2-Seat Fun! 1961 AMC Metropolitan

The Metropolitan was a small 2-seat runabout that was designed by Nash Motors in the U.S. but built by Austin in England. From 1954 to 1962, it was sold at times as both Nash and Hudson products, but eventually with no corporate identity as simply the Metropolitan. The seller’s Candy Apple Red and White example is from 1961, the last year the car was built (but sold into 1962). Located in Los Lunas, New Mexico, the cute little car has been owned by the same couple for 12 years. It’s available here on craigslist for $6,000. Rocco B. has come through once again with this tip!

As the 1950s rolled along, more and more Americans were moving to Suburbia and needed second cars. Since Dad was driving the family car to work, Nash theorized that Mom would be the audience for the Metropolitan. At first, the Metro used a 1,200cc inline-4 for propulsion, but later models were upgraded to 1,500cc. No automatic transmissions here, so Mom needed to be able to drive a “3-on-the-tree” manual transmission.

These cars had the tiniest of engines, as it hardly takes up any space under the hood. And the little machines had what had to be the biggest steering wheels going. Tell-tale signs point to the seller’s Metro having been painted red when it was new, but a prior owner went the two-tone route before 2014, when the sellers acquired the car. The color change adds a lot of pizzazz to the itty bitty car, as does the Continental kit in the back for the space tire. The odometer reads 85,000 miles.

The seller describes this “Nash” as being a daily driver because it’s not perfect. But it has spent a lot of its life in a temperature-controlled garage either in California or New Mexico, where it lives now. The little auto belongs to the seller’s wife, who has been a Metro fan and owner since high school. She’s in her 80s now, and driving is no longer an option. The only repair the buyer may want to undertake is replacing the 65-year-old weatherstripping. I always thought these were fun little cars and would have owned one if I had the chance earlier in life.