Pikeville, NC AMC Dealership

[Eagle Kammback]

I know that most people in the AMC hobby already know about this, but I'll post this for all the people new to this great company

[purpleheart]

I've heard of this place before . I would love to take a walk through the property . Apparently he only sells whole cars from what I've heard and not many . It's a shame that all those car have been sitting for so long and the elements have taken their toll . I wonder if there's any AMC gold in the building .

Paul

[Obscurity]

Wow....This is gonna sound funny, but looking at those pictures reminds me of going to the pound, or the SPCA, I always get upset seeing all the dogs and cats in cages, desperately needing a loving home, I usually want to take them all with me and take care of them. I think if I went for a walk through that property I'd probably cry...
I can't believe there are so many AMC's there, just sitting in the grass turning into plant pots. Its amazing but it makes me sad to think that most of those will probably rot.
Yes, I'm odd, I used to want a pet, but now I have an Eagle....
 Very cool landmark though.....one guy owns the building and all the cars, how did that happen?

[Route 66 Rambler]

This is an AMC franchise owner who refused to go along with Renault, and later, Chrysler.  He has steadfastly refused to sell the property, or the cars.  It is said that he occasionally will sell a car, or a quantity of parts, but mostly, what you see is what you see.  I guess it's his idea of how American Motors should be remembered, after how they treated him, or something. It looks to me like he must hate AMC something awful.  Probably just as soon shoot you for asking.

As far as rot goes, these cars are all worthless now.  Remember, this is coastal country, in the south.  It's doubtful to me that there is a single piece on these cars that can be used.  All of the interiors will be owned by mice, the motor and drivetrain would be full of water, and the bodies are no doubt just about cancered all the way through.  All that would be worth saving is anything inside the building, that mice etc. haven't already gotten, and assuming the place is weatherproof, which I doubt.

Any junkyard in the country has already killed way more AMC's than you are looking at here.  What's important here, I think, is the loss of support for AMC's by a dealer, because in the end, this whole lot won't make even a scratch on what's getting destroyed daily, around the country.
mike

[Eagle Kammback]

This should probably go in the Attractions and Destinations section too

[Route 66 Rambler]

Yeah, I almost moved it a while back...  Recommendations is more for food, lodging, travel services, great people you've met, that sort of thing, that you would recommend to others...  There are other things involved, too. 

For instance, you might not really consider a particular scenic viewpoint on your favorite mountain to be a Destination, or an Attraction, really, unless it draws people from everywhere else.  So in that case, you Recommend it here.  So they sort of cross over a little anyway. 

It seems to me after thinking about it a minute, that maybe this Topic should be in "Dealerships".  All of the responses would go over there with it.  Then we can post a link to there, from both "Destinations", and from "Recommendations", with a picture, to spice up the eye candy. This place is an important story of some kind, no matter which way you look at it.

What do you guys think?  There's a lot more of you guys reading this stuff than there are of me.

It's your forum too, let's make it work for you...
mike

[IowaEagle]

Makes sense to me.

[Smitch]

This place is an important story of some kind, no matter which way you look at it.

Maybe there should be a board devoted to the Pikeville, NC AMC Dealership. It would bring attention and perhaps help to figure it all out some day in the future.

[Route 66 Rambler]

That would just depend on the number of angles, and the volume of replies.  If it turns out to generate a lot of talk, then maybe a legendary dealership could go on a board like that.  But it would be set up as a child board of "The Dealerships".

The problem with so many companies is the huge size of the front page.  Sections can be collapsed, though, by clicking at the left of the title.  Things need to fit under sub-categories when possible, to keep the size of the front page down.
mike

[Eagle Kammback]

When I graduate HS and move to NC, I will work there FOR FREE in the summer just making the place look like it did 30 years ago

[ramblinfsj]

That just might be the saddest thing I've ever seen. We all need to form a mob with the torches and all that and demand the owner liberate the incarcerated and if he refuses, well you know. Why couldn't this dealership be in Arizona?

[Route 66 Rambler]

I think I'm going to copy these pictures into the Gallery, under "The Island of Misfit Toys"...  :'(
mike

[1eugene445]

Hello, AMC Nuts.

Someone showed me this discussin so I thought I would enter just to give you the straight scoop. I used to live near this place, Collier's dealership.  He does have a ton of AMC cars all over the place, but many are not in as bad a condition as you may think. Interiors would need a lot of work, but many of them have decent bodies. Pikeville is pretty far from the coast and does not affected by the salt,

Bobby Collier also has, or did have, the original AMX owned by Barry Goldwater in great shape,  He has a lot of Javelins and AMX's, but many are standing outside, although he does have some inside.

I used to visit with him often and just BS about cars in general. Then for some reason, he got reclusive and started locking the outside gate. Presumably the only way to get in was to call in advance, but he never answered the phone.  I know he was there because I could see the bay doors open from outside the fence. 

I know he got really ticked off when Piggly Wiggly built a new grocery store across the street, and made him put up a fence that you could not see the cars.  The grocery people thought it was a junk yard, and maybe it was , and maybe it wasn't, when you considered what he had inside.

Anybody got any questions, post them here or contact me at landsberg@earthlink.net

[Route 66 Rambler]

Thanks for the information.  This is one of those places with lots of theories and few answers.  And a ghost dealership makes a heck of a conversation starter among AMC follks.  We appreciate getting some information from somebody with a direct connection to the place.  Sure would like to see some of that stuff getting used, though.

[Blue Stinger]

I wish there was someone who lives in close proximity to this dealership.  The photos that were posted are from a few years ago.  They've been floating around various AMC websites for a while.  It would be great if there was someone who could go to the place and check on it's present condition and take more photos.  There are so many cars pictured that I would love to have particularly a '73 Gremlin X in Fresh Plum that looks just like my first brand-new car.   I shudder to think that these cars will never be saved and they will become piles of rust.


Mark

[IowaEagle]

So Barry Goldwater's AMX still exists.  It is a shame it, and the other AMC's are not saved/restored for posterity.

[T5258]

WHAT IS IN THAT PARTS DEPARTMENT?   Give me 1 day in there, heck 1 HOUR!!!! PLEEEAAASSSSEEEEE!!!!!!