Frazer Manhattan History
History
The Frazer Manhattan was introduced on March 23, 1947, as the marque's flagship — a more lavishly trimmed version of the standard Frazer sold at roughly a $500 premium, with upgraded leather-and-fabric interiors. It gave Kaiser-Frazer a genuine near-luxury offering to set against the likes of Buick and the lower Packards.
The Manhattan name became attached to Frazer's most memorable car: the 1951 four-door convertible. A handsome, full-width drop-top built from the heavily restyled 1951 bodies, it was effectively the last American four-door convertible until the 1961 Lincoln Continental revived the format. It was a costly, low-volume halo car — only about 131 of the 1951 Manhattan convertibles were built.
As the most expensive Frazer, the Manhattan shared the line's Continental L-head six and the brand's fate: when Joseph Frazer left the company and management chose to focus on Kaiser, the Manhattan ended with the rest of the marque after the 1951 model year.
Generations
-
First and only generation · Frazer Manhattan (1947–1951)
Photo: “1949 Frazer Manhattan — Automobile Driving Museum, El Segundo, CA” by Daderot / Wikimedia Commons — CC0 1.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
Frazer's flagship line across the marque's full 1947–1951 run — richer trim over the standard sedan on the shared 123.5-inch Kaiser-Frazer chassis.
-
1949 Photo: “1949 Frazer Manhattan — Automobile Driving Museum, El Segundo, CA” by Daderot / Wikimedia Commons — CC0 1.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
-
Body styles
- Sedan
- Convertible
Notable special editions & performance variants
-
Manhattan four-door convertible
A rare full-size four-door convertible sedan; the 1951 car is often cited as the last American four-door convertible before the 1961 Lincoln Continental. About 131 of the 1951 convertibles were built.
Related models