1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. This 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was shown at the 2011 Hillsborough Concours d'Elegance, which it says is “the longest-continuously running concours d’Elegance in the world.”

At the time, the car was owned by a couple from Gold River, Ore., one of my favorite places to visit when I was editor of The Del Norte Triplicate in Del Norte County. I would drive up there on Saturdays and enjoy the area.

1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. It was a head-turner at the 201 Hillsborough Concours d’Elegance held in the San Francisco Bay Area, which is where my wife Kathleen and I were privileged to view it.

Not only is it a rare and little-known car, but the following features that make it unique: the Pine Tint Green paint, how its doors “open” and “close” and so much more.

According the concours informational placard for this car, “Henry J. Kaiser was an innovative industrialist whose production methods revolutionized naval shipbuilding.”

1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. (The significance of that statement cannot be minimized. My Grandpa Hill worked in Benicia, and I do not know if that was a Kaiser shipyard, but his methods certainly helped the United States defeat Imperial Japan in World War II, which is when my Grandpa worked at the shipyards.

(Sadly, he died at 65 from cancer and I always wondered if it was caused by exposures at the shipyard. It would not have mattered to him, had he known: He had two sons fighting in World War II; one in the Pacific Theater and on in the European Theater.

(Uncle Gene fought in most of the major island battles of the Pacific as a U.S. Marine. Uncle Don fought and was wounded in Battle of The Bulge as a U.S. Army soldier.

(My purpose in providing a bit of personal history related to World War II is to illustrate for younger readers the significant sacrifice people made only a few generations ago in service to their country.)

1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. Back to Kaiser and American automotive designer Dutch Darrin.

“{Kaiser} formed Kaiser Motors believing he could beat the established manufacturers,” according to the concours. “Darrin was a noted automotive designer. His cars were known for their ‘dip’: The descending line of the front fender made a ‘dip’ at the front edge of the rear fender.

“When Darrin designed his roadster, Henry Kaiser wasn't interested but changed his mind because his wife found it beautiful.”

It sure is beautiful, isn’t it? In fact, the rear fender and rear-end slope remind me of my late father’s Austin-Healey.

1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. “Although more expensive than most luxury models,” the concours noted, “it came with a tachometer, three-positioned Landeau top and a tinted windshield. It was the first fiberglass sports car in the USA, beating the Corvette to market by one month!

“It features a ‘pocket-door’ design that made the doors slide into the fender of the car.”

One factoid about the Kaiser Darrin that you will not hear most car enthusiasts and experts note is the following: Corvette was NOT the first modern American-made sports car to hit the market; Kaiser was.

This 90-hp, 6-cylinder model was also the first fiberglass-body American sports car. This 3-speed came with overdrive.

Count yourself fortunate if you have seen one of these, because the concours noted that “only 435 were made for the 1954 model year. This example was completely restored to original specifications {from} 2007 to 2009. It was the 2009 SCCA San Francisco Region Concours Grand Champion.”

1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. This Kaiser Darrin, or a similar one, sold in January 2015 at the Arizona Barrett-Jackson auction for $198,000 (not counting taxes, fees).

“Its heritage is unsurpassed by any other United States sports cars,” noted Barrett-Jackson on its Web site. “It has won the SCCA overall Concours Championship and has won in Carmel, Hillsborough, Palo Alto, Palos Verdes and many more locations.”

That relationship to the Bay Area is what makes me think this is the same Darrin, since I photographed it in the city of Hillsborough.

“It was the cover car in the February 2012 edition of The Motor Market magazine,” the B-J website continued. “It is a very beautiful example of the first American sports car.”

I’ve seen other Pine Tint Green Kaiser Darrins on YouTube. I’ve included those in my blog post on this Kaiser Darrin.

Kaiser eventually sold in the 1960s to American Motors Corp.

1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car. 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 RoadsterThis 1954 Kaiser Darrin 161 Roadster was not only America's first sports car, but it's first fiberglass sports car.