Good morning, and happy Friday! As you are probably aware, Sunday is Father’s Day (at least here in the US; is it more widespread than that now?), so I wanted to do a little tribute to my dad, and by extension, dads everywhere. But we’ll get to that in a minute; first, let’s finish up with yesterday’s foolishness:
Well, there you go; the shorter car has the longer bar on the graph. Lots of folks thought the airport wagon was cool, but had no idea where to park it; it’s a valid concern. And big props to commenter “newbalanceextrawide” for the Penny Racers reference; I got a good laugh out of that one. Oh, and for the record, I think the portmanteau we were all searching for is “Cameetle.”
[Editor’s Note: These were actually known as “Funtastiks!” – JT]
This Sunday will be my first Father’s Day without my dad. I think I’m going to mark the occasion by washing and waxing his car; I just have to decide on the appropriate soundtrack: Boston, John Hiatt, or Beethoven? I’ll see what sort of mood I’m in. But today, I decided to feature a couple of cars from his honestly-pretty-cool vehicular resumé, or at least the closest things I could find to them in a reasonable amount of time. I know he’d dig these, and I hope you all do, too. Let’s take a look.
1955 Studebaker President – $14,500
Engine/drivetrain: 259 cubic inch overhead valve V8, three-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Gresham, OR
Odometer reading: 94,000 miles
Dad’s actual car: 1954 Studebaker Commander coupe, V8, three-speed manual
Studebaker in the 1950s was just too damn cool. Its cars were lower and sleeker than anyone else’s, and its engineering department created some serious horsepower to propel those designs. Unfortunately, its business side was a complete fiasco. Even merging with Packard, which had more money but a smaller market share, couldn’t save them, and the merger ended up dragging both companies down. But while it lasted, it was beautiful.
For 1955, Studebaker revived its President nameplate, last used before the war, for top-of-the-line coupes and sedans. The fastest, coolest, and most expensive of these was the Speedster two-door hardtop. This isn’t one of those; it’s “only” a President hardtop coupe. But it has the same 259 cubic inch V8, the same sleek shape, and the same cool factor. This one is an automatic; my dad’s car was a Commander, one trim level down, with a three-on-the-tree. A V8 in a car with such a low hood required some tricky packaging; the air cleaner assembly is off to one side, rather than being on top of the carb as usual.
This Stude is in fine shape, and the seller lists a bunch of repairs that have been made in the last few years. From the sounds of it, every mechancial thing that could have needed attention has been gone through. It has all the makings of a great summertime cruiser, and it’s priced a lot less than some other ’50s classics in this condition. Even after all these years, Studebaker gets no respect.
Honestly, I prefer the Commander to the President; it has less bulky brightwork. The President’s grille looks a little heavy to me. Still, it’s a great-looking car, and I hope it finds a new owner who appreciates it.
1957 MGAÂ Mk1 Roadster – $18,000
Engine/drivetrain: 1.5 liter overhead valve inline 4, four-speed manual, RWD
Location: Somewhere in Washington State
Odometer reading: not stated
Dad’s actual car: 1961 MGA 1600 MkII Roadster, also red
MG had to be dragged kicking and screaming into the post-war styling era. The T series retained the basic appearance of the 1936 TA Midget all the way until 1955. There were advances along the way: the MG TD brought independent front suspension and rack-and-pinion steering to the mix, and the TFÂ featured headlights that were smoothed into the front fenders – but it still had separate fenders. The MGA finally embraced the ponton style that had been adopted by nearly everyone else. Its design was based on a 1951 streamliner MG TD built to race at Le Mans.
The MGA also saw a switch to the BMC B-series engine from the Morris-designed XPAG/XPEG engines. This car features a 1490 cubic centimeter version of the B, with a three-main-bearing block. Its fed by a Weber DGV downdraft carburetor, but the original side-draft twin SU carbs are included in the sale. I’ve never understood the Weber swaps on MGs, frankly; SUs are easy to rebuild, easy to tune, perform well, and look correct. I mean, putting a Weber on the later MGBs with that awful Zenith-Stromberg carb, sure, but an MGA? Blasphemy.
This car does run and drive well, even with the wrong carb setup. It’s not perfect; the seller has been driving it a lot, so expect some scratches and rock chips here and there. It also needs a new top, unless you’re going to only take it out on nice days and say to hell with the top, and who could blame you?
