1958 Nash Metropolitan - Rick & Mary Ann's Place

1968 Nash Metropolitan 1500 Coupe

Everyone remembers their first love and, if you’re a male, your first car. Even if you’re not a car guy, I’ll bet you have fond memories of that vehicle. Mine was a clown car – a 1958 Nash Metropolitan. It was America's first compact vehicle and released way before its time. I loved the quirky design and two-tone paint. My Dad always said that it looked like a mail box tipped on its side. I had a few pix of this car but they have been lost after all our travels and moves. The slide show on this page represents the closest I could get of the year and color. It is the best restored Metropolitan that I have ever seen. That said, my first love was in pristine condition and I kept it that way until I joined the military in August, 1967. It was stored on my uncle's property and never seen again.

I traded a motorcycle plus a few dollars for this car. Power nothing, and of course no A/C. It was powered by a 1500cc engine with a whopping 52hp output. Its top speed was 78mph (downhill with a tailwind). It had a tube radio and three on the tree. It had a POSITIVE ground system and I never understood the logic for this electrical design element contrary to most modern vehicles of the period.

The Met was the last vehicle that I owned with a generator to charge the battery.

At a time in automotive history when American manufacturers were consistently making every new model bigger than the last, Nash dared to be different. After creating a well-received concept car, the NXI, as well as several other concept and prototype vehicles, Nash believed that a small, efficient car could be successful amongst the sea of large cars being offered by Ford, GM, and Chrysler. In 1953, Nash put the NKI into production, and starting in 1954, the car would be marketed as the Metropolitan. Interestingly enough, this would be the first car designed by an American company to be manufactured overseas for the United States, and Metropolitan sales were counted against England’s war debt to the U.S.

Unlike other small cars made by European manufacturers, like Fiat, the Metropolitan had distinctively American styling, which made the car much more approachable to the American consumer when considering its size. From behind the wheel, it felt like an American car. The ride was soft and luxurious, and the interior was well appointed, with options that included electric windshield wipers and an AM radio.

I traded a motorcycle for this car. I could change the plugs, points and adjust the timing in about thirty minutes. Everything was easily accessible with plenty of room to work. I was always tinkering, trying to get that last horse power out of the thing. Power nothing, and of course no A/C. It was powered by a 1500cc engine with a whopping 52hp output. Its top speed was 78mph (downhill with a tailwind). It had a tube radio and three on the tree. It has front independent coil-spring suspension with wishbones, a live rear axle with semi-elliptical leaf springs, and four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes. Wheelbase was 85 in, a very small car for the era.

There was no trunk lid and access to the storage space was from a hatch behind the rear seat. This was always a major pain in the ass. Later years were to get an actual trunk lid. Steering was hampered due to the enclosure of the front wheels, a design choice I suppose.

A "Road and Track" road test of the day recorded acceleration from 0-60 mph in 22.4 seconds. Comparing it to a Volkswagen Beetle, the elapsed time was "almost half of the VW's 39.2 seconds." Laughable by today’s standards.

The interior was spartan with only one gauge in front of you, but it was airy and open. I would have preferred a tachometer instead of a speedometer and a few others like an ammeter and oil pressure gauge.