AMT (United States) - AllCarIndex

AMT Corporation, based in Phoenix, Arizona, was active in the automotive industry from 1966 to 1968. The company is best known for its development of the Piranha, a unique vehicle that served as a larger counterpart to the numerous plastic model cars produced by AMT. The Piranha featured a body made from plastic, specifically utilizing fiberglass and Cycolac ABS thermoplastic for both its body and chassis.

The Piranha was conceived by the Marbon Chemical Division of BorgWarner, which allowed AMT to obtain production rights. The company managed to build six production models along with two race cars. Notably, a modified version of the Piranha was featured in the popular television series "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." The vehicle was characterized by its futuristic design, which included gull-wing doors. The street and road-race versions of the Piranha were equipped with Corvair running gear, while a one-off dragster version utilized a Chrysler 7000cc Hemi V8 engine.

Despite its innovative design, AMT discontinued the Piranha project due to the high production costs, which made it difficult to sell the vehicle at a competitive price of $7,000. Ironically, the Piranha was only available in fully assembled form. In 1971, the Piranha's body reappeared in advertisements for Sportsland Unlimited, a division of Allied Industries, although it had been modified to use Volkswagen running gear, and the original plastic chassis was no longer part of the design.