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Ken Leonard | all galleries >> Galleries >> Orange Plaza Car Show 2005 Vol. #1 > 1954 Kaiser Darrin - Click on photo for more info
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April 17, 2005 Copyright 2005 Ken Leonard

1954 Kaiser Darrin - Click on photo for more info

Orange Plaza, Orange, CA

Nikon Coolpix 8700
1/210s f/5.9 at 11.6mm iso50 full exif

other sizes: small medium large auto
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Tabitha 23-Apr-2013 18:44
I would like to inquire on the 1954 Kaiser Darrin. Is it available for Parade use?
Tabitha 23-Apr-2013 18:44
I would like to inquire on the 1954 Kaiser Darrin. Is it available for Parade use?
Guest 21-Sep-2010 20:19
My father was a Kaiser/Frazer dealer back in the late 40's & early 50's in a small Texas town (population of 3,000). When the Darrin came out, the regional distributor brought one around trying to convince dealers to take one. I was 11, so I got to sit in it when it brought by. However it was not popular for 2 reasons: first it was fiberglass & few people could repair body damage, esp in small towns (Corvettes suffered too); secondly it was very expensive in those days when you could buy a new car for around $1K.

Sonny Warren
joe bailey 10-Aug-2010 02:02
Hello, when I was 10 or 11 I found one in the woods, when I told my father he made me take him to it. This was in 80 or 81, I beleive it was yellow, it had a caddy motor not sure if original to the car. My father pleaded with the owner of the land but I beleive he later crushed it. This was in Wilmington, NC
Scott 14-Apr-2009 03:14
Actually one just sold in Scottsdale for $160,000
jeff 10-Apr-2009 03:43
i had a red darrin that was stolen in 1994 by peter walsh of clasic cars in freeport. All I received was a judgement for 9K. I restored the inteior and body before it was taken... i know you can feel my pain
Guest 30-Dec-2008 04:09
FYI; A 1954 Kaiser Darrin sold at auction at the inaugural Barret Jackson Custom Car Auction at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas for $80,000!
Ken Leonard19-Aug-2008 00:21
PLease understand. No buying or selling here. This site is all about photography.

Thank you for your understanding.

Ken
Guest 13-Jun-2008 23:00
i would like to buy a kaiser darrin 1951 to 1954 call jeff at 201 424-8670
Paul Roberts 19-May-2008 22:19
I have a Kaiser Flathead Supersonic straight 6 Motor that was completely rebuilt by Shriners Mechanic in 1986.
I have only run it a few times since then, just to keep it working.
I would like to sell it and am interested in finding out where the best place to advertise this motor would be.
Please email me at apachegraphics@tampabay.rr.com
richard johnson 18-May-2008 00:43
To Tom Nelson.

First put masking tape on the body located on the front of the rear fender. This is important not to scrath the paint job when you remove the door.

Next remove the screws that hold the track that the door rides on.

Once the screws are removed you should be able to move the track away from the body
Then slide the door toward the back of the car.

The loose track will allow you to slide the door off the track. At least that's how I
remember doing it years ago...

Good Luck.
richard johnson kfoc 751

Tom remove the bottom track
Darren 06-Apr-2008 06:43
Darcy, If your mother is still wanting to sell the car, please feel free to contact me. I'll try and get as much information as I can, photos would help, and can give her an idea of what the car should be worth. I would also be happy to try and find a buyer for the car, to ensure that it gets into the hands of someone who will treat it well.

Bob, I believe that the wiper arms you are looking for are the same ones that were used on the Henry J's and Willys vehicles. Try searching for them that way, and I hope you find them. - I've I come across anyone who has some, I'll send them your way.

Carlos, The door tracks are hard to find. - One suggestion is to swap them side to side, so that they worn area is up/down from where it was. - This is a "short term" fix that should work well for a while until you can find new wheels and/or tracks.

