4:45 The R2 was not bored over. It was the same bore diameter and stroke as the R1, with 289.06 cubic inch displacement, with the same 9.0:1 compression ratio as the Hawk engines. The R2 was supercharged. The Bonneville record car was bored .060 over for 299.4 cubic inches with the R2 supercharger and cam, and pushed an Avanti to 29 Bonneville records in class C and Unlimited class. A couple of dozen 289 blocks were shipped to Andy Granatelli's speed shop for modifications, most notably a .093 overbore for 304.5 cubic inches, a hotter cam, carburetor enclosed in a pressure box, and the Paxton SN60 centrifugal supercharger, engines so modified designated as the R3. A few of the overbored blocks got special heads and pistons for a 12.5:1 compression ratio, and dual four-barrels, this R4 engine producing about the same horsepower and torque as the R2, According to the literature from Avanti Motor Corporation in 1973, Studebaker never advertised horsepower ratings for any of the Avanti engines, and the figures widely rumored were generally understated. Studebaker marketing preferred to let the performance speak for itself. A side note, it is rumored that Granatelli wouldn't ship an R3 until it had posted 415 horsepower in the dyno. Nine R3s were installed in Avantis, one in a '64 Studebaker Commander, and maybe a dozen were still in the crates when Studebaker ceased US production in December of '63. I have seen a modified R3 with a dual carb intake, the Paxton supercharger and a jewel-like mirror-polished splitter duct from the supercharger to the carbs.
And let’s not forget even the 259 and 232 both had forged cranks, rods and pistons. Studebaker over built everything. The only downfall to the studebaker engine is the cylinder heads and even those can be made good. I’ve got a worn out 289 4bbl in my 58 silver hawk and it’s got more power than any stock small block Chevy I’ve ever had.
Approx 100-180 R3'S and R4s were apparently done by Granatelli in Cal. Yes 335 HP was the advertised HP for the base R3. But most produced closer to that 400 figure. To my knowledge following the Avanti for 63 years and owning A true 1964 model R2, NO second step R3 was ever produced for Sale. That upgrade included Advanced engine features and power beyond the basic R3. Too much to describe herein.
I put together several models as a young boy but had never actually seen one until my 30s! I was on my way to a bookstore in Novato, CA, and there were six in the parking lot.
The design of the car was so perfect it still looks great today. I drove one for a half hour way back when and it was definitely an exciting improvement over much of what was being produced at the time.
I drove an Avanti once. It was sitting on a used car lot, me and my buddy were walking by, and we asked the dude about it, and he asked us if we wanted to drive it. I couldn't tell you what year it was, but it was a four speed. My boss has a 63 Studebaker Lark, I drove it once too, it's a three on the tree. I got in it and said, "I haven't driven one of these in a long time, where's reverse? All the way up? Yep." When kids get their license, they should have to take the test in a 63 Lark with three on the tree, mechanical clutch, manual steering, and manual brakes, that way they have to prove that they can actually _drive_ instead of just hold a steering wheel. Hey, I could be harsher, they could be forced to take their test in a 56 Willys...
When I was a kid back in the 80s, my grandfather had this absolutely beautiful black 57 Studebaker Golden Hawk with the supercharged engine and gold plated wire wheels. I always felt like one of the super elite when riding in the back seat of that masterpiece artwork. To this day, the Golden Hawk is still in my top five of all time favorite cars.
First Avanti I ever saw was parked at the Peachtree Hills Recreation Center in Atlanta, probably summer of '62. It was metallic turquoise and had a discreet _Supercharged_ badge on the front fender.
@@duelenigma7732 Well lucky you, I was crammed in the back seat of a 1957 Rambler station wagon with 1/2 dozen younger siblings. I now own a 57 Golden Hawk in Azure blue metallic, with 3 sp. OD. trans.
You’re a very lucky man!! When I was a young wannabe Gearhead growing up on a BIG Corporate farm in Arizona. A man who worked in the office bought a new Grand Tourismo Hawk , with the supercharged 289. I spent so much time respectfully admiring his car he offered to take me for a ride. I was impressed, to say the least. I hated it when Studebaker went under. But by that time I’d ridden in a 409 Impala and a 63 Galaxie with a 406 tri power. So no tears were shed. It took a while for me to appreciate the design of the Avanti and the rest of the Studebaker line. As I said your lucky man to own such a unique and special Car. And if you married the Prom Queen, don’t tell me, no one deserves that much luck.
Every time I see one close up at a show, the class, the attention to detail and the uniqueness always take my breath away. These really were special cars. In many ways almost too good for their customers to really appreciate.
I have a 64 studebaker daytona (lark) the Avanti guys don't hang out with us regular stude guys even though the chassis is the same. Also- I'm 31 I'm the only studebaker owner in my region that isn't in retirement
@@rarecars3336 Studebaker's problems with fiberglass production fueled the decision to offer all the Avanti performance goodies on every Studebaker model except the "standard" which was not even badged as a Lark. The Avanti engines, transmission, disc brakes, bucket seats, suspension modifications, and all the rest were available _a la carte_ or as an option group. "Full Package" cars got a distinctive_Super Lark_ or _Super Hawk_ badge with a blue circle in the middle of the oval badge calling out the version of the Jet Thrust engine under the hood.
I was a teen in the late fifties and wanted a Golden Hawk. Then the Avanti came out and I wanted that. Never had enough money for either and still don't. And still dreaming. Love of those cars never dies.
Studebaker made a lot of really awesome cars in the 50's and 60's. The Avanti was just the last of them. Their Hawk series of cars were also ahead of their time. I really liked them.
You have said everything I could have. I loved all the Loewy coupes up to and including the Hawks. The Avanti came out when I was in high school and I was blown away!
I loved the Hawks also. But I don't know much. My Dad, on the other hand, was in many ways a well-qualified expert and he LOVEd the Studebakers, including the Hawk. He spoke very highly of Studebaker - every car they ever made.
I'm a Studebaker fan from way back. The Avanti is, to my 67 year old eyes, the most beautiful car ever made in the US. Gorgeous, powerful, high performance in it's time. I wish I could afford one. Their other cars - 1953 Starliner Coupe, 1957 Golden Hawk, 1962 Hawk GT - All also superb cars. They looked sleek when the Big Three were putting motors in steel shoeboxes. 😊
Shout out to the memory of Bob Andrews, Jon Ebstein, and Tom Kellogg, Loewy's design devlopment team, and to Sherwood Egbert, the visionary who, given the chance, could have turned Studebaker's fortunes around.
