Thank you so much for taking the time to bring this to us! And, I've enjoyed the banter after the video almost as much. I'm 57 in a couple of days. It's strange, but ever since '63 I have always wanted an Avanti....actually I've kind of been a freak for them. None of my other buds growing up who had all the top of the line musclecars of the day (hell, even I had a Superbird / 440 auto) gave Avantis a sideways glance. What's a truly nice one with the Paxton bringing now...$30K? joel in tucson
The other make/model, which also benefited (but from its inception) from a "donor engine"(except in this instance the superior engineered and much quieter by far: Chrysler) was the aristocratic luxury sportsman's car Mr. Jensen's Interceptor and Interceptor III. Jensen (the designer | one time owner ... one time Aston Martin expert-force ... was, of course, promptly sued into oblivion for having delivered to market an astounding yet affordable car ... eclipsed its look alike: the AMs!
@CarCriticAssessor Actually the Interceptor was designed by "Vignale". And with a price equal to the contemporary Rolls Royce Shadow, it was far from affordable
@jensen1971x: Dear Mind-Deficit, Screw your "Actually {you need a comma}, the Interceptor ....": I merely reference the Interceptor's biographical genesis to state the LITTLE KNOWN FACT THAT the Interceptors'--categorized as a donor car--power plants were CHRYSLERs. Having owned two "mint-original-custom" mega-'70's Avantis (shag Wilton rugs etc), and one Interceptor III: the superior build|beauty quality orbit of the latter prevailed. Jensens are regal & were cheap for their class!
@CarCriticAssessor The Avanti II and the Jensen Interceptor were both junk and overpriced. Their only saving grace was the style. Cadillacs of the same period were built better.
@jensen1971x: You're being too brutal there. Loved the Jensen, but sold it at a tidy profit, by happenstance. Nothing like that car ... turning radius was not all that great; but, the build finishes on the car eg, the bright door jams, the interior cosmetics, the walk-a-round points proved terrific. The Avantis -- despite going so far as to change every bolt & nut head to hex or other -- the car was, at best, an ill-conceived poorly, executed kit-car: they suck; forget tweaking!
The other make/model, which also benefited (but from its inception) from a "donor engine"(except in this instance the superior engineered and much quieter by far: Chrysler) was the aristocratic luxury sportsman's car Jensen's Interceptor and Interceptor III. Avantis post the short-run Studebaker supercharged R2s and R3s days; later Avanti and Avanti II owners were relegated to cheap, noisy and crude Chevy 305s, 400sand 350s; the car's turning radius and handling were ALWAYS awful; the ride sad.
An incisive, and of necessity, brutally candid assessment is availed below. However, it seems fitting to add that from at least four viewing angles it "works". Yet, sans needed strategic curvilinear "bow points", and an urgent need for an approx. 6" move forward of its windshield/steeper slope, it screams revamp for its awkward profile's hunchback roof-line's ill execution -- its front end is often pegged a failure, too. Best: version: R3 Supercharged turbo, in triple turquoise :metallic paint.
Abysmal design -- outdone by cheap materials, shoddy and slap-dash fabrication ... an utter lack of scientific ie, sans physics steeped engineering sums the Avanti and Avanti II owner experience: applies, too, to ALL STUDEBAKERS' interiors; but, certain late 1950's and 1960's "S" models, along with an array of much earlier decades' models, sported truly elegant or utterly beautiful exteriors. To apprehend the point, compare those cars referenced to contemporaries eg, T-Birds, Vega Facel, Buicks.
@CarCriticAssessor Abysmal design? I guess thats why there is a Studebaker Avanti in the Museum of Modern Art in France. To display automotive design gone awry.
I'm not sure what your beef is against this car but you're 'analysis' of the Avanti is laughable.
@silentagony: BRAKES: FYI, "its" = possessive form; "it's", w/ apostrophe indicates the CONTRACTION of "it is": get it? Learn it & assiduously apply it; especially, when trying to "correct" someone of my superior car criticism status :-) Your vociferous wrangling requires public corporal punishment. That said, "get off of the crucifix" ding-dong; there are a lot of museums, w/ a lot of fairies running them, whom hold other ideas about what screwdrivers do...not mechanical: get it? Avanti=0.
