1972 avanti ii loewy car

[cruiser]

I can't remember whether this has been mentioned on a 'thread'
in this FORUM , but Raymond Loewy's personal Avanti II was up
for Auction by Bonhoms in Monaco ( Europe ) on 11th May 2012 .

The car is painted its original Black and as was Mr Loewy's desire
had the (II) script removed from the front panel and the car is as
retrofitted with original Studebaker Avanti Hubcaps . The tyres are
blackwall also as required . The cars Serial Number is RQB-1829
meaning it is the 29th of 101 built that year ( 1972) . At the Auction
it was wearing Registration plate number 311 LGH 75 for France .

The Avanti sold at Auction for (EURO) 40,250E . As at 11th May '12
that means you would have had to pay about $50,000 US Dollars to
win it . The Bonhoms lot number on their list was 217 at the Sale .
Nice to know that a nice original car with provenance will attract
this type of money . It also goes to show that Raymond Loewy had
every confidence in the quality cars Nate Altman was producing as
a 'continuation' of the original Studebaker Avanti .

CRUISER

[plwindish]

I and many other people believe that Nate Altman improved the Avanti during the years under his stewardship. I had an early 64 Black R1 1966-1969. Last year when I got a 1976, I was very pleasantly surprised at the improvement in the body quality and the running of the vehicle. Avanti Motor Company under Altman's direction (and not later owners) not only continued making the Avanti, but greatly improved the quality and reliability of the vehicle. To be fair to Studebaker, if they had continued production of the Avanti, the quality and reliability issues would probably have improved as well. Altman, however, did not continue the front end rake that was a trademark of the 63 & 64's (and a feature I truly miss on my 76).

[Gunslinger]

I and many other people believe that Nate Altman improved the Avanti during the years under his stewardship. I had an early 64 Black R1 1966-1969. Last year when I got a 1976, I was very pleasantly surprised at the improvement in the body quality and the running of the vehicle. Avanti Motor Company under Altman's direction (and not later owners) not only continued making the Avanti, but greatly improved the quality and reliability of the vehicle. To be fair to Studebaker, if they had continued production of the Avanti, the quality and reliability issues would probably have improved as well. Altman, however, did not continue the front end rake that was a trademark of the 63 & 64's (and a feature I truly miss on my 76).

Nate Altman also had the advantage of being aware of the pitfalls of building the Avanti that Studebaker experienced and worked to resolve those issues. Many, if not most, of his employees were former Studebaker people and were given the time to get the job done correctly instead of quickly. A car such as the Avanti was extremely man-hour intensive and Nate used that to his advantage. He brought as much of the outsourcing in-house as much as possible (such as body assembly) to have more direct control over quality control.

Nate's system may not have worked for a high volume manufacturer but it allowed Avanti Motors a great deal of flexibility as most cars were built to order rather than to a limited number of variations. It seems the biggest headaches Avanti Motors was complying with federal regulations. That took a great deal of time and money...necessary as it was.

[bezhawk]

Loewy went on and purchased another Avanti after this one, a 76. I worked on it for the son in law of Loewy, and probably will do some more in the future. I could definately feel his presence when working on it....quite the thrill.

[JBOYLE]

According to Steve Blake's interview in the first issue of Collectable Automobile (May 1984), he thought the build quality of the later cars had gone downhill after Nate Altman's death and by 1980 "...the quality of the workmanship, the body, the interior were going downhill'.
Richard Langworth wrote that he tested a 1982 model and "The paint had more ripples in it than a villiage bondo job; a poorly prepared surface showed through thinly plated bumpers,; there were several things falling off or coming unglued inside; the shag carpets, so popular in nate Altman's day, now looked horrribly passe."

Now these are just two men's opinions...can anyone confirm this?

[Gunslinger]

I've heard that quality had deteriorated after Nate's death as well. Maybe even from reading the same sources. From everything I understand about Nate Altman, he was a sharp guy and quality was everything to him. After he died, while those that ran the company after him may have been fine people, didn't have his drive and force of personality. When Steve Blake bought the company, it was supposedly drifting and the families that owned it were wanting to retire and move on. That attitude, if accurate, is a recipe for a poor product.