The Rambler marque was first used by the Thomas Jeffery Company between the years 1900 and 1914. The successor of this Company, Nash Motors reintroduced it from 1950 to 1954.
After Nash was acquired by the American Motors Corporation the Rambler marque was again used from 1954 to 1969. When developing this new car, Nash had originally intended to call it the Diplomat as this name would have gone well with their other model names, Statesman and Ambassador. When they found out that Dodge had already reserved the Diplomat name for a planned two-door hardtop body style, Nash delved into its own past, and resurrected the Rambler name from an 1897 prototype and its first production model, in 1902. Rambler was also one of the more popular early American automobile brands
Immediately after World War II the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation commenced to develop a small car that they had planned to produce at as low a cost as possible. This concept car was to carry the marque Rambler. However, at that time steel was in short supply due to the requirements for munitions and armaments needed for the Korean War so it was decided to revise their design to that of a two-door sedan with a convertible top.
It was powered by a 2.83-litre six cylinder engine and had a 2500 mm wheelbase. The car’s overall length was 4500 mm. So as to maximise company profits the decision was made to make all features standard equipment whereas these were often offered as options by other manufacturers. It came complete with whitewall tyres, full wheel covers, electric clock and pushbutton AM radio.
When introduced, the Rambler was an immediate success for Nash. Then, when steel supplies improved, the Rambler range was extended by the addition of a four-door sedan and station wagon and these proved to be as successful as the first generation of two-door sedan convertibles,
In 1954 American Motors Corporation was formed from the merging of Nash-Kelvinator and the Hudson Motor Car Company. Following the merger, Ramblers were badged as both Nashes and Hudsons, with no visible difference between the two. The Nash and Hudson makes were continued through 1957 after which most of AMC’s offerings were marketed as Ramblers.
