1965

However wild the success of the new Ramblers was, Roy Abernethy was not completely satisfied. Using the experience he gained as an outstanding salesman as a guide, Abernethy closely looked at the direction that American Motors' competition was going and decided that the company would be much more successful if its products competed more directly with the Big Three. He would achieve this by pushing all AMC vehicles further upmarket among the various market segments, shaking off the company's economy car image, and offering vehicles once again in all three major American car size classes: compact, intermediate, and full-size. The American and Classic were strong competitors in the former two segments, so for the 1965 model year, he set his sights on turning the Ambassador into a proper full-size car by stretching the Classic's body and wheelbase and giving it much different styling. The general sizes of automobiles at that time were based on industry standard wheelbase lengths, rather than on the vehicle's interior and cargo space.
Despite the fact that the Ambassador rode the same platform as its 1963-64 forebears, the 1965 model looked all-new. Sporting a 116 in (2946 mm) wheelbase, four inches longer than the Classic, the Ambassador received longer, squared-off rear fenders with vertical wrap-around taillights, taller decklid, squared off rear bumper mounted low, and squarer rear wheel arches. At the front, the Ambassador again sparked minor controversy with its new vertically stacked quad headlights, which were slightly recessed in their bezels, as they flanked an all-new horizontal bar grille. This new wall-to-wall grille projected forward, horizontally, in the center, to create an effect somewhat opposite to 1963's grille treatment.
Once again, all of the Ambassador's extra wheelbase was ahead of the cowl, meaning that interior volume was the same as the intermediate Classic. Another new body style debuted in the Ambassador lineup for 1965: an attractive new convertible offered as part of the 990 series. This was the first time a convertible was offered in the Ambassador line since the 1948.
Ambassadors also saw an expanded list of trim lines, convenience options, and engine choices. The 990 and 990-H models were back, while 880 models rejoined the line and slotted below the 990. A new 800 series was added as a base model. Ambassadors came standard with AMC's new 232 in³ (3.8 L) Inline-6 engine, which was the first time since 1956 that an Ambassador was available with six cylinders. The time-tested 287 in³ (4.7 L) and 327 in³ (5.4 L) V8 were optional.
American Motors' management decided that the Ambassador could once again accept a standard six-cylinder engine, since its full-size competitors (e.g. Bel Air and Impala, Ford Custom 500 and Galaxie, as well as Plymouth Fury) came with six-cylinder engines as standard equipment. They therefore appealed to a wider range of customers than the Ambassador was getting. Also, since the Classic was now smaller and styled differently, the Ambassador six-cylinder would not threaten to cannibalize Classic 6 sales, which were the company's sales volume leaders. The changes were on target as sales of the repositioned Ambassador more than tripled.