Commodity henry J's

[Corsairdeluxe]

There are several Henry J's that are being passed from one speculator to another.
This one
https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/PA0715-216770/0/1953-Kaiser-Henry-J-Corsair-Deluxe/3-Speed/

Was auctioned off at a B-J auction in Phoenix last spring. The wording of the features sorta tells you that the seller ain't into Henry J s'

This one has been on the showroom auction circuit for 4,yes FOUR years.

http://classiccars.com/listings/view/662965/1953-kaiser-henry-j-for-sale-in-indianapolis-indiana-46222


Three years ago, it was on the showroom floor at curbside classics in Atlanta for the second time. I went to see it. It had been fixed up solely to sell at a profit hopefully. I could go on and on, but will relate just a few of it's charms. The inside handles had been wire brushed and painted with silver paint. All the knobs were under a thick coat of black paint. The seat covers had been installed without any padding, it had a glasspack muffler. A 4 cylinder HJ at idle through a glasspack is not kind to the ears.
There seems to be number of cars that can be sold at auction, but can not find a home.

I wonder if that is not somewhat the same with Darrins currently. The are being bought mostly by speculators ,not enthusiasts.

[joefrazer]

The Darrin market has definitely been driven by speculators. The cars have always commanded a premium over the rest of the KF fleet, but once they hit the "big time" auction market, prices sky rocketed. I know of several that were purchased and immediately put away for future profit. With banks paying near zero interest rates, if a guy can make ten or 15 percent - or more - on his money by owning a Darrin, why not? At least, that's the prevailing thought in the investor (notice I didn't say collector) car market.

[Fid]

The maroon '53 J is indeed a nice piece of work. I think the outside sun-visor looks awful but that's a personal thing. The ad states "optional hood ornament" but we all know that's a standard, correct '53 Henry J hood ornament. It looks good from my chair.

And yes, the second one, in Indiana, has been discussed on here before. See this thread -

http://kfclub.com/forum/index.php/topic,3062.msg11291.html#msg11291