Avanti II body "rake" question....

[MarkC]

I know that when the Avanti II's were introduced, the rake of the body was moderated by about 2" (according to a Road & Track mag test, circa 1966) and a filler piece was added to the front wheel opening. I understand that some years later (under the Blake regime) the rake was restored to the original Avanti level.

Question1: Can the rake of the early Avanti II's be put back to what the Original Avanti had (easily). (I know the front wheel opening would need to be changed and there might be hood clearance issues.)

Question2: What year was the original rake restored?

Thanks,

Mark

MarkC, 64 Y8
Working in Spokane, WA

[studegary]

I am not an Avanti expert, have owned a few, and probably should leave the exact answer to others, but I will comment. The Avanti rake was removed, not because of a clearance problem, but because Avanti felt that their target market (doctors, corporate presidents, etc.) didn't like the rake. They felt that the look was too different from cars that they were competing for sales against, like Jaguar sedans.
I know of early Avanti IIs that have been dropped to have a rake. Other than removing the wheel well filler, I do not know what else was done. Remember that all Avantis through 1985 were on Studebaker frames.
I bought a 1987 Avanti new. It was on a Chevrolet frame and sat level (high in the front).
I do not think that your term of "easily" would apply to this conversion. Remember, the whole body would have to be positioned differently on the frame and clearance of air cleaner, radiator, etc. would have to be solved. Two inches is a lot when you are referring to clearances in an Avanti.