History We ALL Love a DARE! PIX of TRULY Extinct Makes?

Cummins Diesel At The Indy 500

1934 Indy Winner

Cummins returned to Indianapolis in 1934 with two new cars. Both had Cummins six-cylinder diesel engines that displaced 364 ci and were equipped with superchargers. One of the engines was a four-stroke diesel, the other was a two-stroke (shown here at Daytona Beach, Florida, with 1934 Indy 500 winning driver Bill Cummings behind the wheel). During the race, the four-stroke engine ran 81 laps before the transmission failed. The two-stroke car finished the race in 12th place and holds the record for best finishing diesel ever to run at the Indy 500

 

A while back there was a guy on eBay with a pile of original photos of a diesel LSR taken in the 1930s at Daytona Beach. Did any of you guys happen to see them? I don't think it was a Cummins but maybe it was?

 

Cummins Diesel At The Indy 500

1950

Cummins Diesel At The Indy 500Cummins didn't return to the Indy 500 till 1950 when it debuted this Kurtis Kraft-built car fitted with a supercharged 401ci aluminum and magnesium Cummins engine that reportedly made 340 hp at 4,000 rpm. Driven by Jimmy Jackson, the #61 car ran 52 laps before the harmonic balancer shattered

The #61 car's engine was based on the Cummins JBS 600 six-cylinder architecture and featured a roots-style supercharger mounted in front of the engine and driven directly off the crankshaft. A polished intake tube routed the air up from the supercharger to the driver side of the engine. It's also interesting to note that this aluminum and magnesium engine featured two injectors per cylinder

 

Cummins Diesel At The Indy 500

1952

Cummins didn't race in the 1951 Indy 500, but returned in 1952 to shock the world.

Don Cummins entered a diesel-powered race car that was revolutionary for its time. It featured a 401ci (6.6L) 380hp turbocharged diesel engine mounted on its side in a radically low chassis built by Kurtis Kraft.

On the first day of qualifying, the #28 Cummins Diesel Special ran its four laps at the Brick Yard and stunned the competition when it completed its first pass around the track in 1:04.70 for an average speed of 139.104 mph

Not only did the 3,100-lb car win the pole position in qualifying that year with a speed of 138.010 mph, it also outran Ferrari's 12-cylinder race car by nearly 4 mph.

Seventy-four years before the Audi R10 diesel raced at Le Mans, Cummins was campaigning diesel-powered race cars at the Indy 500. The 1952 race would prove to be the company's crowning motorsport achievement, and its pole position accomplishment is still one of diesel bench-racing's greatest factoids.Unfortunately the #28 Cummins Diesel Special car didn't finish the Indy 500 race, and was pulled from competition on lap 71 after the turbocharger inlet got plugged with tire rubber that it sucked up from the track

 

