Collectibility
According to automotive historian James C. Mays, the 1967 limited edition regional Rambler Rebel station wagons became a collectible before their time.
Among the 1968 to 1970 models, the 1968 Rebel convertible should gain in importance as the last of AMC's ragtops, and although station wagons and sedans later joined the SST hardtop, only the two-door models have collector appeal. The Rebel's "clean but mundane styling" is a minus for collector appeal, but Carl Cameron, an automobile designer at Chrysler and developer of the original Dodge Charger fastback, mentioned that the best competitors during the late 1960s were the AMCs with new engines and the Rambler Rebels were "really nice, very hot cars", but the company just did not have much of a presence in the marketplace.
Today, surviving models of the Rebel Machine are bold reminders that tiny AMC once took on the big boys on the streets and strips of America – and won. According to Motor Trend magazine, "The Machine is the collectible muscle car for people who laugh at collectible muscle cars." The radical Rebel Machine with its hood scoop "larger than the corner mailbox" places it among the most controversially styled cars of that era, and the cars have a strong following today with their owners being rewarded with climbing prices.
Read more about this topic: AMC Rebel