Every Studebaker Golden Hawk is pretty special in our book, but this one was owned by country music legend Conway Twitty, and it’s headed to auction next month.
Check out the front license plate on this carefully restored and well-preserved 1957 Studebaker Golden Hawk: “Hello, Darlin.” That, of course, was the title of the signature song written and performed by Harold Lloyd Jenkins, better known to his fans as Conway Twitty. The country music hall of famer wasn’t a dedicated car collector as far as we know, but something must have caught his eye about this Golden Hawk, for he purchased it in 1989 and put it on display at Twitty City, his museum in Hendersonville, Tennessee.
Studebaker’s Hawk series, marketed as “the family sports car,” was in its second year in 1957. (See our feature, “The Birth of the Studebaker Hawks,” here.) For ’57, the Hawk line was streamlined from four models to two: the Silver Hawk and the Golden Hawk. As the top of the Studebaker line that year, the Golden Hawk sold for $3,182, and the list of standard features included a sporty interior with a competition-themed instrument panel and a 289 cubic-inch V8 with a McCulloch supercharger. With 275 horsepower on tap, the supercharged Stude was one of the hotter performers on the market that year, and the editors at Hot Rod magazine, among others, were impressed with its abilities. Studebaker called this color Tiara Gold, and it’s the perfect choice for a Golden Hawk.
Twitty, an early rock ‘n roll performer before he became a country music superstar, sold the Hawk in 1991 and passed away at only 59 after a sudden illness in 1993. A subsequent owner showed the car at a Studebaker Driving Club meet in 2007, where it scored an impressive 394 out of 400 points, according to the seller, and if the recent photos are any indication, the restoration has held up well.
For the next phase of its career, the Hawk will be offered at auction by GAA Classic Cars in Greensboro, South Carolina on Saturday, November 6, where it will sell with no reserve. According to the reliable Hagerty value guide, selling prices for the ’57 Golden Hawk currently range from $40,600 for cars in #2 excellent condition to $61,800 for a #1 concours example. Of course, these values do not include the celebrity power of one of the greatest names in country music, so for the final price we’ll just have to wait and see.
I worked on a few Studes when I was an auto tech back in the late 60’s early 70’s. One situation I still remember was one that locked up on me following a complete brake job. Thinking I had a faulty m/c or incorrect adjustment, I was ready to crack a line to relieve pressure when an older mechanic showed me what a “hill holder” was. (Later to be used by Subaru)
Drag racers used to salvage Studebaker hill holders from the junkyard and use them to hold the car at the line and keep it from creeping. Hurst copied the idea and created the Line-Loc.