I've heard some auto history channels state with great certainty Nash was the best car product ever produced in US. This model was made for the traveling salesman who were more than abundant in the post war 1950's. Tons of room for samples, suitcases, could be made into a comfortable bed to sleep and the mileage was extraordinary with enough horsepower to go anywhere on virtually any road or elevation. A magnificent automobile.
It's hard to believe this car is 71 years old. I had an old man who lived near me in the 60's, 70's and 80's. He had a Packard that he bought new sometime between 1954 and 1956. He didn't have a garage, so he parked the car on the street in front of his house. And this was his only car, so he drove it everyday. This car was exposed to the sun and the elements 24/7 and driven every single day for 35 years and it lasted until the man died in the fall of 1989. I also remember looking at the car up close and not seeing any rust holes. I don't think a car built today would hold up as well as my neighbor's old Packard.
@@keithammleter3824 That's not how that worked, traveling salesmen picked those cars also because the seats could fold down to create a twin bed too, also I'm pretty sure employers didn't buy their salesmen their cars, they used their personal car
@@samuelsaady9909 Typical arrangements worked like this (and still do): The employer would buy a fleet of cars at regular intervals - in doing so they could negotiate a really good fleet discount, typically about half the retail price for one car from a local dealer. The employer would then in effect lease a car to each employee, by reducing the employee's salary/retainer - that way the employee gets to tell the government his taxable income is lower than if he just bought the car himself. So, it is his personal car, no other employee gets to use it, but it is a car chosen by the employer. The employer paid the insurance as well, "before tax", for the same reasons - the company can negotiate a lower premium, and it lowers the employee's taxable income. Usually if the employee leaves before the car would be traded in, he can keep it if he pays it out. I certainly had to accept the cars my employers gave me - the only alternative was to have a significantly higher taxable income yet waste part of my income on buying a car myself at retail price, although I could claim a portion of depreciation and running cost as a deduction. All up, with the company choosing and buying the cars, you end up with considerably more cash to spend on other things, yet it has cost the company nothing.
This was my parents honeymoon car. In the middle of their honeymoon it broke down in front of an Oldsmobile dealer, my father went in and made a deal on the spot and drove off with a new Oldsmobile. I still have some great photos of them with the car during their courtship.
My Parents had one of these back in the early 70's. Nash's were a bit thin on the ground here in Australia where I live, so ours got plenty of attention where ever we went. we were lucky with ours, it was a beautiful, straight completely rust free example, and the motor had been fully reconditioned before we bought it. unlike your's, ours had the Uniscope speedo mounted on the steering column. unfortunately, a couple years after we had it, we were out on a drive, and some guy in a car with no brakes went through a stop sign and T boned us on the left hand side, writing the car off. it was a sad day as we all loved it. I still have the Uniscope speedo from it, we did salvage that from it, and Mum passed it on to me after Dad died. great memories of a cool car.
@@rustyoldchevy1149 a 1950 US car would be thought of as a '51 here in Australia. Took time for import and conversion to right hand drive (if not built here).
November, 1964, I was 18 and this was my second car. I had put an Oldsmobile V8 and B&M Hydro-stick in my first car, a 1946 Dodge Coupe - leaving it non street-able. This 1951 Nash Airflyte was my $45.00 "back up car" until Spring of 1965. That's when I bought my 1957 Pontiac Superchief. One year after that I was on my way to Vietnam. I hated the Nash - at first - until it worked when my friends' fancy cars failed. We would laugh at the irony as the iron lady delivered us safely home. Nice memory flog - same color as well.
I was born in December of 1955 and have always Loved these old Nash cars ! Even though longevity runs in my family my Grandfather on my Mom's side past away when I was young and he Loved Nash cars and later Ramblers. As a successful business man in Worthington Mn he had a Chrysler Imperial for his primary car and a Nash or a Rambler for the around town errand car. In fact my Grandmother when I got my driver's license gave me my first car her 1960 Rambler. It was so much Fun, straight six with a three on the tree ! I somehow got the Nash and Rambler bug at an early age. I'm now ready to retire and am Blessed to be in a financial position to start acquiring affordable Classic vehicles, and a Nash or Rambler is high in my list. I think to start off I'm ready for the most lovable Nash in my opinion the Metropolitan ! I would Love to own an Airflyte and yes my 1960 Rambler as well. Thank you for reading and I will let you know when I buy my first Nash or Rambler !
My mom worked at the Nash assembly plant in El Segundo, CA. Employees got special deals to purchase a car. Employees were given certain access to the assembly line to see their car being built. Unfortunately 😊Mom was a comptometer operator (an accounting machine like a huge adding machine) whose salary didn’t allow a car purchase. My Dad was in the hospital for more than a year and she held the family together riding the bus to work every day. The bus stop was nearly a mile😊 from home and she walked it every day, rain or shine. Because of her gumption our family never saw a penny of charity-modern day welfare. She was an amazing lady and the Nash automobiles she played a role in creating gave joy to thousands of working class folks
@@rustyoldchevy1149 I’m 84 years old and have lived an amazing life because of her 120 mile round trip bus ride. It took a little boy far tooo many years to realize what a hero she was. The life I’ve led (it’s been the mostly wonderful) I owe to her determinenation to keep on keepin on. God truly blessed Lorraine Menet with a tenacity the modern world has mostly forgotten. Thanks for your response.
Great story about your mom. We have a '54 Nash Rambler built in El Segundo, CA. I confirmed from the VIN plate. Car is in WA state now. Your mom probably had a hand in making.
Our family had one of these Nash's as a second car. I loved the car but my mom hated it due to the small rear window making it hard to back up. They were very well built cars. In 1962 our parents bought a new 1962 Rambler wagon. Even then I marveled at the build quality of the car. Its to bad that AMC is dead.
My Mom was a loyal AMC customer. In 1968 she bought 2 new Ramblers, one for her and my Dad. The Gremlin she bought was too light weight. She t-boned another car with it.
