1954 Kaiser Darrin

[jake]

1954 Kaiser Darrin.

Will the Kaiser Darrin sell for 500k some day..?

Next 10 years. 20 ..?




 

[rlahammer]

I think the better question is will the Darrin sell for 15k in a few years as that has a much higher probability.

[Roadmaster49]

Chris
There is an episode of "What's My Car Worth" on tonight on Velocity channel that is featuring a Darrin. This is Keith Martin's show on Velocity that profiles a few cars in a 30 minute period.  He does market analysis that shows high, low and average and will look at all sales in the last calender year. 

Then we either see an actual Darrin go across the blocks at an actual auction or he has his 3 buddies buy the car from a private seller or both.  In any respect, as long as the car for sale is a decent car, then that should give you some idea of the present market status.

I don't want to offend any of the Darrin owners that stand to gain a lot in their overall wealth portfolio if Darrins go higher in value but my belief, it's just an opinion Terry, is that that $100,000 six figure plateau will weigh significantly on the few wealthy buyers we will see over the next 10 years that can afford these fine cars.

I believe the Darrin and it's 50's competition will continue to hold strong on values as we s-t-r-e-t-c-h further and further away from what is perceived as the golden age of the automobile as a glamour purchase, that being approximately 1953-1959, not necessarily a finned car.

The 70's sure put a scretching halt to high value perception to cars. Leaving "exotics" and a few limited production cars to fill in the blanks. 

Anyway, watch tonight if you have Velocity and see what the current feeling is about Darrins.

[Roadmaster49]

Thankfully few of us play the pass around game of the speculators who buy paintings and cars simply to make a profit.  This is a big issue in the Lincoln Mark II market.  That group has seen a few cars come out of garages and the like lately that sold initially for $8000 or so and then were "flipped" 2-3 times to get up to $30,000.

I think it is a bad part of the hobby that so much emphasis is on "What is my car worth". 

[Roadmaster49]

Well I was way off and have to eat crow, again.

The Kaiser Darrin for sale was one of 10 or so that remained with Darrin unsold, and it was one he put a 1954 Cadillac V8 in.

The car was a greenish/yellow and in nice shape. Wrong looking wire wheels.  The show provided these statistics:

435 Built
Low Price: $91,300
High Price: $165,0000
Avg Price:  $103,833

This tells me that a few very nice Darrins are coming in higher, but not enough to create a higher mean average.  Therefore, most Darrins are selling for $91K to $120K.

This car sold for:  $145,000

[Terry T]

The car you referred to was not a Dutch Darrin modification.
I drove that car in its unrestored state, sat in the passenger seat of the truck hauling it to the Detroit area,...and watched the transformation from a 161 F-head to the Caddy engine.

This was the first of 2 that the new owner did that way.

One is in a local museum with a poster claiming to be a Dutch Darrin car.

Finally, I have never  heard of any one ever seeing a true Dutch Darrin V8 car.

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

There are a few things to remember here:

1.  The provenance (history) of the car (owners, special equipment, etc) weighs heavily on what it could sell for.

2.  Condition is significant.

3.  Having the right buyer at the right time is most important..  I have seen some Barrett-Jackson cars sell for higher than expected because one person present just happened to fall in love with the car.

[Roadmaster49]

Terry
That is an interesting addition to the story.    Is there any truth that a few Darrins remained unsold and were retrofitted?  Sound like no.

Chris
It really is about enjoying the cars, so yes it would be great for the masses if the price dropped to $15,000 but I don't see that ever happening.

Jack
You are correct about provenance and location of the auction.  Crazy money, place in the auction sequence, plays a part in final price. 

[Terry T]

Through out the years there have been many articles written about the 50 Darrins that Dutch dug out of the snow and retrofitted with several different powerplants.

The stories are probably true, but no  one has ever claimed to have seen one of these cars.

My spin...If you had a Darrin with a big V8 under the hood, you probably raced it---why wouldn't you?
...and if you raced it back in the 50's, you probably turned some end-over-ends in the infield.

