Avanti: The Complete Story

A suggestion....Any future editions of this book should be renamed "Avanti The Manufacturing Story".Hull brings together the various lives of the Avanti, a story that spans no less than five decades, four production factories and enough owners and principals to fill several of the fiberglass luxury cars.The book traces the history of the Raymond Lowey designed coupe from its inception as a potential savior /image car for the venerable Studebaker company to its latest incarnation as a Mustang re-clothed in body panels that manage to be both retro and futuristic at the same time.Hull knows his subject well as a one time CFO for the latest resurrection effort and as the editor of the Avanti club magazine. He does a commendable job in putting the pieces together. Minor criticisms include not using many direct quotes from important figures. Hull paraphrases a magazine interview (which he references) with #3 Avanti owner Stephen Blake and a panel discussion by owner #4, Mike Kelly. Why not use the men's own words?My biggest complaint is what you won't find here... details of the cars themselves.Aside from a nice production total which finally answers who made how many, and where, most technical details: engines, performance specifications and importantly, prices are missing. A few answers are tucked away in ads and company literature pieces that have been reproduced (often too small) but I think he could have made a stronger effort to help the reader place the Avanti in the general automotive world. Later versions are noting as being produced on Monte Carlo, Caprice, Firebird and Mustang chassis. I would have like to learn how those were accomplished. Did the factory arrange to buy chassis and drivetrains...or did they have to buy a entire car and "throw away" the original bodies? Hull mentions that there were several donor-car proposals for the late 1990s AVX project. It would have been nice to see them. They have been published in a recent issue of the Avanti magazine, so I know they're out there.Most photos are reproductions of factory pieces. Unfortunately, nearly all the shots of the Studebaker cars (which make up the majority of the total Avanti population) are limited to a pair of prototype cars. They are interesting to see the, but six pages of the same two cars? Sadly, no new photos of the 63-64 cars are included which would help the casual reader learn to what extent the original cars are lovingly maintained and restored by faithful owners. Also, factory production shots of the Studebaker -era cars are missing along with details of advertising. The factory record setting effort is mentioned only in passing.If you want to learn a technical history of the car, I'd recommend "Avanti Limited Edition Extra" a collection of old and new magazine tests and articles complied and published by Brooklands in the United Kingdom and a subscription to the Avanti Magazine published by the Avanti Owners Association International.So, it's a nice book for an Avanti owner or fan to have. But a newcomer to the car will only be getting half of the history for the car that won't die.

I'll keep it short and sweet. Want to learn and know more about the Most Beautiful car ever design and built? Then this is one of the best books to get for your research and reading pleasure. I got this and the "Avanti Limited Edition Extra" and it is, indeed, the combo about the Avanti out there. 2 very high thumbs up for "Avanti: The Complete Story".

An excellent book about the Studebaker Avanti. If you love them like I do you'll want a copy of this book. Excellent pictures. Get both editions by the same author.

"The Complete Story" may be a bit misleading if you're an Avanti fan looking for the complete story. If the photos were removed from the 126 page book, the reader would be left with about 35 pages of text to tell the complete 45 year story. Not that the pictures aren't interesting, many are quite nice, rare, and unusual. Avanti fans will enjoy them. The text, however, tends to ramble in places, lacks insight into important aspects of the Avanti's history, and leaves the reader, at least this one, wanting more. Perhaps, "Avanti A Brief Overview With Pictures" would have been a better title. That said, it was probably worh the Amazon price. I would have been disappointed if I had paid the suggested retail price.

Well done with lots of (historical pictures)

An informative and worthwhile book for anyone interested in Avanties.

It does take you from inception to the end of the Avanti. It stimulated me enough to join the Avanti club and get their quarterly mag.

If you love the Avanti, you'll love this book! Lots of great pictures and details about the changes the car went through over the years.

It should probably be titled the Avanti II Story, as the majority of the book is dedicated to that model and the ownership politics. I learned a fair bit about those topics, but the book didn't add much to my 1963-64 Avanti knowledge that couldn't be found in 10-15 minutes on the internet.