OFF TOPIC! My Newest Addition

[Guest shadetree77]

Warning: Sorry to say, the following has nothing to do with Buicks! Please forgive me if this gives offense but I wanted to share with my Buick buddies here on the forum. We all love old cars we just prefer Buicks, so read on if you like.

So it looks like I'll be dragging two old cars to Michigan! I found this car on Craigslist a few weeks ago and it stuck in my mind ever since. It was located less than a mile from me. I've always wanted one of the '51-'53 Kaiser Manhattans. I viewed the listing several times a day and eventually I decided to give the seller a call. I arranged a time to go look at it and I did so. I crawled all over and under the car. The seller was asking a price of $1500. The car is all original and untouched with the exception of an old electric fuel pump added by one of the original owners back in the 70's when the mechanical pump gave out.

It is in rough shape but not too far gone to save. She's got some dents and dings in a few spots, a lot of the pot metal chrome has deteriorated and rusted, and the upholstery is pretty much shot. It needs front floor pans too. Pretty typical of an old project car that has been sitting for 30+ years. The trunk lid has been smacked by something right where the lock is. It looks like someone hit it with a sledghammer trying to get the trunk open! The hood has the typical rust along the lower, bottom edge too. Both tail lights are busted. It is 100% complete though and the seller stated that he got the engine to start and run for a few minutes last summer.

The car came from Old Fort, TN and has 1974 Tennessee tags on it. From what I've been told it was parked some time that year due to a minor starting issue. Probably an easy fix. It sat for around 30 years and then the car was sold by the owner to a gentleman in Dalton, GA some time in the last two years. It was then bought sometime last year by the gentleman that I purchased it from. The Tennessee title came with the car and is dated for 1957. The man from Old Fort bought the car used in 1957. I wondered where the car came from before that. I quickly began finding clues. The first of which was an old map of Oregon in the glove box. Hmmmm...what would a map of Oregon be doing in a Tennessee car? Further inspection of the title revealed that the car was originally bought in Washington state (the state I was born in). It doesn't say where or by whom. This car came a long way to end up in my possession! I'm imagining a young family moving cross-country in the mid 50's and trading in their Kaiser when they got to Tennessee. Maybe that's just my imagination but it could have happened I suppose.

After doing extensive research online (parts price, availability, resources, etc.) and getting further help from fellow member Bryan (AKA BJM) I decided to make an offer. I called the seller back. I started at $900 and after some negotiation we settled on $1000 including delivery to my door. I am very happy to now be included as an owner in this car's history. I plan to restore the car back to original just like I'm doing with my Buick. I love the styling of the early 50's Kaisers. It might be a while before I begin to work on it regularly though. Our impending move to Michigan has me scrambling around trying to tie up loose ends and get our business affairs in order. Not much time to work on my cars right now. Eventually, I will get this project rolling and will attempt to chronicle my efforts on the Kaiser Frazer Club forum as I do here with with my '52. I would do this in the Kaiser section of this forum but it looks like it is seldom used.

Here are some pictures of the car once I got the insides vacuumed out and picked up. As you can see in one of the pictures, I got a LOT of stuff out of there besides the usual dirt, dust, rat nests, rat turds, squirrel turds and other assorted nastiness. Lots of parts, tools, and papers. I haven't washed the outside of the car yet. I've included pictures of the body tags. The larger tag is kind of hard to see so I'm going to get under there and take a closer look soon. I've decoded a few of the numbers but there are a few I can't see in the picture. I also want to make a little plug for my new shop vac. I got it at Home Depot and it's called a "Buckethead". It's a wet/dry vacuum and also has a blower function. You simply snap it onto a 5 gallon bucket and go to work. It works great and it's only $22 compared to the $50+ you'd pay for a larger unit. Highly recommended if you need a light duty shop vac.

Edited November 7, 2013 by shadetree77 (see edit history)

[Aaron65]

Looks fun! I like them, too. Now that you have a Kaiser, you have to check out the Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage museum when you get to Michigan. Kaisers, as you probably know, were built nearby in Willow Run, where Corvairs/Novas, etc. were built.

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Good job, Robert. And not just a Kaiser but a Kaiser Manhattan! Top of the line if memory serves.

Ben

[retirednow]

Neat car! The first car that I remember as a kid was my dad's '52 Henry J

Edited November 7, 2013 by retirednow (see edit history)

[dan at larescorp]

Looks to be pretty solid for the most part. Nice find!

[60FlatTop]

I bought a Kaiser Traveler when I was 16 and always liked those cars. I had it for a long time.