It also has regular old four-lug steel wheels, which I like. Lots of folks prefer wire wheels, but honestly, I’m not overly fond of the look, and they’re a pain in the ass. The spokes loosen, the splines wear out, and the whole thing just becomes a wobbly sloppy mess. Oh, and they require tires with tubes, too. I’d rather just have the steelies. I do wish this one had its hubcaps, though.
So there they are: reasonable stand-ins for two cool cars my dad had before I was born. (OK, technically, the MGA belonged to my grandfather, but the VW Golf that I drove in college technically belonged to my dad too, so what comes around goes around, I guess.) Both are ready to go, and both seem like fair prices to me. Which one strikes your fancy?
Oh, and because I know someone out there is curious, here are the rest of Dad’s cars (and the ones he picked out for my mom), as far as I can recall:
1951 Packard Patrician, 1955 Plymouth station wagon, 1963 Plymouth Valiant, 1967 Plymouth Barracuda, 1968 Ford Fairlane, 1966 Triumph Spitfire, 1971 Opel Manta, 1969 VW Beetle, 1965 Triumph TR4A, 1974 Ford Pinto Squire wagon, 1976 Dodge Aspen, 1979 Fiat 128, 1980 VW Dasher diesel, 1983 Dodge 600 ES sedan, 1985 VW Golf, 1987 Audi 5000S, 1984 Cadillac Cimarron, 1986 Audi 5000CS Turbo, 1983 Audi 5000S Turbo, 1992 Ford Taurus SHO (while living in Winnipeg, Manitoba), 1990 BMW 730i (while living in Germany), 1999 Toyota Camry, 2002 Ford Escape, 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder, 2006 Chrysler 300C, 2013 Chrysler 300C (this last one is the one to be washed/waxed on Sunday).
Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there!
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
Two great cars, but I went with the Studebaker. I also prefer the Commander, but this President is a looker. My dad had an MGB that overheated & caught fire in rush hour traffic way back when, so I can’t vote for the MGA in good conscience.
There’s no wrong answer here. Whatever you vote for, good choice.
My dad had an MGA, so it’s an easy choice. It was before his Citroen obsession, and before he got saddled with three sons to cart around.
Seems like an expensive MGA. I will take the studebaker.
Voted for the Studebaker — my dad loved the Loewy coupes and the Avanti. Also, low-key, the Studebaker Museum in South Bend is a fun stop.
I love seeing the list of Dad cars! In that spirit, here’s my dad’s rundown, as best I can recall from pictures and his recollections.
>1957 Bel Air >1963(?) Corvair >1966 Skylark >1969 Chevelle Malibu >1971 Grand Prix (this was his favorite) >1974 Vega Kammback >1969 VW Bus >1970 1/2 Firebird Esprit >1977 Cutlass Supreme >1980 LeSabre Limited >1981 Accord >1984 Accord >1990 Accord >1991 Grand Marquis >1995 Park Avenue >2000 Acura 3.2TL (bought from and then given back to me)
Mark, I’ll raise a glass to my dad — and yours — on Sunday. Thanks for sharing his story.
First of all, I’m sorry for the loss of your dad. This is a very cool way to honor him. In this situation I’m going MG all day. It has a manual transmission and a roof that goes down. I’m sure it’s still a hoot on any backroad you may encounter.
My buddy has a ’53 Commander Starlight which is really sleek and I’ve still got PTSD from an MGB I owned 30 years ago so there’s really only one choice for me today.
Your dad had good taste in cars! Nice choices. My dad still has his 1960 MGA, also in red with steel wheels (with baby moons), but he has a tan interior. He hasn’t had the top mounted in the car in the 30+ years that he’s had it. That 57 seems like a good price, but I guess I haven’t looked at pricing lately. If you wanted more power, I think the MGB 1800cc drops right in (at least that’s the case on the later 1600cc’s). We didn’t realize my Dad’s MGA had an MGB engine in it until I was changing the clutch with him on it last year and saw “1800” on the block, but the transmission was still from the MGA.
I’m usually all about the convertibles, but that old Studebaker with the V8 has got my attention.
