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Or, we could use the term "originality" rather than original. --Dwight

Brad is getting like most of us with the age problems.

Thank you for the various websites and info. Made me rethink it. I checked them all out. I just checked out the installation instructions on both Turner and HR&B. The latter requires modifying the brake lines and installing valves. I don't want to change anything that can't be reversed, such as brake lines. I'll probably call and talk to both of them. I am defiantly going to install one of those kits. Cost wise it doesn't make sense to rebuild my calipers, plus I'll have better braking. I disassembled my calipers and cleaned all the brake fluid out, sprayed them with WD40, bagged them and packed them away. So, it's getting new brakes for sure. My R2 has 19k on it and has never had the blower worked on. ALL the bolts are black.

I also did a 200-4R conversion on my Avanti (RQB-1831). I did not purchase the kit Nostalgic sells, instead I was able to re-use and adjust my existing linkage. I can pull the shifter into second but not first as the linkage runs out of travel. But, in the 20 years since I've done the conversion this has not been an issue. I do think I may have had to swap the linkage arm that's mounted right on the transmission from the old TH400 onto the 200-4R. Your mechanic should be able to look at things and figure out what's wrong, otherwise have him give Dan a call as others have suggested, Sorry my car is not on a lift right now so I can't get you pics.

Lots of options at the various Hot Rod supply shops; here's one that may work for you: https://vintagepartsofarizona.com/seatbelt-solutions-3-point-retractable-lap-shoulder-belt-w-starburst-push-button-sleeve/

I will not be in South Bend. All of mine have radials on them.

It was one month ago when I posted it.

64... Not my concern. I have little interest in His high speed aspirations.

Thanks. I have a truck on consignment and they add a flat $3900 to the price the seller wants out of the vehicle plus they charge a couple hundred to run the ad and store the vehicle for up to 4 months. That amount is pushing 25% of the price I’d like to get, which I believe has made the price too high, thus no buyer. Once the contract is up I’ll look for a consigner that charges the 12.5% fee which would be closer to $2000. Of course for someone selling a $100,000 car the fee is less than 4%.

Thanks, yea the passenger seat is more of an issue than the driver seat. I'm driving to AOAI in Palm Springs and don't want to have my wife fight with the seat belt every time. I'm looking at a set on Seat belts plus, Is Wesco a different site or the same place?

Thanks! I talked to Brad but he is not taking on anymore work. Terry

I replaced my shocks on my 1980 with Rock Auto in expensive shocks. It was a huge improvement. And getting rid of those abomnable Korean tires and replacing them with Coopers made a world of difference. The purpose of a shock absorber is to absorb shocks, not transmit them to the driver! (extra weight of a 350 ???) They modulate spring rebound--they shouldn't be so stiff as to prevent spring function!

If it were me, I would first remove those components grounds and clean the terminals. Then remove the related harness plugs and clean the pins and sockets including the fuse box terminals. This would remove the common resistance areas of the electrical system. You can run an ohm meter from the negative side of the battery to the ground wire on each component to be sure the grounds are solid. If your car has the bulkhead harness connector, then be sure to clean those terminals. Now put a 10amp fuse in the fuse box and run the heater motor for several minutes. If it does fine, then turn it off and run the wiper motor (with the wiper blade arms removed) at high speed for several minutes. If in either case, the fuse blows, then the component needs repair/lube/replacing. I also do a temperature check on the related harnesses by holding the harness at the component while it's running. If the harness/wires are hot to the touch then you know you have a problem with resistance being caused by the component / wiring.

Just did that. Seat belts Plus is a good source. Got full set from Wesco; fronts went in nicely but the rears were unusable! They were so long they'd have been loose on Sidney Greenstreet or Andy Divine! If you order the fronts only from Wesco, they should work OK and aren't too $$$

They have the history, documents and photos. All consignment sellers use 12.5% as their basic markup. Then they add more as a buffer to provide them negotiating room. Lastly they look at current other similar cars for sale and adjust the price upwards if possible.

By the way the motors will run a minute or two before the breaker trips is good… it indicates there is no ‘dead short’ in the wiring…. As I said previously, before you start throwing money & time at this problem.. lube the motors.

63 R2 auto- just finishing up restoration- has a fresh rebuild that hasn't been broken in yet..needs some tweaking, running a little rough and my mechanic that did the work is in Ca. 63 R2 4speed- needs complete engine rebuild and maybe tranny too.

Brad Bez 573-318-8948. What sort of work are you looking to have done?

Just moved to Kansas City and have a couple 63 R2 Avanti's and looking for a good mechanic that understands them. I'm willing to trailer to wherever I need to go within a 500 mi radius, any suggestions?

It’s possible that he has already done this. We really don’t know that much about his doings.

Did the problem begin at the same time with the two motors? If so there might be some kind of cross-connection in the wiring creating an overheating issue requiring the circuit breakers or fuse to trip/blow. I would check all the ground connections as well as connections to the fuse box. After so many years the connections could be corroded making for overheating of the wires. The motors themselves might need overhauled...maybe the wiring harness itself has become suspect and required replacing.

The ones that Lionel Stone had cast used the original tooling. They were somewhat difficult to get good castings. When we used that tooling back around 1972 the foundry had to scrap about 20% of them.

He should order a rule book and determine what class he might fit into with the LS3 before he spends a lot of money to modify the car with a full roll cage, replacing side and rear windows, installing engine and interior fire extinguisher system, parachute etc. etc.

I am ninety-some percent an originality person. I do make exceptions for safety, reliability, & drive-ability: wider wheels, radial tires, electronic voltage regulators, LED light bulbs, modern batteries, modern paint, etc. I do like a Studebaker to look as original as practical. One biggie: The paint color should be as close to original as possible, but I am never going to paint a car with lacquer again - urethanes are so much better. --Dwight

I forgot to mention, both motors run fine for a minute or so before the circuit trips.