I remember the Avanti from when I was a kid. I was 8 years old when it was released. While I've never owned or driven one, I did get to see one at a dealer when they first came out. The R3 is my White Whale car.
@@rarecars3336Part of the problem was a lack of funds as well as Quality Control issues at Paxton. Their Superchargers were failing at an extremely high rate at that time. They would order boxes of matched ball bearing balls then put multiple boxes (not matched) into the hoppers to produce the SuperChargers. The different sized balls caused a high failure rate. Granatelli talks about it in his book "They Call Me Mr. 500".
Just two correction. The comments about the body quality is a bit off.....they didn't make a change mid production. The problem was the some bodies initially didn't fit properly which prevented production from happening on time or on schedule. So cars weren't being produced in the initial quantities desired until they could fix the Fiberglass body production issue. There were people waiting for their cars but no cars were arriving. Think of it this way, you can bend metal and make it fit, you can't bend fiberglass....the poor fitting bodies were thrown away. The QA production corrections were made at the fiberglass plant and then the 1963 cars really started to roll out, but that first 6 month delay meant sales orders were cancelled. The implication that there are Avanti's our there on the road that have poor body quality isn't the case. They refused to ship cars when the bodies didn't fit the chassis properly. The second correction is that an R2 is a 289, it's not a 304 as claimed. The R3 and R4 are 304's. One additional comment. Studebaker Packard was a company with a diverse product line, Automobiles, Electronics, Engines, Petroleum products, the Car business wasn't as profitable as the rest of Studebaker. The closing of South Bend and focusing production in Canada only was a way to save money and not fund the US Pension Plan. Studebaker continued producing cars until 1966. The reason for the termination of the car business could be directly placed on the poor closing or announcement of shutting South Bend down. Studebaker didn't announce it, the local media did and got the story all wrong. Which really ruined consumer confidence. The mainstream media once again getting the facts all wrong and not understanding why South Bend was closed. The company could have continued fine with it's Canadian operations and other associated plants around the world.
Those Ashtabula botched bodies were not thrown away. They were cut apart and reconfigured by Studebaker in house correctly. About100 units. These botched bodies came from mfg all messed up. Mfg claimed they forgot about fiberglass curing shrinkage. Oh ya sure! After building Vette fiberglass parts for eleven years, they " Forgot?". Guess which big 3 made sure MFG company "forgot" Be curious to know if and how much that "forgot" cost the other fiberglass client.
Pretty good job . I would quibble with some of the detail, but the overall story you tell is fairly accurate. The term “botched” isn’t one that would ever come to my mind and isn’t one I have ever heard used with this car. It was a great accomplishment for the Loewy design team and the engineers , manufacturing and marketing staffs at Studebaker to develop and start to produce this really unique product in a little over a year with almost no available capital to invest. At the time a writer with one of the auto publications remarked that GM couldn’t redesign and tool up to produce a new grill in the time it took to produce the Avanti.
The problems were mostly getting the fiberglass body panels adjusted properly. Where the workers were familiar warping sheet metal steel fender/doors to fit the gaps the fg wouldn't stay bent. Also these were the last cars from a failing business. Studebaker joined Packard Hudson and Nash to form American motors.
I was 11 years of age when I first saw this car I was standing nearby in a dealership when a salesman started the engine it was like music the sound of the engine was truly amazing I never heard anything like it.
got into a street race back in 86 with an avanti against my 68 camaro bracket racer. we finished together at the next street light. that car sounded really bad ass too. i never got to talk to the guy but i'd have to say his avanti was definitely built as my camaro was a 10 second car. avanti is one of the coolest looking cars out of the 60s and also super rare.
Found this channel today.. I’m a fully fledged British “car-guy” but have to admit you’ve just schooled me on cars I’d never heard of.Keep up the good work bro 😎
My uncle owned and loved his Stud! He always bought hawks usually golden hawks but when they went under he switched to circa its until he killed a jaywalking kid then he never got behind the wheel again. But he drove to every contiguous state in both cars. And every back side window was covered with a sticker of every state he visited or its highlights. And a few from Canada and Mexico. He loved his Studs!!
The Avanti was such a beautiful car. Its exterior design was more European than the 1963-1967 Corvette. Studebaker's supercharged 304 was an absolutely amazing engine.
The original 232 V8 from model year 1951 was amazing as well. It was heavily overbuilt in anticipation of the 300-octane corner-gas-station pump gas that the petroleum companies were promising was closer than the horizon. The basic architecture with maximum overbore and longest possible stroke came in at the R3 304.5 cubes. Ive read that the day Studebaker pulled the plug on US production was also the day that the foundry cast the engineering prototype block for an all-new V8 that would have started out at about 340 cubic inches.
Nice video, my dad was the head of the design team that came up with the final design in Palm Springs. The 64 square headlights were taped up on my dad's 63 - the Avanti was my father's favorite project and though I am probably not objective it's still a design that holds up well. BTW in addition to the fiberglass issues, the UAW went out on strike against Studebaker in January 1962, not helping at all.
Your dad was part of the group for which I am forever grateful. They produced the most elegant, aerodynamic ,svelte, beautiful and advanced four passenger design in American automotive history -- bar NONE. All big 3 ever did until the Avanti came along was push out barges bathtubs and refridges. Period. Even the 63 Vette, which was a GREAT improvement over the previous homely vettes,did not compare well with the fabulous Avanti. It was at best a distant second. That said 63 and the 64 Vette remain the ONLY Vette I admire. The current ones are simply lunch tossers.
Excellent Video...! Dozens of previous Avanti videos are full of errors. This video is one of the most historically correct I've seen...! No nonsense about "made in Canada" "ford 289's" or turbochargers."
I can still remember reading a review of the Avanti by an enthusiast magazine comparing it to the Corvette. They said the body was smoother than the Vetee and the performance was satisfactory.
Thanks- my all time favourite US vehicle (it actually harks back to the Cord which was also way ahead of its time). So sexy: gold with wire wheels, saw one in New Zealand - what a dream .
Egbert was not a designer at all. His only "sketch" was a very crude one on a napkin. And his original suggestion was that it be something like a Jaguar E type. He did, however, have some design input. He was 6 foot four and bumped his head getting out of the car resulting in the windshield angle being changed to be less steep and the car a little taller. As a pilot, he did provide suggestions resulting in the aircraft interior look mentioned in the video. Tings interior heater levers look like aircraft controls, the gauges have white and red (for night driving) bulbs, and an almost useless tiny sun visor as he hated the big floppy things. The visors just swing down and provide very little value and they don't swing to the side. And the world's first car with switches above the windshield
One of the people on our block, owned an Avanti. Beautiful car; he let me sit in it when I was little. I wanted it so bad; but by the time I got my license, I still couldn't afford one, so I settled on a 65 Ford Mustang. Lots of fun, but I will never know what it would have been, if I could have afforded an Avanti way back when.
