With the recent recession, orphan makes are suddenly no longer an unusual thing on American roads. Before Plymouth in 2001 and Oldsmobile in 2004, the last manufacturer to go dark was American Motors, upon their 1988 acquisition by Chrysler (and yes, that’s ignoring the half-baked Eagle Division of Chrysler). Due to poor sales, seeing one of the independent American brands (Rambler/AMC/Eagle) on the road was fairly rare, but late-model Oldsmobiles, Pontiacs, and Mercurys are still fairly common. Before 1988, however, American orphans dated back to the 1950s and 1960s. You can find this 1951 Kaiser Manhattan for sale for $1951 in Everett, WA, just north of Seattle.
Rusty But Trusty 