Press release issued by the Avanti Motor Corporation on Monday, August 2, 1965—"The new Avanti II, a four passenger, aerodynamic styled high performance motorcar marks the return to car making in South Bend after an absence of 19 months", Nate Altman, president of Avanti Motor Corporation, announced here today. The new Avanti II will be produced on a very limited basis and will only be available initially through a small number of retail outlets.

Officers of the Avanti Motor Corp. confirmed that limited sales and production of the restyled version of the revolutionary fiberglass Avanti, which shattered practically every major national and world speed record for a production automobile in its original version, are proceeding on schedule. Present production facilities are capable of building approximately 800 to 1,000 of the radically styled high-performance Avanti II's each year. "

The wealth of talent in the South Bend territory that was shelved when Studebaker moved its auto production to Canada in December, 1963, has proved invaluable to Avanti Motors and has allowed the company to pick the very finest of automotive mechanics and engineers for the handcrafted Avanti production", Altman said. The new Avanti is changed in styling by the elimination of the forward rake look of the original design. The Avanti II has a longer, more streamlined side profile. In addition, fender cutouts have been tightened around the wheels, again adding to the sleekness and appearance of length.

Interiors have been completely restyled and a virtually unlimited choice of decorator fabrics, materials, and patterns are available. The new Avanti I I will be powered by a 327 cubic inch corvette engine which exceeds by nearly 100 horsepower the output of the previous chart-warm Avanti engine used as standard equipment in the car during its two-year period of manufacture by Studebaker Corp. "

The new Avanti II will differ completely from any other American-built car in its methods of production philosophy," Altman said. It will be produced with careful handcraft methods with a select group of automobile mechanics assigned to assemble each automobile. In a moving production line, such as is customary in the auto industry, workers in the assembly line may have a few minutes to put on a door and make the dozens of adjustments necessary. In the Avanti system of manufacture there is no moving production line and it may take a mechanic half an hour to put on one door and six hours to put on the next one. Mechanics adjust the car until each component fits perfectly."

The same principle also applies to final testing and breaking in of the new Avanti", Mr. Altman explained. "Each car will be broken-in properly by the factory, with extensive tests of every type made to assure the customer that each Avanti will be as nearly perfect as possible."

The $7,200 price tag of the Avanti II will include as standard equipment: air conditioning, power windows, power disc brakes on front wheels, power steering, multiple position tilt steering wheel, radio, heater, premium whitewall tires, two-speed electric windshield wipers, seat belts, padded-panel with full complement of sports-type direct reading instruments-including tachometer, electric clock and vacuum gauge; twin traction limited-slip differential, windshield washers, 4-way SOS emergency flashers and choice of a consul mounted, fully synchronized Borg Warner four-speed manual transmission or unique Avanti power-shift automatic transmission.

The Avanti Power-shift transmission is actually a combination clutchless manual and automatic transmission which allows a driver to shift through 3 gears manually or place the car in drive position and allow the automatic to take over.

The revolutionary fiberglass body of the new Avanti, produced by Molded Fiber Glass Company at Ashtabula, Ohio, is extremely resilient and impact resistant, making it one of the safest cars built. The body shrugs off light blows that would get steel and even severe impact usually causes only local damage. Also, the fiberglass absorbs much of the force of the collision, further protecting the occupants of the car. A rollover bar is incorporated in the passenger compartment for added protection. The superior strength-weight ratio of molded fiberglass permits a saving of more than 200 lbs. compared with conventional steel. "This weight saving means better performance, faster accelerations, higher speed, and more effective breaking," Altman said. It makes possible a lower center of gravity for better maneuverability and cornering. Excellent cornering and ride characteristics are further enhanced by the suspension system which incorporates stabilizer bars both front and rear with heavy-duty rear springs and independent coil springs forward. Rear radius rods effectively control spring wind up. Hydraulic shocks are adjustable and direct acting. The fiberglass body also resists corrosion and is impervious to rust.

The front caliber power disc brakes combined with rear fin drums provide the Avanti with remarkably safe, smooth, positive stopping power. Disc brakes have been proven to be 40% more effective than conventional breaks currently being used in American automobiles. In addition, there is no pull or dive and moisture has no effect on the smooth functioning of disc brakes. Disc brakes so dissipate heat that brake fade is virtually eliminated even under the most extreme conditions. Avanti Motor Corporation was formed a year ago by a group of South Bend businessman, headed by Altman and Leo A. Newman, for the purpose of reviving the Avanti after Studebaker Corp. transferred auto manufacturing from South Bend to Hamilton, Ontario, in December, 1963. Early in 1964, Avanti Motors acquired all tooling, manufacturing rights, and six buildings from Studebaker for the purpose of manufacturing the Avanti II.

"In its original version, the Avanti was one of the most talked-about automobiles in America, representing a complete departure in automotive styling, engineering, and design. The original Avanti practically rewrote the USAC record book for an American production automobile." Highlight of its Bonneville Salt flats performance was its record flying -170.78 mi. per hour. "

The new Avanti brings to the American public an American high-performance, four-passenger prestige motorcar with great maneuverability and exceptional quality that only hand building can produce and that, because of its limited production and $7,000 plus price tag, is certainly a high prestige, very unique automobile to compete favorably with the European built Ferraris, Rolls-Royces, and Maseratis," Mr. Altman said. We do not plan, under any circumstances, any move into mass production," Mr. Altman continued. This will continue to be an unusual a car for an unusually discriminating buyer." Because of limited distribution, initial showings of the cars are scheduled only in strategically located dealerships in various sections of the country.