I enjoy reworking older cars as much as I do creating new cars. There is something about trying to get into the heads of those fantastic designers, in this case, Raymond Loewy, and creating something new. As gorgeous as this generation of Studebaker's coupe was, the sedan was shorter, taller and frumpier from every angle. In these two renderings, I've based the sedan on the longer, lower coupe body, and I think it's all the better for it!
C H O P — I like photo-editing, or chopping, vintage cars as much as I enjoy creating future cars. These two new examples show what could have been one of the first 'four door coupes' on the market, a mythical 1954 Studebaker Sedan Coupe. I've illustrated both pillared and pillarless styles, the Starlight and Starliner respectively. I made the Commander Starlight an ohv V8 model, and the Champion Starliner a flathead 6 cylinder.
Besides basing my new sedan's body on the coupe, as opposed to the shorter, taller chassis Studebaker actually used for its sedans, I've rearranged, and added, some trim, including the chrome rocker panel spear. I used the coupe's 5 place interior, instead of the sedan's 6 seats, and I've made the door panels a bit 'ritzier' as well. I changed all the relevant 'small type' in the captions to suit my new bodystyle. I also added the chromed rocker panel spears and detail trim, with the 6 cylinder version different than the V8's side trim.
U p d a t e : I shortened the roof of the red Starliner hardtop coupe sedan. It had a bit of a dachshund look to it before. This corresponds with the Coupe a bit more accurately. Thursday 5pm
Your a genius, Casey!
ReplyDeleteI really like Studebakers and for some reason it personifies the Brooklyn my parents grew up in.
My own personal connection is more with Avanti which stemmed from Studebaker. When I was in high school this beautiful girl was given one in red and the looks of it reflected the driver. That was some 20 years ago and the memory still lives on and that is where my fascination with "old cars" began. Although a buddy of mine has a bunch 57 Chevy's and a 32 Ford.
But getting back to the point, I wish Avanti were it's own car and not built on something else(Mustangs). They tried to build a Hummer like SUV but that failed. They need to stick to their old recipe.
-WT
wioody-thanks for the comment! it got as far as my email but i can't seem to get it to publish. glitches all over the place!
ReplyDeleteLove the "What if..." ads, Casey. Studebaker could have done so much better.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Allen!
ReplyDeleteYou know, for me, color is extremely important. The sedan version's color combination is so period correct that I actually prefer it to the hardtop. That is a first for me. I don't know how much more work these are to accomplish but the results are very handsome. Thanks for your efforts.
ReplyDeleteBobF