Hello - New Avanti II owner with some questions.

[67AvantiTom]

Hello all,

This is my first post to an Avanti forum. I've wanted an Avanti since I was about 13 years old (I'm 56 now) when I saw one sitting in front of a house near where I grew up. Owner wouldn't sell. Sat there for years then disappeared, typical story I guess.

Well, I have managed to get my act together and have been looking for an Avanti or early Avanti II for several months. I finally found one and picked it up two weeks ago last Saturday. Now that I have it home, I've been in process of cleaning it up, and determining what works and what needs help. Here's a little bit of info about it before I get to some questions.

Year is 1967 - serial# RQA-0256

Olympic Bronze with brown interior. Been repainted, new interior looks brand new. Engine was replaced in 2001 with a crate 350 HO 330hp engine. Transmission replaced about 10 years ago with a 700R4. The car has only been driven about 2000 miles since about 2001 from what I can tell from the receipts. Have all the paper work on the engine including the manual for it. Lots of receipts. Has been a So. Cal car it's entire life. Underside is beautiful, no rust anywhere, original hog troughs.

Some issues with the car are:

Driver power window doesn't work. I have a receipt for new window motors about 10 years ago - about 1K miles since then.

Tachometer does not work.

Vacuum gauge does not work

No interior lights work (dome and courtesy lights that is). Most dash lights work.

No right turn signals

Power antenna works when I test it, but doesn't with the later stereo.

All outside insignia's have been removed - would like to put some back on

Needs new tires.

I'll be tackling these issues one at a time, starting first with the tires due to them being too weather cracked (or old age) I don't want to drive on them.

My questions I hope someone can help me with...

How the heck do you get that big arm rest off of the door panel so I can get in and evaluate my window problem. I see no attachment screws anywhere on it. Took the little pull cup out of it to see if there was anything under it, no joy. How do the door panels come off?

Can any one help with with my tachometer issue? My engine has a HEI distributor with the tach connection on the side of it. I found a wire there that was disconnected so I connected it back up, no joy. Also, how do you pull the tach out of the dash? Been reading about a sender for these tach's, what is that about? I've always only hooked a tach to the '-' coil terminal or the HEI tach output.

That's probably enough for now. Any info / help would be appreciated. Thx for reading.

Tom

[studegary]

According to my information, S/N RQA 0256 is the next to last 1968.

Are you sure on the year and Serial Number information?

Does your Avanti have side lights in the front fenders? A 1967 would not have them, but a 1968 would have them. I cant tell from the picture on my small screen.

I just checked John Hull's book and his information agrees with my decades old information.

EDIT: I just blew up the picture enough to see that your Avanti has side lights making it a 1968 model, or newer.

Edited September 27, 2016 by studegary

[Gunslinger]

Welcome! You've come to the right place. We can help with most, if not all your questions.

First...tackle the safety related items. You should have the brakes serviced...flush and fill the entire brake system and have the hoses closely inspected. If any hoses seem soft...replace them. If you don't know how old the hoses are...replace them for general principles. The same goes for radiator hoses, the cooling system and belts.

Tires...you shouldn't have much problem finding quality replacements. The closest sizes you can easily come by are P205/75R15 or P215/70R15.

Driver side pover window...it could be a couple of things...as simple as a wire popped off the switch to a defective motor. It could be a kinked track or dried lube in the mechanism. Does the ammeter move when you try to raise or lower the window? If the ammeter shows no movement then theres no power to or from the switch. If the ammeter moves then there is power.

There are one or two screws down inside the cup of the armrest...remove them. The armrest itself is part of the door panel. Remove the door handle and lock lever and all the screws the the panel should come off.

Vacuum gauge...it could be disconnected, the vacuum line at the intake could be pinched off from when the engine was installed. The gauge itself could need to be removed and a drop of light oil added down the tube.

Tach...could be a bad sending unit which isn't uncommon at all. It could also not be compatible with the HEI. The sending unit is a squarish plastic box mounted under the dash on the steering wheel bracket. It has several wires going to and from it.

Dome and courtesy lights...the dome lights only work manually by way of the switches mounted on them. If they still don't light maybe the bulbs are bad or a fuse is popped. The courtesy light (map light) under the dash works by its own switch or by the door switches...it's also not uncommon for a door switch to be bad or become ungrounded.

