The impetus to develop a sports car as a marketing strategy
to bolster the sagging sales of Studebaker products was the idea of company president, Sherwood
Egbert. Egbert's choice of industrial design guru, Raymond Loewy to supervise the design of the car was a logical decision
based on Loewy's previously successful Studebaker models. Tom Kellogg was part of the original design team that worked with Loewy to produce drawings
and a clay mock-up. Gene Hardig was assigned by Studebaker to handle technical and engineering issues. When Studebaker automotive division shut down Avanti production in December 1963,Nate Altman and partner Leo Newman, South Bend Studebaker dealers, saved the car by purchasing the rights, equipment,
and parts. Production of the Avanti II began in 1965 in part of the former Studebaker complex. The business survived for almost 18 years and during that
period the car remained relatively unchanged. The company was purchased by Stephen Blake in
1983. Blake introduced the convertible and put Avantis back into the racing circuit with moderate success. By 1986 Michael Kelly introduced the LSC or "Luxury Sport Coupe," which was extended nine inches to add interior space. John J. Cafaro took
over in 1989 and moved production to Youngstown, Ohio. Avanti production ended in 1991 only to be continued in the middle of the decade as the AVX, an
Avanti concept car created by Jim Bunting who also built a 2-passenger model. Click on the tabs to open and close the biographical panels. Additional information is available on the individual pages listed in the "Biographical Profiles" menu at the bottom of this page.
Sherwood Egbert's Inspiration
Sherwood Egbert was named president of Studebaker in 1961. Sales were down and Studebaker had developed a deteriorating public image. What could be better than a luxury sports vehicle to boost the corporate image and bring customers into the showrooms? Egbert collected clippings and doodled on envelopes then called on industrial designer Raymond Loewy to design the car in two weeks. Loewy assembled a design team in Palm Springs that included John Ebstein, Robert Andrews, and Tom Kellogg. Sketches and a scale model were produced and Egbert flew his own plane to Palm Springs, suggested a few changes, then gave the go-ahead. Further changes were made to a full-scale model, including Egbert's insistence that the rake of the front windshield be decreased. Raymond Loewy and Sherwood Egbert with
the new Avanti.
Raymond Loewy's Masterpiece
Raymond
Loewy was a renowned industrial designer throughout much of
the 20th century. Though he was born in Paris, France, he became
an American citizen a few years after arriving in New York.
His contributions include such familiar industrial products
as the S1 and T1 locomotives, the Greyhound Bus, and Air Force One. From
the Hupmobile in the 1930's to the Lancia
Loraymo in the late 1950's Loewy's automotive designs were
always innovative. From the mid 1940's and into the 1950's he
designed cars for the Studebaker Corporation. Loewy designed the Avanti for Studebaker in 1961. Official Raymond Loewy
Website. Dirk Koester's Raymond Loewy website.
Tom Kellogg's Great Moment
Tom Kellogg graduated from Art Center
College of Design in 1955 after working for four months at Ford
Advance Styling as part of the school program. In 1961 he was
approached by Raymond Loewy Associates
to work on Studebaker's Avanti
project. His contribution to the design of the Avanti was essential
in achieving Loewy's objectives. Kellogg joined Loewy's
New York office in 1962-63 and supervised the final design of
the "Avanti-themed" standard Studebakers
planned for 1964. In 1964 Tom opened his own industrial
design office in Newport Beach. He has designed motor homes,
recreational vehicles and several lines of fiberglass boats. He also was involved in the interior design of the DC-10
for McDonnell Douglas. In 1972 Tom joined the industrial design
and packaging firm of Gould & Associates as Vice President of
Product Development.Avanti team member Tom Kellogg with some
of his designs.
Gene Hardig's Engineering Genius
The Avanti was originally conceived as
a two-seater. It was Studebaker chief engineer, Gene Hardig who made the decision to turn
it into a four-seater. Studebaker president Sherwood Egbert and Hardig
agreed that it should be built of fiberglass.
The fiberglass body with its
relatively low rigidity required a strong frame. Hardig chose
the reinforced X-member frame used on the Lark
convertible and added front and rear stabilizer bars and
rear radius rods. The Avanti was to have had independent rear
suspension, but this was dropped due to the expense. Instead,
front coil springs from the Lark and rear leaf springs from the Lark
station wagon were used and heavy duty, adjustable shock
absorbers added. Hardig was stuck with a Studebaker V8 engine that developed a paltry 225 horsepower so he resorted
to hot rod techniques: increased compression ratio, more valve
lift, and so on. The big improvement came with the optional supercharger acquired from
Paxton. Hardig decided that the Avanti required caliper disc
brakes. Borg-Warner engineered an automatic transmission
that was a three-speed automatic with an unusual arrangement
whereby the first gear was operated manually. The second and
third gears operated automatically from the "drive" position.
Against all odds, Hardig managed to take these diverse scraps
and pieces and turn them into a genuinely competitive chassis.
