Nash

Automobile ads often go over the top when describing a new line of cars. Nash Motors certainly made their 1940 limited edition Nash Ambassador Eight Special Cabriolet sound pretty special in the ad announcing its availability:

“Presenting a Brilliant New Sport Car – custom-built in the finest sports tradition for those who look beyond the present standards of transportation. Long, low and racy, it is definitely continental in feeling – but its clean, power-packed lines, its spirit, stamina and mechanical perfection are completely American. Your first experience at the wheel will indeed be a revelation. Only its engine (and Rolls Royce in Europe) offers you the supreme smoothness and performance of twin-ignition power. Eight eager cylinders let you cruise at speed-way pace, yet handling is as easy as with the smallest car. Its Weather Eye Conditioned Air System offers all-weather comfort beyond what the usual closed car affords. It is equipped with Tachometer, Fourth Speed Forward and Cut-out.  Luxuriously tailored, topped, and upholstered in finest whipcord and leather. Designed by Count Sakhnoffsky for those few discriminating people who appreciate fine things, a limited number are being produced for immediate selection.” –Ad copy, circa 1940

The difference between this ad and what appears on television these days is that the Nash ad is fairly accurate in its description of the car. Nash cars were known for their workmanship and often contained many innovations, including the first rubber-cushioned motor mounts.  In many ways, the company’s success was a result of the founder’s determined nature.

Charles W. Nash was abandoned by his parents when he was six years old. He worked for room, board and education on farms through his teenage years. After marrying a farmer’s daughter, he and his wife moved to Flint, Michigan, where he worked at the Durant-Dort Carriage Company and eventually became responsible for the design and manufacture of their road carriages.  When William C. Durant eventually left the carriage company to found General Motors, he convinced Nash to follow him. Durant overextended the company and was pushed out of GM, but Nash prospered there, eventually becoming President of the company. In 1916, Durant was back in control at GM, but he and Nash had many disagreements, resulting in Nash’s departure.

After failing to buy Packard, Nash bought the Jefferey Company, makers of the Rambler automobile. Nash Motors was incorporated on July 29, 1916, and began improving on Jefferey-built automobiles and trucks, eventually earning a reputation for building excellent vehicles, with the Nash name and badge.

Nash grew his company, eventually adding an up-market LaFayette line during the boom times after WWI. LaFayette Motors began producing cars just as the post-war recession hit. In 1923, there were 108 automobile manufacturers, but by 1927 there were only 44 – the recession took a large toll on automobile companies. Nash, however, was careful not to overextend his company and hedged his bets by also producing a lower-priced car, the Ajax, which still had Nash quality. Nash had bought Mitchell Motors in 1924 to create Ajax Motors. Ajax Motors subsequently bought LaFayette Motors, as it faltered during the recession, for about ten cents on the dollar as the market for expensive cars weakened. Eventually, the Ajax and LaFayette names were dropped and all cars produced carried the Nash name.

Nash automobiles had an excellent reputation. In 1928, the company ranked third among U.S. auto manufacturers, and was very successful in overseas sales. The marketing strategy overseas was to convince important people that it made more sense to buy a new Nash every year than to buy a more expensive car to keep for many years. Nash cars were driven by (or for) King Ghazdi I of Iraq, King Carol of Rumania, Queen Alexandrine of Denmark and Prince Wilhelm of Sweden. In the U.S., even the Rockerfellers and Vanderbilts owned Nashes. Babe Ruth had one, too.

Nash automobiles often included well-considered innovations. They were the first, for example, to include a seven-main-bearing crankshaft in all their models. Still, Charlie Nash was very thoughtful about the improvements he allowed on his cars. Four wheel brakes came late to Nash cars well after other manufacturers had begun using them. When they appeared on his cars, Nash made sure it was an excellent system that met his standards.

Charlie Nash’s caution helped the company through the Depression. He had always kept inventory low compared to the company’s working capital, and the ratio of assets to liabilities was an industry best. He was also quicker to cut prices on his cars than the competition, calling it “A New Deal for Today’s Dollar,” a phrase that would be used in part by a future President.

With the company seemingly on solid ground, Nash contemplated retirement. He decided to offer the helm to Charles W. Mason, the President of Kelvinator Corporation, in 1936. Mason had turned that struggling firm around, but he was not initially interested in moving to Nash Motors. Eventually, he agreed on condition that Nash Motors would take control of Kelvinator, and in January 1937, the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation was born. Mason was a competent manager and was able to improve the company’s finances from one of its worst years in 1938 to profitability again in 1940.

