Mr. Murilee Martin is busy putting the finishing touches on what will surely be a PCH to bust all your knuckles through the computer screen, so I'm stepping in to fill his greasy, engine-hoisting shoes. A 42-year run is pretty good for anything, let alone an engine. But that's how long AMC's straight-6 was getting stuffed into new cars. Starting in 1964 as an option for both the Ambassador and the Classic, you could still get some OG inline-6 goodness up until just last year (2006) in a Wrangler. How could you even estimate how many billions of miles (on and off road) these soldiers marched, or how many zillions of smiles they produced along the way? Some notable cars the AMC I6 motivated: International Harvester Scout, AMC Hornet, Matador, Gremlin, Pacer, Jeep Commando, Comanche and nearest and dearest to my heart, the Cherokee. And seeing as how the no-safety reg Cherokee weighed just 3,300 lbs, the 4.0-liter straight-6 with its 190 hp made the truck way more amusing to drive than it had a right to be. AMC RIP. [Wikipedia]