when is a Stude not a Stude?

[wittsend]

My '64 Daytona throws people for a loop. While a Daytona by VIN, it has Commander side trim and also lacks the Daytona rear treatment. The front fender script is broken and simply spells "Comma." Which, causes a pause when reading a sentence, and likewise, a pause when people look at the car. The only place the car is designated a Studebaker is in the center hood ornament (missing the "S" gun sight) with its small 1/8" letters.

Then it really gets interesting when I tell them that while Studebaker made Daytona's in the USA in '64, but mine was made in Canada. And while Studebaker used Chevrolet (McKinnon) engines in '65-'66, my '64 (as I bought it) already had been swapped with a Chevrolet (McKinnon) engine.

So, the conversations go like this (their questions omitted, just my answers):

No, it's not a Rambler, it's a Studebaker. - Yes, it was a USA company..., but mine was made in Canada. - No, I never heard of a "Comma" either. The complete word should be "Commander." But, by the way, the car isn't a Commander, it is really a Daytona. - Yes, the engine is Chevrolet. But, in Canada the subsidiary manufacture was McKinnon. No, Studebaker did not use the McKinnon (Chevrolet) engine in '64..., but they did in '65-'66.

I think what they come away with is my car was made in the wrong country, called the wrong name and has the wrong engine - but they do know it isn't a Rambler.

Tom

[alex54]

Since I bought my '54 Champion, only one person who talked to me about it recognized it as a Studebaker. Does not bother me whatsoever. I've had the same type of comments on my MGB, Triumph TR6 and TR7. They are usually referred to a Fiat or even a Porsche.

[Corvanti]

when i had the '40 Champion, most thought it was a Willys or a furd, which i found understandable for a casual old car guy.

on the '51, a majority - if approaching from the front - know it's a Studebaker. they may ask what year. if approaching from the rear, most have no clue as to make...

[SN-60]

...when it's a Jaguar...or so some think. Today when sitting at a traffic light, the guy in the car beside me, driving a late model Volvo yells over to me "Nice Jag...what year is it?" This is the second time in about as many years that strangers have called my car a Jaguar...what gets me is this guy was my about my age (a rather youngish 50 something). I thought he would have known better. Last year, or the year before a girl in the 25 to 30 year old bracket made the same mistake, but I figured she was too young to know what a 54 Stude was... oh well, will continue my endeavour to educate the uneducated masses. But seriously, a Jag???...I just don't get it. Cheers, Junior.

I do!......Stude C/K models are often 'accused' of being Jaguars.

[ed ellis]

My 53 has been called a Maserati, Ferrari etc by the young kids which is entirely understandable but what isn't understandable is the guys in their 60s at car shows who haven't a clue it's a studebaker.
BTW, I sure am glad the Packard " Predictor" didn't predict anything as its truly awful.

[Jim Nichols]

I have a 1960 Black Hawk. Am I the only Studebaker guy that has heard the occasional comment that my car looks like the Bat Mobile ? The best response I come up with is that the only similarity is that they are both black and then walk away keeping my cool as best I can.

[Corvanti]

Jim, i think most of us have heard worse insults!

laugh it off and tell them what it is - shoot, maybe a finned Hawk was seen by one the guys used the look for part of the later batmobiles!

[thunderations]

It's my understanding that Studebaker bought the GT roofs from Ford. Anyone else heard that?

A very small portion of the population is made up of old car buffs. A TINY portion of old car buffs know Studebakers. It's a little unrealistic to expect everyone to be able to name our cars. It's sort of like high end concours car collectors expecting us to know the difference between a 1930 Isotta-Fraschini 8A SS Castagna Torpedo Sport and a 1930 Minerva Van Den Plas Cabriolet.

Laymen take their best guess. We should be flattered they notice our special cars.



Quite frankly, for a novice, mistaking the roofline of a GT for a T-Bird isn't a huge miss...

