Of all the cars that could be listed on Craigslist, this particular car is unexpected. OK, so you go to Craigslist to find beaters, and you find dealers who are primarily Buy-Here Pay-Here types of retailers, or you might find some questionable customized vehicles, but for the most part, they are all unremarkable everyday vehicles that appear within the listings… Not this time, as we take a look at a truly rare vehicle from the early 50’s…
This is a very short listing with a few intereating pictures, so I will fill in some details afterwards:
I have a very rare Kaiser Traveler Deluxe for sale. It is turquoise blue and has a red Dragon (lizard skin) interior. It comes with power steering and wire wheel covers. It is an automatic, everything works and it runs and stops good.
Kaiser was one of those Independent Auto Manufacturers that thrived just after the end of World War II due to pent-up demand for vehicles, and the established manufacturers could not produce cars and trucks fast enough. After 1950 though, the larger manufacturers introduced new designs that the independents could not match, with put Kaiser among others in a difficult situation. Kaiser tried to persuade the buying public with “designer” interiors, and unique vehicles, to no avail. The Traveler was a stop-gap vehicle that offered most of the utility of a wagon, while keeping the sedan body shell.
The vehicle that is on Craigslist is a perfect example of both concepts, with the Hatchback design, and the interesting “Dragon Skin” interior. The Automatic was a GM Hyydramatic, which could be serviced at most GM dealers at the time, but was truly a drag on performance because the Continental engine used produced only 115HP at that time. This car also has the new for 1953 Power Steering. Asking price for this Kaiser is $16,500, which seems to be in line with today’s market. See the listing here, and tell me what you think…
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