Although the Studebaker is seemingly in much better shape and equipment, I’m going with the open top manual. Just seems like too much fun. I could just drop a new engine in it if I wanted to
Fathers day is a lovely ancient tradition, it’s origins shrouded in myster……..First proposed in 1909 it was formally adopted as a Great American Holiday by none other than President Richard Millhouse Nixon. In 1972.
Trying to decide from your list which is worse, the Pinto or the Cimmaron…
Your Honor, I rise in support of the Pinto, which was no worse than any other small car made in Detroit in the early-to-mid-70s (faint praise, I know). Also, the Cimarron was a failure of marketing, to be sure, but the car itself wasn’t bad … and the interior was actually pretty nice.
That Cimarron was a tough little car, too. My brother and I both had “altercations” in it (His with a hedgerow, mine with a snowbank at 60 mph) and it survived both.
It was a lousy Cadillac, true, but it was the nicest Cavalier they ever made.
I, too would like to support the Pinto.
Dad, of the 30hp attack canoe, bought a mud brown 1980 hatchback. He rebuilt the engine, after having it slightly overbored, with with what he referred to as “Pinto beans”. Basically, circle track race car components. I know it had higher compression, a header, a 4 barrel aluminum intake, and a Holley 4 barrel carb.
It would bark the tires in 1st and 2nd gears, and it surprised many a late 80’s, early 90’s Mustang and Camaro.
As an amicus curiae, let me point out that the Pinto in question was in fact a Pinto Squire wagon, and while more serious and suburban than the van-inspired Pinto Cruising Wagon (for the economy-minded van dude of the day), it had not only the inherent advantage of the cargo area and woodgrain-like vinyl on the side over the sedan and Runabout, it also omitted the unfortunate characteristic for which the Pinto is best-known. Pinto sales set the world on fire in 1974 (544,209 were produced, according to Wikipedia), but that was the only kind of fire the wagon was responsible for.
As a former MGB owner, went Studebaker on this one. Variety is the spice of life! Plus, it’s right up my dad’s alley.
I’ve always wanted a car from the 50’s. I’ve never even been picky about what car it was, as long as it was a cool color combo with lots of chrome. I forget a lot of cars from that era are still relatively affordable, and in great shape like that Studebaker. So that’s how I voted.
If this poll asked which car you should buy for your dad, the MGA that’s so close to his (or his dad’s) original is clearly the way to go. However, for my fake money, I’d take South Bend’s finest.
I’m huge MG fan, but in this case I’m spending my Internet money on the Studebaker. Now if that MGA had the twin cam, it would be another story.
Dammit. Cameetle was right there.
“I just have to decide on the appropriate soundtrack: Boston, John Hiatt, or Beethoven”
Why choose–hit shuffle and embrace the jarring segues.
Anyhow, I am going with the Studebaker on this one. It looks great in that two tone, the overall condition seems really good, and I can probably fit inside of it. Younger me would have definitely voted for the MG, but I have aged into wanting to be somewhat comfortable.
The Studebaker is a car; the MG is an experience. Red roadster, red roadster send MGA over.
I’m glad my whimsy was well received! Both of today’s selections are lovely, but I just don’t like blue cars. MGA for me. And while families can be complicated, a happy Father’s day to everyone, whether you are spending time with a father, missing your father, being a father, or ignoring it entirely for reasons.
While I really admire the late 50’s Studebaker style, it just isn’t for me. $18k is a lot for a mediocre MGA so I can’t really go there either. I guess if I am using virtual dollars, I’d go MGA.
My Dad’s cars: 1924, 1925, 1932, 1940, 1948, 1953, 1955 Packards, 1917, 1919, 1922 Stephens, 1941 Bantam, 1932, 1972 Chrysler, 1918 Chevrolet, 1967 Corvair, 1968 Mustang, 1964 Buick. I guess I acquired the car bug genetically.
He was NOT a brand biased man at all. Had to go with the President, cheaper, better condition, and I can fit in it.
Always had a weakness for classic British roadsters…MGA for me.
That MGA for sure. Although these have gone up in price quite drastically. I’d say the price is total crack pipe, but then again, the average used car today is $29k…
For everyone saying either of these cars is over priced may i remind you the two POS yesterday were both asking over $20,000.
This President gets my vote, no hanging chads.