I grew up in a Los Angeles suburb and our street was a car Mecca. Our next door neighbor had an Avanti and it got more attention than any of the myriad exotic cars that graced the street.
I noticed the front and rear lights were flush with the bodywork, I wonder if this was the first car to use that idea. I think the design of the back of the car is nicer than the front. Considering the cars of the time this seems to be way ahead of its time !
Famous art deco designer Raymond Leowy did the Avanti body styling. Check out the Studebaker Hawk series. Compared to other cars they always looked years ahead.
@@jeffbrinkerhoff5121Thanks for that Jeff I will definitely check that out I'm not overly familiar with American cars and names but I have to say this channel has really hooked me in ! I can see myself going to some American car meets here in the UK.
My dad had a red Lark Wagonaire, with the sliding roof, 3 on tree and Hillholder, which kept it from rolling backward on uphill starts. Great car, dead reliable, he put a quarter million miles on it. When Stude went under they sold the Hillholder feature to Subaru.
I have liked the Stude Avante ever since I was old enough to say the word . I am 77 now and would love to own an R1 , R2 , and R3 . Just because they are such iconic cars that need to be preserved for history . Yes I would drive them . The last one I saw on the road was a charcoal colored one in the middle 1980’s . Still a classic car . Had an uncle that drove Studebaker’s almost exclusively . Till they went out of business , loved the Hawks .
I remember a TV programme about the Avanti shown here in the UK, it documented some of the problems the Avanti suffered in its conception but also disclosed that the wheelbase and track dimensions were identical to that of the Ford Mustang which was launched some time later.
Actually, it had a 109” wheelbase, vs. 108” for the Mustang…and it’s track was narrower, as it was based on a chassis dating back to 1953, when cars were significantly narrower.
Nice video. 👍 Our family owned two. First was destroyed when hit by a drunk driver. It was white with the turquoise interior. Second was white with the burgundy interior. They had AC, electric windows and the 3-speed automatic. The styling was great, the interior comfy but they were quite heavy and dangerous handling in the rain. Gas milage from the stock 289 with 4 barrel was 12-15 mpg on high octane fuel. If GM or Ford had built and sold them using steel instead of fiberglass and a better chassis design they would have sold well. The first gen Camaro body design was influenced by the Avanti. Studebaker was dying when the Avanti came out and they did not have efficient & sufficient production to meet demand. It is always a treat seeing one at a car show and talking to the owners, plus there are lots of other YT videos about the Avanti and other Studebakers. Raymond Lowey also designed the beautiful 1953 Studebaker Commander Starliner hardtop, which was 10 years ahead in designs from the other auto companies. It still looks modern in 2024.
As a kid I remember my parents had a Studebaker Champion. My mom disliked it because it was hard to steer at slow speeds. One time, I remember she was turning into an alley, cutting it short, and ending up hitting the side of the car on a telephone pole at the entrance to the alley. I think that soon after that, my parents got a 1955 Chevy Belair, red and white. I remember the Avanti when it was introduced by Studebaker, but like the documentary said, Studebaker was on the ropes. An interesting side light is that I went to Notre Dame. The old Studebaker home was turned into a nice restaurant but the loss of Studebaker hit South Ben hard and it took a long time for it to recover.
I've imagine what Studebaker would've been had both Studebaker and Packard merge together with Hudson and Nash along with Kaiser and Jeep to form AMC in 1954?
A 3-speed floor shift was also available. I have one of approximately 60 made. I also have a dealer overdrive added as Studebaker never offered the Avanti with one.
In the summer of '62, I was watching some Saturday afternoon TV show, when the first ad for the Avanti was aired. Only one other such intro was as galvanizing: the silhouetted roof line of the '59 Buick Electra. !!! to both ..
I got to sit in one of these at a car show when I was about 10 years old. I especially remember the overhead switches and super-cool instrument panel. It looked like a rocket ship compared to the '64 Lark sitting next to it.
My FIL had a '63 Lark Daytona convertible, with the very first bucket seats and 4-speed transmission. He worked as a tractor mechanic that also sold Studebakers, so he special-ordered one as a wedding gift for his bride. He also got to ride in a supercharged Avanti, with the factory salesman. He said it was wicked-quick.
I never cared that much for the Avanti. There were a few around when I was a kid. The Studebaker that I really like was the 62-64 Hawk. They should have bought the tooling for it.
You can watch a road test of the Avanti II on a great retro road test show with Bud Lindemann on You Tube. The Avanti he tests was an Avanti II with a mean Vette 327 mill. Check it out you might enjoy all of the road tests!
I was 8 years old when I had my first ride in a Avanti. The Studebaker dealer was a friend of my father so we went to see it and went for a spin. This was in Warren Ohio and the car was white. Still remember that day
I never really paid to much attention to them. But your video has opened my eyes about this car. I think it's cool and way ahead of it's time, that. R3 was a bod boy for sure. Love your work, well researched a lot of important info, well done. 👍👍🏁🏁
A few owners had the '63 round headlights replaced with the rectangular nacelles used on the late '64 examples (there had been a few front facias left over when Studebaker began the calling them '64 models).
one of these is still driven and street parked in cuy falls Ohio.. saw it for the first time walking my dog ànd its sum thing to behold when walked up upon not knowing what it was and hearing it start up and pull away.. this was like 2yrs ago and was mind blowing
My dad really liked Studebakers. He bought a 60 2 door Lark, a very stripped down one that had been the grand prize in a raffle but the winner didn’t want it. Dad liked the car enough that he traded it in on a 63 Lark 4 door sedan that he kept till 1970. I think I have the sales brochure from 63 that shows the Avanti and all the other models
I'm a fan of the Silver Hawk, the Grand Tourismo Hawk, and the Avatte, even the Avatte 2 ,beautiful, beautiful cars. Endo yes some of the early fifties to, like the Commander. I am lucky enough to own a 1973 Thunderbird.
I would like to see Chip Foose design some wheels to compliment the overall design of the of the Avanti. Seems like the wheels are always in a fight with the body style. Great video, thanks.
My dad loved Studebakers and I never got it. I loved the Golden Hawkes and thought the Avanti was interesting but now I believe one of their problems was that they were a few years ahead of their time. I now see a little of what my dad saw in these cars.
