The King Midgets
Do you want to build your own car someday? I do. Maybe that's a dream of most of us Car Lusters. After all, what's more mechanically personal than building your own ride?
I don't want a big, complicated kit car kit ... a friend of mine has one that has sat in pieces in a warehouse for a time frame that is now measured in decades. And it would have been a grand thing--a replica of a 1930s Mercedes--if he had ever finished it.
I'd like to build something that takes just a little more time to assemble than a model car, doesn't require glue, and actually runs. Something that I would actually build in whatever color and trim I want, and something that I would complete. And it would have to be street legal so I could enjoy the car.
So what fits this bill? How about a kit car from the 1940s or 50s ... maybe a King Midget! Long before the Smart Car or the Miata hit our highways, these pint-sized cars roamed the roads. Of course, that's also long before we had interstate highways.
And, one of the best things about starting a King Midget assembly project is that about by the time you're bored with it, you're done.
OK, I don't have computer-controlled robots to spot-weld the thing. No Hayden-Schweitzer paint system or bake ovens. Coming down the final assembly line? Sorry, I don't have an assembly line at all. If I'm lucky, I'll have enough 4x4 wood post scraps and concrete cinder blocks to set the thing on while I'm building it. Out in the yard, of course.
The story of the King Midget began when Claud Dry and Dale Orcutt met in WWII, the big one, while in the Civil Air Patrol. After the war, they got together and decided they wanted to build a small car that anybody could afford. Can we say a then-modern Model T? Soon they marketed their cars as "The World's Most Exciting Small Car" and "The World's Number One Fun Car."
Their first car, the 1946 King Midget Model I, held just one person. At that time it was a kit only, and contained the frame, axles, springs, steering parts, patterns for the sheet metal, and the ever-handy assembly manual. You had to find the motor.
A couple of years later, from the late 1940s until 1951, they would assemble the car for you with a six-horsepower engine at the factory for a small fee.
I saw some of these in a film about The Marx Brothers. They were racing some kids and, of course, Groucho cheated. But in good spirit the kids won anyway, and Groucho humbly conceded.
Somewhere around this time, the King Midget folks were also making motor scooters. I feel that's worth mentioning here, but I don't want to get too far off on a tangent with them.
In 1952, the King Midget Model II was launched as "The 500-pound car for $500." It was a basic vehicle with a hand-operated start cable on the left, outside the car and behind the seat. There was a black three-spoke steering wheel, brown plastic seat upholstery, no speedometer, and no reverse.
It was this model which eventually offered their automatic transmission, reverse, electric starter, safety glass/tinted windshield, a folding top, steel winter doors with sliding Plexiglas windows, a hot air heater, a speedometer, turn signals, and optional hand-operated controls for disabled persons. That's quite an impressive options list!
There was also the golf model, complete with two golf bag racks, extra wide traction tires on the rear, special low gearing, foot rests on the front fenders, and an extra-quiet muffler system.
The 1957 King Midget Model III, which may be the most familiar King Midget model to most of us, was not a kit car--it was only sold finished, and for about 900 bucks. Or what they called finished, anyway. Though it was a fully-assembled, driveable car, it was stark enough to be completed and personalized as the owner wished.
All Model IIIs had unit body construction, four-wheel hydraulic brakes, and at least a 9.2-horsepower engine. OK, it's not the total kit car I'd love to have, but it's close enough. There's plenty of room left for personalization with this motorized microbe.
Maybe by today's standards it could be called a kit car ... close for me enough, anyway. By the time I got through taking one apart and putting it back together the way I wanted, surely it would qualify. And don't call me Shirley.
The Model III design was used until the end of King Midget production, but it was upgraded as the years rolled by. Eventually, the cars had a 12-horsepower engine with a 2-speed automatic transmission, plus reverse.
Notable options included doors, electric wipers and washers, a radio, carpet, floor mats, seat belts, and new body colors. I didn't see any information on towing packages, retractable hardtop roofs, automatic climate control, or electronic navigation systems.
Imagine dropping a Hemi into one of these things. That is, if the frame would support one. Well, OK, maybe dropping an 600cc or so motorcycle engine in there with about 50 horsepower might make more sense.