Clessie Cummins

The Appearance of a diesel-powered car at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1952 would come as no surprise to anyone who knew Clessie Cummins and his diesel engine company.
Forty-one years before, the twenty-two year-old Cummins had served on the pit crew of Ray Harroun when his Marmon Wasp captured the very first Indy 500.
A self-taught engineer, Clessie was a pioneer in diesel engine development, creating engines for marine, agricultural, and stationary-engine markets, with little attention paid to on-road applications.
But by 1930, with the Depression in full swing and orders for diesels dwindling, Cummins had to find a way to bring attention to his engines and reassure investors that there was a future for the Cummins Engine Company.
The question was, how?
Cummins’s first response was by driving a Cummins diesel-powered passenger car from Indianapolis to the 1930 National Automobile Show in New York City. Installing a diesel in an older Packard Touring Car, Cummins made the 800-mile trip on thirty gallons of fuel at a cost of $1.38. It worked: The press was intrigued and the public wanted to know more about this remarkable engine. More importantly, Cummins’s principal investor was sufficiently encouraged to stay in the game.
Then Cummins learned that Englishman Kaye Don would be attempting a new land-speed record that March at Daytona Beach. Clessie decided to take advantage of the gathered press and attempt a diesel-powered speed record while the media was present.
An older Packard roadster was acquired, stripped clean of its fenders, fitted with a Cummins diesel engine, and driven down to Daytona.
Several days later the media enthusiastically reported a new world diesel speed record of 80.389 mph. The cost to drive 2550 miles from Indiana to Daytona and back? Four dollars and seventy-five cents, including fuel used in the record runs.
In 1931, Cummins upped the ante by commissioning Augie and Fred Duesenberg to build a two-seat racer with an eye toward raising the diesel straightaway speed record and taking on the Indianapolis 500.
Again, Cummins drove the race car from Indiana to Florida and back, running the Beach course to raise the record to over 100 mph.
The diesel-Duesenberg, now fitted with shorter bodywork, was entered in the 1931 Indianapolis 500. Routinely driven to and from the Cummins factory, forty miles to the south (its Indiana license plate number was 1,000,000), the Cummins #8 qualified solidly in the field with driver Dave Evans at the wheel, eventually finishing 13th, and never making a single stop during the entire 500-mile race. In fact, the car was driven back to Cummins’s factory after the race without adding fuel.
Once again, racing had generated interest in Cummins and the increasingly reliable, efficient diesel engine.
There were subsequent Cummins “factory” Indy entries in 1934 and 1950, but the most notable venture was their last, in 1952.
New technologies such as turbocharging gave Cummins diesels a powerful story to tell and Indy was the place to tell it. Since Indy’s rules allowed diesel engines as large as 401 cubic inches (normally aspirated or blown), Cummins knew that a good showing at the Speedway would deliver important dividends.
Their spectacular 1952 entry, the #28 Cummins Engine Special, was a car designed and built by Frank Kurtis, whose cars dominated open-wheel racing in America.
First sketched five years earlier, his radical design laid the engine on its side and moved the driveline to the left, positioning the driver low in the car to improve aerodynamics and creating a useful left side weight bias.
Tradition-bound veterans of Indy had rejected the idea, believing that “upright” cars, in which the driver straddled the driveshaft, were the only way to go. A meeting between Kurtis and Don Cummins changed all that.
A problem that Cummins’s 1950 entry experienced had been the extreme lateral weight transfer resulting from the upright positioning of its tall, long-stroke diesel engine.
Kurtis’s laydown design was just what the new Cummins car needed, and they both knew it. As work began, Kurtis also suggested that driver Freddie Agabashian be brought on board. The team was now in place.
Blueprints, drawn by Kurtis and reviewed by Cummins engineers, went to Kurtis’s Glendale, California, shops along with a wooden mock-up of the turbocharged diesel planned for the car. The engine was positioned five degrees from horizontal to help oil drain out of the cylinders when at rest. Fabrication began late that summer with testing taking place in late November.
The finished car was astoundingly low, just twenty-three inches at the cowl—its
headrest barely higher than the tops of the tires. Once on wheels, Cummins air-freighted the car to Wichita for aero studies in the wind tunnel at the University of Kansas, a first for Indy cars.
The learning was remarkable. They discovered the original windshield took over 60 horsepower to push through the wind at 140 mph. That figure was reduced to 14 before testing was over. Vibrations the team believed were the result of the Brickyard’s surface turned out to be an aerodynamic flutter of the body panels, which were promptly fixed.
The engine was innovative as well. The cylinder block and head were cast of aluminum, a first for diesels and, for the first time in Indy history, a turbocharger was employed. As tested, the engine developed 375 horsepower, but weight remained a problem: All up the car weighed over 3000 pounds, versus the 2000 pounds of a typical entry.
Pole Day was May 17, with seventy competing for the thirty-three starting spots. Practice times indicated that this was going to be the fastest field ever. The events of the day wouldn’t disappoint.
The first car on the track was Jack McGrath in Jack Hinkle’s immaculate Kurtis Kraft-Offy “upright” and a new qualifying record was set, 136.664 mph. Then Andy Linden in another Kurtis upright, the supercharged Offy-powered Miracle Power Special, broke McGrath’s record with a four-lap average of 137.002 mph.
When the Cummins Diesel Special pulled onto the track, a qualifying time 2 mph quicker than last year’s record was needed to grab the pole. At speed the Cummins #28 looked and sounded like nothing else, and Agabashian had it flying.
First lap, a new record: over 139 mph. Four-lap average, another record, 138.010 mph. Agabashian and the Cummins #28 speed captured the pole position, but littered the track with the remains of its disintegrating tires, testimony to the car’s punishing weight.
The race itself was not friendly to the innovative car. Since the turbo-diesel couldn’t accelerate like the Offfies or the Novis, Agabashian knew he would be overwhelmed at the start if Shaw brought them to the line at a slow speed. His worst concerns came true and when the green flew, the Cummins Special was passed by a third of the field. In time, Agabashian worked his way up to fifth, but a clogged turbocharger inlet relegated #28 to the pits at the 175-mile mark, recording a 27th place finish.
While the Cummins diesel didn’t win, the success of the car led Indy traditionalists to threaten a boycott and successfully petition Indy’s leadership to reduce the displacement break diesels enjoyed.
Maybe it is time the racing gods revisit that decision.



