1949 Frazer Manhattan Convertible Sedan

edited by David Barth, 1 March 2009.
Courtesy The Automobile Driving Museum in Los Angeles, California, USA.
Photos were taken in January 2009.

Henry J. Kaiser joined Joe Frazer, former president of Graham Paige Motor Company, to form the Kaiser-Frazer Corporation, correctly believing that after World War II the demand for automobiles would be very strong. With stylist Howard "Dutch" Darrin doing the design for the early cars, they went into production in June 1946 for the 1947 model year. The Frazer was the upscale model while the economy model was the Kaiser.

This model was the first 4-door convertible and the last Frazer authorized car by Joseph W. Frazer before he was replaced by Kaiser-Frazer president Edgar Kaiser. These cars retained the previous bodyshell, spruced up with a new, and more attractive, eggcrate grille and large vertical tail lamps. The convertibles required a heavily reinforced X-braced frame to provide torsional stiffness for the roofless body, which was virtually hand-built from the sedan shell. This wasn't a true ragtop in the sense that the window frames and the little B-pillar window didn't retract. The "coral" is an original factory color. Frazer left the company in 1951 and his name was removed from the cars. Sales declined with increased competition. The company struggled until 1955 when U.S. production was discontinued. The Kaiser continued to be produced in Argentina until 1962 under another name.

Body Style: 4 door convertible
Factory Price: $3,295
Production: Of 70 produced, only 6 survive
Weight: 3,726 lbs.
Engine: Continental six-head by Graham Paige
Horsepower: 112 at 3,600 rpm
Displacement: 226.2 cubic inches
Wheelbase: 123.5
Transmission: Manual shift 3 forward speeds

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