psdenno

Thanks for the reply, ronmanfredi. I have the new carpet and it has no pad preinstalled, just original style salt & pepper pattern carpet to go with the new orange upholstery. I'm aware of the DynaMat type insulation and also considering felt padding like original. I'm interested in hearing experience of other owners with either type they have actually used.

Planning to start putting the interior back together with new upholstery and carpet when the weather cools a bit. We’re coming off 22 straight days of 110º or higher. Looking for recommendations on carpet underlay that works well for heat and noise reduction as well as ease of installation.

You may want to start with this link: https://forum.studebakerdriversclub.com/forum/your-studebaker-forum/general-studebaker-specific-discussion/1909365-avanti-owners-with-4-speed Dave Thibeault advertises in the AOAI quarterly. He used to supply the Hurst mechanism with a stock Avanti shifter to keep the stock look. I have a Hurst shifter in my '63 R2 and like it. Summit Racing is another possible source.

Thanks for the tip! I'm going to add three words to the tip...."with great difficulty". I used two small screwdrivers, one very small and usually used for working on electronics, to pry. An interesting discovery was that my Avanti's factory Line Number was written in marker on the underside of the fiberglass seat bottom which is broken and will be replaced.

Thanks! Any suggestion on removing the original pivot pins from the seats? Do the cap ends pry off or screw off?

After owning my Avanti for almost 50 years, it's time for new upholstery and I have a couple questions. I've removed the old upholstery and padding from the front seats. How do I remove the pivot bolt that that holds the seat back to the seat bottom? Is it threaded or press on? Is there a replacement bushing for the pivot bolt or an aftermarket solution that would work to take the wiggle out of the pivot?

Those red line tires do look good with the Halibrand wheels. Probably one of the more expensive alternatives, Time to go shopping!

My Real Rodders wheels arrived and they're quite nice. Wheels, spinners, lug nuts, tax and shipping worked out to about $300 per wheel, Now have to decide on tires...white wall, black wall, raised white letters, red line, so many choices.

I agree. I just talked to Pat at Real Rodders and the first shipment of wheels, including mine, will go out later this week.

If you have an O'Reilly Auto Parts store nearby, they have the correct 3EE battery for about the same price as a size 51. 'https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/c/fleet-heavy-duty/super-start-fleet-heavy-duty-battery-group-size-3ee/ssbe/3eej

As others have said, your car, your choice. My R2 was originally white with orange interior. When I bought it in 1975, it was 12 years old and the paint had already been changed from white to red and then to yellow, and finally to green. The interior was also green. All of those colors had made the previous owners briefly happy. I stripped the car of four layers of paint to bare fiberglass and had it painted white. I've had orange upholstery and appropriately colored salt & pepper style carpet in storage for years and 2024 may be the year it gets installed and the Avanti gets a new coat of white paint. Orange upholstery is visually striking and might go well with a grey exterior. I think I'd drape the seats with large orange towels to check out how it looks with grey before having it reupholstered, however. Enjoy your Avanti!

Allow me to give you a nudge.....BLACK!