A first-year, 1963 Studebaker Avanti with a claimed 14K miles is going to be an attention-getter! Especially an example that is as clean as this Morro Bay, California domiciled subject car. It looks fantastic, so let’s investigate. It is available, here on craigslist for $33,000. Thanks to Pat L for this tip!
There is no backstory, unfortunately, around this Avanti as its mileage and condition will engender a quest for detail. Where has this car been for the last 58 years? How come it was driven so sparingly, etc? It’s listed as all original but there is no mileage documentation included so that would be a topic of further inquiry. This Avanti is one of approximately 4,600 produced in ’63 but that was the end of the line for Studebaker’s involvement as it closed its U.S. doors in December of that year. Starting in 1965 the Avanti was resurrected by a group of Studebaker dealers and it continued on through a series of different owners until 2006.
This example is an R1 which means it is powered by the standard 240 HP, 289 CI V8 working in concert with a three-speed automatic transmission. Though the engine certainly looks operational, original, and intact, there is no mention of this Avanti’s operating and driving characteristics. The chrome bits are all correct for this R1 spec car but I was surprised to note the Corvette style ignition suppression shielding. Another interesting addition is the radiator overflow container which has similarities to a Coca-Cola bottle. I must admit, I actually prefer Gatorade containers for such shade-tree operations…Of note, the Avanti was an early domestic adaptor of front disc brakes.
I used to find the Raymond Lowey Loewy design team’s rendering of the Avanti’s lines to be awkward. I think it was the shape of the side quarter windows and their integration into the C-pillar, along with the seemingly grille-less front clip that put me off. As with so many designs, especially compared to some of the more modern abominations that have surfaced, I have come to appreciate the Avanti look over time (though the four-door version still doesn’t cut it in my eyes). And, styling is always subjective. Anyway, the gleaming black finish, referred to as “Avanti Black” and one of five available hues is deep and oxidation-free. The seller describes it as, “PERFECT BLACK PAINT AND BODY, 100% RUST FREE AND ACCIDENT-FREE…” Well, it certainly looks perfect, all of it, chrome trim, glass, and wheel covers – nothing is out of sorts. Ditto the underside, it shows like a recent restoration. Oddly, there is no mention in the Avanti sales brochure of this coupe’s fiberglass body.
Inside is where this coupe really shines IMHO. The amply cushioned seats covered in like-new black vinyl, work perfectly with the various chrome bits of switch-gear and trim. It’s a very welcome improvement over the standard 1963 domestic get-up found in most cars of that time. It emanates a purposeful and all-business-like vibe but is inviting at the same time. It’s safe to say that it requires no attention. And, it’s air-conditioned!
The seller proclaims, “MUST SELL FAST“; my experience suggests that’s not the best sale come-on to employ regardless of the circumstance. In spite of this Studebaker’s spectacular condition, the price is within the range of similar cars/condition/mileage that I could find currently for sale. And of course, how often do you come across a stunner like this example that has only experienced 14K miles?
WOW! Just WOW! easily the nicest early Avanti I’ve had the pleasure of viewing! GLWTS!! :-)
Is it just me, or do the speedometer and tachometer gauges look off center, like they have been taken out and reset .
Beatiful Avanti, would want documetation of the 14 k , before buying
Though.
No, it’s not you, I thought they looked off-center too.
JO
It looks to me like the steering column is slightly offset, and the numbers do look a little misaligned, as if the odo was turned back at some point.
The water temperature gauge looks like a replacement. Maybe when it was replaced the speedo and tach weren’t realigned well. Or maybe the owner went around a right hand curve so fast that centrifugal force caused the speedo and tach to rotate in their nacelles. The smaller gauges didn’t because they have less mass. Yeah, that’s it.
Folks let’s remember that Avanti is a hand made car which stayed on the same South Bend, Ind. prototype line until the mid 1980’s. There is always some variation in the workmanship.
Also I think the camera angle has more than a little to do with the alignment.
Sa to mileage, i haven’t driven mine in 25 years. Roughly 60K on the clock.
This is a bargain. Why people today spend $60,000 and up on POS 60s Ford Broncos when they could have this for half the money us beyond me. Studebaker fans are very loyal to the marque and tons of parts are still available. One of the best looking American cars of the 1960s.
Whether or not it has 14k miles, that interior alone would sell me. That dash too! One thing about Studebakers, from the mid-50s on they always had gorgeous instrument panels.
How does the radiator get air flow?
is there a lower opening I can’t see?
Yes, under the bumper.
Tap the picture of the front end to enlarge it. You’ll see the chrome grill under the front bumper extending to each headlight.
I don’t know if I believe the mileage is correct, but I think this is the nicest ’63 I have seen since I was a kid and our local TV weatherman (I had never heard of a meteorologist back then) who lived down the street bought a new one. His was white with a cream-colored interior, and had the supercharged engine. I loved everything about that car, but especially the interior. I still long for the days when style was important.
