When you can't decide whether you like Chevys or Studebakers use a little of each.
One of the lunch stops during the Hemmings Challenge was in Dickson, Tennessee, where a car show was organized out in front of the Roxy movie theatre. I had seen pictures of the Studeolet before but this was the first time I had seen it in person. Built by Don Atwood back in the Nineties in California, the Studeolet is a half 1950 Studebaker front nose coupled to a half 1950 Chevrolet Fleetline 2-door sedan.
Note the frenched Buick tail lights in this shot and the exhaust exit where the license plate would normally be.
The Studebaker contribution to this assembly is only from the fenderwells forward, after the sheetmetal was blended into the Chevrolet front fenders. Under the hood is a Chevy small block in front of what looked to be a TH-350 automatic. Suspension has been updated to front and rear airbags with Mustang II rack and pinion steering. The rear differential is late model G-Body Buick.
Exhaust configuration required a frenched license plate mount just below the trunk.
Don has recently moved to the Nashville area and those of you who have visited street rod and car shows in Tennessee have no doubt seen it displayed at one show or another. Californians will also remember it from many shows on the West Coast, often parked next to the Studemino.
Custom interior features narrowed 1961 Chrysler dash board
The interior has every upgrade imaginable, tilt steering wheel, stereo system, air conditioning, gray vinyl buckets, skull shifter knob and a console that doesn’t quit until it meets the trunk compartment.
Why call shotgun with a 2+2 interior like this one?
French in the headlights, add some fender skirts, lakes pipes, paint it a wild House of Kolors Sunset Orange Pearl, throw in some silver flames and custom flamed wheels, and you are good to go.
Definitely low but not too slow.
Definitely a one of a kind creation but it just shows you whatever you can think up can be accomplished with a little welding, a little paint and a lot of money and man hours.