Studebakers at Fair Oaks Fiesta Days, California

We visited the Fair Oaks Fiesta Days "Show & Shine" last Sunday. Here are a few pics of the Studebaker vehicle line-up, many of which are from the Karel Staple Chapter of the Studebaker Drivers Club.

Slideshow of Studebakers

A fun slideshow of Studebakers at a Crusin' Grand event. It's great to see new Studebaker pics from around the country during 'car show season.'

Pink Bullet-Nose Studebaker Champion Golf Cart

Below are a couple of fun photographs that came to me via the SDC Karel Staple Chapter email list. The workmanship on the cart is very nice. Would it rate a "4" or "5" at judging? It certainly would qualify as a modified Studebaker.

1950 Studebaker Champion Nose Cone

A quick picture of Doc's newly-lettered nose cone.

Reiff's Gas Station - Woodland, CA

I picked up a business card for Reiff's Gas Station at the California Automobile Museum in Sacramento, California. I was amazed by Reiff's website and now must book a tour. A bit about Reiff's:

"Mark started his collection with the purchase of a 1930's Wayne Gas Pump at a neighborhood garage sale. Since then he has added a Diner, Barber Shop, Gas Station, General Store and Old Time Movie Theater."

Click here for a photo of a Studebaker "bulletnose" at Reiff's. It's sad to see the nose up on the wall, but better there than rotted out in a field.

Visit the Reiff's House website.

Automobile Magazine Feature on Bullet Nose Studebakers

Really nice write-up in Automobile Magazine about the '50 -'51 bullet nose Studebaker Champions, Commanders, and Landcruisers.

"Bob Bourke did the heavy lifting for Loewy on the redesign. With fighter-plane styling in the front and streamlined-railway-car "Vista Dome" treatment in the back, there've been few cars as stunning before or since. The design leadership was matched with comparatively up-to-the-minute engineering to make it more than worthy of contemporary consideration. Was there anything more modern on the road back then? Not really."

"Why buy? It's the most futuristic car of the past - a dream car that you can drive on a regular basis. Styling sets it apart, and straightforward mechanicals make it relatively easy to live with. Spare and reproduction parts abound, and the Studebaker community is very supportive. Nothing says "postwar" more emphatically; the Muppets drove one to box-office glory. You get to admit that it is, in fact, both going and coming and was, yes, ahead of its time, which seems to still have not arrived."

Read the full Automobile Magazine feature here.

Studebaker Southwest Zone Meet Photographs

The Studebaker Southwest Zone Meet took place in Sacramento, CA this past weekend. Here are a few photographs from the car display.