Mason made only modest changes to the Nash cars, but he believed that every independent manufacturer should offer something special, something not offered to the general public. For this, he looked to designer Alexis de Sakhnoffsky. The result would be the very special Nash that is the subject of this article.

Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky

Alexis de Sakhnoffsky was born into Russian nobility in Kiev in 1901.  His father was a count and a private counselor to Czar Nicholas II. The young Sakhnoffsky was taught English, French and German by the family’s servants, and he was taught a love of fast cars by their Russian chauffeur. After the revolution, his father committed suicide and, in 1920, an aunt smuggled him out of Russia to France. Until his money ran out, Sakhnoffsky studied engineering in Switzerland, and arts and crafts in Belgium. He went to work for the van den Plas coachbuilding company as a junior draftsman and as an interpreter for their foreign clients. He advanced at van den Plas, began doing designs for them, and eventually became the Art Director. But, having been born to luxury, he hated his economic situation and believed he could do better in the United States as an automotive designer.  Even though his designs won awards in Europe, he actively looked for opportunities in the U.S. In 1928, he got what he wanted. Hayes Body Company offered him a position that included a two-year permit to enter the U.S. He never left. He became a U.S. citizen in 1939, served in the Army Air Corps in WWII, and is buried in a Veterans Administration cemetery.

For Hayes, he worked on Marmon and Peerless automobiles and was one of the first to design an American compact – the American Bantam.  He was an proponent of streamlined design for automobiles. In an Esquire article titled “The Illusion of Speed,” he said, “Two words describe the new science of getting these effects: artistic streamlining, which is purely art and psychology, entirely independent of the results of the wind tunnel or aerodynamics.” Like many other designers, he designed furniture, bicycles, boats and radios, but he is best remembered for his work with Nash, Packard, Bantam, Auburn and Cord, and for his incredible streamlined designs for White Truck.

His relationship with Nash began in 1933. He had input into the “Speedstream” Nashes, but his flamboyant style was not always appreciated. Mason admired him enough to have him design the special Nash he wanted for the 1940 model year. There were to be only 20 of the Nash Ambassador Eight Special Cabriolets. They would sell for about $5,000, considerably more than the standard cabriolet’s $1295. The cars were produced in three colors – maroon, dark blue and black – and would have tops in a color that matched the body color. There would be four trim options. Five cars would have their interiors trimmed in blue leather and would have chrome brightwork; five others would have tan leather and copper brightwork that actually appeared gold; ten cars would have red leather with chrome on five and copper on five. While 20 were built, only 11 were sold. The remaining nine were returned to the factory to be turned back into standard cabriolets – a substantial undertaking, since the Sakhnoffsky design included many unique elements.

Reggie Nash and His Special Cabriolet

Reggie Nash is no relation to Charlie Nash – at least not that Reggie has been able to determine – but the idea of having cars with his name on them is so intriguing that Reggie owns eight Nashes, from a 1904 Rambler Model L to a 1953 Nash Healey roadster. He has a few other cars, including a 1908 Model SR Ford and a 1934 Pierce Arrow Enclosed Drive Limousine 840A. When asked which was his favorite, he said, “That is a hard question to answer. I like each car for its own specific reason.” In 1969, he was in Hershey, Pennsylvania, for the fall AACA meet when he got a call from a friend who told him about an unusual Nash listed in Hemmings Motor News for sale at a Chrysler dealership in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, not far from Hershey. At first, Reggie wasn’t interested, saying he had no place to store it, but the friend was insistent – they’d find a place to store it. Reggie called the owner, Allen Bittner, and they agreed to a price over the phone with the proviso that Reggie could walk away if he didn’t like the car. The next morning Reggie got a ride to the dealership, only to be told that he was too early and would have to wait for the owner’s brother to arrive. Reggie waited. Once the brother arrived, he finally saw the car and was very pleased with it. He offered the brother a check for $2,500 only to be told no checks, cash only. Reggie didn’t carry that kind of cash in 1969 and neither did his friends, and Allen Bittner was at the meet and out of touch – no cell phones in those days. Reggie asked for a ride back to Hershey and was told he’d have to wait until 1 p.m. when the dealership closed, which would get him back to the meet when it was nearly over. Dejected, Reggie made a sign out of cardboard that said “Hershey” and hitchhiked back.

