@uplanderguy said:
I think Stude, in the '62 and later years, was trying to differentiate by talking about exterior size vs. interior space (Suddenly it's '77 at GM! LOL), and maybe even trying to come across as a domestic, low-cost 'Benz imitator in a few small ways. Those few engineering things were decidedly non-Big Three at the time.
The only '60's Stude available with power windows was Avanti. Seems like the Gran Turismo Hawk should have been available with them, but they weren't.
In the pre-Lark years, power windows were available on sedans and Hawks, but only the front windows on Hawks. Not sure on the sedans and too lazy to check.
Having power windows only in the front was common in Europe. Renault comes to mind.
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I think uplander called the 63 styling "Mercedes-Bends" - I like that. There's definitely an influence, I don't know if Stude could have or should have pushed it more, but the similarity isn't a bad thing for those who wanted a non-gargantuan car. On that note too, power windows were never available on fintail sedans. Same for power seats, and AC was dealer-installed only.
IIRC some lower line MBs could be had with power windows in the front only into the 80s.
I saw the front of this truck with Studebaker across the top of the grill. Obviously on their way to a July 4 car show, probably one that attracts hundreds during the day in Urbana. Accompanied by a Jeep type vehicle in desert sand color.
Despite the oversized tires, nice Blue Mist '63 convertible parked outside the Studebaker National Museum yesterday:
I know, can never resist photographing the last car off the U.S. assembly line, under 24 miles. Twin Traction, R1 engine, 4-speed, disc brakes, split bench seats, in-dash tach:
"Sixties Compacts" category at the 'Concours at Copshaholm' show there yesterday. I don't love the 'Autumn Haze' color on the '61, but that car passed all my nitpicking-for-authenticity things:
'51 Land Cruiser V8 restored by my friends the Pipers at Westmoreland Restorations and displayed at Copshaholm yesterday:
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Restored Studebaker guard shack that was photographed for papers across the nation, showing workers walking out near it, the day the U.S. closure announcement was made. New historical markers since the last time I was there.
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I liked how this owner displayed the car with front and rear door vent windows open. '64 Cruiser.
The plate says "Last Day", but he admitted it was built Dec. 19, 1963, not Dec. 20, and said "Dec. 19 was the last full day of production", which in technicality is so.
Interesting story. Older lady ordered this car Dec. 9, the day the closure announcement was released worldwide. She bought the car from the dealer in Bessemer, AL. Four years later, she had a minor fender-bender and decided she didn't want to drive anymore. She asked the selling dealer, who was now selling some other brand, if he'd buy it from her. He did, did the repair (which current owner said is not perfect), and for fun, displayed it in his showroom until 1991, when the owner before the current owner bought it.
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I wanted to take a pic of the old Studebaker Administration Building Fri. afternoon from the street, but it sits just beyond a railroad underpass and that area was full of homeless. Didn't want to risk it. Sigh.
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Once I approached the OH-IN line, both days, I got off and got on US20. A delightful drive through the country and some small towns.
Coming home, I got on US6 and in Bryan, OH stopped at a diner I'd been to before and wanted a piece of pie. I normally hate people who post food pics, but this was my chocolate pie there yesterday. Hit the spot!
Didn't get on the OH Turnpike until Fremont.
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That clip tells me how much of an old grump I’ve become because all of what the narrator calls “hot rods” are what made me lose interest in the hobby a while back. All the aftermarket junk, all the bad taste in the universe on display, and all the bad ideas people get grew to be a major turn-off. The ‘49 Ford woody wagon they showed is something I can really admire because it looked restored to original and was as it should be.
Nice Studebaker Marshal. There’s one in the Stude museum, same year and white. They have a front bench seat, but the driver’s portion is bolstered like a bucket seat. Odd and cool.
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This is a 253-mile car, third from last built, on Bring A Trailer now. The car was bought with 100 miles less than a year ago. It's a plain-jane '66 Commander six four-door with stick, in the unusual 'Spring' color of "Plum Metallic".
Being sold by the guy who bought my '66 Cruiser in 2023.
Not a real desirable model, even among Stude folks, but the color, condition, mileage, and provenance make me wonder what it will go for. It's up to $10K pretty early in the sale process.
The '64-66 Studes remind me a bit of '78 Malibus, in that I don't think there's an inch of wasted space in the styling. From the rear, It's almost as if the cabin is as wide as the entire car...not unlike Avalons of maybe twenty years ago. But there's something about this Plum Commander that reminds me of a K-Car!
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I'm on my road trip right now, my mom dragged me into a couple antique/thrift mall type places. In one there was a pile of old owners manuals, and I saw one for a 62 Lark. They wanted $2 or $3 for it - seems ok, but what would I do with it?
I’m in lust. Black is unusual on an Avanti and this car is original everything at 16,258 miles. In Vermont for $84k. Very rich but I can’t recall when I’ve seen such a low-mileage original Avanti, especially in black. Sold new at McCarthy Hardware Co. (lol) in Mankato, Kansas. .
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Good question. I remember a turquoise '63 maybe a decade ago with 10K miles. I normally really like the turquoise, but this black with red is just really grabbing me.
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True dat. The wifely unit had a ‘96 C280 Benz and it was horribly difficult to keep looking decent. Plus, she got black leather interior and in Texas in the summer it was very nearly a torture chamber.
