54 Manhattan / Studebaker

[Mr Manhattan]

http://portland.craigslist.org/clk/cto/5511267188.html

[Bobm90]

Did any of the 54 Manhattans have different style bumpers? These are different than mine.

[Fid]

Did any of the 54 Manhattans have different style bumpers? These are different than mine.

Good catch!  I didn't notice that when I looked at the ad the first time.
The '54 in the add has a '52/'53 Kaiser front bumper on it!  That is not original.

[54manhattan13]

The end of the bumper with the extra part appears to be correct. The center piece is definitely not correct. Hard to tell how it is attached .

[r1lark]

I like it!   

But seriously, the Studebaker V8 was designed in the late '40s/early '50s and as such has a lot of cast iron in the block and heads. (That's why it can handle a fair amount of boost via turbos or the newer centrifugal blowers.) So it's heavy......just guessing maybe 150 lbs or more than the Kaiser 226. I would be concerned that the extra weight would have a negative impact on the balanced handling of the Kaiser.

As much as I hate to say it, a Chevy smallblock would probably be a much better balanced, easier, and cheaper swap.

[joefrazer]

Looks like the car has the correct 54 front bumper on it. The 54 unit used canted bumper guards and if you look closely, you can see the upper mount hole next to the 52-53 bridge.