All - My email address recently changed. - Please send emails/replies to ohmdr@comcast.net or ohmdr@aol.com - Thanks
Carlos 30-Mar-2008 15:04
I am working on a 54 darrin for a friend of mine. we are needing new or fairly new door tracks and track wheels. can any one help us?
Tom O 03-Feb-2008 15:08
What ever happened to the Kaiser-Darrin that was on e-bay last year with a wrecked back end and nearly stripped of all trim, guages etc?
Tom Overbaugh
Bob Adams 03-Jan-2008 19:57
I am looking for wiper arms for a 1954 Kaiser Darrin. Thanks Bob E-mail toysadams@aol.com
J. J. GarrickGarrikc 21-Sep-2007 04:01
Own a Kaiser Frazer dishwasher. My father was a Kaiser Frazer dealer and at one point they were asked to sell the dishwashers in the car dealerships. Any idea of their current worth?
Darren Swanson 18-Sep-2007 02:28
Darcy and Linda,

Please send me an email about both (car for sale, and parts)... I will try and help you both. My email address is: ohmdr@insightbb.com
Da 15-Sep-2007 18:48
My mom has a 1954 Kaiser Darrin with 9000 original miles. It hasn't been driven in 30 years- I don't think it runs- but it might. She would like to sell it. Any idea how she might go about this and get some value out of it?

Darcy
Linda Warner 23-May-2007 00:37
We had a friend that passed aay last November. He owned a 1954 Kaiser Darrin. This car was sold at aution. After cleaning out his home we found a box o parts for the Darrin. Could anyone help us to determine the value of them to sell them. Thank you.
Randy 22-Apr-2007 00:37
The "Cadillac engine" story is interesting, however, the Darrin has an amazingly high survival rate and yet there isn't a single survivor with any type of a V8 engine with which it was originally sold. I suspect the story is more wives tale than truth. The shortened Henry J frame certainly wasn't sturdy enough to accommodate a large engine so there would have been significant rework needed. Sales of the Darrin were hurt not by the Willys F-head engine but by the price which was in direct competition with Cadillac.
Alvin C. York 28-Mar-2007 18:50
I was a very young person when I heard ab out KFD and wonder why HJK couldn"t stay in the good old USA. I realized the big three wouldn"t stand still for a small dog to run with them. My father bought a 1948 Kaiser wih a house trailker made a trip to the West Coast. Alvin C. York 838 Elm Street Valparaiso,Indiana 46383
Guest 11-Aug-2006 00:02
do you lnow of any kaiser darrin's for sale. can't find any.

ted

Email - letonia@comcast.net
Darren Swanson 04-Jul-2006 05:15
Tom, Send me and email and I'm pretty sure I can get you the right information to get your door fixed. I know of another Darrin owner, 2 hours south of me in the same fix. Another local Kaiser fan, and former Darrin owner, has the information. I've also found it online and have a link on my other PC... email me at: ohmdr@insightbb.com - Darren Swanson (P.S. Love your Darrin.. I've been searching for a project Darrin since 1992)
Tom Nelson 07-Apr-2006 19:04
We have a 1954 Kaiser Darrin with a door stuck in the open position (under the fender). The latch does not work. We are wondering how to remove the door so that we can fix the problem. Any advise you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Rick Johnson 24-Apr-2005 16:43
1954 Kaiser Darrin. This fiberglass sports car was designed by "Dutch" Darrin. It featured unique sliding doors and had a three-position landau convertible top with intermediate halp-up position, full instrumentation, and a three-speed floorshift transmission with overdrive. The Kaiser-Darrin was built on a 100 inch Henry J chassis, and was powered by a 161 cubic inch in line Willys six developing 90 horsepower. This convertible roadster sold new at a price of $ 3,668. There were 435 produced, and they were introduced just before the end of U.S. production of Kaiser-Frazer automobiles in America. When Kaiser production moved to Argentina, Dutch Darrin bought about 100 leftover units back from Kaiser, fitted many of them with Cadillac V-8's, and sold them at his Los Angeles showroom for $ 4,350. The V-8 Darrins were capable of 140 miles per hour. The styling of these interesting convertible roadsters have survived the test of time and still looks modern, even by today's standards.
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