Raymond Loewy had very little to do with designing the Avanti. He got the contract, then set 5 guys to work in a house in Palm Springs on a crash basis. He only stopped in occasionally to see how it was going. By the 1960s, Loewy hadn't designed anything personally for years, maybe decades.
@Jaybird248: Finally, one whom has truly researched, understands and airs truth regarding that over-rated SALESMAN con-job: RW. Additionally, too, JUST BECAUSE an initial slew tells an unwitting king -- who prances down the street in a self-congratulatory manor -- that his new invisible fine gold thread clothes are astounding ... does not mean that there actually are any clothes, of any description, cladding the cad; verdic on Raymond Lowery, the so-called best 20th C industrial designer -- lol.
@Jaybird248: You said it! The chump was a monkey mucker, to say the least. He was the consummate "show boat con", whose "product" was often bested--except in the contemporaneous media and the inculcated "sycophants borne of academia's brainwashing" parroting what they "learnt about good design" in University or some tacky book, blindly embraced by newer generations--by other non-attention-whoring designers and design teams eg, anonymous "works for hire": get it? Loewy's designs, on-balance, suck
Doesn't the female narrator sound like Jaqueline Kennedy? The elegant and dignified reading MUST be she! Actually, it was "de rigeur" to emulate the first lady's style in 1962. Any thoughts?
@Mrtriumphchopper:Yeah, Jackie {screw the recent supercilious Franco "gentrification homage routine", 'sounds "politically correct" & bespeaks not so tacitly "gay gay gay" lisping: so lose it, FAST; okay [hatchet in hand]} pigeon-mated-to-turtle-faced gal, as she was known contemporaneously, took on her "later-day incarnation" (spent summers in eg, Newport, RI: no women spoke that way, in any social circle) creme-boules chatter, as a post-deb Marilyn Monroe boarding school hybrid enticement ploy
As you all probably know,the Avanti body was fibreglas, and seemingly easy to have done-up as a sedan, convertible, and maybe even a station wagon, all being Avanti's. Well, maybe it will return one day. The final edition (2002,I believe) was based on the Pontiac Firebird T/A, although you couldn't tell it except for the dashboard, and was very luxuriously appointed and beautiful. But like almost everything, the original is still the best! Thank you for this lovely and rare vid!!
mrpitv -thank you so very much for this wonderful trip down memory lane. Between the narration, music in background and of course - this FABULOUS car takes me right back to the 60s!. I had a white avanti (not the orig. studebaker) in the early 90s and it was not only beautiful, but it had an 8Track tape player in it (when I bought it) of Frank Sinatra best hits. Talk about atmosphere! This car's engine would leap from 0-60 if you even TOUCHED the gas pedal. OMG what a CAR! Thanks again!
Thanks for this post. How could you not love this car? Beautifully styled (the designer was cutting edge) and appointed, but was the engine up to snuff?
@cremeofthereich Well, Studebaker sent some Avantis and Larks to Bonneville and set something around 28 land speed records. An R3 Avanti went 168mph, a record that stood til the 90's. Since the 60's Studebaker powered Avantis have gone 220+ mph... Very very good for an engine designed before the SBC and only running 302cubes max. Standard R1 and R2 engines were 289cid. I know the production class records weren't beaten until the 90's, and I think Avanti still have some unlimited records.
@mrpitv love these stories about r. lowey designing the 1953 stuebaker and the avanti. know any other funny stories about who designed what. some of us that were there are still around
I never found the Avanti appealing but I've got to say that they were a very good car. I've ridden in one with a friend (1963 R1) and it's performance, fit, finish and handling is remarkably good for an early 60's auto.
I'd love to know why this movie was made? Where was it meant to be shown? There were no videos back then, so this wouldn't have been shown in dealer's showrooms, only on a movie screen. Its way too long for a standard advertisement, even for a movie theatre.
