Postwar Studebakers

uplanderguy

Thanks for posting! Whomever slapped that aftermarket side molding on deserves to have their hands broken! LOL

uplanderguy

Saw this pic on FB recently. Philip (singular) Motors, South Amboy, NJ.

Don't see many pics of Stude dealers, late-on. Those are '64 model year cars. Typical small Stude dealer. Gee, the grass needs cut!

I still like Studes of that era; I think the styling has largely stood the test of time better than the other compacts.

fintail

uplanderguy said:

Saw this pic on FB recently. Philip (singular) Motors, South Amboy, NJ.

Don't see many pics of Stude dealers, late-on. Those are '64 model year cars. Typical small Stude dealer. Gee, the grass needs cut!

I still like Studes of that era; I think the styling has largely stood the test of time better than the other compacts.

Is that a double stripe whitewall or just an illusion with a white wheel?

kyfdx

From Cars n Coffee

sda

The painted bumpers on the Hawk look pretty good.

ab348

Found this in a Canadian dealerships FB group - Barrie, Ontario, appears to be around 1960. "British American" or B/A was a Canadian oil company that was purchased by Gulf and rebranded in the late '60s/early '70s.

uplanderguy

fin, that's a single whitewall against the off-white wheels Stude used from '62-66.

That Hawk is a '61.

That Stude dealer photo is indeed from the '60 model year. The '59 and '60 Larks are very close but the '60 has the grille emblem down low in the center of the grille; '59 had it way to the left of the car. I could like a '60 V8 two-door wagon.

fintail

My car spotter friend spotted this today:

texases

Heck of a parking job!

uplanderguy

That's a '65. There's one way to identify from outside--on the rear, the "Studebaker" script is on that lower panel instead of above the molding on the decklid. So, it's "McKinnon powered"--i.e., Chevy engine.

uplanderguy

Don't know why the image is so fuzzy, but this may be my favorite image of a '65 Stude--Aug. '64 press photo of a '65 Daytona Sports Sedan out at the Studebaker Proving Ground, 15 miles west of downtown South Bend on Route 2.

No more hardtop or convertible for '65. The Daytona had a standard black or white vinyl roof.

thebean

I see a little bit of a 80’s Volvo vibe in these. Certainly not a bad thing. Thanks for posting.

uplanderguy

I'm reminded a bit of '78 GM midsizes--squarish styling, taller, not an ounce of fat in the styling. I always thought the 15 inch wheels, full rear-wheel cutouts, and four headlights gave the car more of a mid-size vibe than compact, which was its true size outside.

thebean

I can see that. Good point about no fat in the styling - very clean.

uplanderguy

This car is recently being advertised (again) for sale. If I were looking for a Stude, I think I'd snap this one up. Price went from $15K to "$12.5K or best offer". Cold AC and supposedly runs well. About 2 1/2 hrs. from me. I'm done with old cars, but that factory broadcloth seating makes me weak in the knees. Sold new in small-town Washington.

First two things I'd do:

1) Buy new repro sill plates which I'm nearly certain are available.
2) Take that gold round sticker off the quarter window. That sticker was applied at the factory to the lower right corner of the windshield and most of the time, dealers removed them before delivery. It's something about "This Quality-Built Studebaker" or the like.

Seating like that in a domestic car that era and size, is absolutely unique.

uplanderguy

Pic taken from FB this morning....

I remember reading a guy say once that dragging a wet chamois over that curved lower area behind the rear wheel opening was almost a s**ual experience, LOL.

kyfdx

Not postwar, but..

uplanderguy

Cool, I had not seen this before; thanks for posting.

kyfdx

uplanderguy said:

Cool, I had not seen this before; thanks for posting.

