I am not sure exactly what it is, I would have guessed late 40's or 50's has a rear split windshield, 4 doors rear are suicide, tailights looked like the 49,51 Mercury car taillights?? ( I couldn't see the front of car and I was quite a distance from it. ) I will try to get some pictures of it later. What other cars may might also fit this description??? I know pictures are the only real way to identify, but just curious if anyone knows of other potentials. also is there much of a demand for these cars? too bad it's not a Starlight Coupe! Thanks J
By demand do you mean is it worth big bucks? No. Would some Cheap *** Studebaker Owner drag it home and try to save it? Probably. If it wasn't half a continent away I'd be asking for directions. I'm "kind of" looking for 4 door Champion or Commander to make a DD out of but it has to be close to home and CHEAP which around here normally means rusty.
That's It, It's a Tucker!!!!! just kidding, I just googled "Tucker" those are some sweet looking cars though!!!! I love the tailights on top of the rear fenders Did they all have the taillights on top of the fenders like that? and what years did they build them?? its hard to find pictures of the rear end of cars, ussually it's just the fronts... This car has the taillights running horizontally just above the bumper. My Wife just dropped my good camera off at work, I'll try to get some picks up close. I talked to the farmer last week on the phone so he's expecting to see me out there soon, I just have to let him know when I'm going. Thanks guys
Your description sounds like a late 40's Stude to me, I don't know of any other car of the period with a split down the center rear windshield. Tuckers were made in '48, there were 51 of them before the company folded. Tucker commissioned a designer to make an alternate body for the Tucker, but the only design element they used from the secondary design were those fender-top tail lights.
ok, I guess I was real close, it is a 47 Studabaker not a 49... he was nice enough to let me take a look at it, and take a few pictures. it was his dads first car after the war. J
If it's cheap...go for it.Parts are available and there is a great network of Studebaker enthusiasts.Just dont tell them if your going to modify it...lol
Don't pay more than $500 max! I bought mine for $500 and it ran, but needed some work. I put $4500 in it, and sold it later for $2500 when I was laid off and needed mortgage money. BTW, the foglights are aftermarket. It should have a dependable (and slow) Champion inline six under the hood, with electric overdrive.
Yeah, but in '60 you could buy another one next week, or still buy a new motor from Studebaker, for that matter, if you blew it up. I p***ed on a '48 Champion a while back with a $700 asking price, looked like it should be a runner with some fairly minor rust for New York but hadn't been on the road in 25 years and my friend said it had bounced around like that for a long time.. so something must be wrong with it. I wouldn't hesitate however to buy a 51-52 V8 car to tool around in, even if it was a 4-door.
I love it! If it was in range you have some compe***ion for it, that's almost exactly what I want for a DD. OK, maybe with gl*** in it. Parts are plentiful like 'Partsdawg' said, in fact I have to talk to him about some door gl*** for my C-body.........
The four door studebakers in that condition are good for parts cars. The 50 and 51 with the bullet fronts are in more demand. I like the rear fenders on the 47-49 better than the 50-51. Don't pay much more than s**** price for it. Neal
The only Tuckers were 1948 models and they only made 51 of them. Go to the video store or Netflix and get "Tucker: the Man and His Dream" with Jeff Bridges as Preston Tucker. It's a pretty good flic and is supposedly reasonably accurate on what actually happened with Tucker. BTW- cool find on the Stude.
The '47 Stude is a real milestone in auto design, in being the first American production car with "envelope" style front fenders. The curved one-piece windshield used on some other '47 Studes was also a pioneering development in American autos. Truly, a car well ahead of its time! On a side note, the grille in Voodoo Larry's '46 Ford originated in a '47 Studebaker (different model).
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