Muntz Car Company

Last updated
Muntz Car Company
TypePrivate
Industry Automotive
Founded1950
Founder Earl Muntz
Defunct1954
Headquarters Evanston, Illinois, ,
United States
Area served
United States
Key people
Earl Muntz, Founder
Frank Kurtis, Designer
ProductsPerformance vehicles

The Muntz Car Company was an automobile manufacturer based in the United States.

Contents

History

The company was established in 1950 in Glendale, California by Earl "Madman" Muntz, a well known local used car dealer and electronics retailer. [1] Muntz was assisted by Frank Kurtis, who had earlier attempted to produce a sports car under the Kurtis Kraft marque (the Kurtis Kraft Sport, which sold just 36 units by 1950). [2]

In 1951, Kurtis sold the license to manufacture the cars to Muntz, who rebadged them as the "Muntz Jet", extended the body to make it a 4-seater, and exchanged the Ford engine with a larger Cadillac V8. Later, this engine would be replaced with a less expensive Lincoln side-valve V8. [3]

The car, a sports coupe, was first built in Glendale, but manufacture soon moved to a new factory in Evanston, Illinois. It featured its own unique design, with aluminum body panels and a removable fiberglass top that were manufactured in-house. [3] Other parts (such as the engines) were sourced from other manufacturers. It was capable of 112 mph, [3] a significant achievement for a road car at the time. It was featured on the cover of the September 1951 issue of Popular Science (with a Jaguar and an MG).

The company managed to build and sell only about 400 cars during 1951–1954, and due to the high manufacturing cost, Muntz himself estimated that his company lost about $1,000 on each car; this eventually caused him to close the company. [3]

Muntz Jets today are considered rare and valuable collector pieces. [3]

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The Kurtis Sport Car (KSC) is a two-seat, aluminum-body sports car designed by Frank Kurtis and manufactured by Kurtis Kraft in 1949 and 1950. Built with numerous components from a 1949 Ford, the KSC was built as both a production car and a kit car. It was sold at a base price of $3,495, and with options it could cost up to $5,000, which was approximately $1,000 more than the then-new Jaguar XK120.

References

  1. Flory Jr., J. Kelly (2008). American Cars 1946–1959. McFarland & Coy. p. 1016.
  2. Hitze, Ed (1993). The Kurtis-Kraft Story (Paperback). Interstate Printers. ASIN   B0015MFQZG.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 David Lillywhite, ed. (2003). The Encyclopedia of Classic Cars (Hardcover ed.). Thunder Bay Press. ISBN   978-1-57145-990-9.