'30-1930 Cummins Diesel record holder at 80.389 mph

 

Okay, here's a wild one, and at 72 pounds, I think it MAY qualify as the lightest "automobile" ever. And it's not a motor bike or scooter, either. It was called the AirScoot and was onlymade in 1947 by Aircraft Products of Wichita. Measuring just an inch over a yard long, the AirScoot was created specifically to pop to an airport where, then, the "car" could be easily stowed aboard a private plane. There was seating for two, plus a rack in front for two suitcases or equivalent luggage. Aircraft Products claimed the 2.6-horse, air-cooled motor was capable of 60 mpg, though the tank only held about a quart of gas.

Folks, I am sorely afraid the AirScoot was NO pavement pounder -- NOR even a candidate for rodding! LOL

Several 'net sources confirm the AirScoot was actually made [incidentally, ALL using the same passage (which I have paraphrased here)], but no one seems to have further details, such as, how many found buyers in '47. It also appears in the listings of the Standard Catalog of American Cars 1946-1975 4th Edition, by Ron Kowalke (1997), Krause Publications, Iola, WI.

So, we have a rather unique car, which may be extinct, UNLESS someone can find some evidence, further details, a pic, whatever! What's above is ALL I could find on this contrap . . . uh, er, I mean CAR! Until and unless somebody can find something on this automobile, I can't escape the mental image of a motorized shopping cart! How THIS for a challenge?

 

I thought we might of covered this one before with all the Packards and Studebakers we have covered but I could not find it searching the thread.

This car is currently on display at the AACA Museum in Hershey courtesy of Scott Milestone of Bethesada Maryland.

What I thought was interesting was the following comments in the Jan/Feb 2010 AACA magazine that arrived yesterday.

Concept Car Clarification

Several Packard experts have contacted us to disagree with the information about the 1956 Packard Caribbean 'concept car" that has been on display. it is their contention that the car was not made by the Studebaker Packard company and that the background provided to the AACA museum is not correct. Additionally, the article should of stated that it was the Packard Motor Car Company and that it was Packard who bought Studebaker, not the other way around. We are thankful when historians and enthusiasts help us to make sure history is correct.

The sign at the museum reads as follows;

1956 Packard Caribbean Concept Car

This vehicle is a styling exercise that was tried to see if there was much future left before Studebakers bean counters pulled the plug on the recently acquired Packard Motor Company, it is the sole survivor of it's type.

Finished with a beautiful white exterior and a very unique gold and white accented ostrich leather interior, this 1956 Packard concept car was built by Packards chief engineer and was later purchased from MGM movie studio. It features a V-8 engine that was fitted later in life with a batwing style air cleaner. It remains a window back in time to when concept cars ruled the imagination of the American public.

With it's unusual custom bodywork not seen on any other Packard before or since, this example begs the fascinating question if this interesting car did not influence future designs by companies that eventually led to not only the demise of Packard but of many smaller independent automakers.

 

Airscoot article see page 129

Popular Science - Aug 1947 - Google Books Result
258 pages - Magazine
Designed by the Aircraft Products Co., of Wichita, Kan., for transporting private plane owners to and from airports, the "Airscoot" carries a pay load of ...

 

Displaying the Airscoot, a motor scooter, which folds to fit under a kitchen sink. Date taken: September 1947 Photographer: Frank Scherschel

 

Albatross. It appears on Wiki's list of defunct U.S. cars. After searching a while, I thought, HERE was a good candidate to represent extinction! Well, turns out, there was ONLY ONE, a prototype, made in 1939, at the behest of New Yorker cartoonist Peter Arno, based on a lengthened Mercury chassis.