The power antenna may be aftermarket...I'm not sure if Avanti Motors was installing them that early. It may require a switch or if your radio is a modern unit, there might be an automatic up/down function that activates when the radio is turned on. There would be an extra wire on the radio harness for that.

There are several Studebaker and Avanti vendors you should be able to obtain outside emblems from...Myer's Studebaker, Studebaker International, Nostalgic Motors and a few others. You can often find them on eBay as well.

No right turn signals is likely bad bulbs.

If the car did't come with them, get copies..original or reprints...of the Studebaker Avanti parts and shop manuals. They're invaluable for working on your car. An early Avanti II is still mostly Studebaker.

Best of luck with your Avanti. Never be afraid to ask questions here. Many here have figured out workarounds and alternative fixes for problems we've run into.

[Jim78]

What Gunslinger said. As far as the manuals, Studebaker International offers a CD with the Avanti Shop Manual and Parts Manual on it.

[67AvantiTom]

Welcome! You've come to the right place. We can help with most, if not all your questions.

First...tackle the safety related items. You should have the brakes serviced...flush and fill the entire brake system and have the hoses closely inspected. If any hoses seem soft...replace them. If you don't know how old the hoses are...replace them for general principles. The same goes for radiator hoses, the cooling system and belts.

Good Suggestions - I have planned on checking the hoses and belts, flushing the radiator, change oil, plugs, possibly plug wires, air cleaner....

Tires...you shouldn't have much problem finding quality replacements. The closest sizes you can easily come by are P205/75R15 or P215/70R15.

Tires - I'm replacing the ugly 17" wheels that are on it with either Cragar SS or Magnum wheels. I"ve been studying the back spacing and offset stuff to be sure what I get will fit and not rub.

Driver side pover window...it could be a couple of things...as simple as a wire popped off the switch to a defective motor. It could be a kinked track or dried lube in the mechanism. Does the ammeter move when you try to raise or lower the window? If the ammeter shows no movement then theres no power to or from the switch. If the ammeter moves then there is power.

The Ammeter gauge has been switched out for a volt meter so I can't look at that. All I know, it appears to be stone cold dead. No movement, no sounds, nothing. I'll try to get into it this weekend, trying what you said in your door panel removal comment below. Thx for that.

There are one or two screws down inside the cup of the armrest...remove them. The armrest itself is part of the door panel. Remove the door handle and lock lever and all the screws the the panel should come off.

Vacuum gauge...it could be disconnected, the vacuum line at the intake could be pinched off from when the engine was installed. The gauge itself could need to be removed and a drop of light oil added down the tube.

Initially it was disconnected - and I heard a hissing sound when the car was running. I connected it back up and no movement from it. I pulled a vacuum on it from my handheld 'Mitypump' vacuum pump and even up to a 20" vacuum, it doesn't move. Stuck somehow. Never seen a stuck vacuum gauge.

Tach...could be a bad sending unit which isn't uncommon at all. It could also not be compatible with the HEI. The sending unit is a squarish plastic box mounted under the dash on the steering wheel bracket. It has several wires going to and from it.

Dome and courtesy lights...the dome lights only work manually by way of the switches mounted on them. If they still don't light maybe the bulbs are bad or a fuse is popped. The courtesy light (map light) under the dash works by its own switch or by the door switches...it's also not uncommon for a door switch to be bad or become ungrounded.

I'm missing the light for the center console - it's completely gone so I'll be finding one of those somewhere and re-installing it. After that I'll start to track this down.

The power antenna may be aftermarket...I'm not sure if Avanti Motors was installing them that early. It may require a switch or if your radio is a modern unit, there might be an automatic up/down function that activates when the radio is turned on. There would be an extra wire on the radio harness for that.

There appears to be a 3 wire harness for the antenna in the trunk. I've been able to get the antenna to go up and down so I know it's working so I guess it's just a matter of trial and error with it. I really dislike electrical issues and this car seems to have a bunch of them!

There are several Studebaker and Avanti vendors you should be able to obtain outside emblems from...Myer's Studebaker, Studebaker International, Nostalgic Motors and a few others. You can often find them on eBay as well.

