Postwar Studebakers

bhill2 · July 2018

omarman said:
Kramer in the back seat? And again on the beach.

It looks like him, but Michael Richards was only 14 or 15 when the commercial was filmed (he was born the same year I was).

uplanderguy · July 2018

I know that was an era of frequent styling changes, but that clip of the '64 Stude convertible driving down the street with all those late '50's cars parked makes the parked cars looks absolutely prehistoric to me, LOL.

Mr_Shiftright · July 2018

uplanderguy said:
I never liked the term "Avanti Engine". There is no such thing. Yeah, I know. Marketing.

We've had this conversation before. The engine is the same displacement as other 289 Stude V8's, but there are internal changes that upped the horsepower and compression, besides the chrome cosmetic items. That horsepower and compression had not been used in a 289 Studebaker prior to the introduction of the Avanti. Similarly, other than the "Corvette" valve covers and whatever changes it took to fit in the Corvette engine compartment, there aren't any internal differences between a 250 hp 327 in a '62 Corvette and a 250 hp 327 in a '62 Biscayne. Heads are the same...and that's right out of the Chevy shop manual. Later 'Vettes--OK.

Really, it's no different than Ford putting "Thunderbird Powered" badges on their '56 sedans when so-equipped.

Wait a minute---didn't the '63 Lark have the R2 option as well? Maybe they should have described the Avanti as "Lark Powered"?

uplanderguy · July 2018

As an automotive historian, I know you are aware that the Avanti was introduced prior to the rest of the '63 Studebaker line.

No Lark or Hawk had any R-series engine as early as the Avanti did. The engineering changes were made specifically for the Avanti and were later made available for Larks and Hawks.

Mr_Shiftright · July 2018

I know, I was just kidding. I think an R2 would be fun in an early Lark convertible, white with red interior, 4-speed. You'd have to build your own, though.

I'm still waiting for someone to build a nice resto-mod on a GT Hawk. Seen any that were well done? I mean a real BUILD.

ab348 · July 2018

Here's a pic of all the Studebakers (less one missing) that competed in The Great Race.

In related and sad news, one of the competitors died after having a heart attack following the awards banquet:

https://www.greatrace.com/news/tag-lewis.html

uplanderguy · July 2018

Ah, that is sad news.

uplanderguy · July 2018

That '50 Stude pickup on BaT was bid to $16,750 but didn't meet reserve.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1950-studebaker-2r2-12c2box/

Mr_Shiftright · July 2018

Oh, man, he should have let it go! Did he think it was a Chevy?

$16.5K was a righteous bid indeed! Engine bay is rather nasty-looking, some home-made carpeting, not restored underneath--at least not for a long time, weatherstripping is old. It has needs, although from 10 feet it looks pretty good as a walk-by.

uplanderguy · July 2018

My '66 Cruiser at its first local appearance tonight--although this past Saturday had it in my hometown's annual Heritage Days car show--800 cars this year.

sda · July 2018

The Cruiser looks really nice. What detailing have you done to it since you bought it? Are you happy with how it drives, all sorted out? Are you happy with your new Cruze? A Cruiser and a Cruze, lol.

fintail · July 2018

Looks like a new car.

uplanderguy · July 2018

Ironically, we have two Cruzes, a PT Cruiser, and a Studebaker Cruiser.

Well, long story short, a friend of mine put a new (used) intake manifold on it since he accidentally broke a carb mounting stud taking the carb off last year. Carb was rebuilt. I had some seepage of coolant after that manifold replacement, in one small area of the top right of the manifold. He re-torqued the bolts and put some sealer there yesterday. I am keeping an eye on the oil color and level to make sure coolant doesn't get in the oil (ugh). So far so good. He did polish the car for me, which it needed, and the paint seems to have really come out good since.

It drives and steers very tightly, due to the low mileage--26.5K.

berri · July 2018

I still really like the color

uplanderguy · July 2018

It's the color I'd have ordered back then on one too.

uplanderguy · July 2018

RE.: My Cruze ('17)--20K miles; so far, so good. Comfortable and I still think it was a great value for me, but I had $3,500 in GM Card money, $1,000 GM Goodwill money for a letter I'd written a few years before, and got $1,000 to finance $6,500 for two years on the car. Further, it was the one "Red Tag" Cruze in their inventory which was $5K off sticker. So my $22K sticker car was bought for about $11.5K before tax and my trade-in. I couldn't duplicate that deal this year. I never understood how they determined a "Red Tag" car. It wasn't based on length in inventory. I bought my car in mid-January and it was built in December.

uplanderguy · July 2018

This R2 '63 Lark Daytona is on eBay now. It definitely has needs, but is already bid to $14.8K with nine days left. Odd; was built without power steering, bumper guards (added, but in the wrong position), and full wheel covers--also added since. Non-original color repaint. I'll be real curious what it brings. I believe the R2 engine brings much more than the price guides suggest.

