Learn About The Rise And Fall Of America’s Fourth Major Automaker

For four decades now, the American car industry has primarily consisted of what has long been known as the Big 3: General Motors, Ford Motor Company, and Chrysler in some form, currently as Stellantis. Some EV start-ups have popped up since then, but none, even Tesla, have quite come to a point of properly challenging the Big 3 for sheer volume. That hasn’t always been the case, though, since, throughout the second half of the 20th century, there was a fourth automaker that would do battle with Detroit’s bruisers: American Motors Corporation, or AMC. And there’s no better time to learn about the rise and fall of this company than now, because Joe Ligo, of YouTube channel AutoMoments, is releasing his multipart documentary on AMC called The Last Independent Automaker.

The First In A Six-Part Series

The documentary comprises six parts covering different aspects of AMC’s history. Each one is about half an hour long, and the first one is already up on the AutoMoments YouTube channel. The next parts will be released each week, with part two going up this Thursday. As for the first episode, it naturally starts with the origins of AMC in the 1950s, while also covering some important context about the companies that ended up forming it initially: Nash-Kelvinator and Hudson.

A Whirlwind Overview Of 1950s Car History

Don’t worry about The Last Independent Automaker being overly dry and bogged down in extensive detail about numbers, or being overly focused on one company or historical figure at any one time. It’s a light but thorough overview of the car industry in the post-World War II era, and what was going on with the various small automakers, including not just the original AMC brands, but also close competitors such as Studebaker and Packard.

It also doesn’t get overly stuck on just covering vehicle details, making sure to cover how people from the assembly line to the boardroom affected and were affected by AMC and the auto industry. To that end, employees, family members, and historians are all interviewed, even retired senator Mitt Romney, son of George Romney, one of the heads of AMC. All of this is backed by beautiful archival photos, video, and modern footage of relevant vehicles to the story. It’s well worth your time, and you’ll be able to enjoy five more episodes over the coming weeks.