@@2degucitas I remember those Gremlin cars. That OHV six I found to be pretty spunky. It handled well but by then AMC was in decline and the car was not very well built. I bought a Hornet with that same engine. It was a good car, but then I became an electrician and needed a truck so I sold it and bought a work truck.
Being born in '55 I can remember these so well. No one ever confused one of these great cars with any other--it was unique. My first car that I bought in high school was a '51 Lincoln and it looked so much older than this spaceship...
Thank you for the trip, back in time. I am 74 years old, and I remember, as a child, that my father had what hee said was a Nash 600. And, I believe that I remember my father telling me, that the number 600, stood for, or ment, that the Nash 600, would get 600 miles to the tank of fuel. Also, when my Grandfather died,in 1953, my father inherited my Grandfather's Nash Ambassador, which was either a 1951 or a 1952 model. Thank you again, for the trip down memory lane.
The fuel economy story is true, but they changed the name to Statesman by 1951 because the power rating went up and the fuel economy went down. Thanks for watching!
I was born in the same 1951 year and remember seeing one Nash or another around, including Ramblers. But the closest one to me belonged to a neighbor (a physician) just a couple of houses from ours. That was in the late '50s and early '60s. His car was a 4-door black but '49 or '50, the already bulbous model before the '51. He used to leave the car in the street because he would go to the hospital in the middle of the night, to answer emergency calls. In the small rear windshield, he had a enormous round sticker depicting a thick red cross in white bottom, so that everyone would recognize the car as a physician's.
Sat in my parents '49 Nash 600 front seat as a kid, mother would put her arm in front of me when she had to stop fast. No radio, long trips we would sing "Goodnight Irene", with my younger brother and sister, slept in the back seat, with suitcases in the footwell, with blanket padding on top.
Astonishing how history repeats itself. Today the closed wheel wells are the hot thing on prototypes of future electric cars, like from Mercedes and Renault, but even some small new manufacturers use them as well. Open wheels cause considerable drag and therefore increased fuel consumption. They knew that back then, even before WW2 already.
I remember sleeping in my grandfather's Nash during a family reunion when I was about 5 years old... that would have been 1953. Even at that time, I was amazed that the seats folded into a bed. Thanks for this video and sparking that memory.
Love that year Nash. My Aunt drove in a 51 Nash from Clearwater, Florida to Manchester, NH back in the mid 50's and she couldn't even read or write. Back in those days you could get a driver's license as long as you knew your alphabet. I remember her saying that all she knew is that she had to follow Rte 1 North all the way and she never got lost.
Yeeeaa! Great to see this car driven again. And still original, not over restaurated of chopped for making it a Hot Rod. Thanks for showing, also the jack, to show how the wheels can be changed. I am from the Netherlands. These cars are here for some lucky owners, but you don't see them on the road. I love the shape of the car, like the Hudson. That bulky but aerodenamic form. The covered wheels.... wow, wish I had one. But they cost here some 40 000 or more.... Never sell it!
I was born in 1953 and remember these quite well. In fact, my parents had two Nashes-- a 1953 Ambassador (which had since this one had been restyled), our family car, which had the fold down seats; and a 1954 Nash Rambler, our "mom's shopping charriot" (second car).
Wow, how fortunate you are to have such a rare gem in this day and age. I wish I was born back in the days when cars like this were covering the roads and parking lots across America. I'm not a fan of today's vehicles "styling", now THIS CAR HAS STYLE! 😉👍
It's nice to see these old girls kept and enjoyed original. So many people want to make them better than they were new. It's nicer this way, I think and you can really drive and enjoy without worrying so much. Great job with this nice old Nash. I hope you find out more about the history. You might learn something by driving it to the old owner's house and parking in front for awhile to see if people come out with memories.
About that engine, there is a good chance it will settle down and stop burning oil once it gets a thousand or 2 thousand miles on it. An old time mechanic told me how he overhauled an International truck, flathead six cylinder, during WW2. It had been left with the head off and the cylinders were pitted with rust. But at the time new trucks, and even parts, were in short supply. So he honed the cylinders and put the engine together with new rings. He said it burned a little oil at first but stopped after a while. He had the engine apart several years later for a valve job, the pits in the cylinders were filled level with black carbon and polished smooth.
I bought a 1951 Nash Statesman in about 1970 for $150. at a SAAB dealership. It was a great car in excellent original condition. Mine had the optional hood ornament. I used it to get to college and work as well as pleasure driving. I kept it original and, after a couple of years, sold it to a manager of a local (Tonawanda, NY) Red Barn burger franchise. He was in love with it as much as I was but he was better able to work on an engine knock that developed which perhaps, looking back, was possibly only a need for valve adjustments. I believe he lived in Niagara Falls, NY.
My mother had a 1951 Nash when I was very little. I used to stand behind the front bench sear on the back floor straddling the transmission tunnel. I was little enough so that I could stand upright. The only other thing I remember was that there was a red light on the end of the turn signal stalk that blinked when the turn signal was activated.
This car is the same car that I learned to drive it except that it was one color only the dark green. My father had a love-hate relationship with it because I’ve got 27 and 28 miles per gallon but as he put it it was the only car he had ever owned that didn’t have enough horsepower to get out of its own way. That street six only turned out 84 or 85 hp. Certainly not much to push 3000 pounds down the highway. I would love to have one of those back the world but getting parts for it would be an ever loving nightmare.
My Dad was in the Air Force in the early fifties and he told me a story about one of his buddies who re enlisted and used the money to buy a bath tub Nash brand new. He thought he was crazy. I always thought they were pretty cool.
Of the three "bathtub" years (1949-51) I like the '51s the best as they put fins where the tail lights are. Gives it a better look. $2430 was no small chunk of change in 1951. So glad you are keeping it stock instead of destroying it by putting a small block Chevy in it. Thank you for driving this car and keeping it on the road where it belongs. Normally I don't like music in videos but the guitar number is indeed very nice and fits right in when you took your drive.
