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45-584: The last automobile until the Avanti to have styling influenced by industrial designer Raymond Loewy 's studio, the Golden Hawk took the basic shape of the 1953–55 Champion / Commander Starliner hardtop coupe but added a large, almost vertical eggcrate grille and raised hoodline in place of the earlier car's swooping, pointed nose, and was introduced as the Studebaker Speedster . At the rear,

90-607: A product which has been produced over multiple years. The model year may or may not be the same as the calendar year in which the product was manufactured. Automobiles in the United States and Canada are identified and regulated by model year, whereas other markets use production date (month/year) to identify specific vehicles, and model codes in place of the "year" (model year) in the North American make-model-year identifier. In technical documents generated within

135-525: A 40-day crash program, the Avanti featured a radical fiberglass body mounted on a modified Studebaker Lark 109-inch convertible chassis and powered by a modified 289 Hawk engine. A Paxton supercharger was offered as an option. In eight days the stylists finished a "clay scale model with two different sides: one a two-place sports car, the other a four-seat GT coupe." Tom Kellogg, a young California stylist hired for this project by Loewy, "felt it should be

180-424: A four-seat coupe." "Loewy envisioned a low-slung, long-hood-short-deck semi-fastback coupe with a grilleless nose and a wasp-waisted curvature to the rear fenders, suggesting a supersonic aircraft." The Avanti's complex body shape "would have been both challenging and prohibitively expensive to build in steel" with Studebaker electing to mold the exterior panels in glass-reinforced plastic (fiberglass), outsourcing

225-533: A light car gave the Golden Hawk an excellent power-to-weight ratio (and thus performance) for the time; of 1956 American production cars, the Golden Hawk was second only to Chrysler's 300B by that measure — and the Chrysler, which cost considerably more, was essentially a road-legal NASCAR racing car. The Golden Hawk, like the Chryslers, is a precursor to the muscle cars of the 1960s. The heavy engine gave

270-424: A model year up to two years before the date that the vehicle was manufactured. In other countries, it is more common to identify specific vehicles by their year and month of production, and cars of a particular type by their generation, using terms such as "Mark III" or by the manufacturer's code for that kind of car (such as "BL" being the code for a Mazda 3 built between November 2008 and June 2013). In Europe,

315-431: A raised, squared-off trunklid replaced the earlier sloped lid, and vertical fiberglass tailfins were added to the rear quarters. The Golden Hawk was two inches shorter than the standard Hawk at 153.6 inches. The raised hood and grille were added to allow space for a larger engine, Packard 's 352 in³ (5.8 L) V8 , which delivered 275 bhp (205 kW). This comparatively large, powerful engine in such

360-575: A slightly modified hand-built version of the original Avanti using leftover Studebaker chassis and engines from General Motors. There was no connection with the Studebaker brand name. Following Altman and Newman's effort, a succession of additional entrepreneurs purchased the tooling and name to manufacture small numbers of increasingly modified variants of the car, including the Avanti II , through 2006. The Avanti Owners Association International

405-473: Is an active association with nearly 2,000 members worldwide and meeting yearly in various cities in the United States and in Switzerland. Members of the not-for-profit organization receive the full-color quarterly "Avanti Magazine" publication, published since the organization's founding in 1965. Model year The model year (sometimes abbreviated as MY ) is a method of describing the version of

450-513: Is being referred to. The new model year typically begins in August to September of the preceding calendar year, though can be as early as February, such being the case for the fourth generation 2022 Acura MDX , which started production in January 2021. This was partly due to the advertising of a new model being coordinated with the launch of the new television season in late September, because of

495-418: The Avanti 's R2 supercharged engine for the 1963 model year. The Golden Hawks were 203.9 inches (5,180 mm) long. A padded dash was standard. Styling also changed somewhat. A fiberglass overlay on the hood was added, which covered a hole in the hood that was needed to clear the supercharger, which was mounted high on the front of the engine. The tailfins, now made of metal, were concave and swept out from

