Video of Lark in Car Crusher

[t1003nl]

I don't know if this has already been posted but here is a video from You Tube showing a 2 door Lark sedan being crushed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCRX1ooYkDw

[StudeRich]

NO! Not a 2 Door Sedan!

This is what will be happening if States like Calif. have idiot Senators that just will not give up thinking they can reduce pollution by killing Classic Cars.

The S.A.N. reminded me recently that Calif. State Congressmen are at it again, this time raising the year model to even newer cars that can qualify for the "Clunker Program", I THINK that is how their latest "Trick" goes.

[LovelandJoe]

I agree with you Rich.

[T.J lavallee]

This makes me sick! It displays a complete disregard for our automotive history and an abundant ignorance on behalf of the legislators and the ignorant fool running the crusher.

[studefan]

And a disc brake wheel on the front. I could use that rim.

[alaipairod]

Apathy is why California is in the pits.
The true car people in CA have to wake up and vote their conscience.
As for the other 49 states, classic car owners had better wake up also.............

[61LaRk4dr]

Glad I sold my 63' Ford Galaxie to a Gentleman out of the country, my 61' Lark to a Gentleman in Idaho, and I am glad I bought my 51' Land Cruiser from Santa Ana. After all that was said and done I moved right back here in Oregon.....would have never left those five years if it wasn't so darn hard to find employment.

[Jett289]

How can you tell that is a disc brake wheel on the front studefan ??
Hate to see a two door sedan get crushed .. It looked fairly decent to ..

[StudeRich]

Well IF studefan can see the double Hump (Ripple) in the wheel center just outside of the Hub Cap holding circle, it would indicate a Kelsey Hayes wheel which is a Late '64 wheel with slightly more clearance than the smoother type BUDD wheels also used for Disc Brake Cars, then they (are) or (it) is.

The front, white wheel looks a bit easier to see, but I can't say for sure if this '60 has a '64 Wheel, it is way to fuzzy and Far away, COULD be.

This is NOT a Kelsey Hayes Wheel, it's a '64 Budd Drum or Disc. can't tell from the front side without measurements of the Back side Clearance/Backset.

Note there is no extra "Hump/Ring" outside of the Hub Cap Hump/Ring.
The crazy thing about all this is, you do NOT need that double hump, ugly Kelsey Hayes late '64 Disc. Wheel to clear the Factory Discs, nice looking smooth '63 & early '64 Budd wheels that LOOK like this, also work fine with just a hair less clearance.

What I do not know is, will some like this one be for Disc. and some for Drum Brakes, so would not clear the Discs. because the ONLY difference is the Backset?

It would make sense to me, if they ALL were Disc. compatible starting in '63, when some would have the Discs and they would not have worry about the fit.

[BobPalma]

A little topic drift, here, if you don't mind, StudeRich:

Along the lines of your disc brake wheel discussion is my contention that it would have been cheaper in 1964 if Studebaker would have simply made all the "Larks" 4-headlamp cars. Given the total engineering and tooling costs to produce the 2-headlamp parts, I'll bet the costs were not recovered in savings due to the abbreviated 1964 production run in South Bend.

Ah, hindsight is so wonderful, though; someone may have calculated that they'd break even and start to make money on the 2-healamp assembly after "X" number of 2-headlamp cars had been built, but I'll bet they never got to that break-even point. BP

[8E45E]

Ah, hindsight is so wonderful, though; someone may have calculated that they'd break even and start to make money on the 2-healamp assembly after "X" number of 2-headlamp cars had been built, but I'll bet they never got to that break-even point.

In 1966, the may have, the single-headlight 'deflector', as the parts book calls it, and the headlight doors managed to be incorporated in the front end redesign.

The 1964 grille stamping is a different story, and NOS ones were being sold for $25 about ten years ago!!

Craig

[studefan]

When I make the video full screen and look at that rim closely, especially near the lower portion, I see the extra ridge indicating a disc brake wheel.

[r1lark]

Disclaimer: this rant is not directed at any one poster, or even just this thread. Or even just Studebaker owners and fans.

I had to chuckle, because I knew even before I saw the video what a number of the posted responses would be.

It seems that when similar condition cars are offered for sale, few want to step up to save them and store them as 'artifacts of our automotive history'. Then, when a car like this gets crushed, everyone laments about another classic lost. Usually the common theme will be that "someone" should have saved so-and-so car for restoration in the "future", or so the parts would be available ten years from now at a dirt cheap price.

It's always 'someone else' that should have spent the time and money to go get a car like this, haul it, store it, keep it from vandalism, keep it hidden away from prying local governments, etc. If someone does save a car like this, and hot-rod or 'rat-rod' it, there are more distractors lamenting about the car being 'ruined'.

Folks like Bob Patterson are the exception to this. He has saved countless rust free Studebakers and parts, and may of them have gone to good homes to be reborn or parts used to get other Studebakers on the road. But how many rust free cars and parts has Bob had to 'send to China' (ie, scrap) because no one wanted to take them, even after he posted numerous times on this forum and pretty much begged folks to save them? There are others who step up to save Studebakers and other brands also, I know, and my hat is off to them. But if each one who laments about one rough Studebaker getting crushed or 'rat rodded' or 'hot rodded' would step up to save three or four homeless Studebakers like this Lark...............just think of the possibilities.

Rant over...............

[SN-60]

In the video it looks like the rear 1/4 window glass stands up to the crusher better than this Lark's sheetmetal did!

[Swifster]

That car looked like a rusty piece of crap. Now that '65 Chevelle 300 Deluxe 4-door...