History We ALL Love a DARE! PIX of TRULY Extinct Makes?

Hi, ChryslerRodder! NICE pic of an actual Grant. Always
GOOD to see a REAL specimen of a RARE (in this case, NOT
EXTINCT, thank goodness!). Wikipedia does show on their
HUGE LIST of defunct cars that the GRANT was built in Find-
lay, Ohio, for 10 seasons -- 1913 through 1922. Not a high-
production company, though, since Wiki SAYS they only made
a few thousand of the four- and six-bangers. BUT, the rea-
sonable PRICE made them pretty competitive. Unfortunately,
the bane of a lot of SMALL companies was that they didn't
have the financial might to develop a nationwide dealer
net or to get production up high enough to permit mass
production, like Ford. The Grant was apprently respected
well enough that some were EXPORTED to England, as the
Whiting-Grant!! Wiki says the 1916 Grant, e.g., went for
under $800.
Thanks to IPix for the photo posted by ChryslerRodder!
I am no expert, the roadster shown looks like very EARLY
1920s -- maybe '22 or '23??? Help HAMBers!

 

36C8, thanks for the viewpoint. Maybe he wasn't TOO far out there, since George Mason started the Metropolitan and the Rambler at the same time. Worked OUT in the long run for AMC, though all the Henry J accomplished for Kaiser was to deplete capital that could have been better used getting up to speed with a V-8 to supplement the Continental six, in my opinion.

 

Your'e right but if the "other Henry" would not have tried it, I would not have my Henry j Hence HJmaniac

 

The Earliest Henry Js

By 1949, the post-war buyer's market had dried up and Kaiser-Frazer was in need of cash to keep their operation going.
That year Henry J. Kaiser went to Washington to negotiate a 44 million dollar loan from The Reconstruction Finance Corp. The terms of the agreement were that a portion of the loan would go to finance a low priced "people's car" that most families could afford. The car would have to be able seat six adults and carry a list price of $1300 or less. Dealers must be able to order them in any quantity they desired subject to Kaiser-Frazer's ability to produce them. There were no constraints on how the car could (or couldn't) be equipped.
Producing the Henry J would also help fulfill Henry Kaiser's dream of building this modern-day, low priced, American version of the Volkswagen. Consider this: Volkswagen comes from the german words "Volks" and "Wagen." "Volks" meaning "people" and "Wagon" meaning "Wagon" or "Car." Hence, "The People's Car."
When designer Howard "Dutch" Darrin heard of the plan, he began work on his own design of what he thought the Henry J should be (below). Darrin designed a 100 inch wheel base, scaled down version of the then popular 1951 Kaiser which he also designed.​

Before Henry Kaiser went to Washington, Fred Mathie, who had invested money into American Metals Products Inc. (AMP), had approached him with his design for a new low-priced car. American Metals Products was supplying frames, and springs for car seats to automobile manufactures. Mathie owned the Haber Stump Harris steel fabrication firm and proposed a tubular framed, 100 inch wheelbase fastback car. Haber Stump Harris, however, did not have the resources to produce this car so they got in touch with Kaiser. The one car that AMP built served as the prototype for the Henry J.

For the better part of 50 years, almost no one, including even the most ardent Kaiser-Frazer enthusiasts, knew what the AMP car looked like or how it was constructed. In 1998 the AMP car was discovered in a barn in Michigan! It had suffered a fire and was in "poor shape and poor storage" according to the Kaiser-Frazer Owner's Club quarterly magazine.

After an article about the car was published in the "Lost and Found" section of May/June 2000 issue of Special Interest Autos an alert reader recalled having seen the car in his college days. Realizing it was unique, he took photographs inside and out and still had the negatives! The photos below are proving invaluable in the restoration of this car currently taking place in Michigan.

When Kaiser-Frazer's design department got a hold of the AMP model, they made several styling changes. Most significantly, the Henry J used a standard "ladder" frame as opposed to the tubular frame of the AMP car. The Henry J was given a forward jutting front end, a floating grill, and Howard Darrin added his famous "Darrin Dip" in the fender line behind the door. Edgar Kaiser (Henry J. Kaiser's son) had admired the fins on the late 1940s Cadillac cars so he had the design department add a set of fins to the Henry J.

