1950 Studebaker Starlight Coupe
by Janette Boyd
Title
1950 Studebaker Starlight Coupe
Artist
Janette Boyd
Medium
Photograph - Photo/texture
Description
Photo of 1950 Studebaker Champion Starlight Coupe, taken on road somewhere between Cheyenne, Wyoming and Nebraska..
***Top Finisher in FAA Contest, "Classic Fifties Cars on the Street" 05/02/15
Featured in the following FAA Groups:
*The Artist Highway
*History Around Us
*Vehicle Enthusiasts
*Weekly Fun for All
*Everything Manurfactured
The Starlight coupe was a unique 2-door body style offered by Studebaker Corporation of South Bend, Indiana (USA) from 1947 to 1952 in its Champion model series. The Starlight body style was considered a halo model and was designated 5P (presumably "five-passenger", to distinguish it from the three-passenger Businessman's coupe).
Unlike other pillared two-door sedans that use two side windows separated from the rear window by roof supports, designer Robert E Bourke created a roof rounded at the rear with a wraparound window system that provided a panoramic effect, similar to a railroad observation car. The curved window was achieved with four fixed panels of glass. The roof was supported by two wide pillars immediately behind the doors and in front of the wraparound back window. The body style was originally named, simply, "5-passenger coupe"; however, for the 1949 model year it was renamed Starlight Coupe.
In 1953 Studebaker radically redesigned all of its models and discontinued the 1947-1952 panoramic "Starlight" coupe. Hardtop coupes were designated Starliners while the Starlight designation was applied to the five window pillared coupes. The styling on both these later cars influenced the Hillman Minx of the late 1950s and 1960s, which was also designed by Raymond Loewy.
The 1955 model name of the previous Starlight reverted to "5-passenger coupe", "Starliner" became "5-passenger hardtop." For 1956, these coupes were heavily modified and reissued as the Studebaker Hawk series.
In 1958, Studebaker again applied the Starlight name to a body style, this time on its first full-sized hardtop models since 1952. With lackluster sales and a switch to the compact Lark, the company no longer was in need of the Starlight moniker and it was permanently retired at the end of the model year.
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Uploaded
January 4th, 2014
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Viewed 1,424 Times - Last Visitor from Mountain View, CA on 04/18/2024 at 12:54 AM
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Comments (42)
Jerry Bokowski
Janette, Lovely nostalgic capture here. As a boy my neighbors owned a Studebaker just like this. F/L Jerry
Janette Boyd replied:
Thank you for your kind comment, Jerry! This was on the highway coming back to Oklahoma from Seattle. Appreciate the F/L, too!
Beverly Guilliams
Classic feel on this Beauty.......Perfect Find, Janette................v./f.
Janette Boyd replied:
Thank you so much, Beverly! The Studebaker passed us on the highway somewhere between Cheyenne, Wyoming and McCook, Nebraska. This was the only shot I could get, going 70 mph! I love Studebakers!
Sherri Crabtree
Great shot - and fun to see, as my family used to have a turquoise one.
Janette Boyd replied:
Thank you for the comment, Sherri. I love the styling on the bullet nosed Studebaker. You were lucky to have that experience.
William Beuther
Excellent capture! Love the way you accentuated the back of the car. L
Janette Boyd replied:
Thank you, William. Many car enthusiasts like this one! Appreciate the "Like", too!
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