Gunslinger
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Posts posted by Gunslinger
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I had them installed on the '70 Avanti I owned...if I had to do it again I would pass. They were designed specifically for the later Avanti II cars that had the fork lift steering box used once the originals were no longer available to restore the original handling. In that respect I guess they were fine. On an earlier car it made the car very "darty" in handling...too responsive in other words. You got no improvement in the turning circle and steering that slightly over responded.
Apparently you have an '80 Avanti...the quick steering arms would work for you. The change to the fork lift steering box was in the '77-'78 period.
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Record set at the Bonneville Salt Flats.
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Nate Altman passed away.
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The first Avanti I ever went to see with the idea of buying was one from the late Roger Penn...back in the very '70s. It was pretty much a base level Avanti...no p/s...no a/c...did have a PowerShift transmission though. I was still in school and didn't have the dollars so I had to decline. The one thing I remember about it was the dash mounted rear view mirror. Five or six years later when I did buy an Avanti and learned all I could about them was that only the prototypes had the dash mounted mirror...it was a prototype car I almost bought. Shoulda found the money somehow.
I ran into Roger Penn at the York swap meet about ten yers ago...he remembered me...a real gentleman. When I told him the car was a prototype he didn't realize that. He said after I didn't buy the car he had a pop-up sunroof installed in it before eventually reselling it.
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My go-to brand of care care products is Griots Garage...they have an excellent leather conditioner as well as a leather cleaner. That being said...there are numerous excellent car care companies out there.
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Undercoating was an option for noise silencing (as much as you can silence an Avanti) rather than rustproofing. As already said...it was a profit maker for the dealer. Rarely if ever was it applied at the factory.
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Call Dan Booth at Nostalgic Motors...he will know exactly which is correct.
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The owners manual is for the '64 Avanti. There were two (I believe) overheard switch plates but I don't know the difference between early and later...but they're interchangeable and work through the 1985 model years.
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I've seen both...body color and blacked out. They could each have easily been done post-Studebaker but I believe the factory painted them body color. Considering the financial condition of Studebaker it seems unlikely the added costs of masking and painting the headlight area a separate color would have been a non-starter.
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Avanti Motors would do pretty much whatever the customer specified. The door panels could be vinyl, leather or some fabric. The number of ribs could vary depending on the seat materials.
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From what I've read...most, if not all, new hires were experienced Studebaker people. Age and seniority were irrelevant...it was the best people available who were willing to work were hired. I'm sure pay had something to do with it...they were pretty much all out of jobs with few prospects...especially if they were older...so they probably could have been bought cheap. And Avanti Motors couldn't afford to to pay high union wages either as a new startup.
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The stone guard grill didn't come along until much later in production though many were retrofitted. As far as paint color goes of the inlet area it seems there has never been any definitive answer discovered. I guessed it might depend on whether Molded Fiberglass or Studebaker made and painted any particular body. MFG supplied complete, painted bodies...Studebaker did their own so it's possible each did it their own way.
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I have seen claims that the final R3 crate engines that were sold by the Granatellis were shipped with R2 heads as there were no more genuine R3 heads available.
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It could also be a gas tank full of debris...as soon as it's under load crud clogs the fuel pickup.
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7" wide rims may cause rubbing in the front...especially if the coil springs have sagged at all. 6" wide rims is about the max for the front...and even then sagging springs could cause a problem. The 7" should be fine for the rear.
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I've read that the reason Studebaker went with the "horse collar" (open bottom) fan shroud was due to it's easier installation and less likelihood of the fan striking if if not installed correctly. I'm guess there may have been a price difference as well. I've not heard of any engineering or cooling efficiency reason.
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There was the Avanti LSC which was an Avanti stretched by something like 9" or so. Besides extra legroom in the rear it was equipped with a television mounted on the rear console. I don't know the numbers built but it wasn't a huge number.
I happen to stop by the factory when the first LSC was being built...still in a prototype stage more or less.
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Edelbrock makes an electric version for their carburetors which is a near clone of the Carter AFB...pricey but available. The throttle kicker...as Jack Vines says...is pretty much universal. It's the bracket that changes depending on the application.
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If I remember correctly the primary purpose of the throttle kicker (or anti-stall dashpot) is for cars with a/c so it doesn't stall when the a/c is turned.
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Contact either Jon Myer's Studebaker or Dan Booth at Nostalgic Motors. Either should be able to help you out.
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First...welcome!
Sad to say Roger Penn passed away recently. He was a fine gentleman.
Yes...hog troughs are an issue. Make sure any Avanti you look at doesn't have problems with them or you would be looking at a very expensive repair. The same goes for windshield pillars. Run your fingers over the pillars from the inside of the car...if they're rusty you'll feel roughness and bumps under the vinyl.
All fiberglass cars can suffer from stress cracks...on the Avanti they can start at the base of windshield at the corners. Another potential spot is the top of the front wheel arches. Front coil springs also are prone to compressing with age...if the car has had wider wheels and tires installed the inner lip of the wheel arch can hit the tire on compression. There's no real model years that are more prone or less prone...the care any particular car and its wear and tear make the difference. If the fiberglass has been repaired at any point it may or may not have been done properly.
Another common rust area is the tubular crossmember under the rear of the car...check it. Replacements are available and would need welded in.
BTW...I live in MD...feel free to contact me.
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The #8 car had an overheating issue and was relegated to photographic and backup status.
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The 3-speed was for all intents and purposes...a way to keep the MSRP down. The marketing people knew few would be ordered that way. The same goes for contemporary Corvettes...the 3-speed manual was standard to keep MSRP down. Those cars are also few and far between today as few were ordered as such. Many, if not most, were converted to better transmissions.
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Looks awesome thus far.
Transmission pan
in 1965-83 Avanti
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Aftermarket...popular among the boy racer scene. The aluminum drops a little bit of weight and the fins are supposed to aid in cooling the transmission fluid by shedding heat faster. Whether it truly does that to any effective degree is probably more theoretical than practical.
That one does look deeper than stock...probably adds a quart or more capacity which by itself would aid fluid cooling but reduce ground clearance and be more prone to damage.