Editing AMC Gremlin (section)

== Competition ==
[[File:'AMC dragstrip 2001' meet in Cecil Maryland l.jpg|thumb|right|Modified 1977 AMC Gremlin at a dragstrip]]
[[File:1972 AMC Gremlin veteran dragster 99 WIBG Rich LaMont.jpg|thumb|right|The "99 WIBG" Pro-Stock 1972 AMC Gremlin]]

The AMC Gremlin saw action on numerous [[auto racing]] venues, including endurance, as well as oval and [[road racing]]. Due to their inherent inexpensiveness, strength, and simplicity to modify them for higher performance, many AMC Gremlins were used in [[drag racing]].

In the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) RS series for compact sedans, Raleigh, North Carolina's "Team Highball", run by Amos Johnson and Bunny Johnson, was the AMC factory-backed team, with Amos Johnson, Whit Diggett, and later, Dennis Shaw driving. The torque of their {{convert|232|CID|L|1|abbr=on}} 6-cylinder Gremlins gave a big advantage on the faster tracks like the [[Daytona International Speedway]], where they were often more than a match for the [[BMW 02 Series|BMW 2002]], [[Alfa Romeo 105/115 Series Coupés|Alfa Romeo GTV]], [[Datsun 510]], [[Ford Pinto]], [[Mercury Capri]], and [[Opel Manta]]. Johnson was the series 1973 co-champion, while independent driver George Alderman took the 1974 title.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://alex62.typepad.com/imsablog/2009/10/imsa-rs-challenge-everybody-could-go-racing.html |title=IMSA RS Challenge: everybody could go racing |first=Alexis |last=Gousseau |date=October 25, 2009 |publisher=IMSA History |access-date=17 March 2016}}</ref>

Starting in 1970, Wally Booth headed AMC's Pro Stock drag racing efforts.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/2010/06/01/hmn_feature14.html |first=Matthew |last=Litwin |title=Gremlin X - Wally Booth's early 1973 AMC effort rolls on |date=June 2010 |access-date=17 March 2016}}</ref> He and other drivers campaigned Gremlins painted in the hash red, white, and blue pattern that AMC had adopted as its corporate race livery. Dick Arons built the engines. The team "transformed the brand's staid grocery-getter reputation from the ground up into that of a genuine performance powerhouse".<ref>{{cite web |url= http://selvedgeyard.com/2009/10/10/auto-underdog-amc-wally-booths-growlin-gremlin-street-cred/ |title=Auto Underdog AMC: Wally Booth's Growlin' Gremlin Street Cred |last1=JP |date=October 10, 2009 |publisher=The Selvedge Yard |access-date=February 3, 2022}}</ref> Wally Booth "was one of the Edelbrock crew's favorite racers".<ref>{{cite book |last=Madigan |first=Tom |title=Edelbrock: Made in U.S.A. |publisher=MBI Publishing |year=2005 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=iCWTCOltsgYC&q=Wally+Booth+%22was+one+of+the+Edelbrock+crew's+favorite+racers&pg=PA202 |pages=203–204 |isbn=978-0-7603-2202-4 |access-date=17 March 2016}}</ref>

The rule changes for the 1972 Pro Stock season opened drag racing for smaller cars fitted with small-block engines and AMC was committed to fielding the Gremlin.<ref name="Svendsen">{{cite web |last1=Svendsen |first1=Arvid |title=Pro Stock Racing Legend Wally Booth and AMC's 27-Month Miracle |url= https://www.motortrend.com/features/pro-stock-racing-wally-booth-amc-drag-cars/ |publisher=MotorTrend |access-date=26 August 2021 |date=23 July 2021}}</ref> The first car Booth built was a Gremlin body-in-white, but it was wrecked in a towing accident.<ref name="Svendsen"/> In preparation for the 1973 racing season, Booth built a tube chassis Gremlin with the former Penske Racing fabricator, Ron Fournier, but switched to a Hornet body Pro Stock body after realizing that the Gremlin's aerodynamics were limiting top speed during testing at the Milan Dragway in Michigan.<ref>{{cite book |last1=McClurg |first1=Bob |title=The History of AMC Motorsports: Trans-Am, Drag, NASCAR, Land Speed and Off-Road Racing |date=2016 |publisher=CarTech |isbn=978-1-61325-177-5 |page=7 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Chd-CwAAQBAJ&dq=1973+AMC+Gremlin&pg=PA7 |access-date=26 August 2021}}</ref>

The automaker's involvement in drag racing led to coordination in the development of the Gremlin 401XR. Grant and Mike Randall owners of Randall Rambler/AMC, built a 1972 Gremlin 401XR Drag Car, that they raced at the ARHA Winter Nationals 1972. The Randalls also wrote a high-Performance AMC Engine Tuning guide as well as the "Randall Rambler & Jeep Speed Bible."

