Studeless Stude admirer

[humnbass]

Hi everyone,

My name is Tony and I'm looking to purchase my first Studebaker. I'm not new to restoring cars but new to the Stude. I started out years ago with the aircooled VW's and then progressed to the Chevy II's. I've been out of cars for about 15 years but when I came across the bullet nose studebaker the fever struck again. So, i'm interested in anything bullet coupe wise and have come across the following which is said to be a 52 champion. My issue is that it has a bullet front end on it. I'm not familiar enough to know which year bullet it is but I know that the bullet front end was only in 50 and 51. The asking price is $3k and the pictures are below. Is this truly a 52 with a 50 or 51 front end or an earlier model that someone is trying to pass off as a 52? Any info you can offer would be a great help including if you think the price is fair or too high.

thank you for your time and willingness to help.

[bezhawk]

Looks like a 50, the split windshield, and 4 lug wheels are a sure give away. It does have 52 tail lights however.

[rkapteyn]

Front is 1950 rear is 1952

[8E45E]

As others have stated it is a 1950 with 1952 taillights and a 1952 trunk lid, which is not a bad thing. The 1950 is arguably the most iconic of the 1947-'52 Studebaker design cycle.

Keep in mind, the car pictured is a 2-door sedan (body designation 'F'); not the Starlight Coupe ('C').

Craig

[52-fan]

Looks like a 50, the split windshield, and 4 lug wheels are a sure give away. It does have 52 tail lights however.

What he said. A 50 Champion with some 52 parts added. 50 was the last year for 4 bolt wheels and I don't think anyone would retrofit a 52.

[clonelark]

If you want a V8 or want to put some other V-8 besides a Studebaker, a 51 Bullet nose would be better to have, 5 lug wheels even in a Champion. Much less work. Here is a page that will help explain it some.

http://www.studebakerpictures.com/bulletnose.history.html

[studeclunker]

It is a bit of a mix, as has already been detailed. So what? Does it run? have you driven it? Do you like it? If the car runs, all lights work properly and the answer to the last three questions is yes, then I suppose three grand is a fair price. Oh yeah, brakes. Brakes are very important. Go is good, but whoa is better!

[doug]

The serial number or the firewall tag should indicate what year the body is. Post it here and you can find out.

Welcome to the forum, join the Studebaker Drivers Club for tons of information.

[humnbass]

Thank you all for the information. I have not personally seen the car as of yet due to it being quite a ways from me. If purchased, I plan on having it shipped to me. My concern is that it is being passed off as a 52 because the owner might have had a 52 title or had a parts car with a title and vin plates which were transferred to an earlier model. I would hate to spend the type of money that it takes to restore a vehicle knowing there's a possibility that it could be taken away for numerous reasons. Am I over thinking this or should I be concerned?

[55 56 PREZ 4D]

How difficult will it be to register the car with your state ?
Proper paperwork and numbers that match it may be a problem. Does it have any ? Do you need any in your state ?
Better to discover those problems early.

[humnbass]

I live in North Carolina and from my experience you need the proper paperwork when you're trying to register a vehicle. I wanted to purchase a car from Georgia where a title is not required. When I called my local DMV they told me just because it could be registered in GA without a title doesn't mean that it could be registered in NC and that I would be taking a chance in purchasing the car. Guys, I'm also a little confused. I went to the link above to learn more about the history and the body styles and I'm seeing 1950 and 1951 champions with one piece windshields as opposed to having the split one.

http://www.studebakerpictures.com/studebaker.p2.html

[rockne10]

I'm seeing 1950 and 1951 champions with one piece windshields as opposed to having the split one.

Convertibles and Starlight Coupes had the "bent" windshield, even in 1950, while other body styles had a two-piece windshield.

[StudeRich]

Since this Car is almost certainly a 1950 Champion small Six, you will need a Picture of the Serial Number Plate from the Drivers rear door post (Latch Post) and a Picture of the Title showing a matching 1950 Serial Number used as a "VIN" Number" to know if this Car can be Registered and driven or become "Yard Art".

I hope the seller's guess at the Year is just that!

[clonelark]

This is a better page to help you identifying Studebakers.

http://oldcarandtruckpictures.com/Studebaker/TheEnd.html

[Pat Dilling]

First, Welcome to the forum! Before you pull the trigger on a car, I suggest you get in touch with one of the Chapters in your area. There are 3 in North Carolina. http://www.studebakerdriversclub.com/chapters.asp

You will find Studebaker people are friendly and they love to talk about their cars, many have expertise to help you evaluate a car. Doing this will help you learn which cars are more popular or desirable and also about typical problem areas on the cars to watch for. These are valuable things to know before investing in a restoration. One thing to know is simply being vintage or unusual does not necessarily make a car valuable. Good luck!