Studebaker/Packard/Mercedes-Benz together...

[BobPalma]

Studebaker National Museum Board of Directors member Ron Whiteford in South Bend is yet to pick up the last of my 4 Astra White 1964 Daytonas he bought last month; the 4-door sedan. He has paid for it and has the title, so I assume he'll get down here sooner or later to retrieve it.

Meanwhile, this photo came to be over the weekend. After having parked the cars at random, it occurred to me that it represented a period in the history of The Studebaker-Packard Corporation when the corporation was the distributor for Mercedes-Benz cars in North America.

To wit: Our next-door neighbor (wonderful people; we should all be so lucky as to have folks like them for neighbors) has a nice 1988 Mercedes-Benz roadster of some sort...but only a two-car garage. That means his nice F-150 truck stays outside most of the time so the other stall (next to the Mercedes) may be occupied by his wife's daily driver. I thought that since I had some empty space in my Morton Building, I'd offer to let him store the Mercedes in our building for the winter so he wouldn't have to scrape snow and ice off his truck in the morning.

We moved his Mercedes over here a day or two ago...and lo and behold, I wound up with a photo op from back in the day when Studebaker and Packard and Mercedes Benz had a relationship! BP

[8E45E]

We moved his Mercedes over here a day or two ago...and lo and behold, I wound up with a photo op from back in the day when Studebaker and Packard and Mercedes Benz had a relationship!

Interesting photo, but it would have to be 1957 or 1958 one could have seen all three marques simultaneously brand new in a showroom. I believe it was 1957 when S-P took over North American distribution of DBAG products.

All you need now is a DKW to complete the set for mixed years.

Craig

[BobPalma]

Interesting photo, but it would have to be 1957 or 1958 one could have seen all three marques simultaneously brand new in a showroom. I believe it was 1957 when S-P took over North American distribution of DBAG products.

All you need now is a DKW to complete the set for mixed years.

Craig

You're right, Craig; I was just having some fun when I saw the three of them together and happened to remember S-P's relationship.

Do you remember when that dissolved, or why? I don't; I never paid that much attention to it.

I agree; it was undoubtedly before 1964...and besides, how would you wind up with a 1956 model, a 1964 model, and a 1988 model together in one showroom? BP

[8E45E]

Do you remember when that dissolved, or why? I don't; I never paid that much attention to it.

The North American distribution relationship ended in 1965.

Craig

[Warren Webb]

The North American distribution relationship ended in 1965.

Craig

By that time Mercedes had been well established on this side of the pond thanks in no small part to the former Packard dealers that were used to handling "premium" cars. When I first started seeing my wife, Joy, she had a 83 240D. I used it as my "sales pitch" in wooing her saying that we had a common thing, her Mercedes & my 60 Lark convertible! She didn't believe me until I showed an ad from 1957 showing Mercedes Benz Sales was a division of Studebaker Packard. I further kind of rubbing it in we got married on March 17 reminding her that that date was important, the final Studebaker came off the assembly line.