This is the last in a series on classic cars and their drivers until the late spring of 2017. We appreciate the willingness of local enthusiasts to share their stories and look forward to resuming the series next year.
Lake County >> When Lowell Grant was just a little whippersnapper, his father pulled into the driveway behind the wheel of a 1955 Studebaker President. From that point on, Grant dreamed of one day owning the same car. “I didn’t know anything about cars because I was five years old but I knew mom’s car looked like a brick and dad’s car looked like a rocket and I wanted dad’s car,” he recalled.
Eighteen years ago his dream came true when a friend stumbled on a Studebaker rusting away in a garage in Windor, California. It took two years for Grant to obtain the $2,000 the owner was asking for the classic car, but in July of 2016 the car was finally his.
But there was still plenty of work to be done, and that’s when Grant’s son, Mark Grant, stepped in. Although Lowell Grant had grown up working on cars, the ‘55 Studebaker became his son’s project. Lowell Grant helped disassemble the vehicle, but he did about 2 percent of the work compared to his son.
It took two years before the car was ready for a paint job and another two years before it was completed. Every single aspect of the car was done by Mark Grant, save for the upholstery. “I’m very proud of my son for being able to do this sort of thing,” Grant said. “It’s an art form and I have no idea how many hours Mark put into it. I can tell you that for four years it was most of what he did.”
Mark Grant was 23 when he began work on the Studebaker, but his foray into the car world began 11 years earlier. “It pays to start them off right,” Grant said. “I figured he could find out about sex, drugs and rock and roll on his own but I’d keep him busy building hot rods.”
While the car is a 1955, it drives as smoothly as a new car thanks to modern mechanics. It has four wheel disc breaks and modern suspension as well as all the amenities — leather seats, air conditioning and a stereo system. It even has something new passenger cars don’t: a ZZ4 circle track engine, the same engine you’d put in a car if you wanted to compete in NASCAR racing on a local level.
It’s appropriate, given that the 1955 Studebaker President was the first stock body car to hit 200 miles per hour at Bonneville Speedway, according to Grant. Before 1978, they were the most aerodynamic cars ever built.
Even though the car handles well, it isn’t as effortless to drive as a car straight from the showroom. For years if you wanted to go fast, you needed a hot rod. Now that’s not the case. And the powerful new cars tend to be gentle and easy to handle. Grant’s Studebaker is fast, but it lacks ease. “With the new cars it’s kind of like you have an iron fist and velvet glove,” he explained. “This is just the iron fist, you don’t get the velvet glove.”
But that also means the older cars are a little more interesting to drive. “You’re a participant, you’re not an occupant,” Grant added. “You’re definitely involved in the whole operation.”
For 16 years the Studebaker his been Grant’s only classic car and he never plans to sell it. The car is too special for that, as it binds his father and son together in a way. “My father passed away when my son was only seven years old, and so this is kind of something that will always connect them,” Grant said.
Once he can no longer deal with the clutch, the car will go to his son. “If it came down to it you’d find me living in this thing,” Grant said with a chuckle.
The ‘55 Studebaker is like a child to him, and while he certainly loves his son and daughter more, the classic car does hold a special place in Grant’s heart. He feels protective of it, so much so that he hesitates to take it to car shows or anywhere he has to park for long.
The paint job has seen its fair share of dings and scratches from careless onlookers. There’s the dent in the stainless steel from a sun umbrella, which was carried by a gust of wind to slam into the Studebaker. Then there’s two small scratches in the hood, inflicted by a belt buckle.
Grant is a firm believer that cars are meant to be driven — he takes his out at least once a week — so he isn’t a stranger to mucking up his car. However, he prefers when the damage is a result of the open road as opposed to avoidable carelessness.
Grant views his car not only as a vehicle, but as a work of art. And after fours years of meticulous laboring, it’s not difficult to see why. If you look at the side of the car, the reflection from bumper to bumper is one smooth, unbroken line, much like a piece of glass. This is the result of 40 skim and guide coats. The glass is tinted bronze to match the paint, which contains gold dust. There aren’t very many cars like it.
Then there’s the fact that Studebaker only sold 40,000 1955 Presidents, as opposed to Chevy, who sold 2,000,000 cars of the same year. At shows Grant is often the only one with his make and model. “I can’t call up my insurance agent and buy a new one of these if I wreck it,” he said. “It’s like driving the Mona Lisa.”
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
