Studebaker’s 1956 Golden Hawk featured subtle fiberglass tailfins, grafted to the steel "Loewy coupe" bodywork, and borrowed a 275-horsepower, 352-cubic inch V-8 from Packard, Studebaker’s corporate partner. The Golden Hawk was advertised as a “family sports car,” and that was not far off; with more horsepower per pound than any other American production automobile, it could accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in only 8.7 seconds.
The original Packard-powered Golden Hawk proved a “one year wonder,” and only 4,071 were built. Among them was the car offered here, among the last built in Studebaker’s Los Angeles-area factory before its closure in June 1956. It was sold new by Paul G. Hoffman’s dealership in Figueroa, California, equipped with Automatic Drive, power steering and brakes, power windows, tinted glass, Deluxe wheel covers, Stratoline radio, and numerous other options.
In 1968 it was bought by medical student Gilbert Zimmerman, who had desired a Sunglow Gold and Snowcap White Golden Hawk since admiring one during his childhood. This car met his needs, and was refinished in those original colors that summer; its owner later installed a new old stock original engine, while the car retains its period Traction Master bars. Mr. Zimmerman and his beloved wife, Maria, used the car for regional tours and shows for many years; badges from the various events still decorate the engine-turned dashboard today. The Golden Hawk also appeared in Automobile Quarterly, volume 12, no. 3, illustrating an article on the Hawk series.
Mr. Mitosinka acquired the car from Mr. Zimmerman in 2018, concluding fifty years of single long-term ownership. It remains well-kept and well-presented, with its paint still in excellent condition, and the interior comfortably worn-in but solid and very presentable. The overall appearance is of a car that was well-loved and properly maintained for many years, which, of course, this Golden Hawk was. It is accompanied by a small file of maintenance receipts as well as a reproduction window sticker, folio with brochures and maintenance booklet, and full-size spare and jack, and recorded 15,189 miles at the time of cataloguing.
This is among the finest automobiles in the Mitosinka stable – and among the best-known, best-loved of all Golden Hawks.