See link for more indepyh details and photos: http://home.comcast.net/~ljfid/earlyhj.htm

 

<table style="width: 602px; height: 549px;" align="center" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="3"><tbody> <tr> <td align="middle">
Before we leave the Crosley

</td></tr> <tr> <td align="middle">Frank Lloyd and Olgivanna Wright in a Crosley Car
Image ID: WHi-1904 Wisconsin Historical Society

</td></tr></tbody></table>

 

AMP CAR restored by Tom Wilson.

see Tom's photo essay on his AMP CAR restoration here: http://public.fotki.com/kfnut/american_metal_prod/

<TABLE id=ph_style1 summary="MR AMP GOES TO THE YPSILANTI AUTOMOTIVE HERITAGE MUSEUM"><TBODY><TR><TD id=wrap7><TD id=wrap9>



</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE id=ph_style1 summary="AMP done rear"><TBODY><TR><TD id=wrap7><TD id=wrap9>



</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
'51 Henry J project by HJmaniac

​

<CENTER></CENTER>

 

What about the Sears Allstate version of the Henry J???? Some here may not be familiar with that version. How many of these survive????

The Allstate was an American automobile offered for sale through the Allstate auto accessory chain of Sears, Roebuck during the 1952 and 1953 model years. The Allstate was basically a Henry J with a different grille, and other trim changes.

The Allstate was built by Kaiser-Frazer (Kaiser-Willys from 1953), in Willow Run, Michigan, (Toledo, Ohio from 1953) and was based on Kaiser's compact Henry J. One body style was offered, a fastback two-door sedan in two lines, the Series 4 and the Series 6.

1952 Sears Allstate.

For 1952, the Series 4 came in the Model 111 Standard (the best seller at $1,486) and Model 113 DeLuxe ($1,539) trim versions, and was also available in an austere Model 110 Basic version for $1,395. The Series 6 Basic was priced at $1,594 and the well-trimmed, swift Model 115 DeLuxe was offered at $1,693. (The Standard was never offered in the Series 6.)

Virtually no appearance changes were made for 1953 but Allstate cars weighed as much as 145 pounds more than their 1952 counterparts. All the Allstate Basic models were dropped and Allstate prices jumped substantially; the entry-level Series 4 Standard Model 210 sold for $1,528 and the DeLuxe Model 213 for $1,589. The Series 6 was now only offered in the upscale DeLuxe Model 215 version at $1,785, and was the most popular Allstate that year.

The Allstate was the brainchild of Henry J. Kaiser, who saw Sears as another means to mass-market his slow-selling "Henry J" two-door sedan, introduced in 1950.

Sears had tried selling cars under the name "Sears Motor Buggy" previously between, 1908 and 1912, with some degree of success. These horseless carriages were of the "high-wheeler" variety, looking very much like horse-drawn buggies, complete with large, wagon-type wheels. This type of passenger vehicle was quite popular in rural areas in the early part of the twentieth century, as their high ground clearance was well-suited to the muddy, wagon-rutted country roads of the time. In addition, rural folks were accustomed to mail-ordering through the Sears catalog, and the Sears Motor Buggy could be delivered to the nearest railroad siding, an important convenience in those days. Like virtually all Sears merchandise, these autos were manufactured by other companies and merely retailed by Sears.

Originally, Allstate automobiles were planned to be built on the senior Kaiser platforms, but following three years of negotiations between Kaiser-Frazer and Sears, Roebuck, the production Allstate was announced on November 20th, 1951 by Sears merchandising vice president Theodore V. Houser and Kaiser-Frazer administrative vice-president Eugene Trefethen. The three-year delay was due in part to tension from existing Kaiser-Frazer dealerships fearing competition with the Sears organization.

(text source: Wikipedia)

2,363 cars were sold.

 

Pic I shot this past June of a HEMI powered Henry J Gasser in the burnout box at the 2009 Gasser Reunion at Thompson Raceway Park in Thompson, Ohio.

 

Here's a couple Sears Allstate images.

 

1952 Allstate Early Model



1952 later Model no trunk w/tail lights on top of fenders​

1953 Allstate w/visor and continental spare​

 

That IS a good question! Since the Sears/Roebuck ALLSTATE didn't sell well at ALL, they surely must be pretty scarce -- at least as compared to Henry Js. Figures or educated guesses, anybody?

 

Hey, HJ, the AMA prototype looks a TON like the production Henry J, doesn't it? Check that windshield frame. Well, folks, prototypes very often ARE one-offs -- So looks as if we have another LONE SURVIVOR. And fire & neglect ALMOST made it EXTINCT!!!

 

Harry B, THAT is one cool Wisconcin pic: FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT in a Crosley roadster!!!

 

Not FACTORY BUILT but interesting.

