REVISED AND UPDATED — Here’s a great little promotional film from Studebaker introducing the 1963 Avanti. The clip features loads of neat car details and mid-century American charm—enjoy.
Designed in 40 days by the Raymond Loewy and Associates team of Tom Kellogg, Bob Andrews and John Ebstein, the stunning Avanti made its public debut at the New York International Auto Show on April 26, 1962. Studebaker billed the sporty coupe as “America’s only four-passenger high-performance personal car,” equipping it with an optional Paxton supercharger and Dunlop-Bendix disc brakes, a first for an American production car.
President Sherwood Egbert had brought loads of energy and exciting new ideas when he came to Studebaker in 1961 from the McCulloch Motors Corporation. The Lark-based Avanti was loaded with novel and distinctive features. But unfortunately, the automaker was already in deep trouble and the South Bend factory closed 18 months later. The Avanti was discontinued with only 4,643 units produced.
In this stylish little PR film produced for Studebaker, we get a fine, close look not only at the Avanti’s boldly styled fiberglass exterior, but also at the elegant continental interior, which still holds plenty of eye appeal today. At 13 minutes, the clip is a little longer than typical Internet fare, but the detail is excellent. Egbert’s innovative American GT didn’t save Studebaker, but it did allow the company to go out in style. Video below.
Egbert was my kind of guy. Not only did he initiate the Avanti effort, he brought Brooks Stevens in to updat the rest of the line, creating wonderful models such as the GT Hawk and Wagonaire literally on a shoestring. The Studebaker story may have been very different if Egbert didn’t have to retire at a very young age due to serious health issues.
As far as the Avanti, it has been a dream car of mine and my wife’s for decades. We were fortunate last year to acquire an original round headlight R2. I get as much pleasure just studying it in the garage as I do driving it. Truly a postwar masterpiece.
The Avanti was one of those “love it or hate it” cars. Personally, I loved it, as with all Studebakers. The 1st time most of us, as kids, saw the Avanti, was on the corny 60’s TV show, Mr. ED. (Studebaker was their sponsor) The Addisons, Wilbur’s neighbors, drove an Avanti. I think it was a little too far “out there” for most at the time, and developed a following long after they were made. To have an original today, is truly a blessing. Loved the interior and the dash. I feel, one of the coolest cars ever made.
Had the car been introduced by one of the Big 3, it would have sold like hotcakes. As noted here, it was too late for Studebaker, long plagued by labor issues and spotty quality. To me, the weak spot was the rear, but it was still startling in comparison to what was on the road then.
The Avanti was different, and became an icon so for a long time, I thought I liked it. But no more. I do respect it though. This car, and the 1957 Rambler Rebel, showed that the little guys were trying hard to come up with something new that would help them. You could say that Studebaker was trying to invent the Mustang with the Lark Daytona. I thought the Wagonaire was brilliant but it was held back by faulty seals. I was surprised when GM revived it a few years ago with better technology and it still failed.
Compare AMC and Studebaker to how Plymouth, Mercury, Pontiac and Oldsmobile went out. The Big Three wasn’t making much attempt at innovative solutions and when they did, their other divisions demanded a piece of the action. GM and Chrysler themselves were making many big stretches to stave off bankruptcy.
Studebaker was know for some weird styling in it’s later years, and the Avanti just continued down that road. The lack of a grill in front was one of those things that probably turned a lot of people off, just like the Corvair. I remember JC Whitney sold a fake grill for the Corvair, don’t know if they had a Stude one. I think Studebaker was trying so hard to be different they misjudged what the American public wanted. The Avanti is one of those cars I like the inside better than the exterior. The outside, well, even with all it’s smooth aerodynamic styling, just missed somehow. The lack of a grill, the bulbous back window, the tall greenhouse, it was just a bit off. I liked the Hawk series much better. That being said, I almost bought one of the later ones that was built after Studebaker went under. It was a 70 something model that had low mileage, but hadn’t been taken care of. IIRC, it had the square headlights. Found something else I liked better, so I passed on it.
Love this car – one of my favorites from the 60s. Many of my early “designs” (doodling in class) were influenced by the innovative Avanti styling.
My memory may fail me but I thought Loewy was the guy, far right, in the background. The lack of white hair confuses me, though. Or is it his house? Anyone confirm?