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Even though it was only manufactured for seven years and less than a million were ever made, the Gremlin has a place in automotive history. Most car lovers who know the history think of it with a wry smile. Ah, the gremlin.

It debuted on April 1st of 1970. Many people though the American Motors Corporation was playing an April Fool's Day joke! This little thing was supposed to be the new wave of automobile! This car was so small they had to think up an entire new category for it: subcompact.

AMC actually played their hand well on this one. They had gotten wind that their top rivals General Motors and Ford already had designs for their own subcompact car in the works and were projecting release of the new car for some time in early 1971. AMC was actually in a financially hard time period and could not fund their own rival design, so they brilliantly tried to steal other existing designs and chop them down to fit the subcompact label. They tried to remodel a Javelin minus the back end, which was a design they called the AMX-GT, a car that made it to the car shows but never the showroom floor. They then did a design based on the Hornet, already a compact car. They reduced the wheelbase of the car significantly to arrive at the design for the Gremlin as we know it today.

The plan worked. The Gremlin hit the market a whopping six months before their rivals could release their versions, cementing their place in automotive history. The first models went for about two grand and did not include a rear seat, which was added in subsequent years. One of the most interesting aesthetic features was the fact that these cars had three doors, something that to this day is rare to see on any car, even subcompacts.

There was a lot of humor about the Gremlin and how small they were. Jokes like, "What happened to the rest of it?" and "That's a human sardine can" and the like were very popular back then. But the car was and still is effective. Parts of its aerodynamic design were later stolen by Volkswagen and numerous other car companies. Some drivers say the ride is overall a stiff experience compared to the models we have available today, but for looks and a unique niche appeal, you can't beat a Gremlin.

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