Thanks for sharing this wonderful piece of motoring history with everyone.
This was supposed to be the pace car for the Indy 500 but was delayed so much that they had to use a Lark as the pace car in it's place. Sad that Studebaker had to go out like this, but at least they didn't suffer the indignity's that Packard and Hudson suffered.
Great cars,the public should have gave them a chance.These things made the then-current day Corvette look stupid.Imagine Corvette as a "luxury" 4 passenger car.....yet Avanti could match it speed for speed....Studebaker was on its game here for sure.
The Avanti is one of my favorite cars of all time. I would so love to have that car. I saw an original 1963 Avanti recently. It was black and had the R-1 289 supercharged V-8 in it. That was a seriouosly awesome car.
@ironcarvel I know the feeling. Wouldn't it be nice to live in a MCM house with an Avanti parked in the driveway? Let's take a drive to the CC where everybody has a crew cut, a trophy wife, and a foot-long National Hebrew that keeps a two-hour salute.
What a historic video. Shot in and around Palm Springs, where, of course Lowey and his team designed the car. Love the shots on the Palms to Pines Highway, which some might remember as the road in the opening of "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World." Too bad it didn't pull Studebaker out of its nosedive but the car did live on for another 35 years or so.
What really would have helped Studebaker would have been for them to offer the Avanti to the upcoming James Bond: Goldfinger film, as Bond's car.. That might have brought them out of the hole, to have such a innovative car in such a popular movie..
@Sarcasticscum Interesting idea. They needed to sell a lot more cars. It was nearly impossible to compete with General Motors, Ford and Chrysler by that time. American Motors hung on for a few years (the merge of Nash and Hudson) but Studebaker was left out of that tie up and made a disastrous deal to acquire Packard. They never recovered but the Mercedes deal did eventually succeed. A bail out from Eisenhower kept them going for a few years but the Avanti was their Hail Mary pass.
The original design is so timeless, that it still stands out today. Studebaker was ahead of its time... it brought in traffic to the dealers... but the aging Lark and Hawk couldn't compete with the likes of GM, Ford, Chrysler and AMC. Studebaker left South Bend after 1964 and built cars for two more years in its Hamilton, Ontario factory. It finally quit the car business after the 1966 models.
Nostalgic and beautiful video, the Avanti is one of the great automotive icons of the history, with the Citroen DS, the 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air and other great cars, the Studebaker Avanti was a gorgeous car, terrific performance, excellent handling and an advanced design, several negative situations inside of the production lines, conspire right in the production line, sad but true.
Presenting this elegant car video must have been a real challenge. Simple, elegant, down to earth, I wonder which ad firm did it? Raymond Loewy pulled this classic off himself, with a small team of designers holed up in a Palm Springs motel for a couple of weeks to meet a deadline.. This was ten years after his employee, Robert Bourke designed the classic '53 Studebakers. Kudos to them all.
Not sure who shot the promo film. But it was shot in Palm Springs near the rented house Loewy used as the design "skunk works" for his team. We interviewed Tom Kellogg, about his experience as a young designer on the Avanti project for our History Channel show Automobiles. It was fascinating. Wouldn't happen to today.
Studebaker had gotten a bail out from Eisenhower in 1956 in the form of some military contracts which helped them absorb the purchase of Packard and the introduction of Mercedes in the US. It wasn't enough to let them grow to compete against the big three. Like today, it was an era of consolidation.
Thank you so much for taking the time to bring this to us! And, I've enjoyed the banter after the video almost as much. I'm 57 in a couple of days. It's strange, but ever since '63 I have always wanted an Avanti....actually I've kind of been a freak for them. None of my other buds growing up who had all the top of the line musclecars of the day (hell, even I had a Superbird / 440 auto) gave Avantis a sideways glance. What's a truly nice one with the Paxton bringing now...$30K? joel in tucson
WickedTornado 2 months ago
My uncle has one. it has the optional supercharger. buts its been in pieces for the last 25 years.
CRX1100 5 months ago
Total Mad Men car porn. I want one. Now.
