One of the pleasures for the auction visitor is the opportunity to view, in the metal or in this case plastic, cars normally only seen in magazines or other media. This happened to me while strolling through the Barrett-Jackson tent, when I came upon a 1955 Kaiser Darrin sports car, looking just as beautiful as I'd always imagined. It was designed by Howard "Dutch" Darrin and built as a prototype without the knowledge of his Kaiser-Frazer clients, who reluctantly agreed to produce the car; too late, unfortunately, to save the company. Truly unique for its time, the Kaiser Darrin featured a revolutionary plastic body and sliding doors that made entry to the 2-seater more graceful. Underneath sits a modified Henry J chassis and 6-cylinder engine, though a few were fitted with V-8's near the end of the run. In-house production numbered a mere 435. The Kaiser Darrin story is quite fascinating and if you'd like to read more you'll find a brief history by clicking here.