Seems a strange name for a car, given its sometimes negative connotation, eh? But, given Arno's wry sense of humor (his contemporaries were the likes of Charles Addams and James Thurber, after all), perhaps the name he chose for a custom-made prototype car was an ironic allusion to the albatross in Coleridge's "Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner."

At any rate, Peter Arno's biographer, Michael Maslin, reported that he discovered, only in December 2009, that Arno's singular Albatross STILL EXISTS, in a garage in the Midwest where it awaits restoration. Though no photos of the Albatross are apparently available, analysts stated originally that it very much resembled the dynamically styled Mercedes 540 K, produced from 1936 through 1940. So, in lieu of an actual Arno Albatross, I dug for the below pix of a fine '37 540 K to provide a glimmer of what a special one-off the Albatross must have been!

Existing information assures us that the Albatross was no cobbled-together car for some eccentric high-brow but was, indeed, well made. According to Coachbuilt.com, the car was built in the shop of John S. Inskip, Inc., on Long Island, where Inskip and his associates had long done work for Rolls-Royce, and Brewster & Co. Inskip and his associates fashioned a sports car body, to Arno's specifications, upon the Merc frame, lengthened to 137 inches and resembling the Mercedes. Specifically, the Albatross is said to have resembled the 540 Ks done by coachbuilders Erdmann & Rossi. Though Inskip claimed main credit for work done in his house, it is said that one or more of his associates probably was responsible for most body work on the Albatross. They included Carl Beck, Charles Willmore and R.L. Stickney.

Anyone with access to a thorough auto library and wishing to read in greater detail about Arno's Albatross is directed to the February 1982 issue of Special Interest Autos (a Hemmings publication). The article is entitled "Arno's Enigmatic Albatross" (of '39) and was authored by Keith Marvin.



Sincere thanks for 540K photos to Supercars.net. 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540K Special Roadster at the '06 Meadowbrook Concours d'Elegance. The 540 K series is considered by many Mercedes aficionados to be the company's masterwork. Easy to see why others imitated some style touches!

 

Relating to Post #2026: As an auto-related aside, this may seem a tad OT, but it's TOO cool not to add -- and it's SHORT! Our John S. Inskip's grandfather was also named John S. Inskip (1816-1884), the famous evangelical Methodist preacher and founder of the National Camp Meeting Association for the Promotion of Holiness. He is one of the first evangelists associated with the “tent revival meeting” and was considered to be the Billy Graham of his time. This would make the elder Inskip a sort of successor to the famous traveling pioneer preacher Lorenzo Dow (1777-1834) and the forerunner of people like Billy Sunday and, of course, Billy Graham.

 

Wow, THAT's IT, HJ !!! Where did you ocme up with the picture!

 

Quote SunRoof: . . . this example begs the fascinating question if this interesting car did not influence future designs by companies that eventually led to not only the demise of Packard but of many smaller independent automakers.

Jimi: As MUCH as I enjoy the old concepts, they seemed an open invitation for theft of design motifs. So, my answer to this question is ALWAYS, YES!!!<!-- / message --><!-- attachments -->

 

Jimi, the 540k/500k Special Roadster is the apex of car styling in my opinion. The one you chose, however, is not the cream of the crop from a styling perspective. The "blue goose" was one of Goerings personal cars (yes there are pictures of him sitting in it). This car is absolutely fantastic, but the styling suffers because of the higher windshield and thick bullet proof glass.

A couple of points about these cars. First, the second series 500k and the first series 540k special roadsters are identical although almost always refered to as 540k. Second, about 1/3 of the total product 26 540k Special Roadsters had the hidden rear spare. Here are some others:

 

"The Berkeley automobile was produced from October 1956 to December 1960 in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, England. The constuction is of fiberglass which makes for very light vehicle with a total weight of around 700+ pounds on average. Engines are of the motorcycle type, chain driven to an open differential, front wheel drive. "

The one pictured is a 1960 Berkeley T60 3 wheeler with a 328cc Talisman twin engine

More Berkeley Pics Here;

http://www.flickr.com/groups/berkeleycars/pool/

 

AlsAncle, when you're right you're right. Hard to beat such delicaetly intricate lines and details, coupled with a "Kompressor" that jumps hp by half again, eh? Partly because of your posting and those of SunRoo & VintageRide, I really believe several of the U.S. and European makes really WERE on par in the '30s -- both in terms of looks and performance.

Can we hear a big AMEN?!?!?!

 

This prototype 1964 Pontiac Banshee I was in development by Pontiac chief John Z. DeLorean, when GM heads decided to halt progress, mainly because the Banshee was lighter than -- and could out-perform -- the Corvette (despite running a straight six). This car has been on eBay twice recently, and though pricey, it is attractive -- for a bunch of reasons. And, you'll note style features adopted by Chevy for the '68 'vettes, as well as
the backend treatment that appeared on Firebirds. For lots of juicy details and a ton of pix, go to: www.autoblog.com/2008/03/28/ebay-find-of-the-day-1964 This is NOT a commercial for ANYbody, just a link for hot-car fans
to see more about the car (which may have sold anyway by now).





RE the theme of this thread, you might call this a NEVER-WUZ, rather than rare or defunct. But the lines -- obviously -- lived on!!!

 

I know we have been sticking with American makes so I'll just make this one more post with regard to Mercedes Benz in the 1930s. You mention U.S. and European makes were on Par in the 30s but really there was nothing equivalent to the 540k being built in the U.S.A.

1. The Special Roadsters pictured sold new for $14,000 though Mytropia Motors of NY. They only sold one which is the famous Jack Warner car. At the time, that amount of money would buy you a very substantial house, or 3 Cadillac V16s.

2. Technically, these cars were the cream of the crop in 1930s engineering. They were the only production car to my knowledge made in the 30s with full 4 wheel independent suspension.

3. The driver activated roots superchargers would push horse power from 115 to 180 allowing for 100mph. In 1938 Motor Magazine ran a Cabriolet A at 104mph over the measured mile. The blower when engaged screams in a way that sounds like a air raid siren.

Here are a couple of pictures of the supercharger & carburetor on a 500k:

 

This 1966 Pontiac Grand Prix / El Camino prototype was built by Pontiac. Only one of its kind exists. This example was up for sale at the 2000 Barrett-Jackson auction.

For other Elcamino Mutations, go here;

http://www.chevelles.com/elcamino/ec_mutate.htm

 

SunRoof, WAY keen. I wanted to do this with my LeMans but never found a decent 'mino rear. Would look even better with GTO hood & bumper, though. I suppose we really OUGHT to get back to '65 and earlier cars, after this brief transgression. Ah, cars! Sinful pleasures everywhere ya look! LOL

​

 

AlsAncle, many thanks! I stand corrected. However, it certainly appears the 540 K really provided impetus for the Americans to "step it up" at the time, right? Cool tech shots AND performance data!!!

BTW, I think the scare hidden-spare versions probably looked sleekest of all. Spares, it seems, were ALWAYS a change for stylists to deal with tastefully (yet practically), no?

 

Don't forget the Blue Oval

the Ranchero Scrambler

 

This is my absolute favorite though.

KaiserCamino



While Ford was first with launching on the market with Ranchero of collection-cum-car, and EL Camino reached the universal statute of descriptor, like Kleenex, resembles to him Kaiser predicted the idea in 1954 with this single. Kaiser was one of many smaller independent which had to still die in far at the beginning of the Fifties. The independent ones were often more creators that large the three, pushing the innovation with the limited resources. This vehicle Special-based additional-special fôlatre badges of "Barris Kustom" on the B-Pillars, painting yellow-clearly frozen on the sides, and a continental underhood of L-head 6 of iron-irrific. You cannot set fire to the broad white in addition to wire of Kelsey Hayes with the 118 powers in horses, but it is certainly proportioned, even on the roads of today.

 

This is an old April Fools joke that was photoshopped but I still like it. This would make a great project truck. I think I will search swapmeets for some model kits to kitbash on of these.





It's a 1957 Ford Chero, it is one of 39 concept trucks made to go against the Chevy Cameo. These trucks were hand crafted using the rear quarter panels and modified trim of a '57 Ford Del Rio two door station wagon, just like Dodge did with the Sweptside. Each truck was equipped with the hi-performance 312 Y-block Police Interceptor engine, top of the line transmission-3 speed with overdrive, and high geared rear axle along with a heavy duty suspension consisting of parts from the Lincoln Continental car, heavy duty limousine class. Ford also borrowed many interior features from the new Thunderbird including center console and factory air conditioning. Ford only made the 39 concept trucks after finding out that both the Cameo and the Sweptside trucks were experiencing low sales figures and it wasn't worth doing the cost of full production.

This truck was 1 of 5, number 16 in production, bought new by Fred Usinger II, of the Usinger Sausage company in Milwaukee, for his sales staff. Fred was a very close friend of Henry Ford II. While visiting Henry II in October of 1956 Mr. Usinger took a tour of the Ford plant where the Chero was designed and being built. When he saw the truck with it's new streamlined cab and flashy rear quarter panels he told Henry they were "the coolest thing since sliced bread". He also told Ford he would like to give one of these trucks to each of his five top salesmen as an incentive. Henry II offered to sale Usinger the remaining trucks in production at a special price. A deal was struck for Usinger to get a special deal but he had to order the trucks though a local dealer using a secretive ordering system.

This Chero is owned by Evian Ruoy of Chenequa, Wisconsin. He got the truck from his father, Rodger, the original owner and top sausage salesman of 1957. This Chero was bought from the Beau Ogus Ford dealership in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. The truck has less than 13,000 original miles. It received a complete frame off restoration in 2006 at a cost of over $35,000. One of the most expensive items, and hardest to find, was the "Chero" emblem fastened to the rear most of the rear quarter panels (As seen in above photos). Fortunately, an duplicate was made using the remaining original emblem as a form. The original was sent to a metal caster, John Thomas in Burnt Corn, Alabama. Mr. Thomas is a world renowned metal caster and does everything by hand, no modern machinery. The recasting cost $3200 alone but Mr. Thomas did a superb job.

Evian knows of two other Cheros still in existence. One is in Owanka, SD still being used by the original owner's family on their emu farm to haul farm supplies and the second was just sold on the Barret Jacket auction to a California proctologist for $885,000.

Fred Usinger gave each of his top salesmen a Chero for their great work for being able to sale the baloney, just like I am doing now in telling you that this is an actual truck. I actually photo shopped images of this truck using images of a '57 truck and two different '57 station wagons. I originally posted the first picture as a little joke in another post but I thought it would fit in today, happy April 1st.

 

Jimi, When you posted the Banshee, it triggered my memory that Pontiac had built a prototype El Camino which I actually thought was an early '70s Lemans and that's what I was searching for when I found the '65 Grand Prix version. But, I do recall seeing that one before some where too.

HJ; Super Cool Kaiser ElCamino. When I was about 6, Dad had a whole yard full of Kaisers, so kind of have a soft spot for them. I can still see them sitting there. Even tried driving the bronze '51 4 door backwards down the block into the middle of a very busy street at 3. LOL Wasn't funny then.

A friends Dad in Duluth, MN has the following interesting Kaisers For Sale;

'55 Manhattan Supercharged Two Door with rare 289 ebony black paint code

'59 IKA Cabela Hearse

'60 IKA Kabela Flower Car

Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures. What do you know about these unique Kaisers????

 

Though I was ready to move on from discussing the last, lean years of Studebaker, I couldn't get the multi-purpose Wagonaire out of my head. Why? After all, most people saw it, and its ilk, only as "yawner" family vehicles.

But, Stude's Wagonaire was significant in a number of ways, belying its plain wagon looks. The Wagonaire, of course, was one of the final straws Studebakers snatched at from '63 to '66 as it struggled to remain in the auto business. An enthusiastic President Sherwood Egbert engaged Brooks Stevens to freshen up all remaining Stude models to try and recapture public loyalty for the brand and to compete in the increasingly intense auto market.

In making the Lark wagons "new" for '63, Stevens utilized a sliding roof scheme, which he had patented after doing his '59 Scimitar prototype all-purpose car in Germany. The slider was manually operated, but easily so. The moveable panel, then, made the Wagonaire the THE most versatile wagon offered in the U.S., in that it could function much like a wagon, pickup and convertible, all in one.

Recognizing the multi-faceted needs of families, Stude stressed the Wagonaire's real-world recreational uses and its utility. A major point of advertising emphasis was the fact that large and TALL items could be transported -- a refrigerator being the preferred object of the ad department's eye. The point was definitely not lost on the public, however, buyers continued to shy away from what they saw as a brand in decline. To make matters worse when Stude was already on the mat, the early Wagonaire sliders leaked, which did nothing for sales, either. Improved weather seals were quickly developed, but the bad PR was already history.


But on the plus side, enhancing customer attractions for '63 and '64, the Wagonaire could be ordered with automatic and three- or four-speed transmission, as well as most any engine the company offered on its other models, including the R1 and R2 Avanti (supercharged) V-8s.

On the surface, a raft of other features SHOULD have set the Wagonaire apart, some new and many others previously offered almost exclusively by Studebaker. Disc brakes and power steering were optional, as was Stude's pioneering "Twin-Trac" limited-slip differential (GM called theirs Positive Traction). On standard-transmission models, Stude offered the proven (since '36) "Hill Holder" feature, as well as overdrive for fuel economy. Car writers praised the user-friendly dash -- with no "idiot lights."

Even with a lot going for it, the Wagonaire failed to capture public favor in sufficient measure to do the company much good. Not quite 12,000 Wagonaires were sold for '63, and Stude's automotive division finished the fiscal year $25 million in the hole. Yike. Trouble in River City, folks. Though '63 sales had been at least somewhat encouraging, sales slid seriously in '64, leading Studebaker to cancel its halo models and trucks and move all remaining production to Canada. In '66, the final year, less than 1,000 Wagonaires were sold. Studebaker was unable even to make it's 20,000-unit break-even point for '66, signaling the long-delayed end of the century-old automaker.


NOTE: I could not find a Stude Wagonaire publicity shot showing a standing refrigerator in back, though I remember seeing this "stunt" at the time. Best I could do to show the open-air feature well is the picnic pic below with a little girl standing in back.


Sincere appreciation is expressed to AbsoluteAstronomy.com for
this company promotional photo of a '63 Studebaker Wagonaire.
For a great write-up, just search Studebaker Wagonaire and look
for the entry sponsored by AbsoluteAstronomy.com.


[A Note on Brooks Stevens: It is rather interesting to note the coincidence that, while Stevens was designing the Stude Wagonaire, he was practically simultaneously designing the all-new Willys Wagoneer, the first full-size Jeep vehicle. The Wagoneer was so popular that it survived under that name from '63 though '83 -- though some would say through '91, if you include the days of Willys, Kaiser, AMC and, finally Chrysler.]

Stude Wagonaire Addendum

As so often happens in the auto world, a "failed" model is often redeemed when key features show up on the products of other companies. Such was the case with the Studebaker multi-purpose Wagonaire. For 2004 -- nearly 40 years after the Wagonaire's disappearance -- GMC introduced what they touted as their "all-new" ENVOY XUV with (no surprise here) a sliding roof panel.

Did GMC conveniently forget about Studebaker's pioneer project, or did they figure the fact that their slider was power operated qualified it as an all-new product? Does it even matter? Maybe, if only from the standpoint that GM must have thought the slider might warrant, and garner, a fresh consumer glance, four decades later. Perhaps not surprisingly, the ENVOY XUV had no more sales clout than the Wagonaire, and the GMC sliding-roof was canned after only a two-year run.



Sincere thanks to FamilyCar.com for this rear view of the GMC Envoy XUV.
For a full write-up and lots of pix, just go to www.familycar.com/RoadTests/GMC-XUV/Photos.htm.

 

QUOTE: Evian knows of two other Cheros still in existence. One is in Owanka, SD still being used by the original owner's family on their emu farm to haul farm supplies and the second was just sold on the Barret Jacket auction to a California proctologist for $885,000.





HJ, the audience may not be worldwide here (threadwide, at least), but I don't think you could find an audience more receptive to such a stunt!!! LOL

BUT, I agree: SOMEbody should actually BUILD this custom!!! But, first, we need to ask James D to PhotoShop a chop on that top! Would THAT ever look awesome!

 

Here's the Refrigerator Pic.

http://www.ritzsite.nl/63Stude/03_63stude.htm