matador (29539526901).jpg” by Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY 2.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
Mid-size sedan, wagon, and two-door hardtop replacing the Rebel; the NASCAR and LAPD-fleet era.
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1971 Photo: “1971 AMC Matador sedan black with red interior 360 V8 at Rambler Ranch 3of3.jpg” by CZmarlin — Christopher Ziemnowicz, a photo credit would be appreciated if this image is used anywhere other than Wikipedia. Please also include the location of the image: the Rambler Ranch collection in Elizabeth, Colorado. See: https://www.ramblerranch.com / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
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1972 Photo: “1972 AMC Matador Wagon in Germany green (38698559724).jpg” by Triple-green / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
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1973 Photo: “1973 AMC Matador (29539526901).jpg” by Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY 2.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
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Second generation · 1974–1978
Photo: “1974 AMC Matador Oleg Cassini coupe in white and copper at Rambler Ranch 2of3.jpg” by CZmarlin — Christopher Ziemnowicz, a photo credit would be appreciated if this image is used anywhere other than Wikipedia. Please also include the location of the image: the Rambler Ranch collection in Elizabeth, Colorado. See: https://www.ramblerranch.com / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
Restyled larger; introduced the unique aerodynamic fastback coupe alongside continued sedans and wagons, plus the Cassini and Barcelona luxury trims.
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1974 Photo: “1974 AMC Matador Oleg Cassini coupe in white and copper at Rambler Ranch 2of3.jpg” by CZmarlin — Christopher Ziemnowicz, a photo credit would be appreciated if this image is used anywhere other than Wikipedia. Please also include the location of the image: the Rambler Ranch collection in Elizabeth, Colorado. See: https://www.ramblerranch.com / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
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1975 Photo: “1975 AMC Matador Brougham Oleg Cassini Edition (27658433683).jpg” by Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY 2.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
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1976 Photo: “1976 AMC Matador Brougham (34693338792).jpg” by Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY 2.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
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1978 Photo: “1978 AMC Matador Barcelona (22093201711).jpg” by Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY 2.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
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Body styles
- Sedan
- Wagon
- Hardtop
- Coupe
Notable special editions & performance variants
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Matador Oleg Cassini
Designer-edition personal-luxury coupe with black-and-copper interior styling by fashion designer Oleg Cassini.
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Matador Barcelona
Late luxury coupe with a padded landau roof, opera windows, and pillow-top seats; successor to the Cassini package.
Related models