All you did was hone it and replace some parts!!! INCREDIBLE my man!! I wouldnt even know how to get the engine hoisted out, let alone align the cylinders with the hone. What an amazing ride you get to enjoy and take a sense of ownership and craftsmanship in. Im jealouse 😅
Thanks for sharing this piece of automotive history. My only critique is that I would love to have been able to just hear the engine start and run and listen to the interior road sounds as it drove - that’s the best music.
That's a nice old car and it's great that you have documentation of its life. I say all cars all have a soul and a story to tell. We need to keep these old cars around!
Thanks so much for a wonderful cruise down memory lane! I've always loved the Nash front style and the fenders. Have had many AMCs' and still have a '78 Concord for 25 years.
when I came along the first auto I remember my family was a Nash just like that one, now I do not remember what year it was but we had it till 1955. thanks brings back memories.
Gorgeous survivor. I love the '49-'51 Nash's. They have so much charm and quality in and out. My father always mentioned that they were the smoothest riding cars you'll ever ride in.
@@rustyoldchevy1149 That's the unique suspension system with coil springs on all 4 wheels and Nash's special independent front suspension. The only other car with coil springs all around was the Buick, a much more expensive car.
Great old car. Looks really smooth as you drive her. I recently bought a 1965 Rambler Ambassador and she smokes a lot, but drives smooth as a leather glove on your hand. Some of these old cars just need a hand, & then they are just ready go.
the great thing about a Nash(which I was waiting for you to say) is that the back seat is a bed. No need for motels when driving a Nash long distance. It is a rolling RV. I can't imagine why a couple on their honeymoon would turn one and buy an Oldsmobile.
They were popularly called a "bathtub Nash" back in the day for that very reason. Nash were known for solid, high-quality, reliable, and affordable cars but lacked the styling and excitement the other big car makers offered.
@@P_RO_ I actually like the look, maybe because it is so different. Anyway, the video stirred up a very early memory of riding in the back of my grandma's 47 Ford, and hearing "look, there goes an upside-down bathtub."
@@rustyoldchevy1149 did you read in the comments were a family had a Nash with the uniscope pod for instruments. The car was destroyed but the father kept the uniscope and upon his death it was passed down to his son. Great story.
In the early 1960s I had a morning paper route. I had a 1951 Nash Greenbrier, the station wagon Nash. It was about the un-coolest car at my high school, but it was pretty useful for hauling news papers. Many years later I taught computer classes in Adult Education. When teaching students how to use a word processor I had them creat a “For Sale” flyer. The item listed for sale on the flyer was, you guessed it, a 1951 Nash Greenbrier. By then it was viewed as a pretty cool old car. Thanks for your video.
I'm from.irag .I.remmber this model.of mash becz .my grandfather he was owner .one.of this model .it's great strong car many times we r went to north of irag in this lovely nice car I'm sam from.baghdad
This car looks like the yellow taxicab and the blue and white police cars in the old Bruce Willis movie “The Fifth Element”. These were also flying cars and the police cars came with machine guns. An enjoyable science fiction move. Plus the taxi would talk to Bruce Willis and really annoy him. I find these very interesting cars. Not one I particularly loved when I was younger, but I like them now because of their standout style and the fact they were all unitized body construction and had 4 wheel coil spring suspension. The statesman with the flathead 80 hp 6 was good for around a 77 mph top speed. The ambassador with the 110 hp overhead valve six was good for about a 85 to 88 mph top speed. Remember, this was before freeways when this car was built. So 60 to 65 mph were good cruising speeds for back then.
OMG, that must be fun to drive. My first car was a 1962 American. It had that flat head six but by then it was 195.6 cubes and 90 hp. I was 17 (1967)and I hated the thing because I got laughed at a lot, but it really was a good reliable car. An old lady had it, and it was in mint condition but it was beige (yuk). Sure wish I had it now.
Bravo! I grew up in a fordor 1949 and when I was fourteen Mama would let me drive just a bit on the south Missouri country roads. I believe ours had a clock in the center of the steering wheel, but I'm not positive. Papa traded it for a Studebaker in 1959. Thanks for sharing and the best of luck!
I had a 50 Ambassador with a 235 Overheard Valve 6- about 7:1 compression-it had seven main bearings- but not counterbalanced crankshaft.I did a ring job on it, and bought the last set of rings,I think in Dade county- the owner of the parts store blew and brushed off the dust on the package.I could cruise at 85-90 all day long because of the overdrive which was behind a two-speed hydramatic 6 foot back seat, so you could pull off at the rest stops on I-95 and nap. Had to sell it because I didnt plan to go to Germany with the Army- I thought I was going to flight school.(1973-4)
And way behind European manufacturers. Lancia introduced the first Uni-body in 1922 - almost 30 years earlier. Chrysler and Lincoln experimented in the mid 30s but by that time Citroen and Opel among others in Europe were in mass production of unibody cars. So Nash and most of the US car industry were ay behind- as they stayed.
Had 2 Metropolitans. One Nash and one Hudson. Teeny tiny little versions of the same basic design. This Nash reminds me of a 1950 Packard I once knew and loved.
Wow, what a car. Imagine what $2.500.00 would be today - $28,550. Just love the Bumper Jack. Like buying a $28,550 Car today and driving it in 2093. Never happen. Not even a Florida Car. I had a 1966 C 36 Chev. Truck - Rescue Ambulance in 1978. Wish I was smart enough to keep it for today - 56 years later. Cool. Thanks.
They had a knickname of "Bathtub Nash" because they looked like a tub that was upside down. There's also a myth that many a baby boomers were created in one of those in Drive-in movies because of the front seat folding all the way down to make like a bed. 😄
I remember these cars when I was a little kid in the 1950s. Even at the time I recall these cars being something of an acquired taste. People either loved the way these cars looked or they absolutely hated them. Many people likened its' appearance to that of a "grimacing chipmunk". Even as a little kid I used to wonder how these cars could be steered without the wheels scraping against the fenders. Nash ended up merging with Hudson and forming American Motors, soon after which they ceased to build both Nashes and Hudsons, and built only Ramblers instead. In the late 1960s they acquired Jeep from Kaiser and then marketed their passenger cars under the name "AMC".