Vincek88 6 months ago
The other make/model, which also benefited (but from its inception) from a "donor engine"(except in this instance the superior engineered and much quieter by far: Chrysler) was the aristocratic luxury sportsman's car Mr. Jensen's Interceptor and Interceptor III. Jensen (the designer | one time owner ... one time Aston Martin expert-force ... was, of course, promptly sued into oblivion for having delivered to market an astounding yet affordable car ... eclipsed its look alike: the AMs!
CarCriticAssessor 6 months ago
@CarCriticAssessor Actually the Interceptor was designed by "Vignale". And with a price equal to the contemporary Rolls Royce Shadow, it was far from affordable
jensen1971x 1 month ago
@jensen1971x: Dear Mind-Deficit, Screw your "Actually {you need a comma}, the Interceptor ....": I merely reference the Interceptor's biographical genesis to state the LITTLE KNOWN FACT THAT the Interceptors'--categorized as a donor car--power plants were CHRYSLERs. Having owned two "mint-original-custom" mega-'70's Avantis (shag Wilton rugs etc), and one Interceptor III: the superior build|beauty quality orbit of the latter prevailed. Jensens are regal & were cheap for their class!
CarCriticAssessor 1 month ago
@CarCriticAssessor The Avanti II and the Jensen Interceptor were both junk and overpriced. Their only saving grace was the style. Cadillacs of the same period were built better.
jensen1971x 1 month ago
@jensen1971x: You're being too brutal there. Loved the Jensen, but sold it at a tidy profit, by happenstance. Nothing like that car ... turning radius was not all that great; but, the build finishes on the car eg, the bright door jams, the interior cosmetics, the walk-a-round points proved terrific. The Avantis -- despite going so far as to change every bolt & nut head to hex or other -- the car was, at best, an ill-conceived poorly, executed kit-car: they suck; forget tweaking!
CarCriticAssessor 1 month ago
Comment removed
CarCriticAssessor 7 months ago
Comment removed
CarCriticAssessor 7 months ago
The other make/model, which also benefited (but from its inception) from a "donor engine"(except in this instance the superior engineered and much quieter by far: Chrysler) was the aristocratic luxury sportsman's car Jensen's Interceptor and Interceptor III. Avantis post the short-run Studebaker supercharged R2s and R3s days; later Avanti and Avanti II owners were relegated to cheap, noisy and crude Chevy 305s, 400sand 350s; the car's turning radius and handling were ALWAYS awful; the ride sad.
CarCriticAssessor 7 months ago
An incisive, and of necessity, brutally candid assessment is availed below. However, it seems fitting to add that from at least four viewing angles it "works". Yet, sans needed strategic curvilinear "bow points", and an urgent need for an approx. 6" move forward of its windshield/steeper slope, it screams revamp for its awkward profile's hunchback roof-line's ill execution -- its front end is often pegged a failure, too. Best: version: R3 Supercharged turbo, in triple turquoise :metallic paint.
CarCriticAssessor 7 months ago
Abysmal design -- outdone by cheap materials, shoddy and slap-dash fabrication ... an utter lack of scientific ie, sans physics steeped engineering sums the Avanti and Avanti II owner experience: applies, too, to ALL STUDEBAKERS' interiors; but, certain late 1950's and 1960's "S" models, along with an array of much earlier decades' models, sported truly elegant or utterly beautiful exteriors. To apprehend the point, compare those cars referenced to contemporaries eg, T-Birds, Vega Facel, Buicks.
CarCriticAssessor 7 months ago
@CarCriticAssessor Abysmal design? I guess thats why there is a Studebaker Avanti in the Museum of Modern Art in France. To display automotive design gone awry.
I'm not sure what your beef is against this car but you're 'analysis' of the Avanti is laughable.
Also, its Aston Martin...
silentagony 6 months ago
@silentagony: BRAKES: FYI, "its" = possessive form; "it's", w/ apostrophe indicates the CONTRACTION of "it is": get it? Learn it & assiduously apply it; especially, when trying to "correct" someone of my superior car criticism status :-) Your vociferous wrangling requires public corporal punishment. That said, "get off of the crucifix" ding-dong; there are a lot of museums, w/ a lot of fairies running them, whom hold other ideas about what screwdrivers do...not mechanical: get it? Avanti=0.
