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I don't know exactly when the change to an impact absorbing steering column was made...but the '70 Avanti RQ-B I owned had the original design steering column that Studebaker used. Avanti Motors...being a small volume producer...received a temporary exemption from some safety standards from the feds to phase in compliance with safety standards. My car was built in September 1970 so it had to be after that date...likely around 1971 or possibly even 1972 before the change was made. Does your '72 have an impact absorbing steering column or the standard Studebaker unit? An option is to buy a modern, custom steering column through Summit Racing or Jeg's. That would be a brand new unit rather than one that might require refurbishing.

MFG, do you know what specific vehicle the tilt steering columns in the Altman cars came out of? Mine is a '72 model.

Any chance that you can provide some pics of those linkage rods and gear sensors?

Agree.. Makes sense

For $32K I would hope it would be “decent”!!!

That makes good sense!

There’s a decent looking 63 R2 (3479) at Worldwide Vintage Autos in Denver for $32K.

Look for an early ‘A’ series Avanti ll being parted out… Several of those used that same column.

I want to add a factory tilt column to my 63 Avanti. Does anyone have one they would part with or know where I could get one? Thanks!

There are a few things that affect the value not seen in the photos, such as the air cleaner housing needing rechroming (and no NOS or repop available), dash pad needs replacing and is covered by a mat, etc. I price them realistically to move. If I do more work to improve the value, I'll increase the asking price accordingly.

Are you lucky enough to have original Rochester carburetors on that Caribbean twin-four intake manifold?

Ok then..

Actually, I can and I did. The evidence is pretty solid to support my statements about declining values in the classic car market. There are certainly exceptions, but they are very few.

I’m sure glad my 1956 Golden Hawk (56J) is factory stick o/d with power steering…. Our resident 56J guru indicated that only about 150 or so were equipped that way!!

Some cars have come down,, others. seem to rise. You can't make a general statement on the entire Collector Market.

I certainly respect the experience and knowledge of a former classic car appraiser. It is their job to determine a fair market value for a vehicle without bias. Individual objectives also come in to play. It may be beneficial, in some cases, to sell the car in a timely fashion and move on to the next project rather than wait months or years trying to get top dollar for the car. Like it or not, classic car prices are in decline and have been for several years. A quick sale at a reasonable price may be the prudent option. In your example of ask for X and anticipate Y, when Y doesn’t hit the table then one may need to consider that Y is still too high of a price. Otherwise , the inevitable outcome is having a collection of items that have perceived values which exceed reasonable market values.

You ask for X and anticipate Y.. and if it falls to less than Y, ya don't sell and find another method to advertise. Disagree that $25-30K is a sellers price for a car of that caliber.. It definitely is a Buyers price.

Just have the one, and it's going on 56J no.1. Both of my 56Js have P.S., but I've become shiftless in my old age and will stick with automatics. --Dwight

$25-30K is in alignment with actual selling prices for cars in a similar condition. Declining prices are quite the trend across the board for many classic cars. From what I’ve seen, there’s a minority of sellers who price their cars reasonably.

I like the updated seat belts!

Pretty car, but I would start at $40k... maybe higher. After all, it is a original R1. Anything in the $25-30k range seem to need some work and has some minor flaws.

I'm a former classic car appraiser and have bought and sold four Studebakers over the last several years- a '54 Conestoga, a '62 GT Hawk, a '57 Silver Hawk, and the '63 R1 Avanti (R4223) I still own. When putting one up for sale, I always try to read the market and price it at roughly 110% of what I expect it to sell for. A much more realistic approach than the pricing I see on many cars listed. I don't use the spaghetti at the wall approach. So far, every car I've listed has sold within a few weeks. Not currently considering selling it, but if at some point I were to sell the Avanti, I would price it between 25 and 30K. This is based on observing the market over the last year or so. The car has an inch thick book of receipts from the previous owner for mechanical repairs, including a thorough engine and transmission rebuild. It has automatic, PS and TT. I've repainted it in Avanti Gold , updated the A/C to a modern system and installed a Turner brake update. Original wheels and hubcaps are in storage. Had I not done much of the work myself, I would probably have 50K in it. I'm probably giving away my labor, but that's OK as that is the part I enjoy.

I purchased a Custom Autosound unit for my ‘83 Avanti about 4 years ago, replacing a ‘dead’ Blaupunkt. It ‘s still working fine!

Crutchfield has retro units and they are pretty knowledgeable and helpful on the phone. Mike

I found a rebuilder for mine a couple of years ago, but the cost to repair it was around $500 due to the labor involved to disassemble it. I discarded it and went with a different radio.