Studebaker Avanti
The Studebaker Avanti is a personal luxury coupe manufactured and marketed by Studebaker Corporation between June 1962 and December 1963. A halo car for the maker, it was marketed as "America's only four-passenger high-performance personal car."
| Studebaker Avanti | |
|---|---|
1963 Studebaker Avanti | |
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Studebaker Corporation |
| Also called | Avanti |
| Production | 1962: 1,200; 1963: fewer than 4,600 |
| Assembly | Studebaker Automotive Plant, South Bend, Indiana |
| Designer | Raymond Loewy and Associates |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Personal luxury car |
| Body style | 2-door coupe |
| Layout | FR layout |
| Related | Studebaker Lark |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | 289 cu in (4.7 L) 240 hp (243 PS; 179 kW) V8 (1963) |
| Transmission | 3-speed manual 4-speed manual 3-speed automatic |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 109 in (2,769 mm) |
| Length | 192.4 in (4,887 mm) |
| Width | 70.3 in (1,786 mm) |
| Height | 53.8 in (1,367 mm) |
| Curb weight | 3,095 lb (1,404 kg) |
| Chronology | |
| Predecessor | Studebaker Gran Turismo Hawk |
Described as "one of the more significant milestones of the postwar industry",: p257 the Raymond Loewy-designed car offered safety features and high-speed performance. Called "the fastest production car in the world" upon its introduction, a modified Avanti reached over 170 mph (270 km/h) with its supercharged 289-cubic-inch (4,740 cm3) R3 engine at the Bonneville Salt Flats. In all, it broke 29 world speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats.
Following Studebaker's discontinuation of the model, a succession of five ventures manufactured and marketed derivatives of the Avanti model through 2006. These ventures licensed intellectual property and, in some cases procured parts, through arrangements with the successors to the Studebaker assets.