Nameplate year of origin: 1959.
Current bodystyle lifespan: 1959 through 1961.
Predecessor to this model: Champion (1953 to 1958).
Replacement for this model: Lark (1962 to 1966).
Corporate siblings: None.
Percentage of division’s sales volume: 94.68%.
Primary competition: AMC Rambler American, Chevrolet Corvair, Ford Falcon, Mercury Comet and Plymouth Valiant.
Notable changes: Revised trim and detail changes.
Measurements
Cars Cruiser Wagons Wheelbase 108.5" 113.0" 113.0"
Length 175.0" 179.0" 184.5"
Width 71.4" 71.4" 71.4"
Height 56.5" 57.5" 58.8"
Legroom — front 43.5" 44.0" 44.0"
Legroom — rear 40.0" 42.0" 42.0"
139 1961 • Studebaker
1 9 6 1
Major standard equipment: All-vinyl or cloth and vinyl front bench seats, armrests, rubber floor mats, and 6.00 ×15 BSW tires (6.70 ×15 BSW on Lark Cruiser and convertible).
Cars Cruiser Wagons Headroom — front 35.3" 35.3" 35.3"
Headroom — rear 34.8" 34.8" 35.0"
Luggage cap. (cu. ft.) NA NA 93.0 Fuel capacity (gals.) 18.0 18.0 18.0
Models Available
Change from Shipping Change from Style Number Base MSRP LY Wt. (lbs.) Production LY
Lark Deluxe 2-Door Sedan F4 $1,935 -2.07% 2661 14,574 -55.44%
Lark Deluxe 4-Door Sedan W4 $2,005 -2.00% 2665 23,234 -36.80%
Lark Deluxe 2-Door, 2-Seat Wagon D4 $2,290 -3.21% 2836 2,387 -54.37%
Lark Deluxe 4-Door, 2-Seat Wagon P4 $2,370 -2.91% 2865 4,739 -57.43%
Lark Regal 2-Door Hardtop J6 $2,243 -2.31% 2770 3,536 -52.18%
Lark Regal 2-Door Convertible L6 $2,554 -2.56% 3034 1,981 -76.89%
Lark Regal 4-Door Sedan W6 $2,155 -1.87% 2692 7,004 -58.64%
Lark Regal 4-Door, 2-Seat Wagon P6 $2,520 -2.74% 2836 2,544 -66.81%
Lark Cruiser 4-Door Sedan Y8 $2,458 NEW 3001 5,256 NEW
TOTALS Avg. price $2,281 -1.55% Production 65,255 -40.38%
Hawk
“The sophisticated Hawk Sports Coupe. The car for sports-minded families.”
Nameplate year of origin: 1956.
Current bodystyle lifespan: 1953 through 1964.
Predecessor to this model: None.
Replacement for this model: None.
Corporate siblings: None.
Percentage of division’s sales volume: 5.32%.
Primary competition: None.
Notable changes: Minor trim and detail changes.
Major standard equipment: All-vinyl front seat covering, full carpeting, and 6.70 ×15 BSW tires.
Measurements
Wheelbase 120.5"
Length 204.0"
Width 71.3"
Height 55.5"
Legroom — front 44.0"
Legroom — rear 37.0"
Headroom — front 34.5"
Headroom — rear 33.8"
Luggage cap. (cu. ft.) NA Fuel capacity (gals.) 18.0
Models Available
Change from Shipping Change from
Style Number Base MSRP LY Wt. (lbs.) Production LY
Hawk 2-Door Coupe C6 $2,650 0.00% 3205 3,663 -14.42%
TOTALS Avg. price $2,650 0.00% Production 3,663 -14.42%
Nineteen-sixty-two brought a second wave of model lineup expansion, with most of the growth coming from Ford and Chrysler. After the success of the compacts in 1960, and then the very successful introductions of the se-nior compacts by GM in 1961, the marketing types were ap-parently feeling that the time was right for a smaller full-size car, or as we would soon know them, an “intermediate”
line. Full-size cars had grown by leaps and bounds in the prior five years, with a small downsizing effort seen for 1961. What was once considered a full-size car, in terms of power and size, no longer existed, except for the Rambler Ambassador line, which had proven itself quite popular in the past several seasons.
Ford, as when entering the compact market two years earlier, took the most conservative approach. A car sized di-rectly between the Falcon/Comet and the full-size models was introduced as the Ford Fairlane and Mercury Meteor.
These intermediate models were very similar in size to, for example, the 1955 Fords, and were powered by engines of similar capacity. As could be expected in a time of little in-flation, pricing was similar also. The marketers were cor-rect in a certain amount of the population was ready for this size of car, but their conservative design approach did not satisfy buyers looking for style and pizzazz in a new car pur-chase. In fact, the Mercury Meteor would only last two years, as the Comet, which was already larger than the Fal-con it was based upon, became a hot seller in the category.
