Why? Well, it’s a question that would take too long to answer here, but let’s say that I love the company’s design language from the 1950s and I’d trade a Plymouth ‘Cuda for a 1955 Speedster or a Golden Hawk any day of the week. I also think the Avanti is an awesome sports car and I consider the Lark to be one of the greatest American compacts ever built.
But while unrestored survivors are rare, derelict models are more common in junkyards and barns. They’re usually scattered among vehicles from the bigger brands, so it may take a while to locate them in large scrapyards. This old repair shop in south-central Nebraska, on the other hand, is loaded with Studebakers.
Still, seeing at least eight Studebakers from the 1950s in the same yard is quite spectacular. And they’re not in terrible shape either. Sure, some of them are missing quite a few parts and some no longer have engines under their hoods, but they’re surprisingly solid for a bunch of old cars that haven’t been moved for decades.
The stash is dominated by “bullet nose” models. The outlandish design, which I love to bits, debuted in 1950 and found its way on the Champion, Commander, and Land Cruiser. Next to them, there’s a pair of mid-1950s models, both of the four-door variety.
Yeah, no Hawks or extremely rare Speedsters to check out on this lawn, but any 1950s Studebaker is hard to find nowadays.
Speaking of which, this mini collection of forgotten automobiles also includes a pair of Kaisers. One of them is Manhattan and it’s arguably the rarest classic parked here. And it still has most of its woven cloth upholstery, which was unique in the day and it’s basically unobtainable nowadays.
If you have a mid-1950s Kaiser in the shop, this derelict Manhattan will come in handy.
Naturally, I’d love to see it restored and back on the road, but while rare, Kaisers aren’t very valuable today. So it’s probably doomed to become nothing more than a parts car.
It’s still a cool collection though, so make sure you check it out in the video below. The fun starts at the 6:10-minute mark.
