“We’re creating a buzz,” declared plucky American Motors with the introduction of the Hornet, its replacement for the company’s mainstay, the Rambler American.

It’s no chore at all to identify the inspiration for the Hornet, the new American Motors compact for 1970 that replaced the Rambler. It’s the Cavalier, a 1966 AMC concept (above) that was produced as a studio glider. (See our Cavalier feature here.) Under the direction of design VP Richard Teague and Small Car Studio chief Bob Nixon, the wheelbase was shortened, the awkward interchangeable doors were abandoned, and there, in essence, was the look of the production Hornet.

Introduced in October of 1969, the Hornet was a bit overshadowed by its platform-sharing corporate stablemate, the Gremlin, introduced the following April. The  Gremlin’s stubby and quirky proportions created a minor sensation. But in truth, the Hornet consistently outsold the Gremlin through the years—in the U.S. car market, a functional rear seat can do that. Even today when pickups dominate the sales charts, crew cabs are far more popular.

Despite its crisp new styling, the Hornet owed much to the Rambler American that preceded it. Whilte the suspension was refiined, the engines were carryovers: a 199 cubic-inch inline six was standard in the base Hornet, while the deluxe-trim SST got the larger 232 CID six. A 304 CID V8 with a two-barrel carb and 210 hp (the previous year’s 290 V8 with a slightly longer stroke) was optional at extra cost for both the Hornet and the Hornet SST. In the following year, the larger 360 CID V8 was added to the roster.

The writers at Car Life magazine were at best lukewarm to the Hornet, but at Car and Driver the reaction was far more positive. In their Hornet preview in the September ’69 issue, the editors reflected on AMC CEO Roy Chapin Jr.’s approach. “Chapin has shown that he understands the essential difference between small cars and economy cars,” they wrote. “Mavericks and VWs are economy cars. The Hornet is a small car.” AMC took that premise and ran with it, quoting the story at length in full-page ads and dubbing the Hornet “the little rich car.”

In the next few years the Hornet generated some noteworthy variiations, including the compact Sportabout station wagon, a handsome three-door Hatchback, and a revival of the AMX sports coupe. Even an El Camino-style pickup was seriously considered. From there, the basic Hornet package proved to have remarkably long legs, more than paying off its initial $40 million investment. The Hornet was marketed through 1977, then begat the 1978-83 Concord, and finished its career as the four-wheel drive Eagle, which remained in prodution through 1988.