That's right! My uncle had a Kaiser dealership. Then he had a Nash dealership. Then AMC. Then AMC, Jeep-Eagle. I have home movies of my grandfather driving their 49 Nash and my parents and older siblings getting out of a 51 Kaiser. This was 15 years before I was born. The movies are kinda trippy.
@@uptoolate2793 My father had a Kaiser "Manhattan" in the 1950s. He was an engineer and considered it one of the most advanced car designs of its' day. In many ways, it was. Kaiser also introduced the "Henry J", an economical compact car which was literally ten years ahead of its' time. However, like the other "independents", by the mid 1950s Kaiser was no longer able to compete with the "Big 3" anymore. The same thing happed to the other "independents" such as Hudson, Nash, Studebaker, Willys and Packard. Soon after merging with Willys, Kaiser stopped making cars and concentrated on building Jeeps until, in the late 1960s, they finally sold Jeep to AMC.
GREAT CAR,,,LOVE THE BATH TUBS,,,HAD AN 59 "AMC" METROPOLITAN,,,POSTED STORIES WHEN I SHOWED IT,,,ONE WAS THAT MOM TOOK THE LAWNMOWER GAS AND BURNED IT BECAUSE DAD WOULD NOT BUY A BIGER CAR,,,,MOM GOT A FORD FAIRLANE WAGON ,!
"Bathtub Nashes," we used to call them. No power, but excellent ride and well built. That 183" 6 was anemic (85 BHP), but once up to speed, mileage was phenomenal on these cars, 30 MPG was easily had on the open road with B-W overdrive. The engine wasn't that efficent, but it was the aerodynamic design that did the trick. These cars beat the Big 3 by years by having coil springs all around in 1949. Despite their nickname, these were very good cars indeed. The Ambassadors had the OHV six, a better engine then either Ford or GM offered in competing models.
That car was ahead of it's time. When I look at the many uninspired offerings of today, I can't help but wonder were it built to modern specs. How well it would sell?
RustyOldChevy : You have a beautiful old car. A classic. I hope you can get it restored. And if you do, please put in disc brakes and a dual reservoir, brake master cylinder.
I've heard some auto history channels state with great certainty Nash was the best car product ever produced in US. This model was made for the traveling salesman who were more than abundant in the post war 1950's. Tons of room for samples, suitcases, could be made into a comfortable bed to sleep and the mileage was extraordinary with enough horsepower to go anywhere on virtually any road or elevation. A magnificent automobile.
It's hard to believe this car is 71 years old. I had an old man who lived near me in the 60's, 70's and 80's. He had a Packard that he bought new sometime between 1954 and 1956. He didn't have a garage, so he parked the car on the street in front of his house. And this was his only car, so he drove it everyday. This car was exposed to the sun and the elements 24/7 and driven every single day for 35 years and it lasted until the man died in the fall of 1989. I also remember looking at the car up close and not seeing any rust holes. I don't think a car built today would hold up as well as my neighbor's old Packard.
Or maybe those salesmen had to put up with the car their employer gave them.
@@keithammleter3824 no
@@keithammleter3824 That's not how that worked, traveling salesmen picked those cars also because the seats could fold down to create a twin bed too, also I'm pretty sure employers didn't buy their salesmen their cars, they used their personal car
@@samuelsaady9909 Typical arrangements worked like this (and still do): The employer would buy a fleet of cars at regular intervals - in doing so they could negotiate a really good fleet discount, typically about half the retail price for one car from a local dealer. The employer would then in effect lease a car to each employee, by reducing the employee's salary/retainer - that way the employee gets to tell the government his taxable income is lower than if he just bought the car himself. So, it is his personal car, no other employee gets to use it, but it is a car chosen by the employer.
The employer paid the insurance as well, "before tax", for the same reasons - the company can negotiate a lower premium, and it lowers the employee's taxable income.
Usually if the employee leaves before the car would be traded in, he can keep it if he pays it out.
I certainly had to accept the cars my employers gave me - the only alternative was to have a significantly higher taxable income yet waste part of my income on buying a car myself at retail price, although I could claim a portion of depreciation and running cost as a deduction. All up, with the company choosing and buying the cars, you end up with considerably more cash to spend on other things, yet it has cost the company nothing.
This was my parents honeymoon car. In the middle of their honeymoon it broke down in front of an Oldsmobile dealer, my father went in and made a deal on the spot and drove off with a new Oldsmobile. I still have some great photos of them with the car during their courtship.
That's a great memory for you.
That's a great story and a good moral
WOW, how sweet was that!
I want to be rich to the point that I walk in a dealership and leave with a new car on the spot when my old one breaks down in the middle of the road
@@syedammarkhalid3695 They were far from rich at that point. Dad was just an amazing negotiator.
My Parents had one of these back in the early 70's. Nash's were a bit thin on the ground here in Australia where I live, so ours got plenty of attention where ever we went. we were lucky with ours, it was a beautiful, straight completely rust free example, and the motor had been fully reconditioned before we bought it. unlike your's, ours had the Uniscope speedo mounted on the steering column. unfortunately, a couple years after we had it, we were out on a drive, and some guy in a car with no brakes went through a stop sign and T boned us on the left hand side, writing the car off. it was a sad day as we all loved it. I still have the Uniscope speedo from it, we did salvage that from it, and Mum passed it on to me after Dad died. great memories of a cool car.
Its a shame what happened to it, but great memories! Yours must've been a 1949 or a 1950 with the uniscope.
@@rustyoldchevy1149 a 1950 US car would be thought of as a '51 here in Australia. Took time for import and conversion to right hand drive (if not built here).
Aucklan, nz here. what a story to tell, amazing. i am sad too, that it was written off
November, 1964, I was 18 and this was my second car. I had put an Oldsmobile V8 and B&M Hydro-stick in my first car, a 1946 Dodge Coupe - leaving it non street-able. This 1951 Nash Airflyte was my $45.00 "back up car" until Spring of 1965. That's when I bought my 1957 Pontiac Superchief. One year after that I was on my way to Vietnam. I hated the Nash - at first - until it worked when my friends' fancy cars failed. We would laugh at the irony as the iron lady delivered us safely home. Nice memory flog - same color as well.
