After falling for the slippery lines of the '53 Studebaker, Clare Morrison, wife of Craig Morrison of Art Morrison Enterprises Inc., was able to find one of these classics not too far from their Puyallup, Washington, home. Electric Blue Metallic paint subdued with a satin clear finish, "Tommy the Greek" style pinstripes, and a choice of steelies and whitewalls or Salt Flats-style wheels will round out the exterior. Blending technology with nostalgia, a hopped-up, hot rod-themed ZZ4 will provide the power while the Art Morrison Enterprises Inc. chassis (what else would you expect?) with a triangulated four-bar rear and independent front suspension will stick the car to the pavement ... or the Salt. When the Blue Suede Stude is completed, plans call for Clare to pilot it at Bonneville, competing in the 130-mph street class during the Utah Salt Flats Racing Association's annual September meet.
Could this be a recently discovered, long-lost Studebaker Torpedo concept straight from the Raymond Loewy design studio? Maybe! Lines borrowed from a '51 Chevy Fleetline Torpedo back come together with the aerodynamic lines of the Studebaker to create a sleek fastback. To really pull this off, about 2 inches of height should be whacked from the roofline to which the fabricated Torpedo back sheetmetal would be added. A little '71 Riviera influence was added as well with the wrap-down rear glass and rear deck vents. Paint it as black as you can get it and set it off with a few bits of chrome. Of course it needs a ground-scraping stance with some big, deep 22s stuffed under the rear quarter and some 19s under the front.
What goes under the hood? Let's look beyond the obvious choices and dream a little bigger and a little more exotic. Find yourself a wrecked Ferrari 360 (sadly, they are out there) and cram that 3.6L, 400hp V-8 with the paddle shift six-speed tranny between the front sheetmetal. Now it really is a torpedo!
We'll keep the interior somewhat vintage '50s, but update with some bucket seats from an old Ferrari. No swoopy armrests and center consoles here, let's keep it minimal like a true sports car.
So there you have it-a wicked American boulevard cruiser on the outside with an unexpected European twist. Dare to dream big!