Thanks for the Avanti cameo video, if yo can please show images of the models described such as the convertible Studebaker Lark rather than hardtop, etc.
The early Avanti IIs had 327s and then switched to 350s . The fabled DZ was a 1969 Z28 , 302 inch engine . Way too high strung and temperamental for use in a luxury car like an Aventi .
I don't know if this was posted by somebody else but I wanted to give some clarification for the R-series engines. R1 was a higher compression (circa 10.25:1) naturally aspirated 289. R2 was also 289 but with less compression and your mentioned Paxton supercharger. R3's started in development as 299 CID engines, using +0.060" overbore pistons. Those were the development cars and they're all the R3's that raced and set records. One R3 made 299 cubic inches via 1/8" more stroke (up to 3.75"). The (9) factory production R3 cars were 3 21/32" of bore and those are the 304 CID cars. R4 and R5 draw parallels to R1 & R2 in that R4 is a nat. asp. dual 4 barrel higher compression 304 and R5 lowered the compression to use (2) centrifugal Paxton superchargers on its 304.
289 stock factory bore was 3.5625" (3 9/16") 299 stock factory bore was 3.6225" 304 stock factory bore was 3.65625" (3 21/32") Studebaker's crank stroke was 3.625" (3 5/8") The stroked 299 had a length of 3.75" (3 3/4") These are all for the 289 and 289 modified blocks. Smaller displacement engines were available and had other measurements.
The 60s had the best cars! There's so many unique and striking designs. They're basically art that you can drive. Also, to my knowledge, the 60s made the longest lasting cars too. The 1966 Volvo P1800 made it to 3.2 million miles with the original motor and transmission! If you see 3 hundred thousand on a new car, it's on its last leg. I guess it's true what they say, "They just don't make them like they used to."
While I really like the Avanti (and GT Hawk) and the Studebaker V8s I have to say I watched a super charged Avanti being dyno tuned. The best i did was 183HP at the tires. My Ebird with headers made 228HP right after the Avanti run. Tuner pointed out the bad bonnet and exhaust manifolds.
I thought the Avanti was beautiful and if they still made them I’d probably buy one. I still see one at a parking garage I go to once in a while which I think belongs to an employee in the building. It still has its elegant and beautiful looks!
Nice episode 👍 In addition to the production issues, I think the timing for the Avanti was off. Had it been introduced in the mid to late 60's it may have been a completely different story.
We can't overlook that at introduction a base-equipped Avanti with a three-speed manual transmission (4-speed was optional until early August, 1962) and manual steering, no A/C was priced at $4445. Doesn''t sound like a lot now, but that was in fully loaded Deuce-and-a-Quarter/Cadiddle-Yak territory in 1962. Compare that to the Mustang that started at a bit more than half that price in spring of '64.
@@5610winston That's a good point, I was thinking more about the styling than the price point. If I had been a young working class fella in that time period, price would have definitely been a big factor. 👍
@@kerrypierre9494 Tom Kellogg, a member of Loewy's Avanti design team, remarked in an interview that he couldn't affors an Avanti when new. Compare that to the price strategy for the 1953 Starlight/Starliner coupes designed in Loewy's studio by a fellow named Bob Bourke. The Champion version of the Starlight pillared coupe in the top _Regal_ trim level was comparable to a mid-range Chevrolet, and the Commander V8 Starliner in top-line _State_ trim went for about the same money as a Pontiac six. Interestingly, a lot of designers at the Big Three studios chose the Studebaker coupes as their personal cars.
Studebaker never meant to sell many Avantis. True, without production problems they could have sold more, but as mentioned, they were priced as a Cadillac. The car was designed to be a "halo car" to bring excitement to the brand and get people into the dealerships where they would be sold the Larks and such. And the Avani did its job very well. But too many people felt Studebaker was on the verge of ending auto manufacturing and didn't want to get stuck with a car with no company behind it.
4:45 The R2 was not bored over. It was the same bore diameter and stroke as the R1, with 289.06 cubic inch displacement, with the same 9.0:1 compression ratio as the Hawk engines.
The R2 was supercharged.
The Bonneville record car was bored .060 over for 299.4 cubic inches with the R2 supercharger and cam, and pushed an Avanti to 29 Bonneville records in class C and Unlimited class.
A couple of dozen 289 blocks were shipped to Andy Granatelli's speed shop for modifications, most notably a .093 overbore for 304.5 cubic inches, a hotter cam, carburetor enclosed in a pressure box, and the Paxton SN60 centrifugal supercharger, engines so modified designated as the R3.
A few of the overbored blocks got special heads and pistons for a 12.5:1 compression ratio, and dual four-barrels, this R4 engine producing about the same horsepower and torque as the R2,
According to the literature from Avanti Motor Corporation in 1973, Studebaker never advertised horsepower ratings for any of the Avanti engines, and the figures widely rumored were generally understated. Studebaker marketing preferred to let the performance speak for itself.
A side note, it is rumored that Granatelli wouldn't ship an R3 until it had posted 415 horsepower in the dyno.
Nine R3s were installed in Avantis, one in a '64 Studebaker Commander, and maybe a dozen were still in the crates when Studebaker ceased US production in December of '63.
I have seen a modified R3 with a dual carb intake, the Paxton supercharger and a jewel-like mirror-polished splitter duct from the supercharger to the carbs.
The modded R3 belonged to Karl Sparx, if I remember correctly.
NICE
And let’s not forget even the 259 and 232 both had forged cranks, rods and pistons. Studebaker over built everything. The only downfall to the studebaker engine is the cylinder heads and even those can be made good. I’ve got a worn out 289 4bbl in my 58 silver hawk and it’s got more power than any stock small block Chevy I’ve ever had.
I thought the 64 model was a 304cu.ins.?
Approx 100-180 R3'S and R4s were apparently done by Granatelli in Cal.
Yes 335 HP was the advertised HP for the base R3. But most produced closer to that 400 figure. To my knowledge following the Avanti for 63 years and owning A true 1964 model R2, NO second step R3 was ever produced for Sale. That upgrade included
Advanced engine features and power beyond the basic R3.
Too much to describe herein.
I have always loved the Avanti.
FIrst time I ever saw one I thought it was the coolest looking car ever built.
I put together several models as a young boy but had never actually seen one until my 30s! I was on my way to a bookstore in Novato, CA, and there were six in the parking lot.
The design of the car was so perfect it still looks great today. I drove one for a half hour way back when and it was definitely an exciting improvement over much of what was being produced at the time.
