Neil and Ruth Bell are the proud owners of this fantastic 1960 Studebaker Hawk.When I asked Neil why he chose to purchase this car over another classic he said “This is the car I’ve always wanted since I was pumping gas as a kid”. Neil then stated that they picked it up at the Los Olivos Park “Orphans Car Show”. When they saw this Studebaker at the car show, they knew instantly that it was the one they wanted.
This Studebaker originally came stock with a V6, it was switched out for a 350 small block with an Edelbrock intake. As for the transmission, the Turbo 350 was swapped out for a 700R4. A traction bar and jet coated headers were added in order to improve the performance and handling.Don’t let the classy look of this car fool you, it’s a muscle car.
The black exterior and burgundy interior really gives the Studebaker a sleek look. The American Racing wheels and a Lecarra steering wheel compliment the car well. All of the suspension and steering components were replaced last year. Neil updated the rear end with 3:07 gears and someday would like to put 3:31 gears in along with a heavy duty sway bar kit.
It was obvious when talking to Neil that he was very passionate about classic cars and the entire culture that surrounds them. His favorite car show to attend is the River View car show located in Mesa, AZ just off the 202 and Dobson Rd. So if you’re ever down that way and see his Studebaker, stop by and say hello.
It Was Meant to Be… Neil and Ruth Bell’s Story
Growing up a car guy in Ottawa, Ontario in the ‘50s and ‘60s, Studebakers were a part of life. Sunday night after our Church Teen Group Meeting, we’d pile into a (Lark/Cruiser/Daytona?) and go to the Royal Burger. It was distinctive because the dashboard and gauges were all lit in red. When I was pumping gas at Sears, a customer’s black ’62 GT Hawk with gold trim, 4 speed and supercharger made a lasting impression. I thought it was one of the most beautiful and hottest cars on the road.–
Fast forward to Phoenix, Arizona, 1989. Out for a bicycle ride, I chanced on the Orphans Car Show at Los Olivos Park. Studebakers were well represented and I now saw finned Hawks alongside the Grand Turisimos and the fins did it for me. I said to myself, if I was ever to make a street rod, I would do it with a finned Hawk, put modern running gear in it and make it a driver. That became just a pipe dream on the bucket list with no thought it would ever happen.–Fast forward again to the summer of 2010. At the car wash, I picked up the Highline Autos Magazine. Looking though the Classic Cars I saw an ad for a white 1960 Studebaker Hawk, 350 Chevy crate motor, Turbo 350 transmission, aluminum radiator, power steering, custom burgundy interior, Lecarra steering wheel, VDO gauges, Vintage Air and American Racing wheels. I took the magazine home to Ruth, told her about the pipe dream on my bucket list and said: “Look Honey, it’s already done!” We went online to the dealer that was listed in the ad and searched his inventory.
The Hawk wasn’t there! We looked at the magazine again. It was 6 months old. Oh well! But the seed was planted.
If we couldn’t have the car, maybe we could have a model. We searched online and found 1/18 scale die-cast Golden Hawks. I ordered a black and white one and Ruth ordered a red and white one. The models arrived that fall.
January 2011, we won tickets from KSLX Classic Rock radio station to the first MotoExotica auction to be held in Phoenix on January 15th. The auction site was way on the other side of town, about a 40 mile drive. Before driving out just to watch, we went online and checked the inventory. There it was! A Black 1960 Studebaker Hawk. The pictures looked good so we had to go to see one in the flesh. It looked fantastic! All black, laser straight. The owner came out and started it up. Wow! 350 Chevy small block with a 4 barrel carb and a big cam. The idle was awesome.
The tires looked good. Chrome mag type wheels. I got behind the wheel and there on the console was a photocopy of the ad we had seen 6 months before! It was the same car! He had just finished painting it black the week before. He said he had a black 1960 Hawk himself and couldn’t sell the white one sitting beside his black one. People said: “If only it was black….” So he decided that instead of doing any further restoration, he would paint it black and sell it. He assured us it was a great driver and we would really enjoy it. I asked about a reserve and the reserve he stated was close to what the Hawk was listed for in the ad.
