Vehicle Description
1954 Kaiser Manhattan SC Supercharged Sedan Loads of Art Deco
adorns the overall styling of this cherished and Museum Quality
vehicle. Opulence in design and stature Yes, literally Museum! We
acquired this beauty from an incredible museum collection where it
has been admired for years. A full nut-n-bolt restoration is
evident and brought the quality of this piece of Automotive History
to above par on this original low mileage Kaiser. We have the
documented restoration in a photo book as well as owner's manuals
and service book. No disappointments!!! Henry J Kaisers venture
into automobile manufacturing has been well documented, and
consequently is not covered in detail here, instead I'll just
concentrate on the aspects of the Kaiser history which resulted in
the eventual pioneering adoption of the McCulloch Supercharger.
Henry J Kaiser formed the Kaiser-Frazer Corporation in 1945, in
conjunction with Joe Frazer of Graham-Paige, with the purpose of
producing "the peoples car", a cheap, light vehicle that everyone
could afford. Economics of the time, as always, dictated otherwise
and the resultant vehicles (Kaiser and Frazer) were priced in the
medium price bracket along with Desoto, Oldsmobile and Buick,
however the cars sold as the car starved public were practically
buying anything. The cars that Kaiser produced were austere in
appearance and innovative for the time, featuring passenger seating
between the axles, a wide interior and full flow ventilation,
however economies forced the use of conventional rear wheel drive
instead of the originally envisaged front wheel drive. Engine power
was provided by the 226 cid Continental six L head engine, which
was originally designed for industrial use. The first Manhattan
(actually a Frazer and not a Kaiser) was produced in 1947 and this
was innovative in that it was produced with a color-coordinated
interior, a first for the time. Kaiser was also considering a V-8,
and in fact had designed one in 1946, but tooling expenses were
prohibitive, and Kaiser instead approached other manufacturers,
having little success. Faced with the choice of going with the V-8,
or having another attempt at his peoples car, Henry J Kaiser chose
the latter, a decision which it is believed led to the eventual
downfall of Kaiser, and the use of the McCulloch Supercharger. The
resultant peoples car, the Henry J (also marketed as the Allstate
by Sears) , was produced in 1951 however the styling of the car was
not to public taste, and sales were poor as a result. To reduce
costs the Henry J had no trunk lid, no glove box and no ventilation
system. Kaisers low volume production resulting in the pricing to
be just below the Chevrolet, and this coupled with the fact that it
was a plain car introduced when the public were craving for more
chrome, contributed to the poor acceptance of the Henry J. At this
time Kaiser had split with Frazer (dropping the Frazer range) and
coupled with Willys, and the Henry J's were powered by either a
Willy's 134 cid four or 161 cid six cylinder L head engine. In
contrast to the Henry J, the 226 cid L head Kaiser which had been
restyled by Howard 'Dutch' Darrin was very well received,
particularly with regards to its attractive looks. In 1953 Kaiser
merged with Willys, and was by then in trouble, probably due to the
poor Henry J sales. The 1953 Kaiser was however still a unique and
attractive car, particularly in Manhattan form (reintroduced in
1952), but the lack of V-8 was making it a poor competitor when
compared to other marques. Despite his troubles Kaiser courageously
introduced the Dutch Darrin designed Kaiser Darrin in 1954, an
expensive fiberglass bodied two seater sports car powered by the
Willys 161 cid six cylinder F head engine. This also suffered poor
sales further contributing towards Kaisers financial problems. For
1954 Kaiser addressed the power problems of the Kaiser and it's
possible impact on sales by utilizing the McCulloch VS57
Supercharger. Ch