Springfield Missouri – It is no secret that we are huge fans of American Motors around here.
In fact, if it wasn’t detrimental to our employment at Summit Racing, we’d dedicate every article on this blog to Hornets, Javelins, Gremlins, and other quirky AMCs from the 1970s.
And after talking with Craig Pasquinzo of The Fueled Up YouTube Channel during the 2026 Hot Rod Power Tour, it looks like he has the same affliction.
“I was a kid when the malaise sticker muscle cars came out,” Craig jokes. “I had no idea what slow, low horsepower, or dismal performance was. These cars just looked cool to me.”
He continues by explaining how, as kids, he and his brother assembled a Ford Pinto model kit called “The Poison Pinto” that really stuck with him.
“Years later I saw a pic of a 1979 AMC AMX and it reminded me of that model,” he quips. “That’s pretty much how I got hooked on them.”
That memory stuck with him decades later as Craig went through a series of AMC classics, including a 401-powered Gremlin and a Javelin AMX—but that rare hot hatch continued to prove elusive.
“They were always too hard to find,” Craig explains. “An AMC was like owning the Moon Rover in my small town of Mena, Arkansas.”
Eventually though, the search paid off and he came across a well-cared for example in the hands of the car dealer and YouTuber, EuroAsian Bob.
“I basically badgered him until he sold me the car,” Craig laughs.
So, now behind the wheel of his coveted 1979 Spirit AMX, Craig began to feature the unusual AMC on his own YouTube Channel, Fueled Up.
Craig reports that car has been virtually maintenance free so far during his ownership.
“The car has 62,000 original miles,” he says. “I haven’t had to do anything to it except drive it.”
Better still, the 304ci V8 under the hood runs strong, and though it makes a mere 125 horsepower, the humble hatch sounds great through a new dual exhaust system.
“The factory two barrel works just fine,” Craig smiles. “And it nets me some stellar fuel mileage.”
Craig is also chronicling his adventures with the AMX—including its voyage on the 2026 Hot Rod Power Tour—on his Fueled Up YouTube Channel.
And it’s not just about cars, it’s about the people and places the AMX encounters along the way.
“I love the reaction that almost 99% of people have when they see it,” he chuckles. “It’s a combination of wonderment and confusion. They just don’t know what it is.”
When we asked Craig if he’s still enamored with the car, it’s easy to gauge his reaction.
“It’s been worth the investment in this whole adventure and I wouldn’t trade it for a thing.”
You can see this 1979 AMC Spirit AMX on its 2026 Hot Rod Power Tour adventure in this video from the Fueled Up YouTube Channel:
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