Cars We Remember; First compact and sub-compact cars and the hit record ‘Beep Beep’

Q: Greg, I enjoy reading your nostalgia collector car columns and I really enjoyed the past columns on Jeep Jeepsters and the first ever hatchback, but can you tell me which of the manufacturers were first to produce compact and sub-compact cars? 

I’m sure there were compact cars before the Ford Falcon and Chevy Corvair, so can you comment and not include any foreign sports cars? Thank you, Jimmy S., Spokane, Wash. 

A: Jimmy, thanks for your kind words and I’m happy to oblige. I had a question similar to yours a few years ago, so here’s an update for you on the compact and sub-compact, and information on a hit song that impacted car sales back in 1958.

To get to the first non sports car, American-built compact car question, there are many who agree that the Nash Rambler was the first American manufacturer to promote its new car as compact size models. 

Way back in 1950, Nash sold its new Rambler and it was officially christened “compact” by George Romney, noted auto executive and then politician. Romney went on to head the former American Motors Corporation (AMC) when the company formed back in 1954, and following the Nash-Kelvinator and Hudson Motor Car Company merger. 

Of course just because Romney came up with the wording “compact car,” which he felt was any car with a wheelbase of 100-inches or less, it didn’t mean he was correct. There were already cars out there that fit the wheelbase criteria, notably the Ohio-built two-seater King Midget, which was a very short wheelbase blend of go-kart and actual passenger vehicle that was 100-percent legal on the nation’s highways.

However, I will side with Romney and give Nash’s 1950 Rambler the “first American-built compact” nod of approval. Nash always promoted its Rambler models as smaller, economy friendly cars that were within easy reach of the average American worker’s salary. However, when it came to big cars, the 1950 Nash Ambassador and Statesman were full-size behemoth “bathtub” style cars, completely different from sibling little Nash Rambler. So Nash was indeed building really big cars, but the “bread and butter” monies of the company’s income came from the smaller Ramblers.

Further, even with Nash Rambler’s aggressive radio, early TV and newspaper advertising, I have to point to the 1958 hit song, “Beep Beep” by the Playmates, which was a novelty B-side rendition of a Nash outrunning a Cadillac. The record became a major promotional shot in the arm for Rambler and led to a record number of sales.

Of note about “Beep Beep” is that although the B-Side to the Playmates “Your Love,” it caught on like wildfire with the listeners thanks to its accelerating lingo style and the fact that even with the Cadillac flat-out to the floor, it turns out the “little Nash Rambler” was stuck in second gear! The record charted for 15 weeks up to No. 4 and became the Playmates only one million gold record seller. 

To keep up with demand, “Beep Beep” was then pressed as an A-side record, thanks to its popularity. Then in December 1958, Time Magazine credited “Beep Beep” with helping Rambler break records as the company doubled its previous year’s production with 26,782 cars and accounting for 9.2% of October U.S. sales. (I could go on here about hit car songs impacting car sales ala 409, Shutdown, Hey Little Cobra and Little GTO, to name a few.) 

Following the compact Nash Rambler success, Henry Kaiser countered with his first compact called the Henry J, which debuted in 1951 and was also available at select Sears & Roebuck stores with Sears Allstate badges. Other American compacts I remember in the 1950s were the Willys Aero, Hudson Jet, and just getting in under the wire in 1959 was the Studebaker Lark.

As for the first foreign non-sports car compact car in America, the 1949 VW Beetle receives that honor. The Beetle was a rear engine design, and not what the American population would come to recognize as a compact car ala the American-built, front engine 1950 decade compacts of the day. Still, it did appear first and had been around since 1938 in Germany, and was known as “the people’s car.” Also, cars like the German Opel (sold at Buick dealers) and the British Vauxhall (sold at Pontiac dealers) showed up in the mid to late 1950s, and were also of compact sized dimensions.  

Other foreign compacts to come along included the 1956 Renault Dauphine, 1955 Saab 93 and 1955 Volvo PV “humpback,” all which were considered decent, fun to drive cars that were popular with domestic car buyers.

Then in 1960, the compact car revolution took hold here in the states, solidifying smaller cars as popular choices for consumers of all ages. The Ford Falcon, along with Mercury Comet, Chevy Corvair, Chevy II, Plymouth Valiant and Dodge Lancer, all made initial dealer showroom appearances. Along with high-dollar marketing campaigns and lots of free hot dogs, coffee and donuts at the dealers to attract floor traffic, consumers bought into the compact car craze. The ensuing sales success became pivotal to manufacturer profits, and compact cars have been around ever since and have shrunk even more as we move through the year 2022.    

I’ll end with what I feel is the first ever sub-compact, namely the 1954 through 1962 Nash / Hudson / Rambler dubbed the Metropolitan. It was originally built in England for Nash by Austin Motors, and was way ahead of its time. The Metropolitan could surely be classified the first “sub compact”. Another notable sub-compact on the American highways included the ’57 Isetta 300, produced by BMW and introduced during the darkest of days of BMW. The German company was near bankruptcy, but luckily the Isetta 300, along with BMW motorcycle sales, helped pull them through some very rough times. 

 Thanks for the question Jimmy, and I hope this all helps. You can listen to “Beep-Beep” at your convenience on several Internet pages, including YouTube.  

(Greg Zyla is a syndicated auto columnist who welcomes reader questions and comments on collector cars, auto nostalgia and old-time racing at greg@gregzyla.com.)