This is here on Cape Cod I talked to the old guy who owns it last summer. It's a replica with a 327 and a 4 speed it's ugly cool. I'd drive it he said it fast lol he's 80. What a hoot!
I've always thought the Avanti was a bitchin looking car from every angle except the front. If it had a better looking nose, it'd be a total knockout.
I dig 'em. I posted a project in the Craigslist thread a couple weeks ago. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...craigslist-cars.1256824/page-43#post-15450920
I also think they are cool, I have driven a few & transported a dozen or so over the years. The fronts definitely are distinctive. I have found that the front is easier to live with depending on the color Looking at it from a rear corner they kind of look a little like one of my bucket list cars (P1800 Volvo) God Bless Bill https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...ar-transport-hauling-open-or-enclosed.614419/
I worked at the last dealership to offer them for sale here in Cincinnati, Stan Greninger Oldsmobile. He also had the kit car mustangs modified with the long hood and external fenders, I forget the name now. We had a seperate show room for those two makes. Old Stanley was a very interesting collector and his dealership had a lot of interesting “antiques” in and around it. My building I worked out of had a Cessna airplane on the roof. Mrs. Gahrajmahal surprised me the other year when she told me her favorite car at the new car show was an Avanti in the special vintage area, so, you never know…
Love tthe early 6y0's models, don't like the square headlights versions. @sailingadventure has as pretty a one as there is.
Nope ! No love atoll ! Ugly then...still ugly! IMHO it put the final nail in their coffin ! Hope I wasn't too blunt. 6sally6
Way ahead of their time, but I like them! The second Gen had Chevy engines, and out produced original cars. They look great with Torque Thrust mags!!!
Too far ahead of their time when they had very little left to chance. Proof in that is the fact they were produced well after Studebaker closed in 1966. I’ve always had a soft spot for them.
Sacrilege, perhaps, but there are a few cars widely considered automotive masterpieces, of which I simply never could see the point. The Avanti is one of them. So are the Cord 810/812 and the Citroën SM.
Attended a car show next to a Goodfellows Cemetary in Delaware. Real Avanti with real period Studebaker hi perf goodies including factory supercharger.
I like them, prefer modified over stock, prefer '63/'64. Lose interest after that mostly. Only factory stuff I didn't/don't like was the dash-gauge-layout, that was copied for the '62->'64 hawk. Most folks do like it, but not me. Other thing I intensely dislike, are the bucket seats. I'm not kidding when I can't decide whether they, or an actual milk-bucket-pail, are most uncomfortable to sit in. Well, the 3rd thing is, no OEM convert in '63/'64. Other than that, shape got nailed...... Marcus
The Avanti was intended to draw buyers into Studebaker dealerships to purchase other models - it was never intended to become a regular production model or a commercial success - very few original running examples remain. One of the top five that I transported from Myer’s Studebaker Parts in Ohio a few years ago - it had been there many years undergoing full restoration. I spent most of the day visiting the Myer’s Family and took several videos of the business. My YouTube Visit with the Patriarch … @ Jim Transporting To Travel Traveling To Share Stories From The Road
@ https://aoai.org/the-avanti-story/ Jim Transporting To Travel Traveling To Share Stories From The Road
Those are three of a small handful of car designs that can't be improved in my eyes. Any attempts to even slightly customize one of them would be detrimental. I think the Volvo P1800 coupe might also be added to your list.
The Volvo's OK. In fact I rather like the ES version. I wonder if the Avanti would have had more appeal to me if it had been available as a shooting brake.
5.3 ls motor and procharger over 700 HP to the wheels! Totally bad ass! The round headlights look best IMO
I’m sorry, but I think Raymond Lowey and his designs help tank Studebaker. After the coke bottle most of his stuff was all down hill. Studebaker did have some neat engineering disc brakes, superchargers, sliding roofs and such. But the body shapes and the cars were not that exciting except for a few specific years.
I did some looking on the internet, and from what I can find they had both round and square bezels in 64. Must have been a mid year change.
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