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1970 Studebaker Avanti II

When Studebaker introduced the Avanti in June of 1962, it was marketed as 'America's only four-passenger high-performance personal car.' It wore styling by Raymond Loewy and his team of Tom Kellogg, John Ebstein, and Bob Andrews and was developed at the direction of Studebaker president Sherwood Egbert. Given little time to create the design and several different opinions on what it should be, the team created a clay scale model with two different sides, one being a four-seat GT coupe, and the other a two-place sports car. The styling was unique and was the first to use a 'bottom breather' design where air enters from under the front of the vehicle instead of using a conventional grille.

The Avanti rested on a modified Studebaker Lark 109-inch convertible chassis and was clothed with fiberglass coachwork created by Molded Fiberglass Body in Ashtabula, Ohio, the same company that built the fiberglass panels for the 1953 Chevy Corvette. Power was from a 289 cubic-inch Hawk V8 engine, and when equipped with the optional Paxton supercharger, it had a top speed of 178 mph, making it the fastest production car in the world upon its introduction. At the Bonneville Salt Flats, it set 29 world speed records. Performance components extended to the use of front disc brakes licensed by Bendix, making the Avant the first American production car to be so equipped.

Production was exclusive, with approximately 1,200 examples built in 1962 and fewer than 4,600 a year later. Egbert had hoped that at least 20,000 examples would be sold in its inaugural year, but sales fell far short of that prediction. The Studebaker factory closed on December 20th, 1963, bringing a swift end to Avanti production.

The plant, tooling, and Avanti name were sold to two South Bend, Indiana, Studebaker dealers named Leo Newman and Nate Altman, who subsequently resumed production of the Avanti.

During the 1970 model year, there were 117 Avanti's produced, and each car was built to specific customer specifications.

The tooling and rights to the name were later acquired by entrepreneurs who produced modified variants of the car, including the Avanti II, through 2006.


By Daniel Vaughan | Apr 2021
This Avanti is equipped with a 350 cubic-inch engine generating about 450 horsepower. It is also equipped with a Muncie four-speed transmission with a 3:73 ratio rear-end.

The car was originally sold in California in January 1970 for $9,460. The current owner has all the original paperwork, including the Bill of Sale. The car was restored in 1991, and at that time, a factory original Paxton Supercharger was added to the engine. The car received a National 1st place award at the Studebaker's Drivers Club Show.

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Performance and Specification Comparison

Price Comparison

$830-$7,140
1970 Avanti II
$7,140-$28,120
1970 Studebaker Avanti II Base Price : $7,140

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