His production numbers look right, as they were listed in great deal in the club magazine in 1986. I remember that there were 112 R1 '63 Daytona Hardtops (which I had) and 110 R2 ones. The 4-speed, complete 'Super' package and original Super Red color pare that number down to three.

'Super Red' was a light maroon metallic, not unlike GM's Firethorn color of a decade or so later. Only cars with the 'Super' package could be had in that color.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1963-Studebaker-Daytona-Super-Lark-R2-Supercharged-4-speed-Hardtop-Hot-Rod/323329760288?hash=item4b47f49c20:g:yO0AAOSw6AlbRAVW&vxp=mtr

Mr_Shiftright · July 2018

Looks like a very risky purchase as it sits, so might not bring the expected price.

A much nicer one sold for $42K on BAT back in 2017. It seems this one on eBay is worth half that.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1963-studebaker-lark-daytona-r/

uplanderguy · July 2018

I would've liked the Super Red one if it were in better condition and still Super Red--I guess that's a 'duh' comment, I'll admit!

That black one--this is just me, but I can't stand when a car is taken to 85 or 90% of originality, and they just lazy/cheap out on the rest--not usually even big stuff. That seat upholstery is wrong; doesn't have the wraparound bumpers; "LARK" front fender lettering is missing (common to do this when the front fenders were replaced) ,'64 grille emblem.

The black car doesn't have the "Super" package, which besides the engine is mostly suspension bits, specific grille emblem, 160 mph speedometer. I have no idea if on comparable cars the 'Super' package adds any real dollars, but I do know the interest in them is higher among Studebaker guys. The 'Super' package only came out in April '63 and the last '63 Lark was built June 27, 1963. I'd say there are so few cars to compare, there wouldn't be any true record of comparable pricing between cars with the complete 'Super' package and ones without.

UPDATE: I see the black car has the 160 speedometer. I'm pretty sure, but not confident, that that was only for the "Super" cars. So it could have been added to this car at some point--folks like that piece. That car was built six months before the "Super" package. I'll have to do some more reading on this.

imidazol97 · July 2018

uplanderguy said:

.

Beautiful Studebaker.

About those wheel covers, is that wire spokes above a chrome background? That's gotta be hard to clean the metal behind the spokes...

uplanderguy · July 2018

It is absolutely hard to clean back there!

uplanderguy · July 2018

This pic was taken on July 7 in my hometown of Greenville, PA, at their "Heritage Days" Super Cruise--800 cars this year, in a town of 5,900 people.

The building is owned by my sister and her husband although they sold the business, same name since 1861, about a year ago.

The red Riviera is my friend Bob's. He drove it from Baltimore to NW PA just for the show! He had never driven it nearly that far before. It got rained on he said, and the speedometer quick working, but ran very well. Red leather inside which he had replaced as original. He did say it wanders on the road so some steering box work will be in order.

uplanderguy · July 2018

I've read in more than one place, people comparing the '66 Studebaker front-end styling to the '67 Chevy pickup (actually, the other way around), although I think it's a stretch.

toomanyfumes · July 2018

Saw a nice cream colored '49 Studebaker coupe the other day, could tell the year by the personalized plates.

berri · July 2018

Nice looking Victorian behind you too

uplanderguy · July 2018

My sister and her husband own that building. Her husband owned Shelly Memorials from 1968 to last year. The business has existed in town since 1861. That building was known as "Clark's Guest Home" when I was a kid; had a neon sign out front. My brother-in-law bought the building and continued to rent rooms there; when Sheetz came asking if he wanted to sell the original Shelly Memorial building across the street, he did and moved his showroom into the ground floor of the building in the picture.

berri · July 2018

Neat

ab348 · July 2018

Interesting piece on Hemmings abut the LeMay Museum's restoration of the "first" Avanti. Click the highlighted links in the story to go to sections of the LeMay site.

berri · July 2018

If you are ever in the Seattle area, LeMay is a great museum. Both the shiny, new exhibit building in Tacoma and the original grounds near McChord AFB.

uplanderguy · July 2018

I've heard it's a wonderful museum.

I like Avanti no. 1, but I detest those mirrors out on the fenders! I've seen factory photos of them with a mirror on the door and another car with the mirror out on the fender.