I was born in December of 1955 and have always Loved these old Nash cars ! Even though longevity runs in my family my Grandfather on my Mom's side past away when I was young and he Loved Nash cars and later Ramblers. As a successful business man in Worthington Mn he had a Chrysler Imperial for his primary car and a Nash or a Rambler for the around town errand car. In fact my Grandmother when I got my driver's license gave me my first car her 1960 Rambler. It was so much Fun, straight six with a three on the tree ! I somehow got the Nash and Rambler bug at an early age. I'm now ready to retire and am Blessed to be in a financial position to start acquiring affordable Classic vehicles, and a Nash or Rambler is high in my list. I think to start off I'm ready for the most lovable Nash in my opinion the Metropolitan ! I would Love to own an Airflyte and yes my 1960 Rambler as well. Thank you for reading and I will let you know when I buy my first Nash or Rambler !
My mom worked at the Nash assembly plant in El Segundo, CA. Employees got special deals to purchase a car. Employees were given certain access to the assembly line to see their car being built. Unfortunately 😊Mom was a comptometer operator (an accounting machine like a huge adding machine) whose salary didn’t allow a car purchase. My Dad was in the hospital for more than a year and she held the family together riding the bus to work every day. The bus stop was nearly a mile😊 from home and she walked it every day, rain or shine. Because of her gumption our family never saw a penny of charity-modern day welfare. She was an amazing lady and the Nash automobiles she played a role in creating gave joy to thousands of working class folks
Hard-working people! Seems like people thought differently back then, and had a certain pride about themselves and their work.
@@rustyoldchevy1149 I’m 84 years old and have lived an amazing life because of her 120 mile round trip bus ride. It took a little boy far tooo many years to realize what a hero she was. The life I’ve led (it’s been the mostly wonderful) I owe to her determinenation to keep on keepin on. God truly blessed Lorraine Menet with a tenacity the modern world has mostly forgotten. Thanks for your response.
Great story about your mom. We have a '54 Nash Rambler built in El Segundo, CA. I confirmed from the VIN plate. Car is in WA state now. Your mom probably had a hand in making.
Our family had one of these Nash's as a second car. I loved the car but my mom hated it due to the small rear window making it hard to back up. They were very well built cars. In 1962 our parents bought a new 1962 Rambler wagon. Even then I marveled at the build quality of the car. Its to bad that AMC is dead.
They made some great cars! Honestly though, the entire automobile industry kind of looks dead to me sadly.
My Mom was a loyal AMC customer. In 1968 she bought 2 new Ramblers, one for her and my Dad. The Gremlin she bought was too light weight. She t-boned another car with it.
@@2degucitas I remember those Gremlin cars. That OHV six I found to be pretty spunky. It handled well but by then AMC was in decline and the car was not very well built. I bought a Hornet with that same engine. It was a good car, but then I became an electrician and needed a truck so I sold it and bought a work truck.
We used to take a Nash on fishing trips in the early '50s, because the interior could be made into a bed, so we
didn't have to put up a tent !!
My grandfather, who lived in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, had one of these when I was a child (I'm 74 now). His was brown and tan.
Maybe its still out there somewhere!
When I was a small child my grandmother drove a 53 Nash Statesman!!
Very cool!
These cars were fairly prevalent when I was a kid in the '50s but mostly gone in the '60s. Your Nash is my age. LOL!
It seems like designs that are very modern become unfashionable very quickly, but they are still great cars!
LOVE THOSE CARS!!! The Nash and the Hudson have always been my favorites from the early 50's. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for watching! I really like the Studebakers also, might get one someday!
@@rustyoldchevy1149 Yeah, the Starliners and Hawks were beauties. Take care.
Being born in '55 I can remember these so well. No one ever confused one of these great cars with any other--it was unique. My first car that I bought in high school was a '51 Lincoln and it looked so much older than this spaceship...
Ahead of it's day in style.
its always good to see these old cars still around hard to find
All that paperwork, that’s fascinating. Nice and rounded, they liked doing that in the 50s.
Thank you for the trip, back in time. I am 74 years old, and I remember, as a child, that my father had what hee said was a Nash 600. And, I believe that I remember my father telling me, that the number 600, stood for, or ment, that the Nash 600, would get 600 miles to the tank of fuel. Also, when my Grandfather died,in 1953, my father inherited my Grandfather's Nash Ambassador, which was either a 1951 or a 1952 model. Thank you again, for the trip down memory lane.
The fuel economy story is true, but they changed the name to Statesman by 1951 because the power rating went up and the fuel economy went down. Thanks for watching!
I, as a person born in the 2000s, declare that this car needs to be reissued in large numbers! only on electric
What I thought. With unibody and lite weight.
This video makes me happier than I´ve been for days. Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I was born in the same 1951 year and remember seeing one Nash or another around, including Ramblers.
But the closest one to me belonged to a neighbor (a physician) just a couple of houses from ours. That was in the late '50s and early '60s. His car was a 4-door black but '49 or '50, the already bulbous model before the '51. He used to leave the car in the street because he would go to the hospital in the middle of the night, to answer emergency calls. In the small rear windshield, he had a enormous round sticker depicting a thick red cross in white bottom, so that everyone would recognize the car as a physician's.
Rambler, Wow.! my pop 's had a Rambler station wagon. Late 60's
Love that car. You are a magician.
Nothing like the bathtub. The first car I have flashes of. Born in 53, then got the 55 Plymouth. Just flashes of that one too.
Sat in my parents '49 Nash 600 front seat as a kid, mother would put her arm in front of me when she had to stop fast. No radio, long trips we would sing "Goodnight Irene", with my younger brother and sister, slept in the back seat, with suitcases in the footwell, with blanket padding on top.
These unibody time capsules are really neat to see. If the car stayed up north for a few more years, the body would have rusted out.....for sure!
