The Rambler Six and Rambler V8 were American Motors’ intermediate-sized cars for the 1956 to 1960 model years. Launched on 15 December 1955 and sold through both Nash and Hudson dealers, the new Rambler created and defined the compact car class in the United States, and a V8 model joined the range for 1957.
Rambler Six and V8 at a glance
| Maker | American Motors Corporation |
|---|---|
| Production | 1956–1960 |
| Launched | 15 December 1955 |
| Sold through | Nash and Hudson dealerships |
| Wheelbase | 108 inches |
| Length, 1956 | 191.14 inches, about 5 inches longer than before |
| Construction | unit body, which Nash called Double Safe Single Unit |
| Engine, 1956 | 195.6 cu in Typhoon six, 120 bhp |
| Electrical system | 12 volts |
| Transmission | GM Hydra-Matic, called Flashaway by AMC |
| Body styles | four-door sedan, four-door hardtop and station wagon |
| Wagon name | Cross Country |
This article also covers the Rambler Custom and Rambler Super records, which were series names within the same Rambler Six and V8 line.
History of the Rambler Six and V8
A new class of car
By the mid-1950s the full-size cars of Nash and Hudson were losing sales, and the newly formed American Motors put its resources into a smaller line for 1956. The designs were developed by AMC styling director Edmund E. Anderson for a market segment that did not yet have a name. George Romney, chairman and president, avoided a head-on battle with the Big Three by concentrating on the compact car, and he later said that with the Rambler he felt he had the car of the future. AMC spent US$5.4 million on a crash programme to bring the 1957 Rambler to market a year early. The 1956 line was about 8 inches longer than before but still a compact by the standards of the time, and it has been called the most important car American Motors ever built, because it created the segment and let the company prosper in the buyer’s market of the postwar years.
The 1956 car
The four-door Ramblers were completely redesigned, with swept-back C-pillars that AMC called the Fashion Safety Arch, unusual wing windows on the rear doors, inboard grille-mounted headlamps and what was described as the widest windscreen of any car. The short-wheelbase two-door Nash Rambler was dropped, and the new line kept the 108-inch wheelbase of the previous four-door but grew to 191.14 inches overall. Construction was unit body, which Nash called Double Safe Single Unit, and the company offered buyers a $25,000 personal injury insurance policy at no extra cost as a marketing advantage. The cars came only as four-doors: a sedan, a station wagon and a new four-door hardtop. Rambler also introduced the industry’s first four-door hardtop station wagon in 1956, with the same rear doors as the sedan, a lower roofline over the cargo area and a standard roof rack; the wagons were called Cross Country and had a roll-down tailgate window where rivals used an upward-hinged one.
Engine and running gear
The only engine in 1956 was the Typhoon straight-six, based on the previous 195.6 cu in block but with overhead valves and 120 bhp, about a third more power than the 1955 unit and up to 30 miles per gallon. The car moved to a 12-volt electrical system, used the GM Hydra-Matic automatic transmission, which AMC called Flashaway, and adopted a torque tube drive with four-wheel coil spring suspension in place of the previous Hotchkiss layout. Interiors came in fifteen colours with genuine leather in six as an option. Station wagons were popular, and buyers frequently ordered power steering, two- and three-tone paint schemes and a continental spare tyre. A V8 model was added for 1957, giving the range its Rambler Six and Rambler V8 names, and the cars were sold through both Nash and Hudson dealer networks after the 1954 merger that created AMC. The line ran until 1960 and was replaced by the Rambler Classic for 1961.
Design and features
- Compact class: the 1956 Rambler created and defined the American compact car segment.
- Four-door hardtop wagon: Rambler introduced the industry’s first four-door hardtop station wagon.
- Typhoon six: an overhead-valve 195.6 cu in engine with 120 bhp and up to 30 mpg.
- Unit body: Nash’s Double Safe Single Unit construction was standard across the range.
Rambler Six and V8 versions
- Rambler Six (1956–1960): the original six-cylinder line.
- Rambler V8 (from 1957): the V8-powered version of the same car.
- Custom: the higher trim, with power brakes as standard.
- Super: a further trim level offered across the range.
- Cross Country: the station wagon body, including the four-door hardtop wagon.
The Rambler Six and V8 was replaced by the Rambler Classic and sold alongside the Rambler American and the Metropolitan. More cars are in the Rambler collection.
Video: Unusual Custom 1966 AMC Rambler 770 Utility Vehicle at Country Classic Cars
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Rambler Six and V8, English Wikipedia: launch, 1956 model, engine, body styles, trims
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