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It’s The Champ! 1963 Studebaker Pickup

If you have been following Barn Finds for a while, you know I’m a pretty big fan of Studebaker pickups, although I have yet to pull the trigger on one. If this one weren’t so far away, it might be the one to tip the balance! It’s located in Bismark, North Dakota and is being auctioned off here on eBay at no reserve, with an opening bid of only $499!

As you can see, it’s been sinking for a while into the North Dakota earth. The seller is a person of few words, but they do tell us that the floors and rocker panels are rusty. On the other hand, they talk about the bed being solid. I wish they showed us the bed floor in a picture.

I guess solid means just that, solid. That being said, the overall look of this truck agrees with me. It resembles a worn, but not worn-out Tonka or Nylint toy from my youth.

The interior looks pretty worn, but intact. It could certainly use a cleaning.  I’m wondering if there were right-hand drive versions of this truck as the dash looks completely symmetrical with the two white inserts.

We can see the clutch pedal, and the seller tells us the truck is powered by a 289 V8 (no, not a Ford, Studebaker had their own!) that is attached to a three-speed manual. So tell me — could you become attached to this old truck? I could!

Comments

  1. Avatar Duffy

    No.

    Like 0
  2. Avatar Bill Nelson

    A friend of mine had one, don’t know the exact year of the truck, but was in 1962 when we were in high school in Montana. He ran it as hard as it would go, and it never broke!!

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  3. Avatar Tort Member

    If it is sunken into the North Dakota plain and the rockers and floor are bad I would surely check out the frame. The forties and fifties bring big dollars but this later model with a long box I would guess not so much.

    Like 0
  4. Avatar Alexander Member

    Sigh. Just my speed and just the right price. Damn.

    I have no interest in trailering/towing this vehicle and collecting the parts that fall off of it if I were to drag it back to Tennessee.

    Like 0
  5. Avatar Jerry Brentnell

    being one to look past what you think you see! take note of the studebaker trucks in the background and is that a starlite coupe sitting next to the binder?

    Like 0
  6. Avatar Alexander Member

    Jerry, seller has other vehicles on eBay at the moment. No Starlite, but another 64 Champ just like this only better, and a much earlier Stude truck.

    Like 0
  7. Avatar Mark P

    That deep into the earth, can’t be much left of the chassis. These were the trucks built with beds Studebaker bought from Dodge. Most think the beds were replacements as the cab and bed lines don’t line up.

    Like 0
  8. Avatar Wayne Member

    Yes indeed, they did make Right Hand Drive Champ pickups. While mostly for sale overseas, a few were sold domestically to use for rural mail delivery

    Like 0
  9. Avatar Kevin W

    Basically a Lark pickup. The Dodge bed was a horrible mismatch. The Transtar of the same period was better looking and much more “truck like”, although the styling was way dated by the early sixties

    Like 0
  10. Avatar Alexander Member

    I agree about the Transtar fendered bed styling. I had an opportunity this past year to buy one but never located the owner. One was sitting at the storage park where I had all my post-home sale furnishings. Each time I picked a few more things up from my unit I left a note under the wiper of the Stude. One day it was just gone. The truck didn’t do too well over the 8 months I visited that place…The proprietor of the business said it was illegal to give the names and numbers of other renters but he did say the owner of the truck was DEAD BROKE!

    Like 0
  11. Avatar James Burdzinski

    Ok i bid on it. I have the parts.. Don’t Bid against me please lol. I have a super Rare one service body . Also one . I have never seen with a 4 speed ./2 speed rear. Like my Trans Star Deisel.

    Like 0

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