Gunslinger

I’ve never heard that story…be interesting to find out if it’s true. There’s no mention of it in Bob Morrison’s book where he talks about MFG’s experience with Studebaker and the Avanti. That doesn’t mean it didn’t happen or if he even was aware of such an incident.

If DOT 5 silicone fluid has been mixed with DOT 3 or 4 the fluid will usually look milky and cloudy…not a good mix and will cause problems. If fluids have been mixed…a complete flushing is called for…preferably with new hoses and caliper seals and wheel cylinder seals to make sure all vestiges of the contaminated fluid are gone.

If you don’t know low old the present fluid is…consider having the entire system flushed and fresh fluid added. Also…if the age of the flexible hoses is unknown…you might have those replaced. They can collapse on the inside with age even if they look good externally. Brakes are too important to not take care of.

I'll take King Solomon's way...split the difference. The round headlight design looks more sporty...the square headlight design looks more elegant. I really liked the round headlight treatment my '02 had but thought the turn signals in the front bumper should have been in the fender blades like the originals. When the square headlight bulbs came out around '84-'85 I liked them at first but as time passed I liked them less and less.

The wider the tire…the wider the rim you might need.

It’s called the “aspect ratio”…the height of the tire’s sidewall expressed as a percentage of its tread width.

My ‘70 Avanti had a hood with those locator dimples on both sides. My guess would be at the change to the hood prop to the right side that either… The hood molds simply left those dimples in place when new locator dimples were placed on the right, or It was a deliberate decision to make all hoods replacement hoods for all Avantis should that be required.

Those original gauges get full of dust over the years which makes it more difficult to illuminate as brightly as they once might have.

The side markers changed every now and. Those correct for the time...my '70 had the rectangular lights. To identify them...copy the numbers on them...they're industry or maker part numbers. Do a web search for that number and it may pop up. It wouldn't surprise me if they were from a Japanese car of the times.

You can get red LED lights with the correct base and will fit fine and are quite bright. The gel caps are thin skins that slide over the glass portion of standard bulbs. They will work fine but the light won’t be as bright as they tend to diffuse the light. I would prefer LED as they last longer, draw less power and put out less heat. Something like these from Amazon should work but you might find them at an auto supply store…Red LED bulbs When I had my ‘70 Avanti I installed LED lights through the interior and was very pleased with them.

You can go to an auto supply store or online and buy red gel caps…like little condoms… that slide right over the bulbs…or buy red LED bulbs of the appropriate number.

Body numbers were not used sequentially as they were pulled by the paint color…at least with MFG bodies which were delivered painted. Introducing a change by body number has the potential for a real cluster trying to determine when any change was initiated. That would do the same by serial number as well.

I once owned R4341 which was a round eyed Avanti. It had no hood brace. I always understood it was removed for the R3 or at least due to some Avantis having clearance issue with the hood. If it was for R3 clearance it would have been phased in prior to R3 production. R4130 which was the R3 mule for the package does not have the brace.

I don’t think it was the physical or measured height dimensions of the Chevy engine per se…but it’s mounted height when the height of the adapters between the engine and frame added in. It must sit higher to clear everything where the Studebaker engine was designed to sit lower.

Front or rear? I think a P215/70R15 is about optimum for the front…the rear can take more. Also…are you using the standard 5” wide rims? 70 series are a bit too wide for them…6” width would be fine. Plus…factory rims may be problematic with radial tires.

1154 is 6 volt. You need an 1157.

The ‘05 is Mustang based. 2001-2004 were Firebird based. If that’s a Firebird based car it was somehow titled as an ‘05.

You’ll see similar in other car groups…Mopar…Corvette, etc. There’s always tension between purists and those who modify. There are some who don’t accept any but Studebaker built Avantis as the genuine article…later cars are factory resto-mods to them. Some believe the Avanti is little more than a factory custom Lark. If you want to drop a grenade to start a flame war with Mustang aficionados…just say the Mustangs is a re-bodied Falcon. There’s some truth to those but it was a time before the term “badge engineering” was coined.

Looks good. Back in the day spoilers and air dams weren't all that understood outside of maybe aeronautical and auto racing circles...and even then you didn't see them that often. If the aerodynamic and cooling effects were understood it's possible Studebaker might have added them to the Avanti not just for performance but engine cooling effects. The Due Cento had a full belly pan to help negate underbody air turbulence. If the Granatellis knew enough about spoilers and such that would have likely been an easier and cheaper way to go for high speed runs. I had a Saturn air deflector on the '70 Avanti I owned...it made a real difference in engine cooling...for very little money and effort without changing a thing mechanically.

Wear mechanic’s gloves…it’s a dirty and greasy job. Outside of that it’s a pretty straightforward job. Another tip…do one side at a time so you can refer to the other side if necessary. I learned that one the first time I did drum brakes on a car.

Check with Dan Booth at Nostalgic Motors or Jon Mayer at Myer’s Studebaker.

Make sure you buy a fresh one...one from fifty or more years ago...even NOS...can be bad from age no matter how well it's been stored.

J-12Y crosses to NGK XR4 which is their equivalent.

NGK plugs are the choice of many. I don't believe any of the old line American named spark plugs are anything more than a name today slapped on whatever is being churned out.

Unless you're concerned with replicating the original type wires...I'd go with some high quality wires from Summit or Jeg's and trim them to fit. They're under the shields anyway.