I think we are all missing the point. The seller has obviously created a time machine big enough to fit a car into. We need to be watching this guy and see what else his is bringing us through the mists of time. I could use some fenders for my 57 Chevy truck, maybe I can send him back to get some…?
Picture is bleared but oil pressure gauge does not look right. This looks great but little things would make me want to see it up close.
The speedometer and tachometer are off to the right a little, but I think they may have been taken out or just loosened up a bit to be detailed and the person who put it together was cockeyed!
Good write up, at author @Jim ODonnell but you spelled Raymond LOEWY’s name wrong. Otherwise this car deserves a closer look.
No surprise there…fixed now, thx.
JO
Upon closer inspection of the photos on the Craigslist ad, I doubt that this is an original 14,xxx mile car. Otherwise, why would the battery cables be replaced with non-stock cables; horn relay is painted black, not metal color; radiator cap is a replacement and the radiator tank has multiple dents; fan color is black, not reddish-orange; and more wear on the door panels and seats inside. Also, the air cleaner looks rechromed and too shiny, originals were just duller flash chrome.
And at 14,xxx miles, I’d expect to see the factory mufflers, not older aftermarket glasspacks. And the throttle rod from the carb to the throttle bellcrank is not original.
Agreed. These details tell the tale. I too don’t believe the mileage. If it were real, wouldn’t you think the owner would be proudly talking about it….the whys and wheres and whens? Yet he does not. On the other hand, the car is a beauty. Buyer beware. Trust but verify.
My first car was a custom 1955 Studebaker President with candy apple red paint. It’s V-8 was powerful and reliable. It was a stick shift and was able to beat about all cars of the day in street races. My regret is not having any pictures to show. This Avanti seems to be the real deal. A great bargain for someone.
I have never seen a black panel around the gauges. I said oil pressure gauge did not look right. It is the temp gauge and from another picture it is not right. It is my opinion that all the gauges were out to make the panel black. After looking at all the pictures I have a hard time believing this is a 14k mileage
Yes very nice, that for sale sign looks very beat, unless they have been using the same one for years with other cars.
We do not know the VIN/serial number of this Avanti, but it very well could be one of 73 cars produced with a black instrument and console panels and black steering wheel and steering column.
We featured an extensive, multi-page report by Studebaker Avanti researchers John Hull and Gary Johnson in Avanti Magazine Issue #171 (Summer/Fall 2015) on the 73 Avantis produced with the black instrument and console panels and black steering wheels and steering column.
Studebaker issued an Engineering Specification DeviationSheet #5596 on June 28, 1963.The purpose of the Deviation Sheet was to document theproblem with the Di-Noc appliqué, or faux woodgrain, and the preferred solution which was to paint six Avanti interior surfaces black and install a black steering wheel. Eventually this would extend to 73 produced cars.
The above magazine article list all 73 serial numbers of the cars with the black interior treatments.
The ad states 63R4685
I wouldn’t care if the speedometer and tachometer gauges were upsidedown. I’d STILL want it!
it is odd. old shocks but new nuts on them, one new nut on brakes, one side of rod on carb is new. Air looks new, looking like some one at one time painted black on lots of the stuff under hood. you can see were they stopped the painting. and mostly no paint on two oil pans. this may not be motor car came with.
looking at air in the car, looks like it was added or been taken apart and not put back as good as it should be. but over all if it runs as good as it looks it may just be worth what he asking.
I hate it when cars make me drool.
Yes it looks like most of the small gauges have been swapped out. Nicest engine chrome I’ve seen in awhile – factory A/C car – that’s a little rare. Priced pretty good – isn’t there a Carfax thing that can shed some mileage info ?
I don’t often write this, but I tend to believe the mileage on this one, the mis-aligned gauges notwithstanding. May have been that way since new, maybe the other “discrepancies” are due to an owner freshening up things that got rusty/dirty due to no use and just sitting around. Wish I had the funds for this very beautiful automobile.
The ignition shielding is stock multi piece Studebaker Avanti. Not anywhere close to the one piece corvette unit.,
It’s a beautiful 58 year old car. This would look good in my garage, crooked gauges and all. Looking at the underside, it looks like an H-pipe has been added. It looks newer than the rest of the exhaust.
Exhaust systems on 1980s and older cars last longer when the vehicles are driven on a regular basis. Having a very low mileage car that sat for years on a concrete floor with little air circulation in the garage, will often require the entire exhaust system replacement. And even if it’s just the mufflers that rusted, most shops will want to replace the entire system because it often results in higher labor costs to try to save the pipes, than the cost of the pipes, especially with $100 and up hourly shop rates today.
So it’s very believable to see replaced exhaust on a 14k mile car.
Years back I was looking at a ultra low mile 1965 Impala and it had a stack of receipts for exhaust replacements. That made for an easy way to document the mileage.
I looked at the Craig’s List post for this car. I’m surprised all those who commented about the car having various little items that would suggest it’s been the subject of a restoration, must have missed a specific sentence in the listing text that says: THIS CAR HAS BEEN RESTORED BACK IN 1999.