END OF STORY! and the car.

[DTort96646]

Maybe this will help in the discussion of Cad powered Darrins. Check out this link. SCCA also has Laura Cunningham registered as an entrant to some Torrey Pine races in the later 1950's. Here's the link:  http://thechicaneblog.com/2010/02/11/more-unseen-racing-film-torrey-pines-1954/. The website Forgotten Fiberglass has a lot of Darrin articles as well. Darrin #50 is about 3:15 into the video.

[HJ-ETEX]

I am not a Darrin Owner, but I have done some work on a Darrin. I took the pictures of a Darrin frame on top of a of a HJ frame that appeared in a KF Quarterly so long ago. Most Darrin owners don't know what their underside looks like.
1) An HJ frame isn't very substantial. They were built to a price point, not overbuilt. The F-head 161 conversion added considerable weight and the extensive cutting of the frame probably doesn't add any strength . Replacing the F-Head 161 with a Cadillac V8 and (probably a HydraMatic) adds 600 lbs over what a the F Head 161 + T96 OD trans weighs. It reminds me of the (several) young guys around here that put Ford/Mercury 429s in Pintos. Sounds impressive but in real life it is probably like sitting on a hand grenade. Good maybe one time in a straight line, but crap on a road course where you have to turn the wheels.
2) Once again, if there were any Darrin modified cars with Cadillac V8s made in any number (that is more that 1) they would be known and have some documentation.

[darrin502]

I have 3 Darrins
One is #60 I originally bought in 1961 and made a drag race car out of it. I used the stck chassis, installed a ford beam axel an olds rear end a 440 cu in big block chevy engine. I ran that car for years at speeds of 150 mph in the quater mile the stock Darrin frame which was a modified Henry J was very strong.
My 2nd car # 103 has a stock chassis and I put in a ram jet 502 big block with a 700 R4 transmission and it works great.
My 3rd car is #51 and I installed a 1954 331 Cadillac engine with a 1953 olds hydramatic trans. It was a very difficult install but I managed to do it. I was Able to keep everything in the stock location. I had to section the frame to move the steering box about 1/2". The transmission was another difficult project but it works. The stock 455 to 1 rear end has to go it is way to big for this engine/trans combination. Overheating was a big problem but I have solved it using the stock radiator a 6 blade steel fan and a electric pusher fan.
I tried to find pictures,documentation or anyone who had seen one with no luck. I think this Dutch Darrin Cadillac rumor is a myth.
My creation was at the last Kaiser convention and I am now in Chicago And have driven it to at least 10 shows and it works great. I am using the stock rearend but the hydramatic trans shift eradic.
I will change the rear end when I get back home to arizona.
It can be done but not an easy install. Also it requires a 12V negative grd change.

[DTort96646]

Here are some photos of what I did to my Darrin Chassis so that it could withstand the extra torque and weight of a V8, and handle, stop, and ride like it should. There was no way that I would depend on the stock chassis to be safe. The original setup was marginal on a good day with the F-Head and stock brakes.

[sds501]

I do not own a Darrin, which has always been my dream car, but I have followed the story of the extra bodies bought by Darrin for years.  I recently came across and bought a photo of Darrin's showroom in  Hollywood advertising  all the cars that He modified/built as Darrin Sports
Cars. 

The showroom has a Darrin in the front window and advertises both the 6 cylinder motor and the Caddy  v-8 as power plants.   If he advertised the Caddy V8 it would seem that he found a way to squeeze it in somehow and a real V8 Darrin must be around someplace.

(Unfortunately just before getting married over 40 years ago I found a darrin for sale locally for $3000 which we had saved for a down payment on our first house.  Wish I had the sense at the time to buy the Darrin against strong opposition.  The house would have just been a little later.)

[darrin502]

If anyone has or comes across a picture or documentation of a real Dutch Darrin built car with a caddy engine please post it so all of us can put this rumor or myth to rest. It is a story that has really grown legs.