What to do? We certainly did not go out with any intention to buy nor had any financial plans for this. But the black Hawk took our breath away and since it was the same car we had seen in the ad 6 months earlier, we felt it must be a sign. All we knew was we had enough room on our American Express card. I asked Ruth: “Considering our circumstances and that this is spur of the moment, what was the maximum you would be comfortable with if we actually won the bid?” She gave me a figure and I went to register to bid.
It Was Meant to Be… Neil and Ruth Bell’s Story
New roadblock! To register to bid, the auction would only accept $1,000.00 cash or a cashier’s check. American Express not accepted. We didn’t go out to buy and don’t walk around with that in our pocket. Oh well, again! We watched a few cars go across the block then drove the 40 miles back home. When we got home, I remembered the auction was streaming live online. We logged on and since they had to take a credit card to register to bid, we registered.–Had we missed the Hawk? First we heard the rumble of the exhaust and then the black Hawk rolled onto the block. Bidding started. When it stopped, we had won the Hawk, $500.00 under Ruth’s ceiling.Okay! Now how are we going to pay for it? Gulp! No, the auction will not accept the American Express card. Called the Credit Union. “No, we won’t finance a collector car.” It’s now late Saturday afternoon. What are we going to do? I remembered seeing a booth for J. Best Banc at the auction. I checked them out online and found they financed collector cars. So we drove back out to the auction. By 8:30pm we had arranged financing and the Hawk was ours. All we had to do was drive it home.
And so the adventure began. By the time I had driven the Hawk from where it was parked to the auction gate, the temperature gauge was pegged. I eased the rad cap off and couldn’t see any coolant. (I know, I should have checked the radiator first.) We filled the radiator with bottled water and headed out. 50 mph in the right hand lane of the freeway, I could barely keep this “great driver” in the lane, sawing on the Lecarra steering wheel. The power steering seemed pretty heavy. At home, we found the power steering reservoir empty. After filling it up, we knew why. If the car had been driven across the auction block with the power steering screeching like this, we might have got it for a lot less!
Long story short, 4 years later and for twice more money than we purchased it for, we now have the great driver it was meant to be. A new windshield and rear glass were installed. The good looking tires were dry rotted.
New tires took care of that. The custom burgundy tweed interior was done in 1998. A couple of panels on the driver’s seat and door were worn through and have been replaced. We were fortunate to find a perfect match. Dual 12 volt power sockets, an additional AC vent and seat belts were the other additions to the interior. A Turner Brake dual master cylinder kit with remote reservoirs on the firewall was added and all new brake lines were installed. The manual drum brakes were upgraded to 11” HD finned drums with new shoes. The shock absorbers were replaced. The steering box and the power steering pump were rebuilt. All new OEM front end steering components and Quick Steering Arms were added. A 1” front and 3/4″ rear sway bar took the place of the 5/8” front bar. An additional leaf was added to help the sagging rear springs. The tapered rear axles were replaced with flanged axles. The 3.07 ratio differential was upgraded to a 3.73 ratio gear and Auburn limited slip (the only one available new with 19 splines).
The Turbo 350 transmission was swapped out with a Hughes Performance 700R4 and 2200 rpm stall lock up torque converter. In the engine, new head gaskets, headers, carburetor, and water pump were installed. A custom aluminum shroud, 3000 rpm electric fan, new hoses and overflow collector were added to the aluminum radiator which had to be dipped twice to clean it out. A 100 amp alternator and new starter motor completed the work under the hood and a hood pin was added. An Optima battery was moved to the trunk. The engine compartment was completely rewired with all systems now working off 4 individual 12 volt relays instead of just off the ignition key.
We drive our Hawk to car shows all over Arizona and have won multiple Best of Class and Best of Show awards. Apart from the joy of driving our Hawk, our greatest satisfaction comes from the response the Hawk receives from the general public. We call it our Smile Mobile!