I drove an Avanti once. It was sitting on a used car lot, me and my buddy were walking by, and we asked the dude about it, and he asked us if we wanted to drive it. I couldn't tell you what year it was, but it was a four speed. My boss has a 63 Studebaker Lark, I drove it once too, it's a three on the tree. I got in it and said, "I haven't driven one of these in a long time, where's reverse? All the way up? Yep." When kids get their license, they should have to take the test in a 63 Lark with three on the tree, mechanical clutch, manual steering, and manual brakes, that way they have to prove that they can actually _drive_ instead of just hold a steering wheel. Hey, I could be harsher, they could be forced to take their test in a 56 Willys...
When I was a kid back in the 80s, my grandfather had this absolutely beautiful black 57 Studebaker Golden Hawk with the supercharged engine and gold plated wire wheels. I always felt like one of the super elite when riding in the back seat of that masterpiece artwork. To this day, the Golden Hawk is still in my top five of all time favorite cars.
First Avanti I ever saw was parked at the Peachtree Hills Recreation Center in Atlanta, probably summer of '62. It was metallic turquoise and had a discreet _Supercharged_ badge on the front fender.
lucky guy . My Dad used to buy dorky family cars and my brother and I would have done anything for a 2 seater with dual exhausts haha
I'm more partial to the 56 with the massive Packard V8 and more subtle fins, but I wouldn't mind either
@@duelenigma7732 Well lucky you, I was crammed in the back seat of a 1957 Rambler station wagon with 1/2 dozen younger siblings. I now own a 57 Golden Hawk in Azure blue metallic, with 3 sp. OD. trans.
You’re a very lucky man!! When I was a young wannabe Gearhead growing up on a BIG Corporate farm in Arizona. A man who worked in the office bought a new Grand Tourismo Hawk , with the supercharged 289. I spent so much time respectfully admiring his car he offered to take me for a ride. I was impressed, to say the least.
I hated it when Studebaker went under. But by that time I’d ridden in a 409 Impala and a 63 Galaxie with a 406 tri power. So no tears were shed. It took a while for me to appreciate the design of the Avanti and the rest of the Studebaker line.
As I said your lucky man to own such a unique and special Car. And if you married the Prom Queen, don’t tell me, no one deserves that much luck.
Every time I see one close up at a show, the class, the attention to detail and the uniqueness always take my breath away. These really were special cars. In many ways almost too good for their customers to really appreciate.
BEST cover on the Avanti I have seen in YEARS!! Thank you for sharing this with us👊
I have a 64 studebaker daytona (lark) the Avanti guys don't hang out with us regular stude guys even though the chassis is the same. Also- I'm 31 I'm the only studebaker owner in my region that isn't in retirement
Avanti owners think they are in their own special crew I guess lol
@rarecars3336 they really do! It's like a budget corvette owners group (there's an unsurprising amount of overlap there too)
Hi Sam... Larks were always fast and underrated. The boxy styling was a contrast to the other Studebakers' sleek styling.
@@rarecars3336 Studebaker's problems with fiberglass production fueled the decision to offer all the Avanti performance goodies on every Studebaker model except the "standard" which was not even badged as a Lark.
The Avanti engines, transmission, disc brakes, bucket seats, suspension modifications, and all the rest were available _a la carte_ or as an option group. "Full Package" cars got a distinctive_Super Lark_ or _Super Hawk_ badge with a blue circle in the middle of the oval badge calling out the version of the Jet Thrust engine under the hood.
@@jeffbrinkerhoff5121 I love mine. 259 with the 3 speed borg Warner. Last of the real studebakers before they switched to sbc
I was a teen in the late fifties and wanted a Golden Hawk. Then the Avanti came out and I wanted that. Never had enough money for either and still don't. And still dreaming. Love of those cars never dies.
Studebaker made a lot of really awesome cars in the 50's and 60's. The Avanti was just the last of them.
Their Hawk series of cars were also ahead of their time. I really liked them.
You have said everything I could have. I loved all the Loewy coupes up to and including the Hawks. The Avanti came out when I was in high school and I was blown away!
I loved the Hawks also. But I don't know much.
My Dad, on the other hand, was in many ways a well-qualified expert and he LOVEd the Studebakers, including the Hawk.
He spoke very highly of Studebaker - every car they ever made.
And the Studebaker pickup was absolutely beautiful and groundbreaking in its own right.
The supercharged Gran Turismo was genuinely ahead of its time.
I'm a Studebaker fan from way back. The Avanti is, to my 67 year old eyes, the most beautiful car ever made in the US. Gorgeous, powerful, high performance in it's time. I wish I could afford one. Their other cars - 1953 Starliner Coupe, 1957 Golden Hawk, 1962 Hawk GT - All also superb cars. They looked sleek when the Big Three were putting motors in steel shoeboxes. 😊
Studebaker cars were way ahead of the little THREE.
I don't think anyone considers a 57 bird a steel shoe box. The Hawks are far better looking with the fins removed which is actually easy to do.
It's actually a fine looking car. Very cool. Cheers from New Zealand
Shout out to the memory of Bob Andrews, Jon Ebstein, and Tom Kellogg, Loewy's design devlopment team, and to Sherwood Egbert, the visionary who, given the chance, could have turned Studebaker's fortunes around.
I remember the Avanti from when I was a kid. I was 8 years old when it was released. While I've never owned or driven one, I did get to see one at a dealer when they first came out. The R3 is my White Whale car.
The R3 is such a cool car - shame the didn't make more of them
@@rarecars3336Part of the problem was a lack of funds as well as Quality Control issues at Paxton. Their Superchargers were failing at an extremely high rate at that time. They would order boxes of matched ball bearing balls then put multiple boxes (not matched) into the hoppers to produce the SuperChargers. The different sized balls caused a high failure rate. Granatelli talks about it in his book "They Call Me Mr. 500".
