Rumor has it that the Studebaker Avanti was conceived on the back of a cocktail napkin in 1961. And rushed into production in 1962. Unfortunately, the company’s weak finances never gave the car a chance to succeed, and it was gone by 1964 (the whole company was gone two years later). The seller has a 1963 edition with a Paxton supercharger, one of 1,552 produced that year (plus 290 more in 1964). This nice example has some new parts, but the brakes will require more work. Located in a garage in Stitzer, Wisconsin, this 4-speed rarity is available here on Facebook Marketplace for $22,000. A thumbs up to T.J. for the tip!
Studebaker head Sherwood Egbert was behind the notion that a unique personal luxury car like the Avanti could help save the company. If they could sell 20,000 of them a year, maybe Studebaker would have a solid future. To get it started, the decision was made to go with a fiberglass body, but troubles there hindered production, and only 3,800 Avanti’s were produced in 1963. Then, 800 more for 1964 until the company pulled the plug on all U.S. auto production, sealing the car’s fate at Christmas 1963.
We don’t know the history of this nice-looking gold Avanti except that it has only traveled 67,000 miles. Besides the supercharger that gets one horsepower out of every cubic inch (289), this car also has a 4-speed manual transmission. We assume everything here is numbers matching, and we’re told the car runs well. Stopping is the issue, and apparently, the seller isn’t interested in fixing them before selling the automobile.
The fiberglass body may be fine (limited photos), and the paint is in “phenomenal shape,” according to the seller. The carburetor has just been rebuilt, and new gaskets were applied to the oil pan. There’s mention of a new fuel pump, but we don’t know if it’s already been installed or is up to the buyer. The tires have plenty of life left. The interior appears to be in transition from gold to black. Are you a fan of the Studebaker Avanti?
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