Nash-Kelvinator was one of the predecessor companies of American Motors. They joined forces with Hudson Motor Car in 1954 to form AMC. Before (and after the merger), Nash built the Rambler as one of its product lines, making it perhaps the first successful U.S. production compact car. The seller’s car is a rare 1952 Rambler Custom convertible of which only 3,108 were built in 1952. From a garage or warehouse in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, it waits patiently for someone to restore it. The asking price is $18,000 here on Facebook Marketplace. Our thanks to T.J. for another great “barn find”!
With upside-down bathtub styling like its big brother, the Ambassador, the Nash Rambler was around from 1950 to 1954. Under the AMC banner, it would later transform into the Rambler American (1958). Available only with two doors, it was offered as a wagon, sedan, and convertible. But the latter was unique in that sedan doors were used, retaining their frames even with the top down. The Rambler Custom was the top-end edition and came with “Weather-Eye” conditioning in 1952 for passenger comfort. Total Nash production in 1952 was 55,000 automobiles, with just over 3,100 being the drop-top Rambler Custom model like the one here.
We don’t know the history of this Nash, but it’s owned by the father of the seller. At one time, it may have been a prized pet as Dad now hopes the car will go to a good home and be brought back to life. It may be one of several vintage autos available from that era and the seller remarks that it might remind you of the Nash Rambler used on the old Adventures of Superman TV show in the 1950s.
With an inline-6 engine and a 3-speed overdrive transmission, this vehicle seems to be complete (at least according to the photos). Chrome doodads are plentiful and perhaps this Nash will clean up nicely. But its running condition is unspecified, and we suspect you’ll have to start with the fuel delivery system to try to spark any signs of life. But how cool would it be to get this old gal back out on the road!
Really cool
Really not 18k cool
Maybe Lois Lane comes with it Paul.
I wouldn’t care if she did, in it. It isn’t worth a fraction of 18k.
Yep….I have to agree……maybe $8K cool…….
Totally agreed! Maybe 1/3rd of that cool in this apparently non running condition.
A hundred bucks. Cash. Final offer.
Was it Lois lanes car or Jimmy Nelson’s I rennet the car but foggy on the details of whose car it was
I think all the cars on the show were Nash
Really odd looking with those bulbous front fenders covering most of the wheels and tires
It was Lois Lane who drove one of these early Rambler convertibles. Clark Kent drove a Nash-Healey sports car. Police cars were full-size Nashes.
Thought Lois lane had a nash metropolitan
The LAPD used Farina-designed Nash cars, for a while. Lots of color film footage of Marilyn Monroe riding in a yellow version of this car. I think it was a Long Beach, CA. Parade?
It was actually the 1952 Miss America Parade, in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The Nash convertible was white with a red interior.
I think you meant Jimmy Olsen. :)
Oops Gil you are correct the character was Jimmy Olsen but it was stated above it was Lois that drove the convertible
Jimmy Olsen! It was Lois’s car.
Lois Lane drove Nash convertible. Inspector Henderson drove the bathtub style sedan. I assume Nash was a sponsor of the show. I saw the first run of the series as a kid, but don’t recall the commercials that were part of that show.
Beep, beep, beep, beep, the horn went beep, beep, beep. Always fun when cars are from my home state, and Sun Prairie, a now suburb of Madison, is home to Angell Park, home to midget races. While many called our Packard a bathtub, these cars really deserved that term. It was actually Lois Lane that drove the convertible, Superman drove a Nash Healey, when he wasn’t flying, that is. Ending all my posts in this manner on the subject, the car could appeal to many, but the stick is the fly in the ointment. Even if someone has a floor shift vehicle, the column shift will stump them, and grandpa, what’s an overdrive? Driving around in direct, for shame,,,(old truckers joke)
NOW,,if I was a richer, younger man, I would take all these unwanted, yet desirable cars, and retro fit them with a modern, plausible motor and automatic, in true American form, find a need and fill it mentality, that, my friends, is how it’s done.
test, it did it again, apparently, even an edit sends the comment to Hades. Hey Joe, here’s my real frustration, truly the Achilles heel of an otherwise great site.
What my unapproved, unmoderated comment said was,,,aw the heck with it, I’m going to turn on the ballgame.
What’s the long white open hood car behind it in the first picture? Looks like a raked windshield on it. Just curious.
So ugly, that it’s cool.
It’s a dorkmobil !
has to be one of the ugliest cars ever made.
I would love to have this restored. But unfortunately I could never start any way near $18K. I would be upside down immediately. Kind of sad because this is very rare and should be saved.
Buy a Fiat 500c for the same experience for ten grand less. It keeps your hair from getting messed up too.
A bit high price to start with, but restored can easily bring in the $30,000 range.
We have 2 of them and have lots of fun with them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKLY5xUZesE
Add to top ten ugly car list!
Deep down, Jack really likes Nashes!
Lois Lane came to mind immediately! This would be a cool car to restore.
Probably the ugliest car ever built. Just hideous from any angle.
This was an early “unit construction” (no frame) car. You LS guys should stay away. That engine would twist this car into a pretzel.
It’s “ugly” the same way airplane fuselages from the 1940s and 50s were “ugly.”
My earliest automotive memory is standing up in the back seat with my brothers as we rode in our 1951 Nash Rambler with the top rolled back. It was our family car for several years as we lived in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and New York. By the time we moved to Atlanta in 1955, the floors were rusted out so badly that we could see the pavement underneath the car. My older brother always loved that car, always hoping to acquire one until he died seven years ago.
There is a write-up on this type of car in the most recent Hagerty magazine. The jist of the article was that the car was one of the first ones that had a woman designer. This would probably be incredibly hard to restore, since spares and aftermarket parts are scarce. Once you were done, it is a niche-interest car that kinda looks homely. Hopefully someone with $$ has a personal connection and buys it.
If it were at a car show I would look at it, but wouldn’t buy it.
Lois Lanes car
So cool at 10k
Lois Lane drove Nash convertible. Inspector Henderson drove the bathtub style sedan. I assume Nash was a sponsor of the show. I saw the first run of the series as a kid, but don’t recall the commercials that were part of that show. I know collector car prices are crazy these days, but $18,000 is just beyond belief.
Kellogs cerial was the sponsor. The producer must have liked Nash. And Lois Lane did drive one, not Jimmy Olsen as stated above.
I hope this is not a dumb question but how did that thing turn with the front fenders covering the wheels like that? Or maybe the wheels are not as close to the fenders as it appears?
I heard that George Reeves was the owner of the convertible the Lois Lane character drove.
Anyone else hear that?