It's in the "vault" of the Petersen Auto Museum

uplanderguy

Some pics from South Bend. First and fifth are my two faves in the museum--'64 Daytona Hardtop 4-speed, unrestored original with 23.8 miles, last car built on the production line in the U.S., and designer Brooks Stevens' '64 Gran Turismo Hawk he bought new. Rest were cars I photographed down at the fairgrounds, at the swap meet.

fintail

Spotted by a friend at a Seattle area show yesterday:

uplanderguy

Wow, probably as nice of a '61 Hawk as I've ever seen!

kyfdx

fintail

Spotted in a local estate sale ad (not sure about the Wyoming plate)



Sale has a couple other old cars, one visible in the background. I snooped a little as the sale has a few interesting things (none enough to make me drive all the way over and line up to fight with pickers at 7am for items which may or may not be reasonably priced) the owner was a Stude guy, mentioned in his obit. Older streetview of his house also has a Lark and a pickup (Champ IIRC).

uplanderguy

Thanks for the '56 Golden Hawk photo. After Gran Turismos, '56 Hawks (particularly Sky Hawk) are my favorite Hawks. That's a beautiful example.

Thanks fin, for the bullet-nose. I'll be the first to admit that the bullet-nose is probably the most recognizable Stude to the masses--maybe partly because of 'The Muppet Movie'. I do like the one-piece curved windshield, not all that common then. That said, I think the styling is goofy. My wife always liked them, but I wouldn't bite.

They were the best-selling Studebaker cars ever, even though the Corporation made its biggest profit in its 107-year history to that time, in 1959.

I think bullet-noses tended to last, as I often see them when people post old pics online--even well into the sixties.

fintail

I wonder if that's a factory color, could be maybe.

Here are the streetview snaps - first, Champ and up the driveway a Loewy car (i think I saw that car on CL not too long ago):



And back around 12 years ago, a Lark up the driveway:



Stude fans are loyal.

uplanderguy

The Champ reminds me that it was the first pickup to have a sliding rear window.

In my experience, Stude owners are loyal. I'd hope people who worked there both in manufacturing and administration, would have enjoyed that so many people celebrate the brand so many years later.

Egbert's daughter told me herself in a message that she is planning on driving from the Avanti Club national meet in Detroit this summer (their club is separate from the Studebaker Drivers Club) to South Bend to see their old home at the Proving Ground. I'd hope someone could get her inside the Adminstration Building to see her Dad's old office, even though the building is in disrepair inside (the executive offices are in pretty good shape still). I'd say she is in her early or mid seventies.

imidazol97

The yellow 1950 Starlight? coupe color is not for 1950. Encino cream and sun valley yellow
were in the 1953-1955 era.

In the streetview pics, I wonder if the yellow car back in the driveway is a Speedster?
There was a yellow Speedster at a Troy OH show a couple years back. I think I poster pics
but have no way to locate them. It was a bright yellow.

uplanderguy

I saw an old 'Curbside Classic' article that they had reused, just this morning, about a '59 or '60 Lark. Reading the comments following, I had to laugh at a guy who had a friend who was driving a '60 Lark while in school and had been told by his Dad that when the Lark died, he'd help buy the kid a new(er) car. The Lark wouldn't die and they were all calling it "Mr. Reliable", LOL. In around '75 the kid stopped changing oil and other basic maintenance and when he graduated college, got a new '76 Chevette which supposedly didn't make it three miles home without stopping running. He had sold the Lark to a neighbor, who continued driving it into the '80's.

uplanderguy

imidazol, my gut feeling also is that that is a '55 Speedster in the driveway, in the 'lemon-lime' scheme so popular on those.

imidazol97

uplanderguy said:

imidazol, my gut feeling also is that that is a '55 Speedster in the driveway, in the 'lemon-lime' scheme so popular on those.

The tube like backup lights on the trunk are there...

E.g.,

uplanderguy

Those backup lights I'm guessing were probably standard on the Speedster, but they were the same ones used on all other '55 Studes as optional-at-extra-cost. I'd have to find a '55 without them, and also without the fog lights in front.

imidazol97

Avanti
Omaho Orange. I don't remember seeing one in that orange red color.

uplanderguy

Omaha Orange was a Studebaker truck color in the sixties.

I love Avantis, but that one has a couple small authenticity issues I can see right off--"Avanti" nameplate on decklid instead of "Studebaker"; no 'pirates buckle''S' emblem on C-pillar, and labelled a '64 although with that instrument panel sans fake woodgrain, and without the fake wood wheel, that's a '63.