Just two correction. The comments about the body quality is a bit off.....they didn't make a change mid production. The problem was the some bodies initially didn't fit properly which prevented production from happening on time or on schedule. So cars weren't being produced in the initial quantities desired until they could fix the Fiberglass body production issue. There were people waiting for their cars but no cars were arriving. Think of it this way, you can bend metal and make it fit, you can't bend fiberglass....the poor fitting bodies were thrown away. The QA production corrections were made at the fiberglass plant and then the 1963 cars really started to roll out, but that first 6 month delay meant sales orders were cancelled. The implication that there are Avanti's our there on the road that have poor body quality isn't the case. They refused to ship cars when the bodies didn't fit the chassis properly. The second correction is that an R2 is a 289, it's not a 304 as claimed. The R3 and R4 are 304's. One additional comment. Studebaker Packard was a company with a diverse product line, Automobiles, Electronics, Engines, Petroleum products, the Car business wasn't as profitable as the rest of Studebaker. The closing of South Bend and focusing production in Canada only was a way to save money and not fund the US Pension Plan. Studebaker continued producing cars until 1966. The reason for the termination of the car business could be directly placed on the poor closing or announcement of shutting South Bend down. Studebaker didn't announce it, the local media did and got the story all wrong. Which really ruined consumer confidence. The mainstream media once again getting the facts all wrong and not understanding why South Bend was closed. The company could have continued fine with it's Canadian operations and other associated plants around the world.
Those Ashtabula botched bodies were not thrown away. They were cut apart and reconfigured by Studebaker in house correctly. About100 units. These botched bodies came from mfg all messed up.
Mfg claimed they forgot about fiberglass curing shrinkage. Oh ya sure!
After building Vette fiberglass parts for eleven years, they
" Forgot?". Guess which big 3 made sure
MFG company "forgot"
Be curious to know if and how much that "forgot" cost the other fiberglass client.
One of my favorite models i had as a kid...very futuristic ..
My father back in the 1960's had a Studebaker. NB: I still remember this car, 60 years later.
Such a good car, boldly individual and a stand out in a crowd look.
I had the privilege to met Mr> Granatelli in 1989, when he came to speak at our technical school.
Wow that is awesome!
I've always admired these cars since I was a kid. Always wanted one, still want one
I had a 1964 round headlight R1 auto Avanti for about 30 years. Fabulous car. Wish I still had that one!
Pretty good job . I would quibble with some of the detail, but the overall story you tell is fairly accurate. The term “botched” isn’t one that would ever come to my mind and isn’t one I have ever heard used with this car. It was a great accomplishment for the Loewy design team and the engineers , manufacturing and marketing staffs at Studebaker to develop and start to produce this really unique product in a little over a year with almost no available capital to invest. At the time a writer with one of the auto publications remarked that GM couldn’t redesign and tool up to produce a new grill in the time it took to produce the Avanti.
The problems were mostly getting the fiberglass body panels adjusted properly. Where the workers were familiar warping sheet metal steel fender/doors to fit the gaps the fg wouldn't stay bent. Also these were the last cars from a failing business. Studebaker joined Packard Hudson and Nash to form American motors.
@@jeffbrinkerhoff5121 Slight correction: Studebaker Packard did not join American Motors Corp.
I was 11 years of age when I first saw this car I was standing nearby in a dealership when a salesman started the engine it was like music the sound of the engine was truly amazing I never heard anything like it.
One of my favorite cars was a red, convertable, early 60's Lark I had in '68. I remember lusting over the Avanti.
got into a street race back in 86 with an avanti against my 68 camaro bracket racer. we finished together at the next street light. that car sounded really bad ass too. i never got to talk to the guy but i'd have to say his avanti was definitely built as my camaro was a 10 second car. avanti is one of the coolest looking cars out of the 60s and also super rare.
Found this channel today.. I’m a fully fledged British “car-guy” but have to admit you’ve just schooled me on cars I’d never heard of.Keep up the good work bro 😎
Thanks for stopping by and watching! I appreciate the kind words!
My uncle owned and loved his Stud! He always bought hawks usually golden hawks but when they went under he switched to circa its until he killed a jaywalking kid then he never got behind the wheel again. But he drove to every contiguous state in both cars. And every back side window was covered with a sticker of every state he visited or its highlights. And a few from Canada and Mexico. He loved his Studs!!
Had I been alive and financially able to buy one I am sure I would have. I love it and I have always since the first day I saw one.
The Avanti was such a beautiful car. Its exterior design was more European than the 1963-1967 Corvette.
Studebaker's supercharged 304 was an absolutely amazing engine.
The original 232 V8 from model year 1951 was amazing as well. It was heavily overbuilt in anticipation of the 300-octane corner-gas-station pump gas that the petroleum companies were promising was closer than the horizon.
The basic architecture with maximum overbore and longest possible stroke came in at the R3 304.5 cubes.
Ive read that the day Studebaker pulled the plug on US production was also the day that the foundry cast the engineering prototype block for an all-new V8 that would have started out at about 340 cubic inches.
This is my dream car,
It was and remains a beautiful car.
Wow 😮 way ahead of its time
Our neighbor had an Avanti that looked showroom new everyday of its life. This was the mid 80’s. I was fascinated by that car.
So good it became its own company
Owning a Studebaker Avanti R-2, absolutely wonderful car, it set a trend in my own car life of high powered grand touring coupes.
Nice video, my dad was the head of the design team that came up with the final design in Palm Springs. The 64 square headlights were taped up on my dad's 63 - the Avanti was my father's favorite project and though I am probably not objective it's still a design that holds up well. BTW in addition to the fiberglass issues, the UAW went out on strike against Studebaker in January 1962, not helping at all.
Your dad was part of the group for which I am forever grateful. They produced the most elegant, aerodynamic ,svelte, beautiful and advanced four passenger design in
American automotive history -- bar NONE.
All big 3 ever did until the Avanti came along was push out barges bathtubs and refridges. Period. Even the 63 Vette, which was a GREAT improvement over the previous homely vettes,did not compare well with the fabulous Avanti. It was at best a distant second. That said 63 and the 64 Vette remain the ONLY Vette I admire. The current ones are simply lunch tossers.
Excellent Video...! Dozens of previous Avanti videos are full of errors. This video is one of the most historically correct I've seen...! No nonsense about "made in Canada" "ford 289's" or turbochargers."
Cool video and interesting video ❤❤❤❤❤❤
I can still remember reading a review of the Avanti by an enthusiast magazine comparing it to the Corvette. They said the body was smoother than the Vetee and the performance was satisfactory.
The Avanti styling was one of the last by Raymond Leowy who was a premier art deco era designer.
Streamline modern.
Thanks- my all time favourite US vehicle (it actually harks back to the Cord which was also way ahead of its time).
So sexy: gold with wire wheels, saw one in New Zealand - what a dream .
In some ways, there is a resemblance with the Jensen Interceptor, notably the C-pillar and rear window.