Inside the Midget Model III, as in all of these cars, the interior is pretty much what you make of it. This cream-colored car is a Deluxe model, indicated by the gleaming two-spoke steering wheel. The wood dashboard is similar to a Triumph Spitfire, just smaller.
Just one thing--I'd have to move the speedometer to right above the steering column as I'm not a fan of center-mounted gauges. The panel also looks like there would be room for other instruments and a clock, as well as a radio, if they were cut in carefully.
It's also good that these cars were automatics. That windshield wiper is hand-operated, so fumbling with that and a shifter lever while you're texting and making coffee and breakfast might be just a little too much for even the best of us to do while we're driving.
The King Midget line grew to be a versatile platform. But production ended in 1970 due to Federal emissions and crash requirements, which was probably a good thing as most other cars had become larger, heavier, and faster. About 5,000 had left the factory by then.
Are King Midgets glorified go-karts and/or golf carts? In my opinion, heck no. They are street-legal motor vehicles, mostly antique cars today.
They have quite a following, too. Though not quite as large as a Sharkfest or similar gathering, people truck and trailer (and drive) their prized cars to King Midget Jamborees to swap stories and share a unique fellowship.
Like "jumbo shrimp," the "King Midget" name just doesn't make a lot of sense. But that's part of the charm of these miniature motorcars. In our present day, these vehicles don't make a lot of sense on most of our highways either. Yet a custom King Midget, especially with the golf package, would surely be a blast at an RV or retirement community. Might even have a race or two.
So I'd better get working on one soon, before I have to move there!
--That Car Guy (Chuck)
Many thanks to the International King Midget Car Club, Inc. for technical information, some of which was copied from their site. The King Midget exploded view is from MidgetMotors.com. The woody King Midget image is from Carestoration.com. The King Midget Model I photo is by HowStuffWorks.com. The Model II image is by Rides.Webshots.com. The red King Midget image is from Farm1.Static.Flickr.com. The engine bay image is from RiverCityRydes.com. I took the interior photo at the Lane Motor Museum in Nashville. The King Midget group image is from Farm1.Static.Flickr.com.
Bill T. on September 03, 2010 at 12:00 PM
This is really a look at the past. For some time back in the '50's, I was on the mailing/subscription list of the Midget Motors Directory, a several page pamphlet, that was out of, I believe, Athens, Ohio. Besides being a marketing piece for their King Midgets, they had lots of ads for individuals from all over. These ads were for parts - starters, coils, flywheels, cams, and engine blocks (mostly Briggs and Stratton, if I remember correctly)for those working on many different vehicles. They also had plans for building small racers that were run on short course racetracks all over the country. Many of these were designed to use Ford flathead V-8's, and I believe they were called quarter midgets.
Cookie the Dog's Owner on September 03, 2010 at 02:11 PM
Cute little fella. It looks like it wants to be a Jeep CJ when it grows up.
Quilly Mammmoth on September 03, 2010 at 04:33 PM
I always wanted to build a Bradley GT.
comatus on September 03, 2010 at 09:19 PM
No, "full midget" race cars used the flathead Ford. Quarter-midgets are still run today by pre-teen youths, and use a much smaller power plant. There is another class called TQM, 3/4-midget. The early King Midget solo car bore may have borne some similarity to midgets of the late 20's, but should not be confused with midget race cars. Those cars were (and are) awfully fast.
That Car Guy on September 04, 2010 at 08:55 AM
Cookie, you just gave me an idea. Why not make a Midget look like a Jeep? Or even go the other way... that upright grille area looks custom-made for a Rolls-Royce-esque grill. Then get a horn that plays "We're In The Money" and pull up to your favorite golf course clubhouse.
The possibilities are endless.
Chris Meirose on September 11, 2010 at 09:08 AM
King Midget was featured on MotorWeek TV this week!
That Car Guy on September 11, 2010 at 09:50 AM
Thanks, Chris. Here's the link to Motorweek TV, Season 30, Episode 1, which features the King Midget Jamboree. I don't know if the video works there or not: http://www.locatetv.com/tv/motorweek/season-30/6822339
That Car Guy on September 11, 2010 at 10:27 AM
I wish I had found this video in time to put it in the post:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXn5Qs84MyA&feature=related