Orphan in Need: 1951 Frazer, $750

Normally when one thinks about an "orphan marque" classic car, they think Nash, Hudson, Studebaker or Packard... few people muster up thoughts of a Frazer. The marque was built alongside Kaiser cars by well-known industrialist Henry J. Kaiser, and all cars that he produced were very ordinary in engineering, using parts derived from other companies or that were inherited by Kaiser Industries' purchase of Graham-Paige's vehicle business in 1946.

Frazer was ostensibly a competitor to firmly entrenched favorite higher-end cars such as Packard, Cadillac, Lincoln, Chrysler and Hudson; it also duked it out with imported upstarts like the Citroen 11CV, Rover P4, Jowett Javelin, Sunbeam-Talbot 90 and Mercedes-Benz 170V. 

The company originally had high sales in the years immediately following World War II, but with the other American brands producing a superior car at a similar price, with more attractive styling by 1949, Frazer sales plummeted quickly. Even the elegant taillights that had hints of Cadillac to them, dramatic chromed grille piece and opulent interiors wouldn't save Frazer's bacon, and the marque was quietly withdrawn. Its sister marque Kaiser only lasted a few more years in the US before moving production of Kaiser passenger cars to Argentina.

Few Frazers survived into the 21st century, especially 1951 models, and this very restorable 1951 sedan  can be yours for only $750 in Topeka, Kansas. (go here if page disappears).