My father had one of these - he was a traveling salesman. I learned to drive in this car and used it to take my girlfriend to the drive in movies.
Astonishing how history repeats itself. Today the closed wheel wells are the hot thing on prototypes of future electric cars, like from Mercedes and Renault, but even some small new manufacturers use them as well. Open wheels cause considerable drag and therefore increased fuel consumption. They knew that back then, even before WW2 already.
Very true!
It just causes me to yearn to go back to the easier peaceful days when USA really meant a bit more.
Love those mirrors and all that glass
I remember sleeping in my grandfather's Nash during a family reunion when I was about 5 years old... that would have been 1953. Even at that time, I was amazed that the seats folded into a bed. Thanks for this video and sparking that memory.
Thanks for watching!
Love that year Nash. My Aunt drove in a 51 Nash from Clearwater, Florida to Manchester, NH back in the mid 50's and she couldn't even read or write. Back in those days you could get a driver's license as long as you knew your alphabet. I remember her saying that all she knew is that she had to follow Rte 1 North all the way and she never got lost.
Thank you for sharing. It looks like fun. It's a time capsule. I hope you keep it and enjoy it.
Thank you, I will!
This era's Nash cars are so homely that they are cool.
I can smell the inside of that car from here! Interesting video!
At least it smells better now than it did when I got it!
Yeeeaa! Great to see this car driven again. And still original, not over restaurated of chopped for making it a Hot Rod. Thanks for showing, also the jack, to show how the wheels can be changed. I am from the Netherlands. These cars are here for some lucky owners, but you don't see them on the road. I love the shape of the car, like the Hudson. That bulky but aerodenamic form. The covered wheels.... wow, wish I had one. But they cost here some 40 000 or more.... Never sell it!
Glad you liked it, Thank you!
Amazing car, and to have all that documentation and advertisements is incredible! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for watching!
I haven't driven a 3 on the tree in ages!
I was born in 1953 and remember these quite well. In fact, my parents had two Nashes-- a 1953 Ambassador (which had since this one had been restyled), our family car, which had the fold down seats; and a 1954 Nash Rambler, our "mom's shopping charriot" (second car).
They sure were neat cars, not many around now.
Wow, how fortunate you are to have such a rare gem in this day and age. I wish I was born back in the days when cars like this were covering the roads and parking lots across America. I'm not a fan of today's vehicles "styling", now THIS CAR HAS STYLE! 😉👍
Couldn't agree more!
It's nice to see these old girls kept and enjoyed original. So many people want to make them better than they were new. It's nicer this way, I think and you can really drive and enjoy without worrying so much. Great job with this nice old Nash. I hope you find out more about the history. You might learn something by driving it to the old owner's house and parking in front for awhile to see if people come out with memories.
Thank you so much!
About that engine, there is a good chance it will settle down and stop burning oil once it gets a thousand or 2 thousand miles on it.
An old time mechanic told me how he overhauled an International truck, flathead six cylinder, during WW2. It had been left with the head off and the cylinders were pitted with rust. But at the time new trucks, and even parts, were in short supply. So he honed the cylinders and put the engine together with new rings.
He said it burned a little oil at first but stopped after a while. He had the engine apart several years later for a valve job, the pits in the cylinders were filled level with black carbon and polished smooth.
Thats a neat story! When I first got it running, it smoked so bad I was afraid I wouldn't be able to drive it the way it was!
Back in the days when bumper were solid steal and heavy. Never can use the bumper to Jack up cards today. GREAT find!
You got that right!
I remember these old cars and shifting the standard "H" pattern on the column like you did. Wonderful memories.
I bought a 1951 Nash Statesman in about 1970 for $150. at a SAAB dealership. It was a great car in excellent original condition. Mine had the optional hood ornament. I used it to get to college and work as well as pleasure driving. I kept it original and, after a couple of years, sold it to a manager of a local (Tonawanda, NY) Red Barn burger franchise. He was in love with it as much as I was but he was better able to work on an engine knock that developed which perhaps, looking back, was possibly only a need for valve adjustments. I believe he lived in Niagara Falls, NY.
Really Tom Hanley.
Hopefully its still out there somewhere!
Good ole girl,,still cruisin..
A great example of American automobile history. Thanks for showing us Colin ( UK )
Glad you enjoyed it!
My mother had a 1951 Nash when I was very little. I used to stand behind the front bench sear on the back floor straddling the transmission tunnel. I was little enough so that I could stand upright. The only other thing I remember was that there was a red light on the end of the turn signal stalk that blinked when the turn signal was activated.
You remember well!
This car is the same car that I learned to drive it except that it was one color only the dark green. My father had a love-hate relationship with it because I’ve got 27 and 28 miles per gallon but as he put it it was the only car he had ever owned that didn’t have enough horsepower to get out of its own way. That street six only turned out 84 or 85 hp. Certainly not much to push 3000 pounds down the highway. I would love to have one of those back the world but getting parts for it would be an ever loving nightmare.
Thats true they are pretty good on gas! Finding parts isn't as bad as you might expect, there are suppliers of original unused parts on the internet.
Awesome car! And you have kept it just the way it should be,
I think so too!
That car deserves a complete restoration especially the engine!!!!!
Looks like a flywheel toy car from my childhood.
My Dad was in the Air Force in the early fifties and he told me a story about one of his buddies who re enlisted and used the money to buy a bath tub Nash brand new. He thought he was crazy. I always thought they were pretty cool.
That's a neat story!
Love that three on the tree.😁👍cool video.
Thanks 👍
Of the three "bathtub" years (1949-51) I like the '51s the best as they put fins where the tail lights are. Gives it a better look.
$2430 was no small chunk of change in 1951. So glad you are keeping it stock instead of destroying it by putting a small block Chevy in it. Thank you for driving this car and keeping it on the road where it belongs.
Normally I don't like music in videos but the guitar number is indeed very nice and fits right in when you took your drive.
Thanks! I will never as long as I live put a chevy engine in anything but a Chevrolet!
