"Mr. Norm" Kraus
1934 - 2021

“Mr. Norm” Kraus has been a legend to Mopar fans and enthusiasts since the 1960’s. Sadly, he passed away on Feb. 26, 2021 at the age of 87. To me, he was a great friend, someone that I had tremendous respect for and someone who was a huge influence in my passion for muscle cars.

I grew up in the Chicago area and got my driver’s license on my 16th birthday in 1967. Back then, one of my favorite things was going to his Grand Spaulding Dodge Dealership. While most dealerships turned kids away, he always welcomed them. He sold a lot of cars to the parents of us kids.

Over the years that I’ve been collecting, I have owned over 20 Mr. Norm cars. My first original Mr. Norm car was my black 1968 GSS Dart. When I started collecting, that was one of the first cars I tracked down, and was very fortunate to find that one. At one time, I owned 3 ’68 GSS Darts, 3 ’71 GSS six-pack Demons and 3 ’72 GSS supercharged Demons. They were the pride and joy of my collection.

While I had met Mr. Norm when I was a teenager, it wasn’t until I started collecting cars that I really got to know him. I believe that he was one of the smartest marketers I have ever met, and he never lost that “love of the sale”. Eventually, we worked together when I started “Mr. Norm’s Garage” where we made some really fun new cars. I have been very fortunate to have known him and consider him a true friend. I will miss him tremendously.