It's cool they are going to attempt to display that car with the last Studebaker Avanti which is owned by the Crawford Museum in Cleveland. It has no outside mirror, which looks best of all!--except that tiny windshield-mounted interior mirror is pretty useless I've heard.

uplanderguy · July 2018

My mistake--I see they will be displaying the car with the prototype Avantis Studebaker sold with serial nos. higher than the last car built!

uplanderguy · July 2018

This Avanti is my favorite one I've seen online, probably. Sold for six figures IIRC. I wish it had the fawn-and-elk (all beige) interior instead of fawn-and-black, but I'd take it. Perfect factory 'rake' on this one::

https://www.mecum.com/lots/CA0817-300013/1963-studebaker-avanti-r2/

fintail · July 2018

I might head down and check out that Stude meet, I see it has a weekend day.

uplanderguy · July 2018

I'll be curious about the turnout. That is a long way away from the middle of the country where Stude seemed to do best, LOL! You should drive your fintail!

fintail · July 2018

It'd be cool if a Stude meet had a section for MBs sold during the era when Studebaker was the distributor, but that might be kind of reaching. I haven't taken the car on that long of a drive in nearly a year, but I might take it there, could be fun.

uplanderguy · July 2018

I see the "Open Car Show" is from 9-2 the Saturday of the meet. I know of a few hard-core Stude guys from the Pacific NW from the club forum. I wish them the best out there, for this meet. The International Meet is an hour from where I live in 2019; I'm happy about that.

fintail · July 2018

I think it could be a good show, there are Studes around here - not like being in South Bend, but they definitely sold here when new.

uplanderguy · July 2018

The South Bend International Meets are wonderful, IMHO. Centrally-located, and always billed as "Coming Home". They're there every five years. They still have an annual weekend swap meet every May which I always go to. South Bend is the only place in the world where everybody, and I mean everybody, knows what a Studebaker is. It's always fun to have an old-timer come up and say "I put the (fill in the blank) on your car". Well, my current car was built in Hamilton, ON, so no one will be saying that, LOL.

South Bend folks and businesses seem to enjoy our being there, which I'm told is a far cry from sentiment there for probably a decade after the closing.

uplanderguy · July 2018

Studebaker in the current news:

http://www.autonews.com/article/20180716/RETAIL/180719862/studebaker-justice-department?X-IgnoreUserAgent=1

omarman · July 2018

interesting safety campaign but no context that I can find on google.

omarman · July 2018

Well you look for one thing and find something else interesting too.

This is Gregorio Chavez, Indiana's 2016 Bicentennial torch bearer for St Joseph county being chauffeured in a Studebaker (Lark?) convertible with a color combo which you cannot order today! From any car maker.

uplanderguy · July 2018

That Champagne Gold '63 Lark Daytona convertible is beautiful and in the Studebaker National Museum's collection.

I can remember seeing a cover car on a Cars and Parts magazine in the mid-eighties that showed an original owner '63 Lark Daytona Hardtop R2 4-speed in that color combination, and at the time I didn't like it. It's really grown on me since.

uplanderguy · July 2018

Thanks for posting that early-fifties Stude. I have never seen that pic nor heard the story before myself.

uplanderguy · July 2018

I've read that Super Lark sold for $16K, but commentary says it was very 'crunchy' and the hope is the buyer has a donor body.

uplanderguy · July 2018

I posted a link to this sometime in the past, but I came across the ad again, and I like it. It's the last magazine ad for a Studebaker Avanti. When in college, I cut it out of the library's Dec. '63 National Geographic (I think) and had it on my dorm wall.

omarman · July 2018

uplanderguy said:
That Champagne Gold '63 Lark Daytona convertible is beautiful and in the Studebaker National Museum's collection.

I can remember seeing a cover car on a Cars and Parts magazine in the mid-eighties that showed an original owner '63 Lark Daytona Hardtop R2 4-speed in that color combination, and at the time I didn't like it. It's really grown on me since.

Those colors really grab your attention especially these days. I liked it right away and forgot what I was looking for. Can't tell from the pic what color the dash panel is.

berri · July 2018

Always thought the Avanti had a nice interior and dash

uplanderguy · July 2018

I'm not sure about the woodgrain dash and wheel, but I do like how the final running change on a Studebaker Avanti was a section added to the back of the front seats to make them look thicker, as in this ad.

uplanderguy · July 2018

Those colors really grab your attention especially these days. I liked it right away and forgot what I was looking for. Can't tell from the pic what color the dash panel is

The instrument panel would be red--padded on the top and bottom.

bhill2 · July 2018

Since I'm cruising this discussion anyway, I have a question. I was looking at Hemmings Motor News last night and saw an ad for a '58 President hardtop with a supercharged 289. I believe that the President was on the same chassis as the Golden Hawk, was the blower an option on it or is this a transplant?

Postwar Studebakers

Comments

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles