Studebaker Avanti in PDX

[Mike]

Hi guys,

I ran into this beauty in Portland, Oregon. While I was outside snapping a few photos, the owner walks out of his shop to chat. From what he tells me, parts of the Studebaker Avanti were ideas shared with Datsun. In fact, he tells me the front and rear marker lights are actual parts from a Datsun 510. Does anyone know if there are other parts of this car that were derived from Datsun?

I found this to be a very cool looking car in original condition. The guy told me his father purchased the car new and has owned it ever since. He ended up with the car after his parents divorced. Apparently his mom got pretty angry at his father and proceeded to make "art" on the front hood. I asked him if he was going to paint it and he said, "No, it reminds me of the good ol' days to keep it all like this..."

Any other Avanti fans out there? I'm a new one...

[Bruce Palmer]

That body style was produced for quite a number of years after Srudebaker ceased operations. Small startups made iterations of the car under various names and powertrains. It was truly a timeless design and way ahead of its time. The car when outfited with the Paxton supercharger was prety hot.....

That is one fine example....

[psdenno]

For starts, the car in the pictures is an Avanti II, not a Studebaker Avanti. Studebaker made them in 1963 and 1964 before going out of the car business in 1966. Rights to the Avanti name and the design were sold to two South Bend Indiana car dealers and production of the Avanti II began in the late 60s. The company changed hands several times over the years and moved from South Bend to Youngstown, PA to Georgia, and finally to Cancun, Mexico where production ended just a few years ago when the owner went to jail for real estate/investment fraud.

The Avanti was designed in Palm Springs by Industrial Designer Raymond Loewy who also designed the '53 Studebaker, Sky Lab, Air Force One, the Exxon logo, and a Hupmobile among other items.

There are NO Datsun parts on the Avanti. However, the front disc brakes are from Jaguar and the door latches are from Mercedes. The Avanti II used GM running gear as well as other GM mechanical parts off the shelf. All lenses are unique to the Avanti and generally difficult to find, especially for the later Avanti II models. Other parts are still available and you could probably build your own Avanti from the NOS and repro pieces that still exist.

I've owned my supercharged 1963 Avanti since 1976.

Dennis

Edited June 3, 2012 by psdenno

[Bruce Palmer]

See, I knew if given enough time someone would be along with some real facts, not the sweeping generalities I was throwing around.

Dennis, didn't the last ones have actual spuare headlists or am I halucinating again?

Edited June 3, 2012 by Bruce Palmer

[JonnyRock]

If you're ever interested in a cars history, I suggest you check out www.AteUpWithMotor.com

Here is his excellent Avanti piece - The Unlikely Studebaker: Raymond Loewy and the Birth (and Rebirth) of the Avanti

[Carl Beck]

Truly a timeless design - and still beautiful. Our local Studebaker Dealer took a couple of my friends and me on a "demonstration ride" the summer of 1963. I've loved them ever since. The man two houses down from me - Mr. Rebeck no less, was the original owner of his 63 Avanti - would never sell it - and left it to his son when he passed away a few years ago. He also had a very early 50's Stude Pick-up.

[72 OJ]

No 510 parts on this Stud....................................

[Bonzi Lon]

I fell in love with it when I was 8 from a magazine advertisement, always heard stories about that supercharger, never got to see car in person until my early 20's. Raymond Loewy was quite the designer.

Bonzi Lon

[psdenno]

See, I knew if given enough time someone would be along with some real facts, not the sweeping generalities I was throwing around.

Dennis, didn't the last ones have actual spuare headlists or am I halucinating again?

Bruce, not sure if you're hallucinating (always be careful about where the mushrooms on your pizza came from) but the last versions of the Avanti that were built in Mexico had round headlights. See link to the Avanti Motors web site below:

http://www.avantimotors.com/

The company no longer builds the cars, but the web site lives on - go figure.

Like a few others have mentioned, I remember the first time I saw an Avanti at the local Studebaker dealership in northern Wisconsin when I was in high school. It left quite an impression. Years later, I toured the factory in South Bend planning to buy an Avanti II. The military, however, had different plans for me which delayed the purchase. Eventually, I bought a well used 1963 Avanti R2 - the one with the Paxton supercharger. Over the years, I had the opportunity to correspond with Raymond Loewy about the Avanti, met members of his design team, and talked to the Granatelli brothers who broke speed records with the Avanti on the Salt Flats. Too much fun!

Dennis

[cbuczesk]

My brother worked for a high-end custom shop called Lang's Custom Auto in the early 1990s just before they started making Avantis. Here's a little more info and history.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/avanti-cars3.htm

Chuck