Projects 1941 Nash hotrod

I figured id let ya'll know what a bored 17 year old kid is throwing togethor.

I started with this. It was $125 dollars.
1941 Nash Ambassiodor ' 600 ' Broughm Coupe






Nobody thought that i would ever be able to make a hotrod outta it. This car was origionally a uni-body car, and was rusted beyond belief






First i yanked the motor and rearend





Then i stripped everything else





Parts




Found a free donar car.



Yanked the motor





And the rearend

 

More

Built a frame. 1941 Chevy with a 67' Camaro clip






Mocked up the body



Now how the hell do you mount a unibody car to a frame?

Like this




Motor mounted in



Body mounted




Crossmembers




Paint



Engine compartment





I still have some stuff to do, but thats just a basic breakdown of a years worth of work. Should be done by January. Iv been doing all the work myself, and my dad refuses to help me other than, " your doing that wrong" and walkin away. He's never built a hotrod eithor.

Whatch guys think?

Not too shabby for a 17 year old kid huh?

 

I like it very different. Not to meny people build rods out of nashes,
(i would think) . It will be the only one around or at a show. I found one in a barn two weeks ago its a 1940 nash four door with 60 thousand miles.Good luck with your project

 

As stated,"Not too shabby for a 71 year old."Good on ya' son,and I mean that in the nicest way.

 

Looks good, but is your body just sitting on the frame? Are there any body bushings?

 

Looks good my brother had a 48 nash that we kind of hotrodded while he was going to OU. We drove that thing all over the country going to the nats in Louisville twice and the nats north in Kalamazoo twice. There is no way we could do that now gas was less than a dollar a gallon and his Nash only got ten miles a gallon with a 350/350 but we were young and dumb. He totalled it his senior year of college but bought it back and put a fatman stubb under it. He hasn't done anything to it since then because when he finishes he wants to finish it right and we have been building other stuff since then.

 

Nashes are oddballs. I bought a '40 coupe to hang onto, I think the last body on frame Nash, we have a '41 and a '46 too. Not much demand means less competition for the parts you do find. But they're harder to find in the first place.

 

Good to see you here kid.

 

NOT bad for a 17 year old...lots of work and keep at it...you'll eventually find out IF you're doing it wrong, even tho your Dad says you are...

R-

 

when i was 17 my reaction about a nash was 'YUCK', but as the years ticked by my eyes focused more and i said, 'hey that thing is smooth' same for alotta other cars. I like them tubs now, when we were young we went with the crowd, but as ya get older seems like ya can see a little better on some things. Go for it and hav fun.

 

Very impressive. Are you doing the engineering and the welding? I used to be 17 and there was no way I could have or would have tackled a project like that (of course, 41 Nashes weren't quite as old then as they are now).

Nice to have you here, thanks for sharing your project with us and please continue to update us as the work continues.

dj

 

Wish my 17 year old was into cars.
Good for you kid. I like it

 

Yer workin too hard kid. Ya oughta learn to relax, find a hobby maybe!!! 2Cool!

 

This 41 was a unibody. It had a stamped 16 gauge frame welded to the floorboards. Most of the frame was in the door frames. Amazing engineering, but not built to last.

As for the body, it is sitting on rubber bushings. No way in hell would i mount it solid.

Yes, im doing all the welding and engineering. I also rebuilt the engine. Like i said, my ol man hasnt helped me at all.

 

What are gonna do about the rear fenders? Are you gonna leave them like they are or are you gonna radius them to fit the wheels? I think you have done one hell of a job with a POS! Can't wait to see it done and runnin!!!

 

I fully concurr with "Propwash", when I was 17, back in Cleveland, I was crying about having to change a motor in the snow...let alone do a full on ground-up build. Very impressive! Truly a throwback to the Old Skool days you see in vintage Hot Rod mags. Keep up the good work and take lots of pictures. Love the whole "oddball" choice. Different is cool.
JT
p.s. the jury is still out on those rear fenders??? Might take some getting used to.

 

Im gonna leave em like they are. I kinda dig the look. No clearance issues eithor.

the front fenders will need to radiused thought

 

I like what you are doing with that old gal. Keep up the good work and keep us posted on progress.

that car looks almost like one that sat close to
Grandview, Wa for many many years.

 

Keep up the good work, it looks great. We need more young blood if we are going to keep the hot rod movement going. I love odd ball cars.

 

Looks pretty neat...keep us posted. Nice change of scenery.

 

When i saw your project I flashed back to the 1948 Chev coupe I bought for $27.50 in 1976 at a farm auction. I never got as far as you. My old man never helped either but he wasn't negative about it. I learned lots from that old Chev.

 

Im really learning alot with this nash as well.

I also have 3 other project vehicals as well

 

Awesome man! I thought we were losing all of our young guys on this message board??? Good job.

 

My Dad built a 41 Nash Ambassador 4 Door when I was a kid back in the late 70's/early 80's. He had a real bitch of a time finding parts for it. Much of what he used was NOS stuff, as he found a couple of guys who had stashes of old dealer stock. It ran a 302/C-4/9inch combo. Dad sold it in about 1985 as a completed car. After a couple owners, it's still is going strong. We see the current owner once a year, and he always raves about how nice of a car it is. Luckly Dad started with a 64,000 mile rust free original car though.
Good Luck with the project. Watch when looking for parts, as most Ambassador parts are slightly larger then the "600" series which is what you have.

 

Damn. Making me look bad?! I'm 19!!

Killer work dude. I couldn't do that, not yet at least. Looks really good. That Mr. Gasket shifter is a poor choice (my own experience). It was very loose. I had adjusted everything and it stayed loose. I picked up the Hurst INDY shifter, and It's a MUCH tighter fit.

 

That's going to be a great cruiser. I kinda like them FAT fender cars my self. One of my buddies says they have big hips. Just keep us up dated great start.

 

Wow that is great I love the 40s Nash.I am sure Dad will be very proud when you drive him around in it.

 

Very nice. I certainly wish I had one of those engine hoist tool thingy's though. LOL

 

I take it your talkin bout the Backhoe

I also have an A-frame crane in the shop as well

That thing sure does make life just a little bit easier. If i didnt have that, id have even less friends than i already have because iv had the body on and off so many times!

 

Ha! He already takes all the credit for the build. He wants me to put a th350 in it, power steering and power brakes, so that he can drive it.

Theres a reason i have a 3 speed, manual steering, and non boosted brakes. He also gave me hell when i decided to paint it, saying that it didnt look like a " rat rod " any more. I said thats the point.

As for the wheels, them s10 stocks are all i got for now. I dont dig em at all. Im lookin for a set of steelies.