Three factory Pro-Stock 1972 Gremlin drag racers were campaigned around the nation. One was driven by Rich LaMont and sponsored by radio station 99 WIBG in Philadelphia, PA. This car has been restored with a {{convert|401|CID|L|1|abbr=on}} AMC V8 with 4-speed manual transmission and it still runs the quarter-mile at around 8.75 seconds achieving over {{convert|150|mph|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.draglist.com/Pictures/POD%20Dec%202000/POD-121100.htm |title=Return of the Gremlin |first=Bill |last=Peters |website=draglist.com |access-date=February 3, 2022}}</ref>

At the 2006 World Power Wheelstanding Championships (not a race, but a "[[wheelie]]" contest), Brian Ambrosini's specially modified 1974 Gremlin took second place.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.carcraft.com/eventcoverage/116_0703_wheelstand/1974_amc_gremlin.html |title=Second Place Brian Ambrosini Kenosha, Wi '74 AMC Gremlin |publisher=Car Craft |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120208122013/http://www.carcraft.com/eventcoverage/116_0703_wheelstand/1974_amc_gremlin.html |archive-date=February 8, 2012 |access-date=April 10, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url= http://www.caranddriver.com/features/the-wild-world-of-wheelstanding-championships-feature |title=The Wild World of Wheelstanding Championships |date=April 2012 |first=John Parley |last=Huffman |magazine=Car and Driver |access-date=March 17, 2016}}</ref> The car gets all four of its wheels off the ground by its modified {{convert|485|CID|L|1|abbr=on}} AMC V8 producing {{convert|1300|hp|kW PS|0|abbr=on}} and achieving average quarter-mile e.t. in the low 8s with a trap speed of around {{convert|165|mph|km/h|0|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.hotrod.com/cars/featured/ccrp-0509-485-ci-amc-horsepower/ |title=Featured Cars: 485 CI AMC - 'Horsepower! |work=Car Craft |first=Douglas |last=Glad |date=September 1, 2005 |access-date=17 March 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.autoevolution.com/news/1-million-snap-on-theft-suspect-races-1300-hp-amc-gremlin-pulls-600-feet-wheel-stand-video-100915.html |title=$1 Million Snap-On Theft Suspect Races 1,300 HP AMC Gremlin, Pulls 600-feet Wheel Stand |first=Andrei |last=Tutu |date=October 12, 2015 |work=Auto Evolution |access-date=17 March 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://bangshift.com/general-news/byron-wheelstanding-champ-brian-ambrosini-facing-up-to-32-years-in-prison-for-burglary-and-theft/ |title=Byron Wheelstanding Champ Brian Ambrosini Facing Up To 32 Years In Prison For Burglary And Theft |date=September 5, 2015 |first=Bryan |last=McTaggart |work=BangShift News |access-date=17 March 2016}}</ref>

The body of the Gremlin was widely used by NASCAR paved and dirt modified stock car teams in the northeastern U.S. and elsewhere from the 1970s to the early 1990s. It was believed that Gremlin's long roof with its rear kick-up provided aerodynamic advantages over the more commonly used Pinto and Vega bodies. Lenny Podbielski was "a major player in late 1970s Speedbowl action".<ref>{{cite news |last=Dykes |first=Dave |title=The Connecticut Valley Rocket Plus More Speedbowl Greats! |work=Racing Through Time |date=February 25, 2009 |url= http://www.racingthroughtime.com/ARCHIVES/FEB09/2-25-09.htm |volume=1 |issue=9 |access-date=March 17, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160325010755/http://www.racingthroughtime.com/ARCHIVES/FEB09/2-25-09.htm |archive-date=March 25, 2016 }}</ref>