J Boyle
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Posts posted by J Boyle
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I got up at 7am this morning. Light snow was falling...
.The Avanti nay have had its last drive of the year, I took it for its annual oil change Thursday.
But we usually have a few nice days, last year I was able to take both my cars out on Dec. 1...that's quite an achievement for the roadster.
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I have a copy of the '79 order sheet with pricing. Mine lists out at $21,540.00. For you out there too young to remember 1979...
I bought a new Mustang with the optional 2.8 V-8. It was a Ghia hatchback with every option expect for sunroof...so it had the Ghia interior, leather seats, AM-FM, tilt wheel, cruise, PS,PB, AT, etc.
I paid $7500 for it.
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Congratulations...I love to hear stories like yours, finally getting an Avanti after all these years.
Your car sounds like it has a great period color combination. I like your efforts to leave it stock, but the great thing about a "II" is you have the leeway to do some interior color/material changes and get away with it.
I enjoy driving mine and I know you'll have fun driving yours.
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For limited production cars, lights wee always a problem issue. In the pre-LED days, the tooling costs for the bucket and lens were a huge hurdle.
There is an 80s Aston Martin...the Virage, IIRC, that uses the taillight assembly from an 82-on VW Scirocco. And there are plenty of other cases...like the Ford GT 40s (the 60s race cars, not the 2005 production Ford GTs) using early Corvair taillights. Or the Shelby Mustangs using T-Bird units.
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The best part of that film is seeing Juliet Mills topless.....I thought she was hot in "Nanny and the Professor" and a few other things I saw here in when I was very young.
Yes, I was a dirty little boy!
Too bad an Avanti isn't in Avanti...
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I walk past by baby, stopping to look. Incredible! Is my baby really mine? The fact that it is, is a constant miracle to me!!
Likewise here.
My garage is three cars wide and two cars deep. That means my two "toys" are in the back of the garage away from the door. Every time I park my car, I get a great rear 3/4 view of the Avanti. And every time I say..."The Avanti looks nice". My wife is ready to kill me for saying it all the time!
Likewise, the huge brass radiator of my Bearcat reflects on the hood of my car...which has a nice curve and a Mercedes hood ornament sticking up from it. That shot looks worthy of a painting. Every time I see that, I remind myself whatever problems I may have, I'm a lucky guy.
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I've used Intercity twice and liked them. First class treatment.
It's all enclosed...and once they load the car, it stays there until delivered...no storage at a warehouse or garage along the way.
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Yes, that's true. There are about 6-8 Avantis in town. A few are seen occasionally...but even long-time Avanti owners have never seen 1 or 2.
Only two are driven a lot, however only one (mine) goes to non-SDC events.
Likewise the next town over...one owner of two cars is a member of SDC and AOAI, the others are rarely seen.
But it's not just Avanti owners. I belong to the local multi-make old car club. The average age is 60+++ and many guys never drive their cars. I have one friend with about 20. He only drives 3-4 and still buys more. He has a great rare/expensive classic he hasn't driven in years.
Then, there are the guys with old cars that do nothing to them. One guy and his brother inherited a 20s Stutz sedan, a rare car. It's been in a garage for 35+ years. They don't belong to the Stutz club, so the car is really unknown. Pity.
There are millions of stories like this out there. But AOAI guys who gripe about the low values of the car need to get off their backsides and restore and/or drive their cars.
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I'd love to bring my Avanti, but cross country is a bit too far. Now if I could get it a lift in a C-82 (or C-119, C-123, C-124, C-130, C-141, C-5, C-17...
).BTW: My father flew C-82s in the late 40s while stationed in Tennessee.
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Great idea, I like the (eventual) plan to have the original fuselage open for car photos.
If someone wanted to spend the bucks, removable cling-type stickers could be made for the C-82 to partially replicate the "Avanti Airlift" aircraft. Perhaps enough for one side or ones that could be temporarily put lower on the fuselage or nacelle so they could be seen when photographed with a car alongside.
It might be a nice fundraiser for the Fairchild museum...charge Avanti owners $5 or something for a chance to pose...or give the museum something to make it worth their effort to help us out.
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We'll need CGI...as no C-82 is airworthy. They did recently fly one to the Fairchild Museum in Maryland. It came from the same outfit that provided the C-119 Flying Boxcar for the remake of Flight of the Phoenix a few years back.
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What is the "airlift"?
