Nash/AMC Rambler was a compact, front-engine, rear-drive car manufactured and marketed by the Nash Motors division of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation for model years 1950-1954. It was a sedan, wagon, and notably, a fixed-profile convertible. In a marketing breakthrough, the Nash/AMC Rambler successfully established the compact market segment by using its size and an upscale complement of features and equipment as its unique selling proposition: small and economical, but also luxurious. When Nash-Kelvinator merged with the Hudson Motor Car Company in 1954, the Rambler became a product of the resulting American Motors Corporation (AMC). Did you know the history of this car?
Nash/AMC Rambler History
The Nash/AMC Rambler was introduced on April 13, 1950, in the middle of the model year. Originally, the car was only available as a two-door convertible. Without the weight of a metal roof and with a low wind resistance body design for the time, the inline 6-cylinder engine could deliver solid performance with fuel economy up to 30 miles per gallon. Significant factors incorporated into the compact Nash Rambler’s marketing mix included making the most of the limited steel supplies during the Korean War.
In 1951, the Nash/AMC Rambler line was enlarged to include a two-door station wagon and a two-door hardtop. A car tested by the British magazine The Motor in 1951 had a top speed of 80.9 miles per hour and could accelerate from 0–60 mph in 21.0 seconds. Fuel consumption was 25.2 miles per gallon. The test car cost $1,808.
There were no major changes for the 1952 model year in the Nash/AMC Rambler. Models included a new Deliveryman 2-door utility wagon for $1,892. The “Custom” models featured Nash’s Weather Eye conditioning system and an AM radio as standard equipment. The new Greenbrier station wagons received upgraded trim with two-tone painted exteriors, and they were priced at $2,119, the same as the Custom Landau Convertible model.
The Nash/AMC Rambler received its first restyling in 1953 and resembled the “senior” Nash models that had received all-new “Airflyte” styling the year before. The hood line was lowered, and a new hood ornament, designed by George Petty, was optional. The “racy” ornament was a woman leaning into the future, bust down, and pointing the way.
Nash/AMC Rambler Development
As far as the development of the Nash/AMC Rambler goes, it is important to know, Nash-Kelvinator’s President George W. Mason saw that the company needed to compete more effectively and insisted a new car had to be different from the existing models in the market offered by the “Big Three” U.S. automakers.
The new car was the company’s entry into the lower-price segment dominated by Chevrolet, Ford, and Plymouth models. The Nash/AMC Rambler was designed to be lighter and have smaller dimensions than the other popular cars. With a strategy focused on efficiency. Following the design of the larger “senior” Nash models, the compact Rambler employed pontoon styling, with an overall rounded form that enveloped the body, and Nash’s characteristic fender skirts also enclosed the front wheels. These front skirts did not impair the car’s cornering ability significantly.
In developing this new car, Nash had planned to call it the Diplomat. This name would have rounded out the Nash family of vehicles; since starting with the 1950 model year, the 600 line was renamed the Statesman, and the Ambassador remained the flagship line. When the managers learned that Dodge had already reserved the Diplomat name for a planned two-door hardtop body style, Nash delved into its past and resurrected the Rambler name.
Conclusion
When Nash-Kelvinator merged with the Hudson Motor Car Company in 1954, the Nash/AMC Rambler became a product of the resulting American Motors Corporation (AMC), which in a rare feat, the car was subsequently reintroduced the Rambler for model years 1958-1960. The Rambler was manufactured in Kenosha, Wisconsin, over its two separate production runs.