Richard Langworth wrote a really good book about the company and cars: http://www.ebay.com/itm/THE-LAST-ONSLAUGHT-ON-DETROIT-KAISER-FRAZER-NEW-1975-AUTOMOBILE-QUARTERLY-BOOK-/261318562876?pt=US_Nonfiction_Book&hash=item3cd7ccd43c

I bought a copy when it came out and I'm a little surprised at the price copies go for today. Mine is right about me on the orphan car shelf. Do a little searching and I'm sure you can find a good price.

Bernie

[g-g-g0]

Nice find Robert. I only remember a couple of families having Kaiser's when I grew up in the 50's. A pretty rare car even in it's day. I also remember that part of the activities at the National Buick Show in Colorado Springs a few years back was a visit to some area junk yards. While the Kiaser/Fraiser yard was not part of the tour, it was adjacet to one of the yards we visited. There must have been 8 or 10 acres of Kaisers and Fraisers. Might be a source for parts if it still exists.

Enjoy your new project!

[Guest BigDogDaddy]

Nice find ! I like it. It is in decent shape too. Lots of luck with it !

[JohnD1956]

Sounds like a good price, on a nice car. But I tend to doubt the running in the last few years claim. Unless you removed the coil wire. I really like that cool Head on the engine. What's it say? Kaiser Super????

[TG57Roadmaster]

Excellent. It's not only a Manhattan, but it has Bambu Vinyl! What a score.

(And one of my favorite ads, too).

Larger

TG

[Thriller]

A very neat car. Nice find. Congrats. I'm sure if you stay in Michigan long enough, we'll see photos of this car in Willow Run, coming home to where it all started.

[Guest shadetree77]

Thanks guys. It does appear to be a pretty solid car. I've only found one small rust through spot where the chrome along the bottom of the rear fender meets the body. Easily patched. I just couldn't pass this one up. I like cars that are different from what most have and this one definitely fits the bill. I'm looking forward to diving into it. The work on this one should go a heckuva' lot smoother due to all of the lessons learned on my '52! I'm not even going to attempt to start her before dropping the oil pan, trans. pan (it has a GM Hydramatic by the way), and gas tank. I learned my lesson the hard way on that with Lucy.

Aaron, I will definitely visit that museum. Matter of fact, I've got a whole list of museums and historic locales in Michigan that I plan to visit. I'm looking forward to it.

Ben, your memory serves you well. The only model higher than the Manhattan was the Dragon, which was an extremely limited production run.

Dave, Henry J's are really cool too. I'd like to own one some day.

Bernie, I love the Travelers. Very cool and unique cars. When I came upon the ad for this car I had momentary hopes that it would be a Traveler. Alas, it was not, but the Manhattan's are pretty nice too. Do you have any pictures of your Traveler? I'll keep an eye out for that book.

g-g-g0, I think I might know the place you're talking about. My research into parts availability led me to a place called Walker's Auto Pride in Peyton, CO that specializes in Kaiser and Frazer.

John, I do believe he had it running. I found evidence to support everything he said that he did. If you look closely in one of the engine pictures, you'll see another coil hooked up and lying loose behind the original coil. He said that the original would not work so he dug up a spare and stuck it in there. He told me that he put a little oil in the cylinders, put new plugs in, filed the points, cleaned out the carburetor, poured some gas in, and she sputtered to life for a minute or two before running out of gas. The head says "Kaiser Supersonic". They called it the "Supersonic Six" and it supposedly gets around 23 MPG!

TG, That "Bambu" stuff is wild looking! I've never seen anything like it. The "Luxura" cloth that the headliner is made of is some weird looking stuff too. Very resilient as well. The headliner in this car is perfect save for one small mouse hole.

Derek, I'm sure you will at some point. The job at GM is one of those career opportunities that you don't leave lightly. I have a feeling I'll be calling Michigan home for some time.

[TG57Roadmaster]

Robert,

K-F 's interiors were the most colorful and daring of the era, due to their designer Carleton Spencer; the October 2009 issue of Collectible Automobile has a great profile on him (you may have this already). They were also long-lasting and durable, as your new baby's threads proves. The interior's condition is pretty amazing, as is the whole car.

What a lot of fun you'll have!

TG

[1953mack]

.....I love the Travelers. Very cool and unique cars. When I came upon the ad for this car I had momentary hopes that it would be a Traveler. Alas, it was not, but the Manhattan's are pretty nice too. Do you have any pictures.....