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540-528: The Bonneville Salt Flats . Following Studebaker's discontinuation of the model, a succession of five ventures manufactured and marketed derivatives of the Avanti model through 2006. These ventures licensed intellectual property and, in some cases procured parts, through arrangements with the successors to the Studebaker assets. Studebaker's advertising agency provided the name Avanti. In Italian it means "forward" or "onward". The Avanti

585-533: The 1955 model year of the Ford Thunderbird began production in September 1954. Model year followed with calendar year until the mid 1930s until then president Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order to release vehicle model years in the fall of the preceding year in order to standardize employment in the automotive industry. The practice of beginning production of next year's model before

630-501: The Golden Hawk could out-perform the others comfortably in both 0-60 mph acceleration and quarter mile times. The fastest 0-60 reported in magazine testing was 7.8 seconds, while top speeds were quoted as 125 mph (201 km/h) plus. The 1956 model powered by a Packard engine entered the famous Mille Miglia race in Italy. A wide variety of colors (including two-tone paint schemes) were available. Two-tone schemes initially involved

675-656: The Minx Series IIIA, IIIB and IIIC) to distinguish what were mostly cosmetic updates rather than mechanical or structural improvements. As in America, the British motor industry did generally announce new models (or updates to existing ones) in September. However this was the norm long before it became practice in the US and did not originate with the television season. Instead it began because the long-established practice in

720-685: The NFL Super Bowl in February. A notable example of an early model year launch would be the Ford Mustang , introduced as an early 1965 model (informally referred to as "1964 1 ⁄ 2 ") in April 1964 at the World's Fair , several months before the usual start of the 1965 model year in August 1964. For recreational vehicles , the U.S. Federal Trade Commission allows a manufacturer to use

765-485: The auto industry and its regulating agencies such as the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and United States Environmental Protection Agency and Transport Canada and Environment Canada , the letters MY often precede the year (as in MY2019 or MY93 ). Even without this prefix, however, in the North American context it is usually the model year rather than the vehicle's calendar year of production that

810-535: The book My Father The Car written about Stu Chapman, Studebaker Corporation's Advertising & Public Relations Department head in Canada, Studebaker seriously considered reintroducing the Avanti into Studebaker showrooms in 1965/66 after production resumed in 1965 via Studebaker-Packard dealership owners Newman & Altman. The Avanti name, tooling, and plant space were sold to two South Bend, Indiana , Studebaker dealers, Nate Altman and Leo Newman. They reintroduced

855-471: The car a reputation for being nose-heavy; the supercharged Studebaker engine that replaced the Packard engine in 1957 was heavier. Road tests of the time, many of which were conducted by racing drivers, seldom mentioned any handling issues in spite of the heavy front end. Speed Age magazine of July 1956 tested the Golden Hawk against the Chrysler 300B, Ford Thunderbird , and Chevrolet Corvette , finding that

900-492: The closure of Studebaker's factory on December 20, 1963, Competition Press reported: "Avantis will no longer be manufactured and contrary to the report that there are thousands gathering dust in South Bend warehouses, Studebaker has only five Avantis left. Dealers have about 2,500, and 1,600 have been sold since its introduction." This contrasted with Chevrolet which produced 23,631 Corvette sports cars in 1963. According to

945-461: The dealerships ready for sale. Therefore, car models intended for sale during, say, 1960, would be announced and displayed in the third quarter of 1959, with sales beginning before the end of the year, and any improvements intended for 1961 would be announced in September 1960 and displayed at the 1960 Motor Show in October. This convention was not absolute; for instance the original Vauxhall Victor

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990-424: The end of the year has become a long-standing tradition in America. For purposes such as VINs and emissions control , regulations allow cars of a given model year to be sold starting on January 2 of the previous calendar year. For example, a 2019 model year vehicle can legally go on sale starting January 2, 2018. This has resulted in a few cars in the following model year being introduced in advertisements during

