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[column grid=”2″ span=”1″] 1963 was the first year for the Studebaker Avanti coupe. Studebaker approached Raymond Lowey for an innovative four passenger sport coupe to bolster sagging sales. It was a magnificently creative project and the car, made mostly of fiberglass, was hailed for both design and engineering. With new designs in hand, Studebaker contacted the same fiberglass company that produced the Corvette bodies. With incorrect molds and delays, Studebaker was forced to set up its own fiberglass department for production. With these delays the advance orders for the 1963 model fell short and only 3,834 units were sold, not nearly enough to bring Studebaker out of the sagging sales and cover the cost of production. It did not save Studebaker but Studebaker gained such a loyal following that it has been constantly revived as its own brand many times since. In December of 1963 Studebaker moved its production to Canada staying there until production ceased in 1966.
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