Body / Glass: Daytona Structural differences?

[wdills]

Was there any difference in the frame or body of a 6 cylinder Daytona vs an R2 powered car? Obviously there should be but back then all the manufacturers were just adding horsepower and beefing up the driveline. Not much was done with frame or suspension unless you were dealing with a hand built performance car such as a Shelby or Yenko Chevy product.

[Skybolt]

If you have a shop manual the frame gauge thickness is listed for sixes, eights and exports. As far as I know R powered cars used the same frames as standard V8's and the bodies were the same, six or eight. Only convertibles of same wheel base cars had body structure and frame differences but it is, of course, a different model.

Someone else may have some inside info that is not widely published so I might stand to be corrected.

Having consulted the manual some R series had the export 11 gauge frame as opposed to the six at 14 guage and standard V8 at 13 gauge.

Len

[Studebakercenteroforegon]

As far as Larks are concerned, only the F and W bodies (2 door sedans, short wheelbase 4 door sedans) use different thickness frames for 6 cylinder cars vs. V-8 cars, and indeed these are the bodies that used 14 gauge for 6 cylinders and 13 gauge for V-8 cars. All other bodies used the same frame thickness whether 6 Cyl. or V-8. D and P bodies (2 and 4 door wagons) through 1962 used 13 gauge frames. All J, L, and Y bodies (Hardtop, convertible, and long wheelbase four door) used an 11 gauge frame, 6 cyl. or V-8. 1963 and later P bodies were 11 gauge frames. There were some exceptions for F and W such as export, police, Avanti powered, etc.