Prewar Kiekhaefer began with a bare bones Thor/Sea King which was offered on basis of LOW price. When Kiekhaefer 1940 new models
came out, they were offered in 3 levels of Special (entry level) Standard
(mid level) and Deluxe (top of the line with all the bells and whistles)
The extra features of Standard and Deluxe models were intended to
tempt customer who came in the door to buy the least expensive Special to be upgraded to the higher margin Standard or Deluxe versions. Selling the customer more than he intended to buy in this
case had real advantages for both sales person and customer.
Up market versions had worthwhile features at a fair price.
Post war was a different story…except for rope start 1946 KD/WD models, all models were full feature and up market priced. Times
were good for both customer and company, New, modern and more
powerful models appeared in line up and the old, small and lower power models faded away. Neither the customer nor the company
wanted them anymore. Too good to scrap and too old to be useful
many were simply put away one season and not used again.
Love the little Mercs
Louis
all mod