It seemed that Reggie would not get the car until another friend, Dave Garriques, said he knew someone who might know the car’s owner. It took a few hours, but Bittner was found, agreed to take a check, and arranged for Reggie to pick up the car at 7 p.m. that evening. Reggie was now the owner of a very special Nash – one of 20 built, 11 sold, and three known still to exist.

Once home in Virginia, Reggie took the car to a local baseball game, and the car ran hot. After the game, Reggie removed the screw-in freeze plugs and scraped out two inches of rust and debris. That fixed the problem, and Reggie drove the car for ten years and stored it for an additional 15 years before undertaking a full restoration.  He had been told that it had had a late 1950s restoration, but needed a much better effort. It had rust and accident damage typical of a car that old, and artist and auto restorer Randy Green spent the next five years doing a complete restoration. Green has done the restorations on all of Reggie’s restored cars, and helps maintain them. Since it has been back on the road, the car has been invited to several high-end shows, including Amelia Island in 2007, and The Elegance at Hershey in 2013 where it won the Best Sporting Car award.  The cars are driven; Reggie said, “In the 1970s before restoration, I drove it from Richmond, Virginia, to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, for an (AACA) Eastern National. It was driven several times on 200-mile trips. After restoration, it was driven from Hilton Head, South Carolina, to Savannah, Georgia, a few laps around the old race track, and back to Hilton Head.”

The idea that nine of these cars were put back into their original condition in 1940 becomes just mind boggling when considering the modifications that were made to the car. The only major part of the car that wasn’t changed was the engine. The Ambassador’s overhead valve, inline eight-cylinder engine produced 115-hp at 3,400 rpm, which was considered just fine for the special version of the car. The car would also have the standard Eight’s “Weather Eye” system for “conditioned air.”  This was not air conditioning. Air was heated to remove humidity then supplied to the car’s interior either heated when the temperature was chilly or at outside temperature in warmer weather, allowing for windows-up ventilation. The reduced humidity made passengers more comfortable as they traveled in a Nash, especially in a sedan or coupe.

Sakhnoffsky’s design turned the standard car into a streamlined beauty. There were no door handles or external mirrors, no running boards and no badges or hood ornaments.  The doors were cut down and window glass replaced by side curtains (Reggie found the original side curtains in the trunk of the car), the windshield was low and split to give it a raked look, with specially designed wiper blades and arms. The custom body work was done at United Body Shop in Chicago.

At the front was an independent coil spring suspension, while the rear suspension had semi-elliptic, pre-lubricated leaf springs, allowing the car to be a quarter-inch lower at the front and three-quarters lower at the rear than the standard cabriolet. The car was damped by hydraulic shocks and stopped by oversized hydraulic brakes. Overall, the car is said to be 52 or 54-inches high, depending on the source. That would make it 10 iches lower than the Lincoln Continental, although Reggie says the actual height is more similar to the Continental’s than the period claims. The car is 150 pounds lighter than the regular Ambassador, which probably accounts for its higher estimated top speed – said to be 95-100 mph.

Standard equipment to achieve that “continental” feeling included a steering column-mounted tachometer, “twin-ignition power,” a synchronized three-speed transmission with overdrive, and an exhaust cut-out with the switch in the door within easy reach of the driver. Outside, the car came with rear skirts, backup lights and whitewall tires, in addition to the beautifully plated brightwork. Inside, it had full carpeting and foam rubber seats upholstered in whipcord and leather. Overall, the car looked very fast, thanks to its aesthetic streamlining. Asked what the coolest things about the car were, Reggie answered: “The ‘50s hot rod custom look with exhaust cut-out and tachometer.”

Reggie Nash’s black car has a thick black top, an interior trimmed in red leather and Bedford cord, and brightwork in sparkling chrome. The restoration done by Randy Green has the car in perfect running condition, making it a great car for cruising Virginia’s byways.

Driving Impressions

I first saw this car at The Elegance at Hershey in June 2013, and my initial impression of the Sakhnoffsky Nash was that it was a bit big to be considered “long, low and racy,” until I remembered that it was a 1940 automobile. The longest, lowest, raciest car of that era was probably the Alfa Romeo 8C 2900, and the Nash was certainly no bigger than the Alfa.

