1949 Frazer 4d sedan - brown - fvl2 (4694179362)

The Frazer (1946–1951) was the flagship line of upper-medium priced American luxury automobiles built by the

Kaiser-Frazer The Kaiser-Frazer Corporation (1947–1953 as Kaiser-Frazer) was the result of a partnership between industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and automobile executive Joseph W. Frazer.Ypsilanti, Michigan Ypsilanti (), commonly shortened to Ypsi, is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 20,648. The city is bounded to the north by Superior Township and on the west, south, an ...

, and was, with

Crosley Crosley was a small, independent American manufacturer of subcompact cars, bordering on microcars. At first called the Crosley Corporation and later Crosley Motors Incorporated, the Cincinnati, Ohio, firm was active from 1939 to 1952, int ...

, the first American car with new envelope body and fresh postwar styling. Named for longtime American automobile executive

Joseph W. Frazer Joseph Washington Frazer (March 4, 1892 – August 7, 1971) was a mid-20th century American automobile company executive. Over the course of his life, Joe Frazer was employed in half a dozen different companies as a mechanic, instructor, financier, ...

who had become president and general manager of Kaiser-Frazer, the Frazer was styled by Howard "Dutch" Darrin with some input from other K-F stylists. The new Frazer won the Fashion Academy of New York Gold Medal for design achievement. Production began on May 29, 1946 and the Frazer made its public debut June 29, 1946. There was one basic four-door sedan body shell that was shared with the similar but lower-priced (by $200 to $600)

Kaiser ''Kaiser'' is the German word for "emperor" (female Kaiserin). In general, the German title in principle applies to rulers anywhere in the world above the rank of king (''König''). In English, the (untranslated) word ''Kaiser'' is mainly ap ...

. The Frazer used the Continental Red Seal 226 CID "Supersonic" L-head six powerplant which reached by the end of Frazer production at the conclusion of the 1951 model year. The luxury line Frazer Manhattan Series F47C was introduced on March 23, 1947 at a $500 premium over the original Frazer Series F-47, which continued on as the Standard. By 1948, Frazer sales totaled about 1.5% of all American cars built. The dramatically-restyled 1951 Frazer models included a four-door convertible, a hardtop sedan, and the Frazer Vagabond, a unique hatchback sedan. The final Frazers—which were actually facelifted leftover 1950 models—were introduced in March 1950 and were an immediate hit with the public. Over 50,000 orders were placed, but at that point Joseph W. Frazer had left the company and K-F management decided to concentrate only on Kaiser production after building 10,214 of the 1951 Frazer, when the supply of leftover 1950 bodies ran out. A trivial, but to car buffs significant, aspect of the Frazer was that its four doors had push-button openers. This feature was shared at the time only by such cars as the Lincoln. Both Henry Kaiser and Joseph Frazer were convinced by evidence that the existing automobile manufacturers centered on

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

had combined to shut off the supplies of materials and parts necessary to the success of the new automotive company.

References

External links

Kaiser Frazer Owners Club International
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frazer (Automobile) Kaiser Motors Kaiser vehicles Cars introduced in 1946 1950s cars

See also

References

External links