A Kaiser-Frazer Judging Quiz

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

If you think you know a lot about Kaiser-Frazer stuff (what is correct, what is not) try my quiz.  Are the combinations of cars and details correct or not?  Dealer installed FACTORY APPROVED OPTIONS should be considered as CORRECT for this quiz.  If you believe that additional information is required on an item as a qualifier, please list what you think is missing.  Feel free to consult any FACTORY PUBLISHED materials (service bulletins, parts books, Parts and Accessory Bulletins, etc) before answering....

1.  1951 Kaiser Deluxe with vacuum wipers and the dash filler piece rather than an electric clock. 

2.  1953 Kaiser Carolina with K-F wire wheels (the real deal, not the hubcaps that look like wire wheels). 

3.  1947 Frazer standard (the F-47) without overdrive.

4.  1948 Kaiser Special with Dual Manifold version of the 226

5.  1952 Kaiser Virginian Special with the Deluxe/Manhattan wide belt molding

6.  1952 later series Kaiser deLuxe with padded dashboard (same as on Manhattan that model year)

7.  1952 Henry J Corsair with Kaiser type cloth upholstery

8.  1955 Kaiser Manhattan without supercharger

9.  1953 Henry J Corsair -ooops, I forgot to list the set-up for this so please skip this item

10. 1950 Frazer Manhattan sedan (or convertible) with large inverted U shape anti-climber bumpers

I'll watch for a few days and then post answers.  If you have any questions, feel free to e-mail me at kaiserfrazerlibrary@yahoo.com

Jack Mueller

[Gordie]

Hello Jack,  thanks for the great quiz.  Some of the answers have been discusssed in the Bulletin but these challenges are how we learn about our Kaiser-Frazer products.  No one in the club has more knowledge nor a finer library from which to draw unusual facts than you and it is nice that you can share some of your knowledge with us.  The answers will be interesting and I hope that you can do these quizzes on a regular basis.  Gordie

[Fid]

Now here's one back - A 1953 Henry J Corsair Deluxe receives a deduction for "Oil filter missing" - is that correct?

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

First the question about the oil filter...

Henry J's were NOT factory equipped with oil filters;  they were a DEALER INSTALLED item using the correct factory kit (4 and 6 cyl types had separate part numbers reflecting different oil lines).  Oil filters were NOT part of Accessory Groups.    No deduction should have been made for a HJ without an oil filter. 

The club should give double points back to the owner of the car (if this actually happened) as a "sorry" for such a mistake.

This is an example of why I have stated that training of judges should be manditory, and that WRITTEN judging standards for the various cars be put together and used by judges and car owners as a guide. 

Now for the answers to the quiz:

1.  Early production 1951 Kaiser Deluxe automobiles left the plant with vacuum wipers and no clock because these items were not ready from vendors for production at this point.  The key is translating the Accessory Group number to its appropriate items.

2.  There is a confidential bulletin from early 1953 that states any Kaiser brand automobile (not Henry J's) could be ordered with wire wheels as a factory installed option.  Pricing and other particulars for this are included in the bulletin.  These are true wire wheels, not hubcaps with a wire pattern (which were offered as dealer-installed acccessories).

3.  Overdrive on all Frazers was listed in the various Confidential Bulletins as OPTIONAL.  At least one 1947 Frazer turned up in Wisconsin without one & was built that way!  Key here is checking the transmission or TR number to make sure it matches 3 speed conventional, no overdrive.

4.  When the Dual Manifold version of the 226 was announced in the spring of 1948, the Confidential Bulletin states it was available ONLY on Frazer Manhattan or Kaiser Custom models.  The more powerful 6 in a Special was not factory unless there is a SPEC-FO entry on the firewall tag.

5.  In the summer of 1950, the wide belt molding was released as an accessory kit by Kaiser-Frazer as a dealer installed item; a factory Parts and Accessory bulletin supports this, with part numbers, prices and install time.  In early 1951, another bulletin came out indicating that the original kit was replaced by the kit for narrow rub-rail molding as used on Specials built after December 10, 1950 (adding of the narrow molding on that date is covered in a Confidential Bulletin).  However, dealers and distributors still had the wide belt kits and they could have been used to "upgrade" a lower-level model.  I would call this ok.

6.  There is a Confidential Bulletin from July 1952 announcing that the padded dash as used on 1952 Manhattans would start appearing on the deLuxe models at no increase in price. 

7.  Some 1951 Henry J's were built with Stockholm cloth upholstery as part of a specific Accessory Group; cloth was not listed for the 1952 Corsair and Corsair Deluxe models.

8.  The Kaiser-Willys Trade Letter announcing the 1955 Kaiser Manhattan lists the blower as part of the standard equipment package.  Other information also supports the idea that 100% of the original 1955 run left the plant with blowers.

9.  FREEBIE

10.  The large anti-climber bumpers often seen in photos of 1949 Kaiser K4961 Taxi models were dealer-installed options for ANY Kaiser or Frazer model, according to the Parts & Accessories bulletin on this item.

