The 1959 model year was the last year that the Studebaker Silver Hawk went by that name, as from 1960, the car was known simply as the Studebaker Hawk. This Silver Hawk is an attractive looking car that is located in Buellton, California. It is being sold with a clean title, and you will find it listed for sale here on Craigslist.
The entire Studebaker Hawk series was well known for issues with rust, but this particular car appears to have escaped the worst of it. The owner says that there is some just appearing in the rockers, but that the rest of the car is clean. I really like the color combination of Campfire Red and White Sand. The paint looks to be in pretty fair condition, and I wouldn’t be surprised if a buff and polish didn’t have this car looking really good.
For 1959, the Silver Hawk was available with either a 169.6ci straight-six engine or a 259ci V8. This car is fitted with the V8 and an automatic transmission. The engine bay looks quite tidy, and the owner says that the car runs and drives really well. So far then, this is all looking very promising for this Silver Hawk.
The positive vibes continue with the interior of this Studebaker. The dash, door trims, and carpet all look to be in really good condition, and thankfully, the dash and door trims haven’t been molested to fit an aftermarket stereo. The machine turning on the dash is always a nice look that I’m quite taken with. The upholstery material on the seats isn’t original, but I don’t think that it looks terribly out of place. It is also in really nice condition.
To me, this Silver Hawk represents a really good buy. Nice examples are currently fetching prices from about $14,000, up to $50,000 for one example that is a real, low mileage time capsule. On average though, nice examples sell for between $18,000 and $25,000. The asking price for this car? $9,888. This seems to be one really good buy at that price.
In the early ’70’s my 2nd oldest brother turned one of these into a dirt track stock car. I remember he put the exhaust outlets through the fender vents behind the front tires. The whole thing, inside and out, was painted a medium purple. Being under 10 at the time, I loved that car.
My older brother had a 1954 with a dual quad Cadillac engine, Pontiac posi-traction rear end, 4 speed hydromatic with floor shift. This was in the 1960’s!
I miss my brother and every time I see an old Studebaker it reminds me of him. I loved that car. It was special.
Ugiest Thing I’ve Ever Seen….
I love these.
Wish I was close enough to go look at it
I have never seen a 59 painted this way.
Vince,
In 40+ years of collecting & repairing Studebakers, I, too, have never seen a 2-tone paint scheme like this one, but it appears to be original to the car, as there are special chrome [or stainless] trim pieces to separate the white & red areas.
As for the available engines on a ’59 Hawk, There were 3 types available, in North America you got either the 259 V8 or the 289 V8. The 6-cylinder was generally only available on export cars. That said, if you wanted to order a Hawk with a 6, you could probably get one in the USA. That would be a very rare car indeed!
This appears to be a very nice original Hawk, and at that price it will likely sell fairly quickly.
Bill,
There were more 6 cylinder 59 Hawks than you would think. I have seen quite a few. The 259 was the only 8 cylinder in 59 but from what I know about Studebaker I am sure you could get a 289 out the back door.
Vincent,
You are correct about the 259 being the only official V8 that year, I had forgotten how “downgraded” the company made the Hawk that year,
there were even rumors that the company was going to discontinue the line.
And yeah, if the salesman & sales manager agreed, adding the 289 order number code to the build sheet would likely result in a 289 Hawk.
I was talking to an old school mechanic/service station owner many years ago who told me that he loved working on these ‘Hawks” (golden or otherwise ) because they were the best made engines of any US cars built as close to ‘specs’ as you could find. Is this true? Has anybody else heard this? Or know if it’s true?
Nothing else looked like it. Neat cars.
I like the car and I like the price. I always thought that the silver/chrome rim around the side grilles/turn signal lamp should be body color. In these shots it looks like poorly done over riders.
If I was in the market I would drive down to see it.
Nice….but I know Studes are not for everybody.