Studephiles

[GD]

Gord,

You were not the slowest(best looking maybe) that honor went to The Hudson Boys, Skip Carlson with 2 records around 138. They put the Turkburger  2 cylinder car(32+ MPH) on the trailer by 100 MPH.

Hey, you made the ERC shirt, that is an honor in itself.

DW
That was certainly a pleasant surprise and a shock to make the ERC shirt. Needless to say, I bought afew of them!
Gord

[WZ JUNK]

To the best of my historical findings Woodward and Bolitho had the fastest one way pass with a stock bodied stude at 253 in the late 80's with a 300 blown hemi on fuel. Doug Cook was tuning it then. Neil Thompson has the fastest stude based vehicle that ran in the very high 200's.

I tried to do some research a year or so ago on the fastest Studebakers.   I found it difficult to get accurate historical data as the people who have a lot of this information tend to hoard it and do not want to share it or make it at matter of public record.  It would be great if all of the data from the past was part of a data base on the net.  Hooley's top speed was 253 MPH if my memory is correct.  The Thompson car was running fuel, but it did not have some of features used today to make the car stable at speed.  After having some experience at Bonneville, I have learned to really appreciate those teams that went fast years ago.

John

[Bob Drury]

  The Thompson car did not run those fast speeds with a Studebaker nose.  It ran in Comp Coupe with a Corvette "Stingray" nose, so to say it didn't have some of the features of Today's cars is somewhat of a misnomer.
  It did not if fact have much left of a Studebaker body with its wild chop.
  It was a cool looking and very fast Comp Coupe "based on a Studebaker" and I salute them as the fastest "comp coupe" of it's day, and would love to see it run again.
  I don't believe anyone has put a blown Chrysler in one since, although Jerry Strode's T-Bird was going to be one before I found him his current car (which was barely a roller when he got it).
                                                                           Bob

[jimmy six]

Neil never ran any nitro in the comp coupe, all methanol. The wheel base was also stock or near stock. Neil has shown me a timing slip with a back door speed over 3. It was part of a magazine article back after he ran it............

[Bob Drury]

  J.D., Tom Burkland sent me several pictures of the Thompson car as it transformed from a really swoopy Studebaker front end to the Corvette. 
  If I can get Hot Nuts to stop by again I will post the pictures.
  I think they re-painted it every year................

[WZ JUNK]

The aero advantages that are in use today, that Neil did not use, are the ones on the rear of the car that tend to make a car more stable at speed.  The pictures I have seen of the car show that it was not modified with spill plates.  Granted the nose helps but the back of the car is as important as the front.  I have always felt that Neil's car must have been a handfull at speed and I admire their ability to go so fast, so many years ago.

John

[Bob Drury]

  As far as I can find in old pictures, he was the first guy to stick the nose in the weed's, although the use of those humongous Firestone tires kept the rear pretty high, which may have given the car better downforce.                  Bob

[Cajun Kid]

Bob,

Nose down stance ?   Larger diameter rear tires and smaller fronts ?

Front down = less air under car and some front downforce,, tail up = more down force on rear ? traction too ?

I wish it was that easy !!!  or is it ?

Charles

[Bob Drury]

  Well Charles, I am only speculating but considering all the other Studes of that era sat much higher, I gotta beleive that the car's attitude plus a whole lot of weight probably helped it out aero wise, and traction wise.........................  Just my opinion (guess).             Bob
p.s.  As soon as I get everything clean and put away, I will figure out how to post the pictures

[Avanti Kid]

Stainless1, the fastest we did with our 1963 Avanti at Speed Week was 209.4mph at the one mile against the 30 year old record (209.3 mph) in D/CBGC, but we couldn't back it up on the 2nd run, lost our clutch! Also last year at the one mile point at World of Speed we did 215.633mph at the one mile and by the way this is with a Studebaker powered Avanti, these runs are the 2nd fastest ever for a Studebaker powered race car on the salt! the only faster Studebaker powered car is by my engine builder Jim Lange's car in in his 1963 Avanti that holds the current record for D/CBALT at 223.238 mph set in 2009. We never reached the full potiential of my single turbo engine, our best guess would be 225 mph. We did the 215.633mph with the rev limiter set at only 6300 rpm and only at 18 lbs boost.  We will never know for sure how fast we could have gone, this was our last year of racing after 18 years, I hope to donate the Avanti to the Studebaker Musuem in South Bend, Indiana for my grand kids to see some day,  Dave 

[Seldom Seen Slim]

Bob - and others:

I've got a 1 page explanation of how to post photos via Photobucket.  If you'd like I can send it to you.  I suppose I could even post it to someplace on the Forum, but that'd be too easy.  Want me to send it to you?  Really -- photos aren't that difficult once you've learned how.  Think about it -- I put photos up during runs at the Shootout - photos taken when the vehicle is leaving the line and posted before it gets to the other end (fast vehicles, too, not just me on the pit bike at a thundering 28.829 mph).

[jl222]

  The Thompson car did not run those fast speeds with a Studebaker nose.  It ran in Comp Coupe with a Corvette "Stingray" nose, so to say it didn't have some of the features of Today's cars is somewhat of a misnomer.
  It did not if fact have much left of a Studebaker body with its wild chop.
  It was a cool looking and very fast Comp Coupe "based on a Studebaker" and I salute them as the fastest "comp coupe" of it's day, and would love to see it run again.
  I don't believe anyone has put a blown Chrysler in one since, although Jerry Strode's T-Bird was going to be one before I found him his current car (which was barely a roller when he got it).
                                                                           Bob

 ED and Arley Langlo ran a stude with a 300'' hemi in early 90's D blown fuel altered 237mph.

 Foggy had it for a while with another hemi in it.

 Lost track of where it is.

                 JL222

           

[Kiwi Paul]

Jon--Can you send the Photobucket stuff to me as well? I still can`t figure out how that works...

[jimmy six]

The Thompson Studebaker was stored at George's El Mirage Ranch for quite a while. I believe it is now down to his new compound by the Salton Sea where bought a pretty big place..........

[Moxnix]

Anyone run a '53 front and later rear with the Goldenhawk style fins?