ClassicCar

Lee, Here is the information I have taken from the "Standard Catalog of American Cars" 1946 - 1975.

1954 Kaiser Darrin two-door sport convertible, 6 cyl. Series 161
Largely the brainchild of Howard Darrin, the new Darrin sports car had first been announced on Sept. 20, 1952, with initial prototypes shown on Feb. 22, 1953. It appeared in limited numbers, mainly for testing and exhibition, during November 1953. That was about two months after production had actually commenced in Kaiser's Jackson Mich. warehouse. The Willys merger and move to Toledo slowed the pace, but on Jan. 6, 1954, the car was finally released for public sale. Some sources indicate that actual deliveries began the same day. The fiberglass-bodied vehicles incorporated a number of radical ideas, including doors that slid forward, into the front fenders. 'Dutch' Darrin had first conceived of such an arrangement as early as 1922. Other features of the Kaiser Darrin included a three position convertible top and a 161 cid/90 hp Willys F-head six with a one barrel carburetion. Early experimental versions used a special L-head six. Later units sold by Howard Darrin after Kaiser dropped the sports car (in mid 1954) could be had with McCulloch superchargers and a 304 - hp Cadillac V-8.

Model Number - 161, Body/Style NUmber - 161, Body Type and seating - 2-door Sport Convertible - 2 passenger, Factory Price - 3655, Shipping weight - 2175, Production Total - 435

NOTE 1 - Production totlal given is for production - type Kaiser Darrin
NOTE 2 - Between 12 - 62 pre-production experimental cars were built.
NOTE 3 - Howard Darrin later sold some 50 leftover cars.

I think I have some photos someplace of some of these. I will look and post them.
I always liked this car and have seen a few but was never lucky enough to ride in one.
Hope this helps
Ron

Yepper Lee, I'd love to drive one with a Caddy engine in it. Hell, I'd love to just drive one, ha,ha.

Here's some info and pics from another source.

http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z1723/Kaiser-Darrin.aspx

Ron

Well Lee,

It's always a bad thing to see the cars that you always wanted or had, in pictures looking great.

It's also surprising to see some of the cars that we forgot about that were fun. I am one that likes the out of ordinary and sometimes it's really difficult trying to pick a project car when I come across the slick ones.

P.S. The blue one was my favorite too.

Ron