Chevrolet, Ford, and Divco all offered great step vans that we have seen, but what about a Studebaker Step Van? Rather uncommon, but in great shape, this ‘Stude is not currently running, but is certainly a worthwhile project. Described as rust free and one of a kind, this Studebaker is offered for $6,500. Take a look at it here on craigslist out of Eden, Texas. Thanks to reader Fred H for this rare war time submission!
The flat head inline 6 engine is not currently running, but as solid as this truck is I bet some tinkering could probably revive the old lump. The interior is very clean with no evidence of rust or missing paint. The seats look to have been reupholstered, but they too look very nice.
The cargo area is spacious and clean minus the items the seller is storing inside. This space would be great for camping, hauling motorcycles/bicycles, or even maybe even as a vintage food truck?
The Texas weather has been kind to this Studebaker, although I am certain someone painted this thing inside and out as the Texas sun tends to destroy paint no matter how durable it is. The body work appears very straight, and there is no rust to be seen. The rear doors don’t fit as nicely as I would like for them to, but I could certainly live with them as is. The glass is nice and all of the proprietary parts for this Studebaker appear to be present and in nice condition. With some engine tinkering, some fresh tires, and brakes, this Studebaker could also be your swap meet merchandise hauler. What would you do with this war era Studebaker?
Those rear doors appear to be simply sheets of plywood painted to match. Original ones would have been steel and have quarter circle shaped windows in each of them to aid with a little light into the rear of the van.
In the pantheon of rules violations on craigslist, I always find lying about the price the most bizarre. I cannot fathom what they hope to accomplish with it, yet they’re clearly believe there’s some benefit to be gained.
We have sellers who do the same on our local auction site. The idea is to get one’s listing at the top.
I agree, Steve, it’s total BS…
You forgot to mention the Dodge Route Van in your list, they were quite popular back in the day as well. Not sure what the previous two comments are all about, guess I missed something.
It was about the $1 price posted that’s actually $6500, KKW.
In spite of that, I sent the link to a buddy of mine, as I know he’d be keen to add a Studie step-van to his collection.
The $1 dollar price in the headline insures more coverage. When I look at CL, I put a price limit of say, max $2500 dollars, and a lot of classics much more than that come up for $1. Otherwise, with that limit, this wouldn’t show up.
“more coverage”…
among people who aren’t interested, and will be justifiably annoyed at yet another jerk deliberately wasting their time.
The question “What would you do with this war era Studebaker?” I would put my LOGO and an STP sticker on it.
Cool truck, somebody from the very active and loyal Studebaker owner’s community will snatch this up, as they should. Looks like owner is open to offers so it could be a great buy for someone.
The rear doors don’t fit because they appear to be made out of plywood from the pic on the inside of truck.
The inside of the box has been covered with wood. I bet it”s in good shape behind that wood. I could make a nice little camper out of that.
~ I don’t think that the plywood doors that we see are the rear doors. They separate the cab from the cargo. The hinges would not allow them to open outward, and they are narrower than the rear of the body. Wonder if it could be aluminum.
*here’s the pic.
https://www.google.com/search?q=studebaker+toronto+star+delivery+truck&client=safari&hl=en-us&prmd=insv&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwie0aOThcvZAhXog-AKHSUTDu4Q_AUIESgB&biw=320&bih=438&dpr=2#imgrc=8kNCiBbBNsqRwM:
My original comment didn’t post.
Anyway, Studebaker did some wonderful things in the late pre-war period.
The photo in the link is one of my personal favorites…
Step vans were all the rage after the war, even Willy’s made one. Remember, like the ’46 IH pickup, top speed, unless something is done, again, is going to be 45 mph max, and at that, the world will seem like it’s coming apart. These were not drivers, they were rolling storage units, and went 6 blocks, and sat while the driver unloaded them. Parcel delivery, and more highway friendly trucks, were still years away. Great find, tho, most of these became ( decent) storage sheds out back.
I’m not sure how many step vans actually came from the factory, Rube. Most of the ones I’m familiar with were built by after market companies. You could buy whatever manufacturer you wanted, have the chassis shipped to the builder, and they would mount their body to the frame.
Wiilys Fleetvan.
Yes kuzspike, just as it is done today. GM sold their C30/P30 chassis program.
You can get International, Peterbuilt, John Deere and ISUZU supplies chassis only to Utilimaster for “Official” ISUZU brand step vans. ( which almost entirely go to FedEx with a few going to UPS) ( I have been through the plant)
Also Ford and GM offer Cut-A-Way ven chassis that are used as step vans, small school buses and class “C” motor homes. If you happen to drive by one of the Utilimaster plants. You will see many brands of chassis in the lot waiting for their chance to be transformed. Steering wheels, dashboards and temporary seats. Just climb aboard, start it up and drive it right onto the body assembly line.
Wayne, I used to do that very thing at the Boyertown Auto Body Works back in the 70’s.
I don’t know about the van, but Eden is a very interesting little town. lots of history. They used vans similar to this for bread and milk delivery when I was a boy growing up outside Redding, California. I even remember them delivering bakery goodies and bread to our elementary school (1 through 8) in those days. That was back in the 50’s when life was very different from what it is now. I could see this being used to bring food and drink to the homeless here in Houston. If I had only made better decisions when I was young maybe I would be able to do that. What an opportunity for a great blessing.
i’d prefer a White Horse!
Local Studie….so I’ve been watching it for awhile….the seller collects these kinda things….