[52-fan]

In the mid 80s a friend of mine was asked what year Trans Am his black 53 coupe was. He was visiting South Bend at the time.

[Corley]

Yea...I think it's tough for us car guys (and gals) to relate to someone who isn't one. It is for me anyhow. My GUESS is that in the case of a 53/54 C/K, they see a beautiful vintage car with European styling and the first thing that comes to mind is JAGUAR....not that they have any sort of specific Jaguar year or model in mind, just that Jaguar is the name they associate with beautiful vintage cars with European styling. In their view, it's may be the highest compliment they have for a car...to put it in the JAGUAR category.

If you think a Studebaker has trouble being identified, most folks won't even GUESS the make of my Daimler...even parked. There are no "Daimler" badges, only a stylized "D" on the hubcaps and hood ornament.

Looks just like my '65 Jag. Mark II, except for the waterfall top on the grill. In fact, the bodies came out of the same factory. Yours got the 2.5L V-8, IIR, whereas mine got the 3.8L inline 6 (now a 5.7L V-8). People used to have a hard time identifying mine, but since Jag came out with the Type S, all that changed. The Type S was an obvious attempt (but failure) at recreating those classic lines.

By the way, are those front mirrors the stock shape? Mine are round, and while they look really cool, they are a total pain when leaning over the fender to access the engine area, plus are not really all that useful for rearward viewing.

But confusing a Stude for a Jag? Well, my '65 Jag Mark II uses the same basic Dana 44 rear diff. as lot's of Studes, it has the same basic disk brake parts as lot's of Avanti's and Larks, it used the same basic BW auto trans as the Stude (only with first gear start), etc., etc... Yes, their is some similarity, just not looks...

[Dick Steinkamp]

Looks just like my '65 Jag. Mark II, except for the waterfall top on the grill. In fact, the bodies came out of the same factory. Yours got the 2.5L V-8, IIR, whereas mine got the 3.8L inline 6 (now a 5.7L V-8). People used to have a hard time identifying mine, but since Jag came out with the Type S, all that changed. The Type S was an obvious attempt (but failure) at recreating those classic lines.

Yep, pretty much the same as a Mark 2 except for the engine and some trim. (Based on this thread, however, I think I should start getting angry that some folks mistake it for a Mark 2 )

I thought Jaguar (Ford?) did a pretty good job with the new Type S...



Better than most of the "retro look" cars anyway.

I surprised me, however, that they called it a Type S instead of a Mark 2 (or 3). The original Type S followed the Mark 2 and was a somewhat homely car.


It is the stock position for the mirrors, but I don't know if they are factory original. Jag did use the round ones up until about the year of yours. From 66-69 I've seen a variety of shapes. Mine appear to be in the same condition as the rest of the car so they'll probably stay. They are both convex and actually give me a good view to the blind spots. You don't have to turn your head as much as door mounted mirrors to use them and you can generally see overtaking traffic in your peripheral vision. My MGB has a "wing" mount on the right side (stock) so I was pretty much used to that location.

[skyway]

"It's my understanding that Studebaker bought the GT roofs from Ford."

Odd, I heard they just plain STOLE it?

[johnod]

My Lark is usually called a Rambler.

I can see that, being a fairly easy mistake to make.

[57pack]

Friend of mine called me last spring to come over to her apartment complex. Her new VW wouldn't start, after checking out the car I determined the fault was in the neutral safety switch / relay area. She called VW, they sent over a roll back to pick the car up. I had gone over in my 65 Wagonaire and when the tow truck arrived the driver asked me to move my Merecdes wagon!

[johnod]

I can no longer count how many times my 53 has been called a T-Bird. I always take great pleasure in telling them it was here before the T-Birds. Clearly there is some similar shape that reminds people of a T-Bird.

My girlfriend thinks my 53 coupe looks like 55 Tbird, I don't see it myself.
It's been called a Porsche a few times, and I can sort of see that.