1959 King Midget Chris Craft Special Fresh Restoration Immaculate

Description for Other Makes 1959

The King Midget was a micro car produced between 1946 and 1970 by the Midget Motors Corporation. The King Midget company started out by offering a kit to build a car, but soon added completely assembled cars and later only offered completed cars.

Company founders Claud Dry and Dale Orcutt, airplane pilots turned car designers, first sold the King Midget as part of their Midget Motors Supply operations in Athens, Ohio. Dry and Orcutt were inspired by their experience flying the Civil Air Patrol to create a car based on aircraft construction principles. By 1948, they began to use the name Midget Motors Manufacturing Co. In about 1956, Dry and Orcutt changed the name of their company to Midget Motors Corporation.

Midget Motors' primary methods of advertising their cars were through small advertisements in popular magazines that appealed to home mechanics. The ads were tiny but effective; they showed a midget car and some earlier ads contained the phrase "500 lb. car for $500.00". The ads brought in a steady stream of interested customers. Some of the magazines featured articles about the car and several pictured the car on their front cover. This method of direct selling continued for most of the life of the company.

When it appeared on the cover of Popular Science magazine in 1951, the Model 2 was a two-passenger convertible offered either fully assembled or as a kit, powered by a 23 cu in 7.5 hp sidevalve Wisconsin AENL engine. With a 72 in wheelbase-8 in less than a Crosley 4CC- it measured only 102 in overall. The Model 2 was still a very basic car; it had no speedometer or reverse, but it was light, strong, and available for just $500. In 1955, a custom model of the Model 2 was introduced. It lasted through 1957, with the price remaining under $550. By contrast, a four-passenger 1952 Crosley CD sedan could be had, fully assembled, for $943, and a wagon as low as $1002. Soon after the Model 2 was in production, the company began to offer the option of a two-speed automatic transmission that included a reverse. This transmission, developed and patented by Orcutt and Dry, was soon to be included as standard equipment and was used on all subsequent models.

In the 1950s, Midget Motors developed the Junior and Trainer. Both designs were tube-framed motorized four-wheelers that were forerunners of the go-karts and all-terrain vehicles that were to become popular later. The Junior was powered by a 2.5 hp Briggs & Stratton engine, while the Trainer used a 3 hp Briggs and Stratton. Both had an automatic clutch with a geared, reverse transmission in the drive train. They were discontinued in the early 1960s.

In 1957, the Model 3 was introduced. On a new, 76.5 in wheelbase, and now measuring 117 in overall, it was still smaller than a Crosley. It now had four-wheel hydraulic brakes and was powered by a 9.2 hp Wisconsin single cylinder engine. The unit-body, which was welded for increased strength, was continued throughout to the end of production. The 1958 price approached $900. (The much bigger Rambler American started at $1775.) In 1966 more power was added when the company switched to a 12 hp Kohler engine, and also converted the car to a 12-volt electrical system. Midget production lasted through the 1960s, and eventually almost 5,000 were built.

This King Midget Chris Craft Special Edition is 1 of 2 built by a well respected Auto Restoration Shop here in the Midwest. Professionally Restored to Top Show Standards and complete with a baby Chris Craft Boat in tow, this cute little Duo brings smiles to everyone's face everywhere it goes. Upgraded to 16 HP V Twin Engine, for increased drivability-it is fully titled and legal for road use. The over the top build includes Custom Gauges and Interior, Custom Fender Skirts, Hood Louvers, Hood Scoop, and Running Boards, and Solid Wood Trim. The Custom Built Boat is Hand Painted woodwork and features a Custom Red Flake Interior. The Boat is for Display purposes only, it has not been tested for water worthiness

The attention to detail and level of craftmanship exhibited in this restoration is just as one would expect of a high end Auto Restoration Shop. This wonderful little Gem will be at home in any collection.