Egbert was not a designer at all. His only "sketch" was a very crude one on a napkin. And his original suggestion was that it be something like a Jaguar E type. He did, however, have some design input. He was 6 foot four and bumped his head getting out of the car resulting in the windshield angle being changed to be less steep and the car a little taller. As a pilot, he did provide suggestions resulting in the aircraft interior look mentioned in the video. Tings interior heater levers look like aircraft controls, the gauges have white and red (for night driving) bulbs, and an almost useless tiny sun visor as he hated the big floppy things. The visors just swing down and provide very little value and they don't swing to the side. And the world's first car with switches above the windshield
At least the Avanti's brakes came from the E-Type.
One of the most underappreciated cars ever made.
Beautiful car. Remember it well.
My brother owned 2 new Avantis. Kick ass cars.
I love the Avanti.
One of the people on our block, owned an Avanti. Beautiful car; he let me sit in it when I was little. I wanted it so bad; but by the time I got my license, I still couldn't afford one, so I settled on a 65 Ford Mustang. Lots of fun, but I will never know what it would have been, if I could have afforded an Avanti way back when.
Fortunately, they became very affordable in the late 70s and today they're still only around 40K for a restored one.
Thanks for the video, my favorite as well!!
I grew up in a Los Angeles suburb and our street was a car Mecca. Our next door neighbor had an Avanti and it got more attention than any of the myriad exotic cars that graced the street.
I noticed the front and rear lights were flush with the bodywork, I wonder if this was the first car to use that idea.
I think the design of the back of the car is nicer than the front.
Considering the cars of the time this seems to be way ahead of its time !
Famous art deco designer Raymond Leowy did the Avanti body styling. Check out the Studebaker Hawk series. Compared to other cars they always looked years ahead.
@@jeffbrinkerhoff5121Thanks for that Jeff I will definitely check that out I'm not overly familiar with American cars and names but I have to say this channel has really hooked me in !
I can see myself going to some American car meets here in the UK.
Learned a lot. Thanks!
It's an interesting look - and one that has aged well. I would certainly choose an Avanti over a Corvette.
My dad had a red Lark Wagonaire, with the sliding roof, 3 on tree and Hillholder, which kept it from rolling backward on uphill starts. Great car, dead reliable, he put a quarter million miles on it. When Stude went under they sold the Hillholder feature to Subaru.
Yep, My standard Stude had it and was the only company that produced it. My Avanti was automatic.R1
It really was a cool car, and the story is enticing.
The most butter face, gorgeous rear ended vehicle ever made. 29 records at the salt is wicked cool too.
I have liked the Stude Avante ever since I was old enough to say the word . I am 77 now and would love to own an R1 , R2 , and R3 . Just because they are such iconic cars that need to be preserved for history . Yes I would drive them . The last one I saw on the road was a charcoal colored one in the middle 1980’s . Still a classic car . Had an uncle that drove Studebaker’s almost exclusively . Till they went out of business , loved the Hawks .
I remember a TV programme about the Avanti shown here in the UK, it documented some of the problems the Avanti suffered in its conception but also disclosed that the wheelbase and track dimensions were identical to that of the Ford Mustang which was launched some time later.
Actually, it had a 109” wheelbase, vs. 108” for the Mustang…and it’s track was narrower, as it was based on a chassis dating back to 1953, when cars were significantly narrower.
Studebaker didn't go bankrupt.
They did quit making cars.
Great video!
A beautiful stylish car 💎
Nice video. 👍 Our family owned two. First was destroyed when hit by a drunk driver. It was white with the turquoise interior. Second was white with the burgundy interior. They had AC, electric windows and the 3-speed automatic. The styling was great, the interior comfy but they were quite heavy and dangerous handling in the rain. Gas milage from the stock 289 with 4 barrel was 12-15 mpg on high octane fuel. If GM or Ford had built and sold them using steel instead of fiberglass and a better chassis design they would have sold well. The first gen Camaro body design was influenced by the Avanti. Studebaker was dying when the Avanti came out and they did not have efficient & sufficient production to meet demand. It is always a treat seeing one at a car show and talking to the owners, plus there are lots of other YT videos about the Avanti and other Studebakers. Raymond Lowey also designed the beautiful 1953 Studebaker Commander Starliner hardtop, which was 10 years ahead in designs from the other auto companies. It still looks modern in 2024.
That flash of the Camero on the opening is my dream restoration car. Midnight Blue Metallic S/S.
As a kid I remember my parents had a Studebaker Champion. My mom disliked it because it was hard to steer at slow speeds. One time, I remember she was turning into an alley, cutting it short, and ending up hitting the side of the car on a telephone pole at the entrance to the alley. I think that soon after that, my parents got a 1955 Chevy Belair, red and white. I remember the Avanti when it was introduced by Studebaker, but like the documentary said, Studebaker was on the ropes. An interesting side light is that I went to Notre Dame. The old Studebaker home was turned into a nice restaurant but the loss of Studebaker hit South Ben hard and it took a long time for it to recover.
I've imagine what Studebaker would've been had both Studebaker and Packard merge together with Hudson and Nash along with Kaiser and Jeep to form AMC in 1954?
My favourite car.
Have always loved the look of the avanti.
A 3-speed floor shift was also available. I have one of approximately 60 made. I also have a dealer overdrive added as Studebaker never offered the Avanti with one.
I just so happened to see one of these at a car show today!
Wow! Lucky you!
In the summer of '62, I was watching some Saturday afternoon TV show, when the first ad for the Avanti was aired. Only one other such intro was as galvanizing: the silhouetted roof line of the '59 Buick Electra. !!! to both ..
I got to sit in one of these at a car show when I was about 10 years old. I especially remember the overhead switches and super-cool instrument panel. It looked like a rocket ship compared to the '64 Lark sitting next to it.
My FIL had a '63 Lark Daytona convertible, with the very first bucket seats and 4-speed transmission. He worked as a tractor mechanic that also sold Studebakers, so he special-ordered one as a wedding gift for his bride.
He also got to ride in a supercharged Avanti, with the factory salesman. He said it was wicked-quick.
I never cared that much for the Avanti. There were a few around when I was a kid. The Studebaker that I really like was the 62-64 Hawk. They should have bought the tooling for it.
You can watch a road test of the Avanti II on a great retro road test show with Bud Lindemann on You Tube. The Avanti he tests was an Avanti II with a mean Vette 327 mill. Check it out you might enjoy all of the road tests!
I was 8 years old when I had my first ride in a Avanti. The Studebaker dealer was a friend of my father so we went to see it and went for a spin. This was in Warren Ohio and the car was white. Still remember that day
I never really paid to much attention to them. But your video has opened my eyes about this car. I think it's cool and way ahead of it's time, that. R3 was a bod boy for sure.