[Fid]

Jack, thanks for the reply on the oil filter issue. I did receive that deduction at Auburn but never had a chance to discuss it with the judge. I have plenty of proof that oil filters were accessories on Henry Js. I'll likely not have a car judged again - it is pointless but it helps to know I was right. Of course, I found a few things I was not right about too! The difference is, unlike some judges, when I'm proven wrong I'll admit it.  Thanks for the answers on the other questions too. As it turns out, I would've been wrong on some of those.

Now, how about this one - A 1951 Henry J or 1952 Henry J Vagabond has the rubber door sill scuff plates installed. Should it receive a deduction for that?

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

On this one I will need to know if it is a 4 cylinder or 6 cylinder model.

Please note that for the time being, I only have access to this on weekends.

[Fid]

Six cylinder model

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

As my 1951 Illustrated HJ parts book was loaned out to a member (who since dropped out of the club and I will never see it again, which is why I do not loan stuff out anymore) is still missing, I could not go the full route but did notice something in the 1953 supplement covering Vagabonds and Corsair models that could answer the questions.  Scuff Plates (the rubber ones) were listed as new items only for the Corsairs, not the Vagabonds.  Photos in the shop manual show no sills on the cars.  If someone has something from K-F indicating correctness on 1951 or 1952 Vagabonds, either version, I would like a copy of the document.

[jimkf]

A 52 HJ Vagabond belonging to a local club member has rubber sill plates on the car. I know that they're original as I helped him retrieve the car from storage several years ago where it sat since being placed into storage by the original owner. I'll check my parts book for the 51-2 cars to be sure.

[Fid]

The rubber door sill plates were not introduced until the late 1952 models, the Corsair and Corsair Deluxe. See KF Service Bulletin 323 where it states "New rubber scuff plates are installed on the door sills of the 1952 Henry J. They not only enhance the appearance of the door opening but also provide a more effective seal at the bottom of the door against water and dust." Whether or not the car was a 4 or 6 cylinder was irrelavent. If the person jimkf is refering to had a '52 Vagabond with them, then they were added later.  The Henry J parts book lists them for 1952-54 models (the Corsairs) only. But..,  KF Service Bulletin 333 contains a section which explains how to install the scuff plates in the earlier cars which did not have them. The bulletin states "Similar scuff plates are available for instalation on all other Henry J models (K513, K514 and Vagabonds - K523, K524)."  It further states that "These instructions apply to the instalation of scuff plates on the 1951 K513 and K514 Models and to the K523 and K523 Vagabond models." 
In short, the 1951 and 1952 Henry J Vagabonds did not have them originally (this was common knowledge when I first joined the club back in the 70s) but since there was a factory Service Bulletin explaining how to retro-fit them in these cars, they would be correct and should not receive a deduction.  Again, 4 or 6 cylinder was not a factor.

[Fid]

I attended the Back to the Fifties weekend in Saint Paul yesterday and today. There were 3 Kaisers ( a '53 Carolina, a '54 Manhattan and a Darrin) and 7 Henry Js. Of the 7 Henry Js, 2 were stock and 5 were modified so I guess that means at least five of them would have a chance at getting a gold award at a KFOC National

[Gordie]

There were at least five modified cars at Salem out of about fifty cars at the meet.  That is a hefty 10 percent and I expect it will get much higher than that in the future.  We will have to get used to the modified cars or see fewer and fewer cars at the meets.  The Southern CA chapter has very little participation at club events as no one wants to drive their cars long distances in the hot weather.  I joined the Heart of America group in anticipation of moving to Missouri.  I received one newsletter in a year and a half and emailed the president to see if they were still active and received no reply from him so I do not know what if anything is happening.  At least the National meets are alive and well!

[Fabian 51K]

Hey guys! I have been thinking about the issue with judging modified cars at meets. Has anyone considered modifying the current judging sheet? If you notice there are 32 spots for non K-F on the sheet, they are not used in judging modified cars anyways. Just subtract 25 from maximum points leaving 175 instead of 200. Gold would be from 165-175, Silver from 155-164, Bronze from 145-154, and Participation 144 and less. Sense the modified cars judging is based on fit and finish this will eaven out the criteria for judging without having to revamp the whole program. I have some other thoughts for later posts. I am looking forward to reading the feedback from this idea.

Fabian

[Gordie]

Some of the modified cars are beautifully done and far surpass many of the drivers entered in the shows.  The modified class as it is getting more and more popular needs a special judging class at least for full sized cars as well as Henry J's which started the whole thing.  They need a special class and should not be compared to restored stock cars.  At the Queen Mary meet in Long Beach many years ago I sponsered a class for unrestored cars with original paint and upholstery hoping it would catch on and be perpetrated in future meets.  I still believe we should honor these special survivors some way before they all get restored because they are not good enough to qualify for standard judging.  Well, I got to pick the winner and it was a plain jane '47 Kaiser sedan but was all original and that type of car is what we all try to make our restored cars look like.  The idea did not catch on at the time but maybe it is time to reconsider.  What do you guys think about an unrestored class just for original cars?