@@rustyoldchevy1149 You're so welcome. Love your Nash !!!
Agree with your comment on the music. This one was OK. (But it would have been better without.)
Finally someone who knows the period correct description....."bathtub Nash"
All you did was hone it and replace some parts!!! INCREDIBLE my man!! I wouldnt even know how to get the engine hoisted out, let alone align the cylinders with the hone. What an amazing ride you get to enjoy and take a sense of ownership and craftsmanship in. Im jealouse 😅
Thanks! Anything can be done with a good shop manual!
Thanks for sharing this piece of automotive history. My only critique is that I would love to have been able to just hear the engine start and run and listen to the interior road sounds as it drove - that’s the best music.
I wanted to, but I thought my under- dash ac unit rattled too much.
I got to drive one of these in the early 60,s very smooth and quiete.
That's a nice old car and it's great that you have documentation of its life. I say all cars all have a soul and a story to tell. We need to keep these old cars around!
Well said!
A REAL BEAUTY! :)
Thanks so much for a wonderful cruise down memory lane! I've always loved the Nash front style and the fenders. Have had many AMCs' and still have a '78 Concord for 25 years.
Thank you, I would love to own a later era AMC one of these days.
when I came along the first auto I remember my family was a Nash just like that one, now I do not remember what year it was but we had it till 1955. thanks brings back memories.
Gorgeous survivor. I love the '49-'51 Nash's. They have so much charm and quality in and out. My father always mentioned that they were the smoothest riding cars you'll ever ride in.
They are smooth! It drives like a car much heavier than it is.
@@rustyoldchevy1149 I'd give anything to drive! You're lucky to have such a great original example. Enjoy it.
@@rustyoldchevy1149 That's the unique suspension system with coil springs on all 4 wheels and Nash's special independent front suspension. The only other car with coil springs all around was the Buick, a much more expensive car.
Very interesting. Congratulations. Nash is a rare car. Equally amazing.
Thanks for watching!
Great old car. Looks really smooth as you drive her. I recently bought a 1965 Rambler Ambassador and she smokes a lot, but drives smooth as a leather glove on your hand. Some of these old cars just need a hand, & then they are just ready go.
At least you've saved it, and still drive it too!
Imagine having a bumper so strong, you could jack up a forth of the car's weight with it. I owned a couple of cars like that.
the great thing about a Nash(which I was waiting for you to say) is that the back seat is a bed. No need for motels when driving a Nash long distance. It is a rolling RV. I can't imagine why a couple on their honeymoon would turn one and buy an Oldsmobile.
Very true, that is kind of funny!
The first thing I knew about the early 50s Nash was in the late 60s, when I heard my grandma call it an "upside-down bathtub" It's cool regardless
That's what they looked like, an upside down bathtub.
They were popularly called a "bathtub Nash" back in the day for that very reason. Nash were known for solid, high-quality, reliable, and affordable cars but lacked the styling and excitement the other big car makers offered.
@@P_RO_ I actually like the look, maybe because it is so different. Anyway, the video stirred up a very early memory of riding in the back of my grandma's 47 Ford, and hearing "look, there goes an upside-down bathtub."
I've always had a great admiration for the air flyte
I have always wanted an Ambassador with the instrument pod.
Certainly! A 1949 or a 1950 would do then!
@@rustyoldchevy1149 did you read in the comments were a family had a Nash with the uniscope pod for instruments. The car was destroyed but the father kept the uniscope and upon his death it was passed down to his son. Great story.
That is a great story!
In the early 1960s I had a morning paper route. I had a 1951 Nash Greenbrier, the station wagon Nash. It was about the un-coolest car at my high school, but it was pretty useful for hauling news papers. Many years later I taught computer classes in Adult Education. When teaching students how to use a word processor I had them creat a “For Sale” flyer. The item listed for sale on the flyer was, you guessed it, a 1951 Nash Greenbrier. By then it was viewed as a pretty cool old car. Thanks for your video.
Thats a very rare car these days.
lol. that was so funny and Cool
I'm from.irag .I.remmber this model.of mash becz .my grandfather he was owner .one.of this model .it's great strong car many times we r went to north of irag in this lovely nice car I'm sam from.baghdad
Thats very cool, that Nash must have been a rare sight!
This car looks like the yellow taxicab and the blue and white police cars in the old Bruce Willis movie “The Fifth Element”. These were also flying cars and the police cars came with machine guns. An enjoyable science fiction move. Plus the taxi would talk to Bruce Willis and really annoy him.
I find these very interesting cars. Not one I particularly loved when I was younger, but I like them now because of their standout style and the fact they were all unitized body construction and had 4 wheel coil spring suspension.
The statesman with the flathead 80 hp 6 was good for around a 77 mph top speed. The ambassador with the 110 hp overhead valve six was good for about a 85 to 88 mph top speed.
Remember, this was before freeways when this car was built. So 60 to 65 mph were good cruising speeds for back then.
They are neat cars! I've had this one up to 70mph!
Okay. I'm officially jealous! Beautiful automobile! Thanks for the SMOOOOOTH ride!!
You bet! Thanks!
The smooth ride was due to the "torque tube" design, and wishbone front suspension. Coil springs all around. Wish I still had my '51!
I was born in 1951 also. This car looks so ancient. God I'm old!
Cool car. Hudson's around this time looked very similar but had very respectable performance.
OMG, that must be fun to drive. My first car was a 1962 American. It had that flat head six but by then it was 195.6 cubes and 90 hp. I was 17 (1967)and I hated the thing because I got laughed at a lot, but it really was a good reliable car. An old lady had it, and it was in mint condition but it was beige (yuk).
Sure wish I had it now.
They were neat cars! The old flat head 6 was made for around 20 years I believe!
Bravo! I grew up in a fordor 1949 and when I was fourteen Mama would let me drive just a bit on the south Missouri country roads. I believe ours had a clock in the center of the steering wheel, but I'm not positive. Papa traded it for a Studebaker in 1959. Thanks for sharing and the best of luck!
Thanks!