The Fairlane would not realize its full potential until the 1966 redesign, which placed it in the forefront with the newer GM mid-size cars.
Chrysler chose a much different formula for its new smaller, full-size cars. The company was in the midst of a realignment of all of its products now that the DeSoto was gone and the compact Valiant was being brought under the Plymouth nameplate. A multi-layered strategy focused mostly on rebuilding the Plymouth and Dodge product lines. With the compact Valiant under the Plymouth brand,
and in view of Plymouth’s economy reputation, a decision was made to have Plymouth’s full-size models use only the new platform. This new body utilized a wheelbase six inches shorter than previous models yet had nearly as much inte-rior room as its predecessors in all critical areas. A shorter wheelbase meant a shorter overall length for easier maneu-verability in traffic and parking situations than a traditional full-size car. It also meant slightly less luggage space and less room under the hood for bigger powerplants (which weren’t necessary), but somehow that situation was remedied for those who were racing minded! Overall, the cars were a very nice package. Although the styling was a little un-orthodox, it was much better than the previous year’s gar-ish looks. But there were still a lot of traditional, full-size car buyers out there who didn’t necessarily want a smaller Plymouth, even if the ads said it was “full-size” on the in-side. Sales totals would reflect this lack of interest, as Pon-tiac would surpass Plymouth, and Oldsmobile, Buick and even Dodge made sizeable gains on the marque.
Dodge fared much better. Having picked up its own version of the Valiant, called the Lancer, in 1961, Dodge was already in the compact market. With the demise of the DeS-oto, Chrysler grafted a 1961 Dodge full-sized front clip onto a 1962 Chrysler body and created the 1962 Dodge Custom 880, which gave Dodge its traditional full-size model to offer consumers. Dodge also got its own intermediate model, which was much nicer in appearance than the Ply-mouth, giving Dodge the upper hand all the way around.
In fact, for 1963 Dodge would even gain a slight wheelbase extension, to make its cars larger than the Plymouths, and their sales showed the effects of this improvement. By 1963, Chrysler was seeing the light, so to speak, and began a pro-gram to categorize its cars into a platform lineup similar to what GM was using. Therefore, when new full-size models were introduced in 1965, Plymouth finally got its true big car back. But for three painful years, Plymouth was stuck with a mid-sized car for which little demand existed.
140
1962
General Motors was not quite ready to jump into the emerging intermediate market. The one-year-old trio of
“senior compacts” were meant to fill the gap between com-pact and full-size, only they were approaching that size class from the opposite end, being slightly smaller than cars such as the Fairlane and new Plymouths. These new cars were highly successful in the minds of automotive editors across the country, who admired their engineering. This meant that they would keep the names and images of these cars in front of the public. In an unusual move, the 1962 Buick Special was chosen as Motor Trend magazine’s “Car of the Year” for its highly successful new V6 engine design. This was unusual in that the Special was a new model in 1961, the year its stablemate, the Pontiac Tempest, won the award for its engineering distinctiveness, with its front engine, rear transmission design. The all-new V6 garnered the award for Buick because of its high power output and high economy rankings, and the Special’s overall pleasing ride and handling qualities.
General Motors was concentrating on other segments of the market at the time. For starters, since day one, the conservative, traditional Ford Falcon had been outselling the Chevrolet Corvair by quite a margin, and Chevrolet in its competitive quest to remain the number one seller couldn’t allow that to continue. So for 1962, the new Chevy II, just as conservative as the Falcon, was introduced. As if
to one-up Ford, the Chevy offered a choice of four- or six-cylinder powerplants and an array of body styles, includ-ing a 2-Door Convertible, somethinclud-ing Ford would not have until 1963. The Chevy II was an instant hit and had little if any effect on sales of the Corvair, as the two were really competing for different buyers. The Corvair was in a sporty, import-type market, whereas the Chevy II was strictly con-ventional and traditional. At the other end of the spectrum, GM was beginning to introduce its second round of sport-ing personal luxury cars, the descendants of the 1953 Buick Skylark, Cadillac Eldorado, Chevrolet Corvette, and Olds-mobile Fiesta. This second wave included the mid–1961 Oldsmobile Starfire, based on the Olds 98, and the 1962 Buick Wildcat coupe, based on the LeSabre 2-Door Hard-top, and Pontiac Grand Prix, based on the Catalina 2-Door Hardtop. These models, while not as exclusive or expen-sive as their predecessors, brought some extra attention to the showrooms of their respective nameplates. Each was generally equipped with bucket seats, floor shifter, con-sole, sporty styled wheels, and a powerful engine. This combination was generally reserved for the wealthier buy-ers of Chrysler 300’s, Ford Thunderbirds or imports such as Mercedes. But GM put such features into the common buyer’s price range. Special design touches and exclusive ad-vertising campaigns put these cars into the forefront of buy-ers’ minds this year.