Before the Avanti was generally available, Studebaker chartered a surplus USAF Fairchild C-82 Packet* to fly two around the country for dealer introductions.
*You may know it as the plane in the original version of "Flight of the Phoenix". It was later developed into the more numerous (and well-known) Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar.
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Unsolicited...?
So that means $20 isn't in the mail?
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Really, how hard would it be for someone to make new ones?
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Not much of a story, but it does show how good Avanti owners are. I found a car near South Bend. Being far away...not to mention not being an Avanti expert...it was impossible for me to judge the car before committing to purchases it.
I look in the Avanti magazine and notice that Mike Baker, the (then) soon to be club president, lived in the area. I call him and ask if he knows of anyone local who could look at the car. To make a short story short, he inspected it himself when he went to South Bend for the opening of the museum. He wouldn't take any payment for his services.
Again, there are great people in the club.
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They're nice Richard.
And on a related note, allow me to recommend your reproduction window stickers.
I have one I display on the car (laminated so I can tape it on the inside of the drivers side quarter window) at shows and it is always noticed.
My car's $5400 price tag reminds people that Studebaker wasn't just a maker of inexpensive compacts.
If you show your Avanti, they're great to have. Just send Richard a copy of your production order.
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Why?
in Avanti Pub
One more issue. When you do show your car, stay with it and answer questions.
I know it sounds simple but some guys don't do it. At our recent SCDC meeting a member (with a lot of cars including an Avanti II) said he doesn't like people who "Sell" (not literally) their cars at shows.
To me it's just common sense to answer questions, especially with a little seen car like the Avanti.
Still, it takes all kinds.
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Why?
in Avanti Pub
A couple of weeks ago I was at a multi-make show with about 30 other cars. An older guy comes up and really flips out over the car, he's been in high school in 63 and loved the Avanti but could never afford one. Today, he's a business owner and approaching retirement. He (and his wife who had never seen one) love the car. He gives me his business card and tells me to call him if I want to sell it. He's serious.
BTW: I won the 60-69 class.
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Why?
in Avanti Pub
I've taken my car to three events in the last two weeks. At one, it received the top 60-69 award against heavy competition. At another (where I just had it parked) I got many positive comments and probably would have received an award had I entered. At the third, I didn't get any award...it was run by a club and "the fix was in" as they say.
Still, it's great to show the flag.
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As a former military member, I was offended by the Italian helicopter pretending to be a USN ship. Wrong model, wrong colors, wrong markings, wrong uniforms...
Juliet Mills topless was the best part of the film...for those of us who remember her from "Nanny and the professor".
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Someone posted a link to this on the SDC forum. Looks like a good idea if you're taking a trip...and perhaps for every day use.
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The SNM sells a Avanti DVD that has a period silent film of an Avanti climbing Pikes Peak.
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The Peterson museum in LA is having a bit of a sell off. Among the cars being sold is the white 63 Avanti originally bought by film/TV star Dick Van Dyke. Its serial is 1783. It would be interesting to see what the car goes for. What's neat about this car is Van Dyke was/is a car guy (I'm surprised he had an R-1 and not a R-2) and a big star of the Avanti-era (as apposed to an Avanti owned by a star of the 40s or 80s...if you get my point). http://www.auctionsamerica.com/events/feature-lots.cfm?SaleCode=BB13&ID=r375&Order=runorder&feature=&collection=&grouping=&category=Cars
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Price guides aren't perfect...and sometimes aren't worth the paper they're printed on. But this is one put out by a high-end magazine that has some sway with big time collectors (if they think it's gaining traction, perhaps some will take another look at it).
The fact that this price guide shows upward movement is, in itself, great news. It shows that the car is increasing in desirability. That's good news regardless of any specific numbers attached.
Interior Restoration
in 1963-64 Avanti
Posted · Edited by J Boyle
There are several outfits that restore steering wheels. Shrock Brothers specializes in Avanti plastics and have good reputation within the AOAI and SDC.
BUT, IMHO, they seem to be expensive..$800 last time I checked.
I've heard good things about other firms, like Gary's in the east (Penn?). There are also many outfits that place ads in Hemmings.
Likewise gauges, there are outfits that seem to specializes in Studebaker items which are Stewart-Warner units.
http://www.studebakervendors.com/
Obviously, cassette players were not around in the days of Studebaker Avantis. They were optional on Avanti IIs beginning in the late 60s. The large Studebaker-International parts house does offer an "Avanti" labeled unit.