The Studebaker Lark is a compact car that was produced by Studebaker from 1959 to 1966.
From its introduction in early 1959 until 1962, the Lark was a product of the Studebaker-Packard Corporation. In mid-1962, the company dropped "Packard" from its name and reverted to its pre-1954 name, the Studebaker Corporation. In addition to being built in Studebaker's South Bend, Indiana, home plant, the Lark and its descendants were also built in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, from 1959 to 1966 by Studebaker of Canada Limited. The cars were also exported to a number of countries around the world as completed units and completely knocked down (CKD) kits which were then assembled at a local factory.
Lark-based variants represented the bulk of the range produced by Studebaker after 1958 and sold in far greater volume than the contemporary Hawk and Avanti models. Beginning with the 1963 Cruiser, the Lark name was gradually phased out of the company catalog and by early 1964, Lark-based models were being marketed under Commander, Daytona and Cruiser nameplates only. The Studebaker company, which celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1952, ceased automobile production in 1966.
Third generation (1964-1966)
Studebaker's executives allowed Stevens to continue the process of modernizing main line vehicles that resulted in a more extensive (but still inexpensive) restyling for 1964. What resulted was the most mainstream looking Studebakers since 1946. The Hawk-like grille of 1962-63 gave way to a full-width, stamped aluminum grille and squared-off headlamp surrounds. Stevens flattened the hood, roofline and trunklid, and reworked the tail panel to incorporate new horizontal taillamps and backup lamps, all the while ingeniously retaining the sculpted quarter panels introduced in 1962, which still suited the new look and reduced by a considerable amount the cost of tooling.
The new look debuted along with the company's plan to phase out the Lark name entirely. The lowest-priced models were renamed Challenger (replacing the 1963-1/2 Standard), while the Commander name (which had last made an appearance in the Studebaker lineup on the last full-size cars in 1958) replaced the Regal trim level. The Daytona series added a four-door sedan (replacing the 1963 Custom four-door), and the Cruiser continued at the top of the line. All models except the Cruiser offered a Wagonaire.
Challenger and Commander models came standard with single headlamps, the first time since 1961 that a Lark-based vehicle offered them. Dual lamps were an extra-cost option.
For 1964, the Lark name was only used on early Challenger and Commander models.[4] Early promotional materials referred to the Challenger and Commander as Larks, but aside from Lark emblems on the roof sail panels on Challengers, there was no Lark identification on the cars, as Studebaker replaced the Lark emblems elsewhere on the car with the company's "circle-S" logo.
Inside, the cars were only slightly modified, with minor changes made in upholstery, glovebox opening, and gauge position. The speedometer, which in 1963 had resided in the right-hand "hole" in the gauge cluster, was moved to the center position, with the optional clock or tachometer placed on the right. For 1966, McKinnon's Chevrolet-licensed 140 hp (104 kW) 230 cu in (3.8 L) inline-six engine became an option for automatics, and later for manuals as well.
The purpose-built Marshal model in three body styles was marketed to police departments. Brochures claimed that "130 mph is merely incidental", the Marshal was available in "Pursuit", "Patrol", and "City" versions.
Closure of South Bend facility, December, 1963
Studebaker worked very hard to establish a high-performance image for the 1964 lineup, sending a number of cars to the Bonneville Salt Flats to set new production-car speed records. Advertisements played up the powerful R-series engines, disc brakes and the company's position that Studebakers were "different ... by design" from other American cars.
Magazine road test reviews of the new cars were generally positive. One of the more-popular automotive magazines of the day even got to help build the car they would test. Gene Booth, the editor of Car Life magazine, went to South Bend and assisted in building a Daytona hardtop with the full R4 Super Performance Package. This car ended up being the only Studebaker equipped from the factory with the optional 304.5 cubic-inch, dual-quad "R4" engine.
Despite styling changes, innovative models like the Wagonaire, the high-performance R-series engines and Super Performance Packages (inspired by the Avanti) that were developed with the help of "Mr. Indy 500" Andy Granatelli (who headed Studebaker's Paxton Products and STP divisions), sales did not increase. By the early autumn of 1963, Studebaker's board of directors acted to slow down the South Bend assembly lines. At the start of the model year, the company was building 60 cars per hour. By late October 1963, some 2,500 workers were laid off and the line speed was reduced.
Rumors were spreading in the media that the board of directors and the company's president, Sherwood Egbert, were at odds over the future of the automotive division. The board's opinion was that it was finally time to find a way out of the auto business. Lending strength to the board's argument were the undeniable facts that Studebaker's subsidiary companies were profitable, while the growing losses at the automotive division were bleeding the corporation dry.
Despite being terminally ill with cancer, Egbert fought the directors tooth and nail in his efforts to continue auto operations. However, when he had to undergo further cancer surgery (his third since 1962) that month, the board took the opportunity to force Egbert out and execute their plan to wind up automotive production.
Although it would by necessity have to be done slowly and methodically, lest the company expose itself to contract lawsuits from angry dealers (which would have drained even more precious revenue from the company's depleted coffers), the directors quickly put their plan into action. Meeting with the leaders of UAW Local 5, which represented Studebaker's assembly workers, the decision was made to close the South Bend plant and continue production at the company's small Canadian factory in Hamilton, Ontario, which could, it was believed, be operated at a profit.
The closure of the South Bend plant was announced on December 9, 1963, and the final Lark-type car, a Bordeaux Red 1964 Daytona two-door hardtop (originally intended for shipment to a dealer in Pennsylvania), rolled off the assembly line on December 20. This car is now housed at the Studebaker Museum in South Bend.
Source: Wikipedia