AMC Matador (first generation)

The first generation Matador, from 1971 to 1973, featured two door hardtop, four door sedan and station wagon body styles, and was positioned as a mid size family car. The introduction of the Matador for the 1971 model year was AMC's attempt to reposition its intermediate size models in the market and to respond to the sociopolitical shifts of the late 1960s. The new Matador nameplate was chosen to distance the car from the negative connotations of social unrest and the association with the Rebel name. Its model years run from 1971 to 1973.