Andy Granatelli's Performance Records
Andy Granatelli sold
his supercharger business to Studebaker, which owned half of
a company named Chemical Compounds. He took over as head of
the firm, changed its name to STP, and hiked sales from $1.9
million per year to $100 million in nine years. He dressed himself
and crew in uniforms covered with STP decals. It quickly became
one of the best known trademarks in advertising history. Sherwood
Egbert assigned Granatelli the task of putting the Avanti
through its paces. Granatelli set two major American class C
records: a two-way flying mile record of 168.15 mph, and a standing
start mile record of 92.03 mph. Two new engines, developed through
the efforts of the Granatelli brothers, were known as the R3 and the R4. Buoyed by these new engines,
Studebaker tried for performance records in the summer and fall of 1963. To add some excitement, the
Granatellis put together a mind-boggling R5 Avanti, known as
the "Due Cento," equipped with twin superchargers.
Nathan Altman Saves the Car
Nathan Altman and partner
Leo Newman operated a Studebaker dealership in South Bend, Indiana. For Altman, Studebaker's
demise was bad enough, losing its most inspired accomplishment
was tragic. Altman purchased all rights, equipment, and parts
to the Avanti on July 1, 1964. He secured the Avanti assembly
plant, all Avanti tooling, body production from Molded
Fiberglass, and necessary credit. The
engine would be a Chevrolet 327-cu-in. Disc
brakes were used at the front, as they were on the 1963
and 1964 Studebakers. The pronounced
rake of the original was eliminated and wheel
openings were tightened. Studebaker had built 20 Avantis a day. Altman built 45 in 1965, 59 in
1966, 66 in 1967, and 100 in 1968. Altman labeled the resurrected
car 'Avanti II'. That designation remained until 1983 when Steve Blake took over.
Stephen Blake's Rescue
Avanti was sold to Stephen Blake
on October 1, 1982. Blake boldly attempted to make the Avanti
more visible. Avantis appeared at the Miami, Washington, and
Los Angeles Auto Shows. Blake knew
better than tamper with the car's design yet he was determined
to make the car look competitive. The body-colored, contoured
bumpers of the era were added and the 1984 Touring Coupe was
a limited edition. The first convertible Avanti was built the same year by Richard Straman in California
and another by Mark Doyne in Florida. Blake was hailed as Avanti's
savior by magazines like Car and Driver. However, Blake's ambitious
plans did not succeed. His failure appears to have been caused
by a misjudgment about sealants used in the paint that were
not compatible with the fiberglass bodies.
Michael Kelly and the Future
Michael E. Kelly renamed the company
'The New Avanti Motor Corporation' in 1986. The best looking
thing on wheels' was back in production again. It still looked
new almost a quarter of a century after its debut. Kelly appeared
on the cover of Indiana Business magazine in the summer
of 1986. Kelly had plans to feature the car on 17 million pieces
of Amoco literature and as part of Sheraton Hotels' brochures
and mailers. Kelly returned to the Avanti saga as chairman of
the new Avanti Motor Corporation in 2000. As a partner in the
new company, Kelly became a prominent part of the Avanti's development
in 2001. Recently Kelly regained control of the company and
once again has become a prominent force in the Avanti's future.
John J. Cafaro's Four Door
In 1989 Avantis appeared on the TV
game show "Wheel of Fortune." Newsweek magazine covered the event and called it 'Buffing Up An Old
Classic'. The decades-old design still looked as new as anything
on the road and the shiny red convertible captured almost as much attention as Vanna White herself. The
vehicle was one of the show's most sought-after prizes. The
newsweek article shows John J. Cafaro with one of the red convertibles.
Cafaro was a shopping-mall developer who bought the Avanti in
1988. His plan was to make the Avanti a viable alternative to
luxury models like Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, and BMW. Cafaro produced
a four door model based on designs by Raymond Loewy. Production was moved to Youngstown, Ohio where
the car was exhibited at the prestigious Butler Gallery.
Jim Bunting's AVX
AVX stands for AVanti
eXperimental. Tom Kellogg
supplied a series of drawings. As the design progressed, it became necessary
to select a platform. Several were considered, but the then-new
General Motors F-body was ultimately chosen. Specifically,
the Pontiac Firebird Formula/Trans Am was deemed most appropriate
for the project The original idea was to produce one car. That vehicle was built during the winter of 1995-96, then
shown at several Studebaker and Avanti meets to wide acclaim. The idea of transforming the
AVX from a one-off into a production car began to take seed.
The design was refined again, this time with limited production
in mind, and the first production prototype was shown at the
June, 1997, International Studebaker/Avanti meet in South
Bend, Indiana. The exterior body panels are made of
high-grade fiberglass, then fitted to the Firebird structure.
The Firebird itself is manufactured in much the same way,
with door panels that are also fiberglass, for example. The interior
is upholstered in leather throughout and features very attractively
done wood trim accents. Performance is typical of what one
would expect from a Firebird Formula or Trans Am, which should
hardly be surprising. The exhaust system has been tuned to
give a traditional Avanti sound, i.e., robust. Since the AVX
will be essentially custom-built, any number of options are
available. In fact, the options are only limited by the customer's
taste and bankroll.A couple of exotic
engine options feature Paxton superchargers,
as did the car we drove. This is a nice Avanti-esque touch,
and the Paxton unit really dresses up the engine compartment.
Bunting claims that 650 horsepower is possible with the
top-end AVX-4 Performance Group. (The standard GM 5.7-liter
V8 is rated at 285 horsepower.) We suspect the typical AVX customer will be satisfied
with the level of performance offered by the standard GM powertrain. AVX
2-Passenger Coupe.
