1958

Despite the fact that the Nash and Hudson names were canceled, work on the car itself continued, and it debuted in the fall of 1957, wearing stretched Rambler bodywork, a 117-inch (2972 mm) wheelbase, plusher interior and exterior trim, the exclusive 327 in³ (5.4 L) 255 bhp (gross) V8, the prototype Hudson Rebel's "V-Line" grille, as well as an available body style exclusive to its line, a pillarless hardtop station wagon.
Management had found that the public associated the Rambler name with small economy cars, and did not want the upscale nature of the new Ambassador to be as closely associated with Rambler's favorable, but economical image. Therefore, a decision was made that the larger Ambassador would be marketed as the Ambassador V-8 by Rambler in order to identify it with the Rambler name's burgeoning success, but to indicate an air of exclusivity by showing it to be a different kind of vehicle. However, the car wore "Rambler Ambassador" badges on its front fenders.
The 1958 Ambassador was a substantially longer car than the 108-inch (2743 mm) wheelbase Rambler Six and Rebel V-8, although both lines shared the same basic body, styling, and visual cues. However, all of the Ambassador's extra nine inches (229 mm} of wheelbase (and, therefore, overall length) were added ahead of the cowl, meaning that the passenger compartment had the same volume as the smaller Ramblers. Through effective market segmentation, the Ambassador was positioned to compete with the larger models offered by other automakers.
Model identification was located on the car's front fenders and deck lid. Super trim level Ambassadors featured painted side trim in a color that complemented the body color; Custom models featured a silver anodized aluminum panel on sedans and vinyl woodgrain decals on station wagons. Ambassador body styles included a four-door sedan and a hardtop sedan, a four-door pillared station wagon, and the aforementioned hardtop station wagon, a bodystyle that first saw duty as an industry first in the 1956 Nash and Hudson Rambler line, on which all of the 1958 Ramblers were based.