BBeM: Classic Cars Item

Classic Cars

1953 Studebaker Commander

There are 10 comments for this item.

Posted by Duff at 3:43 am (PDT) on Wed August 12, 2009
Yes, you read that correctly: 1953. Isn't that just gorgeous?
Posted by Max at 10:10 pm (PDT) on Wed April 7, 2010
It is. Studebaker produced this gem when the big three were producing increasingly massive, chrome laden turnpike cruisers. For a compact car it is surprisingly roomy and comfortable. This is probably one of Raymond Loewy's designs. (Google his name for some wonderful stuff on industrial design and his projects, among which are ash trays, locomotives, Sunbeam appliances and Studebakers.)
Posted by syndicate1949 at 5:27 am (PDT) on Thu April 8, 2010
Remember the Studebaker 'Avanti'
Posted by billk at 8:45 pm (PDT) on Fri November 5, 2010
In the 80s my roommate restored a 1954 Studebaker Champion 4 door sedan - a rare survivor, but with very similar lines. He updated it with a modern drivetrain, it looked great in person.
Posted by Robert J. McKelvey at 1:54 pm (PDT) on Tue August 9, 2011
I believe this car was called a Starlite Coupe, anyone remember?
Posted by Tommie at 8:54 am (PDT) on Sun September 4, 2011
I grew up in South Bend, IN and both my father and grandfather worked for Studebaker at this time. It is indeed a Starlite Coupe, but not really a compact car by today's standards. My uncle had one of these, and my family had a number of other Studebakers. My first car was a '60 Studebaker Lark, a very economical car in its day. You couldn't mistake them for any other car.
Posted by Robert J. McKelvey at 10:48 am (PDT) on Sun September 4, 2011
Tommie, I remember wanting the Lark around 1958. I had just gotten married and a new car was out of the question.
Posted by packratjohn at 5:41 am (PST) on Sun November 27, 2011
Tommie, I lived in SB for many years, heard horror stories of the way Studebaker treated the workers when they shut down. Bad ending to a great car company.
Posted by Tommie at 6:57 am (PST) on Sun November 27, 2011
PRJohn: My father left the company two years before they shutdown in SB. He lost his pension. He hated to leave, but he saw it coming. He was among the fortunate who got out before they shut down. It was thought that SB would not survive without Studebaker, but it did. At the time of the shut down, Studebaker employed only 8% of the SB workforce. Unemployment after the closing was 9%, but dropped to 2.3% in just two years, one of the lowest in the nation (from the book "Studebaker- Less Than They Promised").
Posted by trawnta at 5:52 am (PDT) on Mon October 15, 2012
I owned a Studebaker Lark convertible for 5 years.

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