Here's your chance......http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=843694

Al Malachowski

BCA #8965

"500 Miles West of Flint"

.....buy another Kaiser and surprise her......

[Guest Mrs. Shadetree]

Here's your chance......http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=843694

Al Malachowski

BCA #8965

"500 Miles West of Flint"

.....buy another Kaiser and surprise her......

Why must you tempt him?! He does NOT need any encouragement.

He keeps finding them easily enough on his own.

Edited November 8, 2013 by Mrs. Shadetree (see edit history)

[Eric W]

I ran across this just a couple of weeks ago. This page has a lot of junk at the top, but scroll down. Oh, and it started as a 4-door:

http://www.speedhunters.com/tag/kaiser-tag/

[avgwarhawk]

The bug has bitten.

[60FlatTop]

Mine was this style:

but I had a smaller girlfriend, about 98 pounds with black hair, then.

Bernie

[Guest Rob McDonald]

ROBERT, an old friend of mine has a black and red first-generation Traveller, just like the photo that Bernie posted. Very handsome car, in person. I really, really like the next series of Manhattan, like yours, especially with that two-tone interior.

My sage advice is to find dry storage for it, once you get to Michigan, and stay focussed on your Buick. Just look at my signature for a caution about starting too many projects at once.

[Dandy Dave]

Just look at my signature for a caution about starting too many projects at once.

I resemble that remark....

Yup, Nice find Shadetree77. :cool: Dandy Dave!

[TG57Roadmaster]

Since it was already in the Gallery, here's another favorite K-F ad with the second-gen '51 Frazer Vagabond and other models...

"The Pride of Willow Run."

Larger

Makes you want to collect them all!

TG

[Guest BJM]

I like the one color and of course a person has to have perserverance to see the end result as most projects look tired. But that was a nice 53 color combination. A lot of 1953 cars had 2 tone paint by 1953 but Manhattans in my opinion look better in a single tone.

I bought a 1949 Kaiser Virginian field car that once sorted was too far gone. I have all the major KF books including Langworth's. The 53 Manhattans were the high point of KF styling in many respects. This will make a nice compliment to the Buick.

[Caballero2]

Mine was this style:

but I had a smaller girlfriend, about 98 pounds with black hair, then.

Bernie

While attending a high school class reunion,just a mile from the place where I grew up in the 1950's, I took these thumbnails there. In 1959 I modified a '53 by adding a '55 Pontiac side trim and repainting it white over green. Then, a year later I added an Oldsmobile V8 in place of the Continental but coupled to the existing Hydra-matic. A little heavy for the front end. It gave some 283 Chevys some trouble, but all in all not as fast through the quarter, but never failed to out run them top end. Ah, the memories

Dan

[Earl B.]

Shadetree, that Manhattan is great!! I've always loved those cars... Next you'll be getting a Studebaker.. haha...B

[Guest shadetree77]

Rob, I just can't help myself. Looking for old cars on Craigslist is addictive! I guess if I had a truck and trailer I would probably have my own salvage yard by now.

Bryan, I agree completely. I think it looks much better in the single color. As a matter of fact, I was just having a conversation about that very thing. I was telling someone that 98% of the '53 Manhattans that come up on a google search are two-tone. I kind of gathered that it must be rare to find a single color.

B, I have always wanted a bullet nose Stude......

Edited November 11, 2013 by shadetree77 (see edit history)

[Earl B.]

Shadetree, my aunt had a bulletnose, and I've always wanted that car...probably in many pieces by now...even if one piece is left... Many early childhood memories there!!!

[55 SURVIVOR]

Rob;It's called getting bit by the bug,I picked up A 59 Plymouth Fury,still have the Buick and always will,I have A few others I have always liked{49-51 merc,59 pontiac,53-58 cadillac,and anything Sedanette,but as Mary and Joeseph were told there is no more room at the Inn!!!! Have fun with your purchase,love the pics,I enjoy seeing them as they are/were. Mark M

[49_buick_super]

Robert -

The front windshields on these old gals must be unobtainium. That DIP!

Dan

[Guest Rob McDonald]

I always thought that '53 Studebaker coupes were the lowest, loveliest cars of the '50s. However, looking at Dan's photo of a 2nd-generation Manhattan next to a '55 Chevy, I realize that Kaisers must have had the lowest profile. Wow, with those skirted rear wheels and sloped front and rear ends, they must have been considered rolling customs when they first appeared.

ROBERT, I continue you to applaud your good judgement in choosing a little brother for Lucy.