The Excalibur automobile was conceived by Brooks Stevens in the 1960s. Stevens was head designer at Studebaker in those days and he started up a company in Wisconsin to build the Excalibur, which was a replica of the 1928 Mercedes-Benz SSK. This made the Excalibur one of the first neo-classic automobiles to be custom-built in the 1960s through the 1980s. This example, a Phaeton from 1978, is described as only a parts car and comes with no engine or title. Thanks for the cool tip, Barn Finder “Henry.”
When Stevens first developed the car, it was supposed to use a supercharged Studebaker 289 cubic inch V8. But when Studebaker ceased U.S. auto production in late 1963, that part of the idea went out the window. Instead, Stevens arranged for the vehicle to use GM power, a 327 Corvette engine. We assume later versions of the Excalibur used other Chevy power after the 327 was replaced by the 350.
Also, early Excalibur’s used a Studebaker Lark chassis. Since the Excalibur was in production through the 1980s, we assume another platform was selected and probably from GM (like the Avanti II). Because of their fiberglass bodies, Excalibur’s were light in weight and quick, capable of running up to 130 mph. Over the years, about 3,500 Excalibur’s were built with several bodies, including the Phaeton with its cloth cover from the windshield back.
We’re told little about this car, but the photos suggest it’s been sitting idle for a very long time. Its engine has taken flight, and the odometer has rolled over, suggesting it was once used regularly. It has/had an automatic transmission, likely also from GM. The seller suggests the buyer be prepared to use this as a donor for another Excalibur project and it’s located on a lot in Ocean Township, New Jersey. Available here on craigslist, the asking price is $4,500.
There is a much nicer running, driving, 454 powered clone of this listed on eBay with an asking price of $18,500 in Ringwood NJ, 80 miles away. Not sure if this is worth the effort. There are a lot of Excaliburs listed, not many have sold.
Steve R
A blast from the past- the rectangular electronic device on the tunnel forward of the shifter is the control head for a CompuCruise system. This was an aftermarket very early attempt at a vehicle computer system. It incorporated cruise control, fuel information (mpg, miles to empty, etc), digital clock, outside temperature and a number of other functions. I installed several of these in the van conversions that I was building in the late 1970s. It consisted of a number of sensors (fuel flowmeter, magnets/pickup on the driveshaft) connected to the dashboard mounted microprocessor. They were temperamental and not reliable. The original design had hardwired sensors, so you had to remove the entire system if you needed to send them in for warranty, which happened several times. Thankfully, they put a multi circuit connector on the later control units. When it all worked, it was pretty cool for the day, but it really wasn’t ready for prime time.