Love your work, well researched a lot of important info, well done. 👍👍🏁🏁
For styling/look appeal, this creation would have been beautified if it had a rectangular Headlight setup.
A few owners had the '63 round headlights replaced with the rectangular nacelles used on the late '64 examples (there had been a few front facias left over when Studebaker began the calling them '64 models).
one of these is still driven and street parked in cuy falls Ohio.. saw it for the first time walking my dog ànd its sum thing to behold when walked up upon not knowing what it was and hearing it start up and pull away.. this was like 2yrs ago and was mind blowing
The wheels sure make a big difference in the way it looks, the Cragar style really looks good.
My dad really liked Studebakers. He bought a 60 2 door Lark, a very stripped down one that had been the grand prize in a raffle but the winner didn’t want it. Dad liked the car enough that he traded it in on a 63 Lark 4 door sedan that he kept till 1970. I think I have the sales brochure from 63 that shows the Avanti and all the other models
My dream car as a teen in the sixties.
I'm a fan of the Silver Hawk, the Grand Tourismo Hawk, and the Avatte, even the Avatte 2 ,beautiful, beautiful cars. Endo yes some of the early fifties to, like the Commander. I am lucky enough to own a 1973 Thunderbird.
Loved the Avanti R2.
I would like to see Chip Foose design some wheels to compliment the overall design of the of the Avanti. Seems like the wheels are always in a fight with the body style. Great video, thanks.
good one
I did not know Avanti went to the 350 after the 327. Your information is fantastic. Thank you
The Avanti II corporation wanted the cheapest hi-performance engine they could get, which, of course, was the chevy.
I was a kid when the Avanti was released. I kept bugging my dad to get one instead of the 58 Chevy station wagon we had.
My dad loved Studebakers
and I never got it. I loved the Golden Hawkes and thought the Avanti was interesting but now I believe one of their problems was that they were a few years ahead of their time. I now see a little of what my dad saw in these cars.
Thanks for the Avanti cameo video, if yo can please show images of the models described such as the convertible Studebaker Lark rather than hardtop, etc.
Nice Job, thanks for the rundown. Just curious. Did the Avanti II ever run the 327 dz motor?
The early Avanti IIs had 327s and then switched to 350s . The fabled DZ was a 1969 Z28 , 302 inch engine . Way too high strung and temperamental for use in a luxury car like an Aventi .
It would have been cool if Granatelli could have of had the funding to take the Avanti to Lemans '63.
Other than GM, To Me one of THE Most Beautiful 60'S American CARS!!
I remember seeing one back in the mid 60s. I had to ask my dad what it was. They certainly were different looking.
At the time this was the fastest stock production car during the early 60s
Yep, "D Production" at Bonneville, I believe.
The Lark conv frame was NOT shortened for avanti. 109 inch wheelbase m
I don't know if this was posted by somebody else but I wanted to give some clarification for the R-series engines.
R1 was a higher compression (circa 10.25:1) naturally aspirated 289.
R2 was also 289 but with less compression and your mentioned Paxton supercharger.
R3's started in development as 299 CID engines, using +0.060" overbore pistons. Those were the development cars and they're all the R3's that raced and set records. One R3 made 299 cubic inches via 1/8" more stroke (up to 3.75").
The (9) factory production R3 cars were 3 21/32" of bore and those are the 304 CID cars.
R4 and R5 draw parallels to R1 & R2 in that R4 is a nat. asp. dual 4 barrel higher compression 304 and R5 lowered the compression to use (2) centrifugal Paxton superchargers on its 304.
289 stock factory bore was 3.5625" (3 9/16")
299 stock factory bore was 3.6225"
304 stock factory bore was 3.65625" (3 21/32")
Studebaker's crank stroke was 3.625" (3 5/8")
The stroked 299 had a length of 3.75" (3 3/4")
These are all for the 289 and 289 modified blocks. Smaller displacement engines were available and had other measurements.
somebody needs to manufacture these beautiful cars again.these cars would sell like hot cakes
The 60s had the best cars! There's so many unique and striking designs. They're basically art that you can drive.
Also, to my knowledge, the 60s made the longest lasting cars too. The 1966 Volvo P1800 made it to 3.2 million miles with the original motor and transmission! If you see 3 hundred thousand on a new car, it's on its last leg. I guess it's true what they say, "They just don't make them like they used to."
While I really like the Avanti (and GT Hawk) and the Studebaker V8s I have to say I watched a super charged Avanti being dyno tuned. The best i did was 183HP at the tires. My Ebird with headers made 228HP right after the Avanti run. Tuner pointed out the bad bonnet and exhaust manifolds.
Never been number 1 before 😁
Congrats you are in fact #1!
I thought the Avanti was beautiful and if they still made them I’d probably buy one. I still see one at a parking garage I go to once in a while which I think belongs to an employee in the building. It still has its elegant and beautiful looks!
Nice episode 👍
In addition to the production issues, I think the timing for the Avanti was off. Had it been introduced in the mid to late 60's it may have been a completely different story.
We can't overlook that at introduction a base-equipped Avanti with a three-speed manual transmission (4-speed was optional until early August, 1962) and manual steering, no A/C was priced at $4445.
Doesn''t sound like a lot now, but that was in fully loaded Deuce-and-a-Quarter/Cadiddle-Yak territory in 1962.
Compare that to the Mustang that started at a bit more than half that price in spring of '64.
@@5610winston
That's a good point, I was thinking more about the styling than the price point.
If I had been a young working class fella in that time period, price would have definitely been a big factor. 👍
@@kerrypierre9494 Tom Kellogg, a member of Loewy's Avanti design team, remarked in an interview that he couldn't affors an Avanti when new.
Compare that to the price strategy for the 1953 Starlight/Starliner coupes designed in Loewy's studio by a fellow named Bob Bourke. The Champion version of the Starlight pillared coupe in the top _Regal_ trim level was comparable to a mid-range Chevrolet, and the Commander V8 Starliner in top-line _State_ trim went for about the same money as a Pontiac six.
Interestingly, a lot of designers at the Big Three studios chose the Studebaker coupes as their personal cars.
Studebaker never meant to sell many Avantis. True, without production problems they could have sold more, but as mentioned, they were priced as a Cadillac. The car was designed to be a "halo car" to bring excitement to the brand and get people into the dealerships where they would be sold the Larks and such. And the Avani did its job very well. But too many people felt Studebaker was on the verge of ending auto manufacturing and didn't want to get stuck with a car with no company behind it.
Does anyone else think there are overtones of the Austin Martin DB series!!! Some lovely lines on this car!!