The father-son connection is strong in collector cars, and the Pick of the Day – a 1962 Rambler American with remarkably low mileage – is testament to that on a number of levels.
The two-door American originally was purchased from Boch AMC Rambler in Norwood, Massachusetts, then the world’s largest Rambler dealer, owned by Ernie Bloch Sr., according to the Phoenix, Arizona, dealer advertising the car on ClassicCars.com. The car’s owner, Helen Carlson, used it sparingly, keeping it in the garage most of the time and never driving it in rain or snow.
The result is a totally rust-free original Rambler American with just 24,500 miles on its odometer, which is unusual for an inexpensive compact car that was generally purchased for practical transportation.
Carlson traded in the car sometime in the late 1970s or early ’80s, the ad says, and Ernie Boch Jr. decided to keep the pampered car, which his father had sold some two decades earlier, in his personal collection.
The Bochs were friends with the governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney, whose father had been president of AMC when the ’62 Rambler American was built. During a visit to the Bochs, Romney posed in the American for a picture, which is included among the photos in the ad.
So two prominent fathers and their highly successful sons were connected by this Rambler.
The car was repainted red since Boch Jr. has owned it, the ad says, and wears a new set of Firestone wide whitewalls. Other than that, the American is all-original, fully serviced and ready to drive.
Under the hood is the car’s original flathead inline-6 linked with an automatic overdrive transmission, with its original Inca Silver interior, spare and jack, owner’s manual and warrantee card signed by Ernie Boch Sr.
“The paint is beautiful, car is arrow straight and immaculate on the inside,” the dealer says in the ad. “This has to be possibly the best ‘62 Rambler American in the country.”
The asking price is $13,900. By the way, have a look at one of Ernie Boch Sr.’s quirky ads from 1966.
To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.
Boy, the Romney connection to this particular vehicle is a "distant" connection at best.
My first car was a 1961 or 1962 white 4-door rambler that an aunt gave to me in late 1965 or early 1966. I currently have a 2012 Nissan 370Z with 6-speed manual and sport package with 46,000 miles that I am getting ready to sell. Would the dealer consider the Rambler plus cash for the Z?