1035-644: The first private owner of an Avanti." A Studebaker Lark convertible was the Indianapolis pace car that year and the Avanti was named the honorary pace car. In December 1962 the Los Angeles Times reported: "Launching of operations at Studebaker's own fiber-glass body works to increase the production of Avantis." Many production problems concerning the supplier, fit, and finish resulted in delays and cancelled orders. Egbert planned to sell 20,000 Avantis in 1962, but could build only 1,200. After

1080-489: The first production model, is housed at the Studebaker Museum in South Bend. For 1958, the Golden Hawk switched to 14-inch wheels instead of 15-inch wheels, making the car ride a little lower. The 15-inch wheels, however, were available as an option. Other styling changes included a new, round Hawk medallion mounted in the lower center of the grille, and the available contrasting-color paint was now applied to both

1125-478: The front upper body, the roof, and a panel on the tail being painted the contrast color, with the rest of the body in the base color. Later 1956 production had the body above the body trim line, including the trunk, in the contrast color with the tail panel, roof, and the body below the body trim line being in the base color. The interior included an engine turned dash. An increased options list and reduced standard equipment were used to keep base price down compared to

1170-406: The heavy dependence between television to offer products from automakers to advertise, and the car companies to launch their new models at a high-profile time of year. Imported cars use the model year convention in the U.S. and Canada, even when this system is not used for the same cars when sold in other countries. The concept of yearly styling updates (a practice adopted from the fashion industry)

1215-480: The in-roads made to the British market by car makers from other countries and the decline in market share by British firms finally led to the tradition of new models being introduced in September being abandoned, although the British Motor Show continued to be held in October. The standardized format of the vehicle identification number (VIN) used in the United States and Canada includes the model year of

1260-774: The lesser use of model years as a descriptor is partly because since the 1980s many vehicles are introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in March, the Frankfurt Motor Show in September or the Paris Motor Show in September. New models have increasingly been launched in June or July. As with the rest of Europe, the motor industry in the United Kingdom did not regularly make use of model years in

1305-484: The manufacturing industries of the English Midlands , especially Coventry and Birmingham where the British car industry developed out of the established bicycle and machine tool trades, was to close factories and give workers a two-week holiday in August or September. This was used as a chance to renew tooling in the factory and was an ideal time to introduce new products which would begin production when

1350-549: The more significant milestones of the postwar industry", the Raymond Loewy -designed car offered safety features and high-speed performance. Called "the fastest production car in the world" upon its introduction, a modified Avanti reached over 170 mph (270 km/h) with its supercharged 289-cubic-inch (4,740 cm ) R3 engine at the Bonneville Salt Flats. In all, it broke 29 world speed records at

1395-465: The only Hawk model; it was renamed simply the Studebaker Hawk for the 1960 model year. Studebaker Avanti The Studebaker Avanti is a personal luxury coupe manufactured and marketed by Studebaker Corporation between June 1962 and December 1963. A halo car for the maker, it was marketed as "America's only four-passenger high-performance personal car." Described as "one of

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1440-580: The previous year's Studebaker Speedster , which the Golden Hawk replaced. Even turn signals were an option. The Golden Hawk was matched with three other Hawk models for 1956, and was the only Hawk not technically considered a sub-model within one of Studebaker's regular passenger car lines; the Flight Hawk coupe was a Champion , the Power Hawk coupe was a Commander , and the Sky Hawk hardtop

1485-492: The restyled Golden Hawk. The Packard V8, introduced only two years earlier, was therefore no longer available. It was replaced with the Studebaker 289 in³ (4.7 L) V8 with the addition of a McCulloch supercharger , giving the same 275 hp (205 kW) output as the Packard engine. This improved the car's top speed, making these the best-performing Hawks until the Gran Turismo Hawk became available with

1530-419: The roof and tailfins. One unique feature was a vacuum gauge on the instrument panel. Padded dash boards were standard. Several minor engineering changes were made for '58, including revisions to the suspension and driveshaft that finally allowed designers to create a three-passenger rear seat. Earlier models had seating for only two passengers in the rear because the high driveshaft "hump" necessitated dividing

