The decades of success enjoyed by Nash were said to be due to its focus on building cars "embodying honest worth [at] a price level which held out possibilities of a very wide market.

Introduced in 1938, Nash's Weather Eye directed fresh, outside air into the car's fan-boosted, filtered ventilation system, where it was warmed (or cooled), and then removed through rearward placed vents.

Wahlberg was also an early proponent of wind tunnel testing for vehicles and, during World War II, worked with Theodore (Ted) Ulrich in the development of Nash's radically styled Airflyte models.

The 1932 Ambassador Eight had synchromesh transmissions and free wheeling, automatic centralized chassis lubrication, a worm-drive rear end, and its suspension was adjustable inside the car.

This kit, supplied at no charge, included a set of new hubcaps, a radiator badge, and all other parts necessary to change the identity of an Ajax into that of a Nash Light Six.

Mason accepted, but placed one condition on the job: Nash would acquire controlling interest in Kelvinator, which at the time was the leading manufacturer of high-end refrigerators and kitchen appliances in the United States.

Also in 1938, Nash, along with other car manufacturers Studebaker and Graham, offered vacuum-controlled shifting, an early approach to removing the gearshift from the front floorboards.

Automobiles equipped with the Automatic Vacuum Shift (supplied by the Evans Products Company) had a small gear selector lever mounted on the dashboard, immediately below the radio controls.

Its lighter weight compared to body-on-frame automobiles and lower air drag helped it to achieve excellent fuel economy for its day.

The "600" model designation is said to have been derived from overdrive-equipped examples of this car's ability to travel 600 miles (966 km) on a 20-US-gallon (75.7 L; 16.7 imp gal) tank of gasoline.

The larger Ambassador models shared the same bodies with the 600 but placed this unibody structure on top of a conventional frame, resulting in a robust design.

Nash was considering the potential of offering a pickup truck and developed a prototype built on the existing chassis with a modified 600 front end and cab along with an outsourced cargo bed.

A "radically aerodynamic" format was first proposed around 1943 by two independent designers, Ted Pietsch and Bob Koto, to Nash's vice president of engineering, Nils E.

[22] There was "heated debate despite increasing scientific research" about their value and the option was "met with insurmountable sales resistance" with Nash reporting that after one year "only 1,000 had been used" by customers.

[21][22] The few changes for the 1950 Airflytes were a wider rear window, concealed fuel filler cap, some dashboard features, and the addition on Ambassadors of a GM Hydramatic automatic transmission option.

Changes for the 1951 model Airflytes were to the rear fenders, elongated to incorporate vertical taillights, a new conventional dashboard replacing the Uniscope mounted on the steering column, and a new upright bar grille with horizontal parking lights as well as the addition of GM Hydramatic as a Statesman option.

Nash-Kelvinator's president, George Mason, felt Nash had the best chance of reaching a larger market by building small cars.

[28] Entirely incorporated within the engine bay, the combined heating and cooling system had cold air for passengers enter through dash-mounted vents.

The alternative layout pioneered by Nash "became established practice and continues to form the basis of the modern and more sophisticated automatic climate control systems.

Healey designed and built the chassis and suspension and, until 1952, the aluminum body, which another British manufacturer, Panelcraft Sheet Metal Co. Ltd., fabricated in Birmingham West Midlands.

High costs, low sales, and Nash's focus on the Rambler line led to the termination of Nash-Healey's production in 1954 after 506 automobiles had been produced.

Still, its bulbous styling, rooted in 1940s design trends, quickly became passé, and its underpowered six-cylinder engine proved to be a significant liability against GM's new OHV short-stroke V8s.

Like fellow independents Hudson, Studebaker, and Packard, Nash charged higher prices for their cars than Ford and GM, which benefited from the economies of scale.

Mainline Nashes also lacked body styles; despite introducing a hardtop coupe in 1952, there was no convertible or station wagon, although the Rambler lineup featured all of these versions.

In July 1954, Packard acquired Studebaker to form Studebaker-Packard Corporation,[31] however, further talks of a merger between AMC and Packard-Studebaker were cut short when Mason died on 8 October 1954.

[33] For the 1955 model year, all the large Nash and Hudson automobiles were based on a Nash-derived shared unitized body shell using styling themes by Pinin Farina, Edmund E. Anderson, and Frank Spring.

Even with the merger forming AMC, they were held to a total of about four percent of the market and thus were under pressure to lower expenses and tooling costs for new models, perhaps by innovation.

Since the early days, Nash vehicles were exported as complete cars or in knock-down kit form for local assembly to many countries around the world including right-hand-drive markets such as the United Kingdom,[38] Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

As was the practice for all car brands during the early 20th Century, the chassis and engines were imported, and Australian coach builders locally built the bodies.

After the Nash-Hudson merger in 1954, AMC's new Rambler vehicles were imported into Australia and distributed by Ira L. & A.C Berk Pty Ltd[44] which had previously held the Hudson franchise since 1939.