<center></center> <center> [SIZE=+2]ERIC GORDON'S '54 KAISER CONVERTIBLE[/SIZE]
[SIZE=+2]APPROVED BY DESIGNER "DUTCH" DARRIN[/SIZE]

For the story and more pics, go here;

http://oldcarandtruckpictures.com/EricGordonsKaiserConvertible/




























[SIZE=+2]
[/SIZE]
</center>

 

The 1952 Crosley Super that Frank Lloyd Wright bought NEW is on display at the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Museum in Auburn Indiana.

 

I came across this thread on Henry J Convertibles.

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=416203

Somewhere, I have a picture of a Henry J Convertible my Dad took around 1954 on Tuesday Motors Used Car Lot on East Lake Street in Minneapolis Mn. I'll see if I can find it and post it here.

 

The following Henry J convertible pictures were submitted by Ryan Steffey, Naples, Florida and the belongs to his father Robert Steffery who bought the car in 1973. It is a 1955 prototype built for the Detroit auto show but the car was never produced since the Henry J ceased production at the end of 1954. He started the rebuild and now Ryan plans on finishing the project. This car's serial number (Body Number)is #1 as seen on the name plate shown below.
Ryan knows of only three of these cars being built and this one is the only one remaining.

 

Waaaaaay COOL '54 Kaisers, guys!!!

 

Well we're on the subject of one offs, what's you guys thoughts on this one. You have to read the story and look at the other pictures to note the differences from the factory production cars

http://www.rollingart.com/expo/53_skylark.html

ONE-OF-A-KIND BUICK SKYLARK DISCOVERED!

Restored 1953 Buick Skylark reveals a myriad of factory details not found on any other Skylark.

 

Here's real stumper! The Murray-Mac was reportedly manufactured from 1921 through 1928. BUT, there seems to be NO info and NO pic anyplace?

Seriously how can you make a car for eight years and have NONE accounted for, NO written word of record??? (I could understand some of the brass-lampers, but a car made ALL through the '20s???)

[NOTE: This is NOT the earlier "Murray."]

 

History of the Stainless Steel Car

In 1935, officials at Allegheny Ludlum Steel Division and the Ford Motor Company collaborated on an experiment that would become a legacy and a tribute to one of the most dynamic metals ever developed.

Allegheny Ludlum, a pioneer producer of stainless steel, proposed the idea of creating a stainless steel car to Ford. The idea took shape in the form of a 1936 Deluxe Sedan. That car became the centerpiece of a campaign to expose the public to the new metal and its many uses.



Allegheny Ludlum and Ford would later collaborate on two more stainless models, a 1960 Thunderbird and a 1967 Lincoln Continental Convertible. Of the 11 cars originally built, nine are still in use. The stainless steel cars were perfect vehicles for increasing awareness of the quality of the metal. And over the years, this quality has been shown in its stainless performance.

Of the six stainless steel cars that rolled off the Ford assembly line in Detroit in 1936, four exist today as living proof of the durability of stainless steel. One is on display at the Heinz Regional History Center in Pittsburgh, PA.

Each of the original six logged at least 200,000 miles in the hands of Allegheny Ludlum officials before "retiring" to private ownership in 1946. Thousands of additional miles have been logged on the odometers since, and the shiny bodies have outlasted most of their non-stainless steel parts.



The experiment was an unparalleled success on a number of levels. Public awareness of stainless steel's many uses increased with every city andstate the cars visited. Through many years of active use, metallurgists and engineers were amazed at the superiority of the silvery metal.Since 1960, when two stainless steel Ford Thunderbirds were introduced, they have been displayed throughout the United States and Europe.

The two Thunderbirds came off the Wixom, Michigan production line on July 11, 1960, and each has traveled over 100,000 miles, demonstrating the durability and timeless beauty of stainless steel.

With the exception of the body skin, bumpers and grille, which are made of T302 stainless steel, every other component is standard 1960 Thunderbird equipment. Also included is the first T409 solid stainless steel muffler released on a production vehicle. Both cars still have their original mufflers and T304 exhaust pipes after 25 years on the road!



The 1967 Lincoln Convertible was the last of the stainless steel cars produced by the Ford Motor Company and Allegheny Ludlum Steel.Once again, the companies proved that stainless steel's enduring beauty is matched by its toughness.As with all stainless steel there is no need for painting. The corrosion-resistant properties of the stainless eliminate the problems caused by rust.

Except for the vehicle's body, all other parts and equipment on the car are standard for the 1967 Lincoln Convertible. The vehicle's weight is just about equal to one with a standard steel body.

Three stainless Lincolns were built that year. Allegheny Ludlum Steel retains two and still uses them for customer visits and special events. A full set of Stainless automobiles (1936 Deluxe, T-Bird, and Continental) are on permanent display in the Crawford Auto Museum in Cleveland, Ohio.