1575-425: The same official weight or significant to buyers as they did in America. During the 1960s British car makers began giving journalists access to upcoming models earlier in the year to get announcements out ahead of their rivals and clear of the busy September period. This developed into increasingly lavish and sophisticated media and marketing events happening earlier and earlier in the year. Changes to working practices,

1620-443: The seat; a fixed arm rest (later made removable because of customer requests) was placed between the rear passengers in earlier models. In January 2011, Barrett-Jackson auctions sold a 1957 Studebaker Hawk for a final hammer price of $ 99,000. Like many more expensive cars, Golden Hawk sales were heavily hit by the late-1950s recession, and the model was discontinued after only selling 878 examples in 1958. The Silver Hawk remained

1665-404: The sides of the car. The fins were outlined in chrome trim and normally were painted a contrasting color, although some solid-color Golden Hawks were built. Halfway through the 1957 model year , a luxury 400 model was introduced, featuring a leather interior, a fully upholstered trunk, and special trim. Only 41 of these special cars were produced, and very few of the 41 exist today. One of them,

1710-580: The vehicle rather than via a conventional grille above the front bumper, a design feature much more common after the 1980s. The Avanti was publicly introduced on April 26, 1962, "simultaneously at the New York International Automobile Show and at the Annual Shareholders' Meeting." Rodger Ward , winner of the 1962 Indianapolis 500, received a Studebaker Avanti as part of his prize package, "thus becoming

1755-626: The way common in the US, since cars were not as regularly updated or altered. Some exceptions existed; for instance in the 1950s and 1960s the Rootes Group deliberately copied American practice and performed annual small alterations to its key models such as the Hillman Minx and the Humber Super Snipe . However these were still not identified by model years but by Series numbers, sometimes with alphabetical designations (such as

1800-530: The work to Molded Fiberglass Body in Ashtabula, Ohio — the same company that built the fiberglass panels for the Chevrolet Corvette in 1953. The Avanti featured front disc-brakes that were British Dunlop designed units, made under license by Bendix , "the first American production model to offer them." It was one of the first bottom breather designs where air enters from under the front of

1845-471: The workers returned and the factory restarted. Thus the working year in the car industry ran from September to September. New or improved models would be announced in the summer and would be displayed at the British Motor Show which was held in October. Here they would be seen by the wider industry and buying public for the first time, just as the cars produced in the previous weeks began reaching

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1890-400: Was a President . The Golden Hawk was continued for the 1957 and 1958 model years, but with some changes. Packard's Utica, Michigan , engine plant was leased to Curtiss-Wright during 1956 (and eventually sold to them), marking the end of genuine Packard production. Packard-badged cars were produced for two more years, but they were essentially rebadged Studebakers, including Packard Hawk –

1935-431: Was developed at the direction of Studebaker president, Sherwood Egbert , who took over in February 1961. The car's design theme was "allegedly doodled by Egbert on the proverbial back of an envelope during an airplane flight." Egbert's 'doodle' was to answer Ford's Thunderbird and an attempt to improve the automaker's sagging performance. Designed by Raymond Loewy 's team of Tom Kellogg, Bob Andrews, and John Ebstein on

1980-498: Was introduced to General Motors' range of cars by Alfred P. Sloan in the 1920s. This was an early form of planned obsolescence in the car industry, where yearly styling changes meant consumers could easily discern a car's newness, or lack of it. Other major changes to the model range usually coincided with the launch of the new model year., for example the 1928 model year of the Ford Model A began production in October 1927 and

2025-611: Was officially announced in February 1957 with sales beginning later the same month, and subsequent additions and updates to the Victor range were all introduced in February - notably Vauxhall's factory was outside the traditional centre of the industry, being in Luton , and so did not follow the common working calendar. Being owned by General Motors , Vauxhall also generally made minor changes to its cars year by year, even referring to 'model years' in some of its literature, but these did not have

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