CarCriticAssessor 1 month ago
Raymond Loewy had very little to do with designing the Avanti. He got the contract, then set 5 guys to work in a house in Palm Springs on a crash basis. He only stopped in occasionally to see how it was going. By the 1960s, Loewy hadn't designed anything personally for years, maybe decades.
Jaybird248 7 months ago
@Jaybird248: Finally, one whom has truly researched, understands and airs truth regarding that over-rated SALESMAN con-job: RW. Additionally, too, JUST BECAUSE an initial slew tells an unwitting king -- who prances down the street in a self-congratulatory manor -- that his new invisible fine gold thread clothes are astounding ... does not mean that there actually are any clothes, of any description, cladding the cad; verdic on Raymond Lowery, the so-called best 20th C industrial designer -- lol.
CarCriticAssessor 6 months ago
@Jaybird248: You said it! The chump was a monkey mucker, to say the least. He was the consummate "show boat con", whose "product" was often bested--except in the contemporaneous media and the inculcated "sycophants borne of academia's brainwashing" parroting what they "learnt about good design" in University or some tacky book, blindly embraced by newer generations--by other non-attention-whoring designers and design teams eg, anonymous "works for hire": get it? Loewy's designs, on-balance, suck
CarCriticAssessor 1 month ago
Doesn't the female narrator sound like Jaqueline Kennedy? The elegant and dignified reading MUST be she! Actually, it was "de rigeur" to emulate the first lady's style in 1962. Any thoughts?
Mrtriumphchopper 9 months ago
@Mrtriumphchopper:Yeah, Jackie {screw the recent supercilious Franco "gentrification homage routine", 'sounds "politically correct" & bespeaks not so tacitly "gay gay gay" lisping: so lose it, FAST; okay [hatchet in hand]} pigeon-mated-to-turtle-faced gal, as she was known contemporaneously, took on her "later-day incarnation" (spent summers in eg, Newport, RI: no women spoke that way, in any social circle) creme-boules chatter, as a post-deb Marilyn Monroe boarding school hybrid enticement ploy
CarCriticAssessor 1 month ago
As you all probably know,the Avanti body was fibreglas, and seemingly easy to have done-up as a sedan, convertible, and maybe even a station wagon, all being Avanti's. Well, maybe it will return one day. The final edition (2002,I believe) was based on the Pontiac Firebird T/A, although you couldn't tell it except for the dashboard, and was very luxuriously appointed and beautiful. But like almost everything, the original is still the best! Thank you for this lovely and rare vid!!
Mrtriumphchopper 9 months ago
I'd buy one of these today if they still made them. I will deffinatley own one someday.
Monacomaverick 10 months ago
now how fabulous is that!
themamagoatshow 10 months ago
mrpitv -thank you so very much for this wonderful trip down memory lane. Between the narration, music in background and of course - this FABULOUS car takes me right back to the 60s!. I had a white avanti (not the orig. studebaker) in the early 90s and it was not only beautiful, but it had an 8Track tape player in it (when I bought it) of Frank Sinatra best hits. Talk about atmosphere! This car's engine would leap from 0-60 if you even TOUCHED the gas pedal. OMG what a CAR! Thanks again!
MsJollycholly 10 months ago
Sherwood Egbert appears in the beginning of this video, at 0:34 and 0:44.
RabidKoala 1 year ago
Thanks for this post. How could you not love this car? Beautifully styled (the designer was cutting edge) and appointed, but was the engine up to snuff?
cremeofthereich 1 year ago
@cremeofthereich Well, Studebaker sent some Avantis and Larks to Bonneville and set something around 28 land speed records. An R3 Avanti went 168mph, a record that stood til the 90's. Since the 60's Studebaker powered Avantis have gone 220+ mph... Very very good for an engine designed before the SBC and only running 302cubes max. Standard R1 and R2 engines were 289cid. I know the production class records weren't beaten until the 90's, and I think Avanti still have some unlimited records.
silentagony 7 months ago
@silentagony Thanks for commenting. Sounds impressive. Love this car.
cremeofthereich 6 months ago
Is that the model that inspired Bruno Sacco to design cars? Is there any documentary on Loewy ? Thanks !
