page_title: AMC Hornet
section_title: 1972
hierarchical_section_title: AMC Hornet / Year-by-year changes / 1972
caption_attribution_description: English: 1972 American Motors Corporation (AMC) Hornet Sportabout - four door station wagon - with optional wood-grain body side trim and AMC's styled steel road wheels. This picture was taken at the 2003 AMCRC show held in Somerset, New Jersey. This car was parked in front of the entrance to the host hotel's "Sports Time" sports bar (visible before the image was cropped by Mattes.
context_page_description: The AMC Hornet is a compact automobile, manufactured and marketed by American Motors Corporation in a single generation from model years 1970 through 1977 — in sedan, wagon, and hatchback coupe configurations. The Hornet replaced the compact Rambler American marking the end of the Rambler marque in the American and Canadian markets.
  Hornets were marketed in foreign markets and were assembled under license agreements between AMC — for example, with Vehículos Automotores Mexicanos, Australian Motor Industries, and by Toyota S.A. Ltd. in South Africa.
  The Hornet became an important vehicle and platform for AMC, serving the company in one form or another for eighteen years, until the 1988 model year. It would outlast other compact platforms from the competition, including the Chevrolet Nova, Ford Maverick, and Plymouth Valiant. The Hornet was also the basis for AMC's Gremlin, Concord, Spirit, and all-wheel drive AMC Eagle.
  The AMC Hornet served as an experimental platform for alternative fuel and other automotive technologies. Hornets were campaigned in various motorsports events with some corporate support.
context_section_description: American Motors established a new focus on quality with the 1972 model year. The "Buyer Protection Plan", was the industry's first 12-month or 12,000 miles (19,000 km) comprehensive, bumper-to-bumper warranty. This innovative AMC Buyer Protection Plan included numerous mechanical upgrades to increase durability, as well as a focus on quality in sourcing and production.
  The 1972 Hornet was promoted by AMC as "a Tough Little Car". American Motors promised to repair anything wrong with the car (except for the tires), owners were provided with a toll-free telephone number to the company and a free loaner car if a warranty repair took overnight.
  To consolidate AMC's product offering, reduce production costs, and offer more value to consumers, the base models were dropped in 1972 and all models were designated as "SST". The SST offered more items standard than the previous year's base model at about the same price. Hornets now came with comfort and convenience items that most consumers expected, and these items were typically standard on imported cars. For the first time, an AM/FM monaural radio was added to the options list.
  Other changes included dropping the SC/360 compact muscle car, but the two-barrel version of the 360 cu in (5.9 L) remained optional in addition to the 304 cu in (5.0 L) V8 engine. For those desiring more performance, a four-barrel carburetor was a dealer-installed option on the 360 V8. Automatic transmissions were now the TorqueFlites sourced from Chrysler, and AMC called it the "Torque-Command".
  New for 1972 was the "X" package that attempted to replicate the success AMC had had with this trim option on the 1971 Gremlin. The Hornet X trim package was available on the two-door sedan and the new Sportabout. It could be ordered with any of the available I6 and V8 engines and included rally stripes, "X" emblems, a three-spoke sports steering wheel, and 14 x 6-inch slot-style steel road wheels with C78 x 14 Polyglas blackwall tires. A performance oriented "Rallye" package was also introduced. It included among other items: special lower body stripes, full-synchromesh three-speed manual gearbox with floor shift, bucket seats, handling package, front disc brakes, 20.1 quick-ratio manual steering, and a sports steering wheel. It was possible to order both the Rallye and the X-package.
  Motor Trend magazine tested a 304 cu in (5.0 L) V8 Hornet in 1972, measuring performance from 0 to 60 mph in 9 seconds flat and the 1/4-mile dragstrip in 16.8 seconds at 82 mph (132 km/h). These were virtually equal to the 350 cu in (5.7 L) V8 Chevrolet Nova that was tested in the same issue.
  1972 production:
  2-door SST: 27,122
  4-door SST: 24,254
  Wagon SST: 34,065 (Gucci version: 2,583)
caption: 1972 Hornet Sportabout
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