1963 Studebaker Avanti, supercharged 289 V8, disc brakes,built on the Lark convertible chassis, fiberglass body built by the same company that made Corvette bodies for Chevy, capable of 170mph
1964 Avanti
About 4600 were produced in '63-'64; when Studebaker shut down, all the tooling, parts, and licensing for the Avanti were purchased by a couple of ex-Studebaker dealers. They kept the car in production, without Studebaker badging, til all original parts were used up. Then came the Avanti II with a Corvette 327 V8, 300hp ...then a 400 V8, next the generic Chevy 350, by 1981 it was a Chevy 305 of 155hp with a slushbox. By 1985 the car was built on a Monte Carlo chassis. Over the next twenty years the company went through four owners, each drifting father from the original concept; in '89 there was even a four-door model. In 1999 one of the earlier owners repurchased the company and worked a deal with Ford to build new Avantis with Mustang chassis and engines; in 2006 this owner faced legal problems and the remains of Avanti were sold off, mostly to private collectors. Around 3000 non-Studebaker Avantis were produced
1967 Avanti II
1978 Avanti II
2006 Avanti with Mustang chassis and 5L V8.
Most Avantis still exist, including this race prepped '63
Original '63-'64 models go for around $65k today; all the others are in the $15k-$35k range. FWIW, Avantis were owned by Shirley Bassey, Richard Carpenter, Johnny Carson, Alice Cooper, Jimmy Dean, Mickey Dolenz, Ian Fleming, Andy Granatelli, Michael Landon, Rod Serling, Rick Nelson, Frank Sinatra, Dick van Dyke, and Roger Ward.
1964 Avanti
About 4600 were produced in '63-'64; when Studebaker shut down, all the tooling, parts, and licensing for the Avanti were purchased by a couple of ex-Studebaker dealers. They kept the car in production, without Studebaker badging, til all original parts were used up. Then came the Avanti II with a Corvette 327 V8, 300hp ...then a 400 V8, next the generic Chevy 350, by 1981 it was a Chevy 305 of 155hp with a slushbox. By 1985 the car was built on a Monte Carlo chassis. Over the next twenty years the company went through four owners, each drifting father from the original concept; in '89 there was even a four-door model. In 1999 one of the earlier owners repurchased the company and worked a deal with Ford to build new Avantis with Mustang chassis and engines; in 2006 this owner faced legal problems and the remains of Avanti were sold off, mostly to private collectors. Around 3000 non-Studebaker Avantis were produced
1967 Avanti II
1978 Avanti II
2006 Avanti with Mustang chassis and 5L V8.
Most Avantis still exist, including this race prepped '63
Original '63-'64 models go for around $65k today; all the others are in the $15k-$35k range. FWIW, Avantis were owned by Shirley Bassey, Richard Carpenter, Johnny Carson, Alice Cooper, Jimmy Dean, Mickey Dolenz, Ian Fleming, Andy Granatelli, Michael Landon, Rod Serling, Rick Nelson, Frank Sinatra, Dick van Dyke, and Roger Ward.