EnryMusica 1 year ago
@EnryMusica Our Great Cars episode on the Avanti covers his career but there isn't a documentary about him specifically that I know about.
mrpitv 1 year ago
@mrpitv Thanks. I couldn't find any either. Your post is very, very good.
EnryMusica 1 year ago
@mrpitv love these stories about r. lowey designing the 1953 stuebaker and the avanti. know any other funny stories about who designed what. some of us that were there are still around
Lulu1235463 1 month ago
design by french Raymond Loewy
289cab 1 year ago
I never found the Avanti appealing but I've got to say that they were a very good car. I've ridden in one with a friend (1963 R1) and it's performance, fit, finish and handling is remarkably good for an early 60's auto.
walkenshaw2000 1 year ago
So advanced for the time, but so standard today.
I'd love to know why this movie was made? Where was it meant to be shown? There were no videos back then, so this wouldn't have been shown in dealer's showrooms, only on a movie screen. Its way too long for a standard advertisement, even for a movie theatre.
Thanks for sharing this wonderful piece of motoring history with everyone.
Aussiemarco 1 year ago
This was supposed to be the pace car for the Indy 500 but was delayed so much that they had to use a Lark as the pace car in it's place. Sad that Studebaker had to go out like this, but at least they didn't suffer the indignity's that Packard and Hudson suffered.
HappyJack01 1 year ago
@HappyJack01 Too bad GM had to suffer the indignity of accepting a bailout from the taxpayers.
dumnuts1 1 year ago
Great cars,the public should have gave them a chance.These things made the then-current day Corvette look stupid.Imagine Corvette as a "luxury" 4 passenger car.....yet Avanti could match it speed for speed....Studebaker was on its game here for sure.
hpspeedster 1 year ago
I love this car and the video...but God, that "doodeedoodeedoo!" music is terrible!
Mumblix 1 year ago
@Mumblix thats 1963 for you, lol...
YummyTacoz909 1 year ago
The Avanti is one of my favorite cars of all time. I would so love to have that car. I saw an original 1963 Avanti recently. It was black and had the R-1 289 supercharged V-8 in it. That was a seriouosly awesome car.
tjhaywood100 1 year ago
OMG! Can you miss something you never had, or a time you did not live in? I have these feelings constantly.
ironcarvel 1 year ago
@ironcarvel I'm right there with ya! I feel exactly the same way!
tjhaywood100 1 year ago
@ironcarvel I know the feeling. Wouldn't it be nice to live in a MCM house with an Avanti parked in the driveway? Let's take a drive to the CC where everybody has a crew cut, a trophy wife, and a foot-long National Hebrew that keeps a two-hour salute.
dumnuts1 1 year ago
What a historic video. Shot in and around Palm Springs, where, of course Lowey and his team designed the car. Love the shots on the Palms to Pines Highway, which some might remember as the road in the opening of "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World." Too bad it didn't pull Studebaker out of its nosedive but the car did live on for another 35 years or so.
weekenddriver 1 year ago 2
@weekenddriver I've never seen the Loewy house in Palm Springs but one of these days I'll have to make the trek. Thanks for your comment.
mrpitv 1 year ago
Very nice for the time :)
skywatcher75 1 year ago
What really would have helped Studebaker would have been for them to offer the Avanti to the upcoming James Bond: Goldfinger film, as Bond's car.. That might have brought them out of the hole, to have such a innovative car in such a popular movie..