­Now, months later, I got in and oriented myself to the interior. All the controls were where I expected them to be, the seats were firm and comfortable; overall, I felt comfortable in this car. I adjusted the seats and looked at the rear view mirror. As I tried to adjust it for some rearward vision, I realized that the rear window in the convertible top was very small. The view to the rear reminded me of a scene in the movie Gumball Rally, where Franco, the hired Italian hotshoe, rips the mirror off the dash of the Ferrari and says “What’s-a behind me is not important!” With no side mirrors and such a tiny rear window, what was behind me might matter, but was unlikely to be seen!

Starting the car is simple – there’s a key that unlocks the steering column (yes, it has a steering lock) – so turning the switch on and depressing the clutch engages the starter button on the floor. Giving the car a little gas, the engine turns over and idles smoothly and quietly.  From then on, care must be taken not to press the clutch to the floor when shifting, or it will engage the starter – not a noise Reggie, who was sitting next to me, would like to hear.

I put the car in first and took my first real look through the windshield.  Maybe it was that the seating position was low, but that hood looked much higher and wider than it did when viewed from outside the car.  The road Reggie pointed me to was a hilly, twisty, narrow lane with high cuts on one side and mild drops on the other.  I am always a bit nervous driving someone else’s rare automobile, but I started to worry about my ability to judge distances to the road edge looking over this car’s hood.

Once on the road, my anxiety eased. This was very much a car of the 1940s, but it was a very nice car to drive. The steering was heavy but responsive. Acceleration was smooth and adequate rather than neck snapping. The brakes slowed the car nicely. The shifts were long, but smooth, through the three gears, and a lift of the gas pedal put the car into overdrive. There are no anti-roll bars, so the car does lean in corners, especially when pressed a little. Still, the handling is quite good, especially for a car its size and age.

I was really enjoying the car and the drive on this very nice twisty road when my anxiety suddenly returned. I had just started into a blind right-hand corner with a cut in the bank about six feet high when some idiot came around the curve toward us with his left side wheels on my side of the line!  I had to react to keep the Nash from being sideswiped. I turned the wheel farther right and, unable to see the right fender for the hood, I gritted my teeth waiting for the jolt and noise that would tell me that the fender had found the bank. Thankfully, it didn’t happen. I got the car through the corner and glanced at Reggie. Had it been my car, I’d have been white-knuckled and wide-eyed, but Reggie was calm.

We finished the drive and took the Nash to the back of his river front property to take some photos. I was looking at the car from different angles when Reggie noticed that his outboard boat looked a bit odd sitting at his dock. In fact, it was sinking. Reggie started to bail the boat, and he and I moved the boat so it was grounded on some rocks by the bank. Randy Green responded to Reggie’s call for help, and I was able to go back to photographing the car.

Reggie has a nice collection of Nashes, and he and his wife Cindi enjoy taking them out as much as possible. Although he says he has no favorites, he does seem to shine when talking about this Sakhnoffsky-designed cabriolet. Oh, the boat, which is used mostly by Reggie’s children and grandchildren, was bailed out, towed to a boat launch and pulled from the water that day. A small hole in the hull was subsequently repaired. I got the impression that Reggie would have much rather been working on one of his cars than dealing with the boat. Cars guys are like that – aren’t we?

Specifications

Body:  Steel, body-on-frame

Chassis:  Rigid girder X-type with box-section side rails

Length:  207.1875 inches

Track:  57.6875 inches

Wheelbase:  125 inches

Width:  74.34 inches

Height:  Claimed to be 52 to 54 inches, but actually appears to be 62 inches

Weight:  3975 pounds

Steering:  Gemmer worm and roller

Suspension:  Front – independent, coil springs, hydraulic shock absorbers, Rear – semi-elliptic, pre-lubricated leaf springs, hydraulic shock abs

Engine:  Overhead valve straight-eight

Displacement:  260.8 cubic inches

Bore/Stroke:  3.125 inches x 4.25 inches

Compression: 6.0:1

Induction:  Carter WDO two-barrel, downdraft carburetor

Power:  115 hp at 3400 rpm

Torque:  200 pounds-feet at 1600 rpm

Transmission: Column-mounted, three-speed with overdrive

Clutch:  Single dry-plate

Differential:  Hypoid with spiral bevel gears and 4.44:1 ratio

Brakes:  Four-wheel internal hydraulic

Wheels:  Pressed steel, 15×5 inches

Tires:  Goodyear DeLuxe six-ply whitewalls, 15×7 inches