I'll be ordering some from Studebaker International - they seem to have everything I need.

No right turn signals is likely bad bulbs.

Not sure about this. That's probably too simple, but I'll check them first just in case. There is no flasher clicking on the right side. I'm thinking turn signal switch at the bottom of the steering column. Have to figure out how to test it, preferably off the column so I'm not in the foot well for hours on my knees.

If the car did't come with them, get copies..original or reprints...of the Studebaker Avanti parts and shop manuals. They're invaluable for working on your car. An early Avanti II is still mostly Studebaker.

Have a workshop manual on the way! Anxious to dig into it to find some answers!

Best of luck with your Avanti. Never be afraid to ask questions here. Many here have figured out workarounds and alternative fixes for problems we've run into.

Thanks for the replies all. I've put my comments / answers to Gunslingers info in this post above.

Thanks!

Tom

[Gunslinger]

Outside of the true wire spoke wheel Avanti Motors sold as an option (which are very heavy and a maintenance nightmare), the best looking wheels on an Avanti are the Magnum 500's that were an option...at least in my eyes. There's a Magnum 500 made today in a cast aluminum version in 17" and 18" but the price per wheel will take your breath away. There's also a replica of the Halibrand mag wheel that were available through Studebaker now on the market. They're made in aluminum rather than magnesium and are nicer looking than the originals.

Years ago I sold auto parts and accessories and was never impressed by Cragar wheels...they're quality control wasn't all that good and I saw many that had peeling chrome plating. Maybe it's better today.

Once you have your interior lights sorted out, think about changing all the lights to LED replacements. They're more expensive than the stock bulbs but use less current and put out much less heat. They also put out a whiter and brighter light and won't burn, discolor or melt the plastic lenses. Besides...the standard glass bulbs like 1157 and others an Avanti uses are all made offshore and pretty crappy quality.

On your right side turn signals not working...normally if a turn signal doesn't work on one side and not the other, it usually means one light bulb is out on the non-working side. We have to keep in mind this is a nearly fifty year old car so anything could be possible...and a fiberglass fifty year old car at that! Always look for the easiest, most simple explanation first...no point in doing work under the dash if you don't have to.

[67AvantiTom]

Hello all, well, I got the drivers side door panel off and here's what I found... <sigh>

First, the yellow wire on the driver side power window switch had been disconnected.

Looking further, the power window motor was off of the window mech and laying in the bottom of the door!

The white (I believe it is the ground wire from the factory harness) wire from the harness was connected to nothing. The black ground on the window motor was connected to nothing.

After pondering this for a bit I took the passenger side door panel off so I could compare wiring. I determined that the black wire and the white wire should be connected together.

I did this on the driver side and tested the motor after I reconnected the yellow wire on the switch - the window motor worked!

I cleaned and lubed everything on the driver side motor and reinstalled the motor. Trying the switch, the motor just skipped gears and the window did not move.

I'm thinking the window riser mech is jammed. I love how some hack, just took the window motor off when the window wouldn't move, then so the motor wouldn't run the power was disconnected to make no sound. sheesh.

So now I have to take the window glass off of the riser and pull the riser mech out and have a look at it to try and figure out what's up with it.

Anyone have any tips or tricks about the window glass and so forth? If the window won't roll down how do I take it off of the riser?

I guess if it was easy, everyone would be doing it...

Thanks

Tom

[silverstude]

Check your messages..

[PackardV8]

Welcome and congrats on finally getting an Avanti and an intelligently modified SoCal car at that.

As mentioned, the Shop Manual is an invaluable asset.

Good advice on flushing the brake system and new hoses.

A front end alignment is always a good investment when mounting new tires. Take the Shop Manual with you, as the young techs have never seen a Stude front suspension.

FWIW, the window glass is just too large and heavy for the motor to handle reliably. IF and when you repair the gear mechanism, another failure is only a few cycles away. Use it as seldom as possible, or convert to a manual crank. (Those cars having had several PW repairs often have cracked fiberglass in the doors from the motor wrestling against the heavy glass.)

Consider relocating the battery to the trunk. It makes a noticeable reduction in front end weight and with your 330hp and the low first gear of the 700R4, I'd be smokin' the rear tires all the time, so more weight on the right rear is a good thing.