​

<TABLE border=0 width=424><TBODY><TR><TD height=336>

1936 Ford Model 68 Tudor Deluxe Sedan (stainless steel)​

<TABLE border=0 width=424><TBODY><TR><TD height=336>

1966 Lincoln Continental 86 Convertible (stainless steel)​

​

<TABLE border=0 width=424><TBODY><TR><TD height=336>

​

​

​

​

1960 Ford Thunderbird(stainless steel)​

​

​

​

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></B>​

​

</TD></TR><TR><TD>

​

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
​

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>​

 

From the Eyes on Design Show 2008. Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum stainless steel collection.

1960 Ford Thunderbird Stainless Steel Show Car

 

Eyes on Design Show 2008 From the Crawford Auto-Aviation stainless steel Collection

1936 Ford Deluxe Sedan Stainless Steel Show Car

 

Eyes on Design Show 2008 From the Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum stainless steel collection.

1966 Lincoln Continental Stainless Steel Show Car

 

1953 Buick Skylark Hardtop; Supposedly a one-off Factory Prototype; Sold by Mecum Auctions January 2009

- 1 of 1, only Skylark Hardtop produced
- Features 1954 style interior
- Buick V8
- Automatic transmission
- Factory air conditioning
- Power steering, brakes & windows
- Windshield washers
- Wire wheels
- Power seats
- Autronic eye
- Wonderbar radio

 

Jim; I took this over to the AACA Forum figuring someone there might know something. Here's the response so far from 36 Chev;

Here is the entry from book "The Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars 1885-1968," edited by G.N. Georgano:

"US 1921-1928, Murray Motor Car Co., Atlantic, Mass."
"The Murray-Mac was the earlier Murray Eight after it had been taken over by John J. McCarthy. Few Murray-Macs were produced and these appeared thourghout the 1920's, one or two at a time. The Murray Eight designs were retained and standard engines of 6-cylinder type as well as other standard components were used."

A picture of a 1926 Murray-Mac sedan is also included. Many libraries will have this book, so if you don't have direct access your local library may have a copy. If I have time, I might be able to scan the picture.

 

HJ; Our thought waves must be in unison LOL. I almost posted the stainless cars this morning. To my understanding, only one of the stainless 36 Ford's remains in private hands. There was a GREAT Barn Find story about one of the stainless '36 Ford's in a recent issue of the V-8 Times

From coverage of the 2008 Early Ford V-8 Club Nationals in Dearborn

Drawing quite the crowd was Ed James and his recently purchased 1936 Ford, featuring a stainless steel body by Allegheny Ludlum; it's one of the six produced, and one of four known to exist. To date, it's the only example known to be in private hands, and though it did not run at the time, Ed had no immediate plans for the car. He hails from Hinsdale, Illinois.

 

From the NyTimes

October 12, 2009, 3:27 pm <!-- date updated --><!-- <abbr class="updated" title="2009-10-15T14:53:28-04:00">&#8212; Updated: 2:53 pm</abbr> --><!-- Title -->
Vintage Cars, Parts and Oddities at the Hershey Fall Meet

<!-- Byline --><ADDRESS class="byline author vcard">By RICHARD S. CHANG</ADDRESS><!-- The Content -->


One of the standouts was a 1936 Ford coupe that was made out of stainless steel and looked like an apparition on the lush green field. Its owner, Leo Gephart of Scottsdale, Ariz., stood proudly at its front bumper fielding questions from the crowd.
“They only made six of them,” he said. “Ford did it as a publicity deal for Allegheny Ludlum Steel. They were going to use the cars for promotion. They were going to make 10. Henry Ford ran six, and the seventh ruined the dies.”
Mr. Gephart said only one of the stainless steel Fords was delivered to a private owner, a dentist who had introduced stainless steel in dentistry.
Mr. Gephart first came across the car 40 years ago. “I told the owner to give me a call if he ever wanted to sell it,” he said. “He gave it to his son. Twenty years later, it was at a restoration shop. The guy at the shop was dressed up. He was going to a cruise. He told me he was going to give it to his grandson. I bought it from the grandson 20 years later.”

 

Interesting that they say it was a Coupe and not a 2 Door. I don't think there were ever any Stainless Coupes. Almost sounds like Mr Gephart bought the car I mentioned above.

 

I don't know, but I found a similar moon cap in a junk pile once that had "Dilly" stamped in it. Had I not already known Dilly was a trailer manufacturer, I might have thought it was from an extinct car make too. No idea if Cox was a car or not.