This Pickup Truck KILLED Studebaker! Now Its a Rare Gem!

This Pickup Truck KILLED Studebaker! Now Its a Rare Gem!

Studebaker’s one of the rarest pickup truck, the Champ! This gem from the 1960s may not be widely known, but it holds a special place in the evolution of American trucks. Dive deep with us into the archives to explore how the Champ, with its car-like comforts and robust truck utility, tried to set the stage for the future of pickups but ultimately became a hidden treasure lost in time.

We’ll explore the entire lifespan of the Studebaker Champ, from its ambitious launch in 1960 to its quiet exit in 1964. Discover how Studebaker ingeniously integrated the design elements of their Lark passenger car to give the Champ a more refined, car-like feel—a rarity at the time. 🛠️🚚

But it wasn’t just about looks; the Champ was a powerhouse too! We'll check out the various engine options, including the groundbreaking V8s, and see why despite its innovations, the Champ struggled in a market dominated by giants like Ford and Chevy.

Why did such an innovative truck fade into obscurity? We'll dissect the challenges Studebaker faced, from financial missteps to intense competition, that led to the company's downfall and the end of the Champ’s production.

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[josephschuster]

One can only imagine the innovations available in the auto industry today, had Studebaker survived.

[MiriamScherger-xroy]

Understand it was a cost cutting move, but the Dodge bed looked “grafted” on to the cab. Needed some kind of “flair” off the back of the cab to flow to the wider bed…. Just an opinion…..

[debbiebermudez]

Mr. B. Here ! 🍔🍺👀😎👍. As a boomer I saw these vehicles ! The history of automotive is telling us what is to come ! Putting all your eggs in one basket witch has shown what happens. Very informative & interesting video. 🍔🍺👀😎👍

[drakbar]

Studebaker lacked the capital for an all new truck - what money available went into Avanti and a refresh of the ‘64 Lark. For a couple hundred dollars more, you could buy a Ford or Chevy full size truck and not worry about owning an orphan. It’s ironic that there seems to be more interest in the Champ today than in the early Sixties.

[neildickson]

Great truck. I've owned one Champ, and loved it. Better looking than anything else on the road. Studebakers move to Canada in 1964 was a perfect storm of bad decisions and outcomes. The Champ had absolutely nothing to do with it, in fact it was continued to be be built into 1965 in South America.

[seed_drill]

A guy I know sold a '64 with a factory four speed at Hershey a few years ago. Ended up going overseas.

[Nicksonian]

I grew up in the 1960s, starting to drive in 1973. Although I started paying attention to cars as a kid, I don’t recall any kind of Studebaker ever crossing my radar screen. Of course I knew the name, they just weren’t around.

[JohnAdams-xcyk]

I had a 1952 Studebaker pickup bought from salvage for $150 sold the motor a v8 for $100 put a small block, Turbo350 drove it for a lot of years

[frederickhettesheimer]

They half designed the Champ, the cab looked good but relying on a bed designed in the 50's and a mismatched bed was not a good idea

[kenon]

Dude the Lark was based on a body shell that had been running since 1952, the drivetrain even longer, it was hardly what killed the Studebaker Corporation

[troyandog]

The Champ had nothing to do with Studebaker stopping auto manufacturing. They had stopped putting any money into the truck line many years prior. The company had diversified and the shareholders wanted nothing to do with manufacturing in an obsolete plant.

[robertmitchell]

In the mid 1960's the automotive part of the Studebaker Corporation was only about 10% of the greatly diversified company's income. The owners lost all interest and didn't keep it going for sadly.

[billsoinski]

Dad had a red Studebaker with the V8 and four-speed and it was formidable it ran and ran unfortunately Studebaker shot themselves in the foot they never updated anything so their death is purely internal

[RobertGuidry-ff]

The CO, pany didn't die. They went to Canada, made cars for a few more years and then retired on their own. There is a Youtube video that I watched about this.

[Nicksonian]

The truck at 7:04 has a Chevy logo on the back.

[Nick-zpub]

Studebaker made some stylish cars after the war, especially the streamlined 50 and 53 sedans. Then they started making ugly cars in the early 60s and it all went wrong

[Thomasr]

Nice pictures, poorly written dialogue. This truck was not the cause of Studebaker's demise. When Studebaker shut down U.S. operations and continued at their Canadian plant for another two years that was strictly a cold move to eliminate their U.S. pension obligation - U.S. pension laws and regulations were changed in response. Studebaker was part of a conglomerate/investment company that was highly profitable save for their automotive division. By 1970 the successor Worthington Corporation was posting a billion dollars in revenue.

[faith]

More like What the F were they thinking 😂😂😂 idiots

[jobfour]

From what I see in this video, those were one dog ugly trucks, thats probably why Studebaker went under, I wouldn't buy that even if it was half

[vernanderson]

The first truck shown was a dodge. It's no wonder one person commented on ugly.
No the sixty champ and forward were not only better looking than the competition they were tougher far more comfortable riding and by 1963-4 models had more power options up the the phenom R2 version
Another completely dumb vid on Studebaker by less than informed and certainly not intelligent entities.
Folks when such people get SOooo much WRONG you wonder why even bother to post.