52 Virginian question

[Logan]

I saw a picture of a '52 Virginian--it had the Virginian script on the side and the black plastic hood ornament.  But there was no external spare tire.  Also, it had Special trim instead of Deluxe.  I wondered if Virginians 1) could come without continental kits 2) came in both Special and Deluxe trim 3) came in other models like Traveler, Club Coupe, etc.  Just came across the picture and was wondering.

[joefrazer]

I once owned a 1952 Kaiser Virginian Special Traveler. It obviously did not have the continental kit. I've seen one or two 52V sedans without kits. If memory serves, the kits were installed at the dealer and some buyers may have opted out.

[Gordie]

The '52 Virginians were an interim model that came out as a modified 1951 and was discontinued when the "real" 1952's came out.  The sales brochure for the Virginian shows deluxe models and illustrates the rear mounted spare as a feature of the Virginian.  I have a factory photo of the Virginian Club Coupe with the rear mounted spare and they were installed on two door sedans as well as four doors.  The brochure does not list any body styles but illustrates the four door only.  Not too many were made and of course they are scarce today.

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

The "Continental" tire kit was a factory or dealer installed option on the non-Traveler Virginian models.  These kits were a factory accessory and K-F ordered a quantity for stocking.  Unfortunately, the design they got only worked on the 1951 Kaisers, so the thing was pushed on the 1952 Virginian program to try and knock down the inventory. 

Does anyone have the Confidential Bulletin Kaiser-Frazer Sales Corporation issued for the Virginians that has the availability attachment FOR WEST COAST DEALERS ONLY.  My copy came from a midwestern dealer and has models offered from Willow Run; the West Coast dealers tapped the remaining stocks out of Long Beach (there were at least a few from there) and Portland (mostly out of Portland) assembly plants.  There are models and colors for West Coast cars that were not available from Willow Run.

I would like to get a copy so I can update the information in the Handbook for the 1952 Virginians.

[pnw_oldmags]

Sorry - No "For West Coast Dealers Only" Confidential Bulletins.

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

The item is actually marked as "Attachment 1 to Confidential Bulletin..." and is a table listing colors for the different models.  The West Coast Version may not be marked as such but could have a 2-door Traveler listed in the Special choices or the Deluxe choices.  The Willow Run listings have a notation at the lower left corner of the page "The Portland Assembly Plant will notify Dealers in that territory of the available body colors".

[Gordie]

If there were West Coast colors available they would have been listed in the various color chips made by the paint manufacturers.  The Virginian was such a limited production project that I really doubt that they would have had special colors for West Coast production.

[joefrazer]

Here's a 52K (not Virginian) with a continental kit. Note how different it is than the kits for the 51K.
http://boise.craigslist.org/cto/2191166073.html

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

Attachment One in the Confidential Bulletin on the cars listed available series/body types and colors that the 1951's were being repainted to help use up paint inventories at the plants.  The Portland availability version would identify any body types (such as perhaps, a 2-door Special Traveler) offered from Portland that Willow Run did not have as well as paint numbers used.  There were no West Coast-specific paint color but some of the two-tones might not have been offered at Willow Run.

As far as I know, there is no complete set of Confidential Bulletins for the 1951 model year that show  all the colors offered through the period and when they were actually used (later in the model year, throughout the model year, etc).  I know for instance that there were at least 2 paint availability Confidential Bulletins issued in the last 6 to 8 months of the model year that I do not have;  this is based on paint numbers off surviving cars and their SCHED and ITEM numbers that help peg when the bodies were built.