I’m sure black is the Avanti’s rarest color. I love it. It got discontinued somewhere in the ‘63 model year and was replaced with gray. Black returned for the ‘64 model year as a $35 option. Supposedly the fiberglass body required extra prep in black.
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Well, that the Stude Museum has production orders (build sheets) hopefully will be the most useful it can be for me.
My late sister had a '49 Champion convertible which is in off-site storage, and that person wants it gone. My sister's kids can't locate a key for the car.
The museum sent me the ignition and trunk key nos. from the production order and I found a place in FL that can make keys from them.
We'll see if they work.
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Comments
Having power windows only in the front was common in Europe. Renault comes to mind.
2021 VW Arteon SEL 4-motion, 2018 VW Passat SE w/tech, 2016 Audi Q5 Premium Plus w/tech
IIRC some lower line MBs could be had with power windows in the front only into the 80s.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Studebaker built military vehicles for the U.S. from the Civil War through Vietnam.
Despite the oversized tires, nice Blue Mist '63 convertible parked outside the Studebaker National Museum yesterday:
I know, can never resist photographing the last car off the U.S. assembly line, under 24 miles. Twin Traction, R1 engine, 4-speed, disc brakes, split bench seats, in-dash tach:
"Sixties Compacts" category at the 'Concours at Copshaholm' show there yesterday. I don't love the 'Autumn Haze' color on the '61, but that car passed all my nitpicking-for-authenticity things:
'51 Land Cruiser V8 restored by my friends the Pipers at Westmoreland Restorations and displayed at Copshaholm yesterday:
Restored Studebaker guard shack that was photographed for papers across the nation, showing workers walking out near it, the day the U.S. closure announcement was made. New historical markers since the last time I was there.
I didn’t stick around for this, but the Stude Museum unveiled the Muppet Movie car yesterday, just back from an eighteen-month restoration:
I liked how this owner displayed the car with front and rear door vent windows open. '64 Cruiser.
The plate says "Last Day", but he admitted it was built Dec. 19, 1963, not Dec. 20, and said "Dec. 19 was the last full day of production", which in technicality is so.
Interesting story. Older lady ordered this car Dec. 9, the day the closure announcement was released worldwide. She bought the car from the dealer in Bessemer, AL. Four years later, she had a minor fender-bender and decided she didn't want to drive anymore. She asked the selling dealer, who was now selling some other brand, if he'd buy it from her. He did, did the repair (which current owner said is not perfect), and for fun, displayed it in his showroom until 1991, when the owner before the current owner bought it.
Once I approached the OH-IN line, both days, I got off and got on US20. A delightful drive through the country and some small towns.
Coming home, I got on US6 and in Bryan, OH stopped at a diner I'd been to before and wanted a piece of pie. I normally hate people who post food pics, but this was my chocolate pie there yesterday. Hit the spot!
Didn't get on the OH Turnpike until Fremont.
Parked in a private residence a few doors up from the Studebaker National Museum:
I hate mirrors out on the fenders, and that the wheelcover cutouts are painted black, but I've seen other owners do that over the years, too.
You'll see something that might interest you about a minute into the video.
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Nice Studebaker Marshal. There’s one in the Stude museum, same year and white. They have a front bench seat, but the driver’s portion is bolstered like a bucket seat. Odd and cool.
That car at the very end of the video made me think of @roadburner. That is a BMW???
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
X2
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Being sold by the guy who bought my '66 Cruiser in 2023.
Not a real desirable model, even among Stude folks, but the color, condition, mileage, and provenance make me wonder what it will go for. It's up to $10K pretty early in the sale process.
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1966-studebaker-commander-2/?utm_source=Iterable&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=campaign_2648439&fbclid=IwY2xjawLlqY9leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFlUWhrd0V4NGpHOHprenJQAR6ZLzX0ezG1qBqT7z3PHMihpd11aonqDwSGprTwYeMsrXMi4YL08q3nisYIsQ_aem_u9PUK5Z6oC3VTofhxboo4Q
Interesting.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
2009 BMW 335i, 2003 Corvette cnv. (RIP 2001 Jaguar XK8 cnv and 1985 MB 380SE [the best of the lot])
I watched the show when I was a kid, but Ken Berry was no Andy Griffith.
‘63 promo photo I’d never seen before yesterday
Someone on FB posted this pic of their Laguna Blue ‘64 Gran Turismo Hawk yesterday.
The most desirable model year Hawk IMHO.
From a recent FB post on a Mid-Century Modern group site of Palm Springs Style Architecture.
The Avanti was designed in a rented house in Palm Springs.
I’m in lust. Black is unusual on an Avanti and this car is original everything at 16,258 miles. In Vermont for $84k. Very rich but I can’t recall when I’ve seen such a low-mileage original Avanti, especially in black. Sold new at McCarthy Hardware Co. (lol) in Mankato, Kansas. .
2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6
I’m sure black is the Avanti’s rarest color. I love it. It got discontinued somewhere in the ‘63 model year and was replaced with gray. Black returned for the ‘64 model year as a $35 option. Supposedly the fiberglass body required extra prep in black.
2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6
Random Studebaker sighting.
Should zoom great.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
‘49-‘53. Looks good, thanks for posting!
My late sister had a '49 Champion convertible which is in off-site storage, and that person wants it gone. My sister's kids can't locate a key for the car.
The museum sent me the ignition and trunk key nos. from the production order and I found a place in FL that can make keys from them.
We'll see if they work.