Sarcasticscum 1 year ago 2
@Sarcasticscum Interesting idea. They needed to sell a lot more cars. It was nearly impossible to compete with General Motors, Ford and Chrysler by that time. American Motors hung on for a few years (the merge of Nash and Hudson) but Studebaker was left out of that tie up and made a disastrous deal to acquire Packard. They never recovered but the Mercedes deal did eventually succeed. A bail out from Eisenhower kept them going for a few years but the Avanti was their Hail Mary pass.
mrpitv 1 year ago
The original design is so timeless, that it still stands out today. Studebaker was ahead of its time... it brought in traffic to the dealers... but the aging Lark and Hawk couldn't compete with the likes of GM, Ford, Chrysler and AMC. Studebaker left South Bend after 1964 and built cars for two more years in its Hamilton, Ontario factory. It finally quit the car business after the 1966 models.
cubantoro 1 year ago
Egbert never had a chance, but he almost saved studebaker,
his efforts were heroic
wileycoyote64 1 year ago
I really want this car. Kudos for Studebaker. I almost fainted when I saw it came with an optional Paxton Supercharger. Very Nice!
OldsCutlass1978 1 year ago
Paxton Products Division was part of Studebaker Corp. by this time.
K6ZRX 1 year ago
I have wanted an Avanti since I was a kid in '63. Maybe now that I'm ready to retire, I can get one.
Loewy, who was a friend of my Father, also designed the Coca Cola bottle...
Fangioparis 1 year ago
Nostalgic and beautiful video, the Avanti is one of the great automotive icons of the history, with the Citroen DS, the 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air and other great cars, the Studebaker Avanti was a gorgeous car, terrific performance, excellent handling and an advanced design, several negative situations inside of the production lines, conspire right in the production line, sad but true.
Thank you very much, great contribution.
ARCANOE 2 years ago
packard bought studebaker not the other way around.
ramblergarage 2 years ago
I have an Avanti, it's a great car.
An icon of car designb that anyone can afford.
bearcatowner 2 years ago
to bearcat: is your Avanti an old studebaker one or the post studebaker ones
inkey2 2 years ago
It's an original Studebaker. A very nice car for its time.
bearcatowner 2 years ago
Owned a Avanti II in Switzerland back in the nineties,
a spiffy machine in mint condition, seapine green metallic, white leather interior,
on a Corvette chassis and a huge Olds V8 engine,
always a bunch iof guys around it whenever I parked it in downtown Zurich hehe
The yearly meetings of the Swiss Avanti Owners were fun,
each time about a dozen candy colored Avantis in a row,
what a sight!
oldpossum 2 years ago
Presenting this elegant car video must have been a real challenge. Simple, elegant, down to earth, I wonder which ad firm did it? Raymond Loewy pulled this classic off himself, with a small team of designers holed up in a Palm Springs motel for a couple of weeks to meet a deadline.. This was ten years after his employee, Robert Bourke designed the classic '53 Studebakers. Kudos to them all.
TomLibby100 2 years ago
Not sure who shot the promo film. But it was shot in Palm Springs near the rented house Loewy used as the design "skunk works" for his team. We interviewed Tom Kellogg, about his experience as a young designer on the Avanti project for our History Channel show Automobiles. It was fascinating. Wouldn't happen to today.
mrpitv 2 years ago
Do You like this car? Register and discuss about it in V6wall com ;)
FriendlyDriver 2 years ago
Studebaker should have asked the government for a bailout loan, thousands of jobs in South Bend could have been saved.
gintas35 2 years ago
Studebaker had gotten a bail out from Eisenhower in 1956 in the form of some military contracts which helped them absorb the purchase of Packard and the introduction of Mercedes in the US. It wasn't enough to let them grow to compete against the big three. Like today, it was an era of consolidation.
mrpitv 2 years ago
so true. Raymond Loewy epitomized civilized design and living. And his cars were an expression of his worldview.
mrpitv 2 years ago
What style and elegance in marketing! What a crude and rude nation we've become.
mikeeG77 2 years ago
Watch old Volkswagen ads.
Lamnont 2 years ago
Great video! I love riding my Avanti!!!!
billywiz 2 years ago
Oh soooo swank! And I love the strong marketing message to women!
mitejoe 2 years ago 2
Too hip!
bobmerlis 2 years ago 2
you got that right.
silentagony 2 years ago