Owner can be forgiven though, since Stude at some point started saying that Avantis would be upgraded/revised without any attention to model year, and thus the cars were often titled with a model year whenever they were sold. I also think there was a decent size factory stock of Avantis at South Bend and at some point I'd read that the dealers were to ask if the customer wanted choice of 'round headlights' or 'square headlights', so you could've gotten what was really a '63, when you thought you were getting a '64, just without square headlights.

ab348

I read somewhere that Omaha Orange originated with an Omaha utility company (electricity perhaps) who specified orange for their truck fleet. It somehow became the name for the paint shade used by many commercial vehicles/makes.

uplanderguy

Interesting, I'd not heard of that.

uplanderguy

Nice '66 Daytona Sports Sedan sold for $15,250 today on BaT. My guess is that is a record for a GM-powered Canadian-built Stude two-door sedan. I sold my four-door Cruiser with way less miles, for $10K in three days, about nine months ago, but I do think people prefer the two-door, and this car has bucket seats and A/C.

The seller sold two outstanding Avanti-powered '64 Hawks in the past year or two on BaT; one supercharged and one not; I'm quite sure both fetched in the $50's.

This Daytona has some remarkable original photos and paperwork from the owner to Studebaker, telling them they were disappointed to hear about the plant closing as they were aware of the three new colors introduced in Jan. '66 and that the rear extractor vents were chromed effective that month too, but that "...tell your Baltimore or D.C. area dealers that their inventory will be reduced by one since we can't order but will intend to buy from stock".

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1966-studebaker-daytona-sport-sedan/

fintail

I like those rear blinds. Fun history on that car, and I think a fair deal for its condition and rarity.

imidazol97

I always enjoy @uplanderguy detailing the things that are done wrong on classic Studebakers.

Since the orange one I posted was given a license plate of 1964, and from what uplanderguy
said, I started looking at the switches on the console for the heater controls.

1963


1964


1965


1966


Compared to my picture of the vehicle in question

imidazol97

The orange Avanti drove into the cruise-in, but parked as a spectator rather than parking in the show.

I met the car on the driveway into the show and returned to get a look at it. I've found that the spectators often drive really interesting cars to the shows. Best were the National (international) Ford/Mercury Crown Victoria convention at Marriot Dayton and next year the National Mercury convention also with Mercuries from Canada.

fintail

Did OH have personal plates in 1964, or is that some kind of reissue? Very ahead of their time if they did.

uplanderguy

Good question. I don't know as I lived in PA then.

Found this online, that shows that Fulker Motors in Baltimore, where both the raffle one-owner '63 Hawk and BaT '66 Daytona were bought new, also sold M-B.

fintail

Big enough market to where MB was probably a money maker.

I don't think WA got personalized plates until maybe the late 70s.

fintail

Here's an unusual piece of Stude-adjacent memorabilia

thebean

LOL! “Please come and get this before my wife leaves me!!”

uplanderguy

I was thinking that mold had a taker some few weeks back, but maybe not.

The Avanti should never have been a four-door. The rear door reminds me of '53-60 four-door Studes--clears your head, but looks goofy.

texases

What the heck would you do with it? Maybe a museum...

uplanderguy

Pretty new '63 Lark Daytona Hardtop, Mass. plate (per a poster on the FB site "Vintage Wheels", where this pic was posted early today).

In two-doors I tend to like the '64 styling better, but the '63's have their charms. What a sweetheart!

I can't tell if the car is Silver Mist or Champagne Gold.

What makes me think the car is new or close to it, is it has the narrow whitewalls that go right up to the (white) wheel, which I don't recall ever seeing on other cars besides '63 Studebaker Larks and Hawks.

thebean

Nice pic and car, @uplanderguy Can you please list a few of the styling changes between the ‘63 & ‘ 64? With Stude in the financial shape they were then, I’m a bit surprised they made any styling changes.

texases

thebean said:

Nice pic and car, @uplanderguy Can you please list a few of the styling changes between the ‘63 & ‘ 64? With Stude in the financial shape they were then, I’m a bit surprised they made any styling changes.

Here's a '64, surprisingly large change, must have been in the works:


Here's all kinds of details on the changes '63/'64. They were numerous:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studebaker_Lark