Very cool 😎
Thanks!
Excellent video. Pitch perfect in every way. And thanks for taking us on that nice ride on those country roads.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I had a 50 Ambassador with a 235 Overheard Valve 6- about 7:1 compression-it had seven main bearings- but not counterbalanced crankshaft.I did a ring job on it, and bought the last set of rings,I think in Dade county- the owner of the parts store blew and brushed off the dust on the package.I could cruise at 85-90 all day long because of the overdrive which was behind a two-speed hydramatic 6 foot back seat, so you could pull off at the rest stops on I-95 and nap. Had to sell it because I didnt plan to go to Germany with the Army- I thought I was going to flight school.(1973-4)
That was a great car!
NASH AN OLD GREAT CAR, ONE OF FIRST UNIBODY MANUFACTURED ! HUDSON ALSO UNIBODY, THEY BOTH WERE AHEAD OF THEIR TIME !
And way behind European manufacturers. Lancia introduced the first Uni-body in 1922 - almost 30 years earlier. Chrysler and Lincoln experimented in the mid 30s but by that time Citroen and Opel among others in Europe were in mass production of unibody cars. So Nash and most of the US car industry were ay behind- as they stayed.
What a neat car of it’s time thank you for sharing the gem with us.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Had 2 Metropolitans. One Nash and one Hudson. Teeny tiny little versions of the same basic design. This Nash reminds me of a 1950 Packard I once knew and loved.
Wow, what a car. Imagine what $2.500.00 would be today - $28,550. Just love the Bumper Jack. Like buying a $28,550 Car today and driving it in 2093. Never happen. Not even a Florida Car. I had a 1966 C 36 Chev. Truck - Rescue Ambulance in 1978. Wish I was smart enough to keep it for today - 56 years later. Cool. Thanks.
You are right, new cars will not last that long. Too much plastic and electronics!
My Grandpa had a 1951 Statesman Club Coupe, it was as unique as he was!
Nice old Nash. Thanks for showing it to us.
No problem 👍
reminds me of the old cartoon cars I just love it
They had a knickname of "Bathtub Nash" because they looked like a tub that was upside down. There's also a myth that many a baby boomers were created in one of those in Drive-in movies because of the front seat folding all the way down to make like a bed. 😄
I am retromodding a 51 ambassador airflyte. Absolutrly loving it!
Thanks! I would love to have an original Ambassador!
If I remember right the front tires are inset from the rear tires on this Nash. Great car and thanks for sharing.
You are correct!
I remember these cars when I was a little kid in the 1950s. Even at the time I recall these cars being something of an acquired taste. People either loved the way these cars looked or they absolutely hated them. Many people likened its' appearance to that of a "grimacing chipmunk". Even as a little kid I used to wonder how these cars could be steered without the wheels scraping against the fenders. Nash ended up merging with Hudson and forming American Motors, soon after which they ceased to build both Nashes and Hudsons, and built only Ramblers instead. In the late 1960s they acquired Jeep from Kaiser and then marketed their passenger cars under the name "AMC".
That's right! My uncle had a Kaiser dealership. Then he had a Nash dealership. Then AMC. Then AMC, Jeep-Eagle. I have home movies of my grandfather driving their 49 Nash and my parents and older siblings getting out of a 51 Kaiser. This was 15 years before I was born. The movies are kinda trippy.
@@uptoolate2793 My father had a Kaiser "Manhattan" in the 1950s. He was an engineer and considered it one of the most advanced car designs of its' day. In many ways, it was. Kaiser also introduced the "Henry J", an economical compact car which was literally ten years ahead of its' time. However, like the other "independents", by the mid 1950s Kaiser was no longer able to compete with the "Big 3" anymore. The same thing happed to the other "independents" such as Hudson, Nash, Studebaker, Willys and Packard. Soon after merging with Willys, Kaiser stopped making cars and concentrated on building Jeeps until, in the late 1960s, they finally sold Jeep to AMC.
Very enjoyable, thanks.
Thanks for watching!
BEAUTIFUL 💖
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Thanks!
Always loved the two tone paint on cars and trucks!
Same here! It cost them extra too!
GREAT CAR,,,LOVE THE BATH TUBS,,,HAD AN 59 "AMC" METROPOLITAN,,,POSTED STORIES WHEN I SHOWED IT,,,ONE WAS THAT MOM TOOK THE LAWNMOWER GAS AND BURNED IT BECAUSE DAD WOULD NOT BUY A BIGER CAR,,,,MOM GOT A FORD FAIRLANE WAGON ,!
I look for these type sleds at car shows. Nash, Hudson, Plymouth, Rambler, Corvair, Avanti, and 1953-66 Corvette Sting Rays.
Awesome thanks sharing!!
Thanks for watching!
so this is where chevy got the idea...for the 1990 caprice! ....yes the.... bath tub school of design!
love that oil filter, upside down , no way to do the oil w/out getting oil all over everywhere. Do love that 3-on-the-tree though!!
"Bathtub Nashes," we used to call them. No power, but excellent ride and well built. That 183" 6 was anemic (85 BHP), but once up to speed, mileage was phenomenal on these cars, 30 MPG was easily had on the open road with B-W overdrive. The engine wasn't that efficent, but it was the aerodynamic design that did the trick. These cars beat the Big 3 by years by having coil springs all around in 1949. Despite their nickname, these were very good cars indeed. The Ambassadors had the OHV six, a better engine then either Ford or GM offered in competing models.
I tell people the ambassador 6 was the most advanced 6 cylinder of its day!
That car was ahead of it's time. When I look at the many uninspired offerings of today, I can't help but wonder were it built to modern specs. How well it would sell?
RustyOldChevy : You have a beautiful old car. A classic. I hope you can get it restored. And if you do, please put in disc brakes and a dual reservoir, brake master cylinder.
Thanks!
A nice car with good lines
Thanks!
What a 4 door beauty!
It's a pity that most buyers are looking for 2 doors and all these epic cars are getting rusted.
4 door cars really don't bother me anymore, sometimes its actually better!