Kaiser-Frazer is a brief chapter from U.S. auto history

Kaiser-Frazer Corporation was formed in 1945 as an automobile manufacturer. It was a much-anticipated partnership between shipbuilder Henry J. Kaiser and a seasoned auto executive named Joseph W. Frazer. 

Joseph Frazer, left, and Henry Kaiser

Automotive writer Mark Trotta of Clayton, N.C., said: “During World War II, Henry Kaiser was an industrial giant, bringing a number of innovative mass production ideas to the manufacture of Allied war ships. Historians are in agreement that the quick building of American naval ships had a profound effect on the war’s outcome.” 

Kaiser-Frazer leased – and then bought – a sprawling manufacturing plant at Willow Run Airport near Ypsilanti, Mich., which had been built by Henry Ford in 1942 to produce U.S. bombers during World War II. 

By 1946, auto workers in the Kaiser-Frazer plant were breaking records for the number of newly built cars. 

“The Kaiser series was geared for the lower and medium price range, while Frazers was aimed toward the luxury segment,” Trotta said. “In contrast to most competitors’ pre-war rehashes, Kaiser-Frazer models were sleek, smooth and modern. They were the very first new post-war body styles.”

 

“The 1947 and 1948 models were popular and sold well, but by 1949, Kaiser-Frazer lost its ‘new car’ advantage, as the major automakers finally re-tooled and redesigned their passenger car line-ups.” 

1949 was disastrous for Kaiser-Frazer, as the company took a $39 million loss, Trotta reported. 

Hemmings Motor News, based in Bennington, Vt, editorialized that Kaiser-Frazer “developed a habit of not keeping a close watch on expenses, and in the auto industry, that can be fatal. The company’s cost of production was among the highest in the industry.” 

Edgar Kaiser, Henry’s son, was the factory’s general manager. Hemmings said the Kaisers were “big-hearted guys…friends could have a new Kaiser car built to their specifications, with a company official walking down the assembly line making sure the car was built with whatever interior trim, special paint and other customization was desired.” 

“It disrupted the assembly line and cost a fortune, but the Kaisers were only too happy to accommodate a friend.” 

“Then came the final mistake: the Henry J.” Hemmings said: “This little compact was supposed to be a car for ‘the man the industry forgot’… simple, basic transportation at the lowest possible cost.” It was named for Henry J. Kaiser.

 

“The Henry J enjoyed only brief popularity, quickly sinking into anonymity,” Hemmings noted.

 

Kaiser and Frazer frequently bumped heads, and as company chair, Kaiser ruled. By 1951, Frazer had had enough. He bowed out gracefully, retiring in 1951. That was also the last year for the Frazer models, according to Trotta. 

The name of the automaker was changed to Kaiser Motors Corporation. Passenger car production ceased in 1955. 

Hence, we can add Kaiser and Frazer brands to the catalog of America’s “orphan cars,” joining Hudson and Nash. 

Henry and Edgar Kaiser stayed busy, however. They bought the ailing Willys-Overland company in 1955 and renamed the company Willys Motors, building only utility vehicles. 

In 1963, the Willys identity was “taken down,” and the company became known as Kaiser Jeep Corporation. In 1969, Kaiser Jeep was purchased by American Motors Corporation (AMC). At that time, AMC “took down” the Kaiser reference. 

Jeep Corporation was established as a wholly owned subsidiary of AMC. Jeep was transformed from a “smallish firm engaged mainly in military and overseas vehicle business into a bigger, more important company with some of the hottest-selling sport utility vehicles in the world,” reported editors at Hemmings.