Vehicle Description
Designed and built for hard work and reliable, economical service,
Studebaker's commercial vehicles of the late 1930s were quite
likely the most attractively styled vehicles of their kind, thanks
to famed industrial designer Raymond Loewy. Hired as the head of
Studebaker's design department in 1936, Loewy's stylistic influence
was immediately felt, endowing the venerable company's car and
truck lines with beautifully streamlined, Art Deco-influenced
designs rivalled by few other manufacturers - on either side of the
Atlantic. Little changed in visual terms from 1937 through 1939,
Studebaker's truck lines included several highly specialized COE
(Cab-Over Engine) configurations, allowing excellent forward
visibility for drivers in tight urban environments with maximum
cargo capacity, while offering very attractive Loewy styling in the
bargain. In fact, styling of these Studebaker trucks was matched
only by Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky's contemporary COE designs for
the White Motor Co. Featured in Hemmings Motor News and Auto
Restorer magazines, this absolutely delightful 1939 Studebaker K15M
Cabover delivery truck carries a 1 �-ton cargo capacity and
according to documents on file, it was used for deliveries by the
Coca-Cola bottler in upstate New York. It was registered until 1951
and while intervening history remains unknown, it was owned during
the 1990s by noted Studebaker enthusiast and restorer Roy Snider of
Mount Joy, Pennsylvania, who accumulated replacement parts and
initiated a restoration, including a rebuilt engine, rolling
chassis, and replacement of the structural wood for the truck's cab
and doors. Seeking a cabover prewar Studebaker truck,
machinist/sprint-car racer Jerry Kurtz of Dover, Pennsylvania,
purchased the project from Snider and set to work with an exacting,
total restoration to exceptional standards of authenticity,
precision and workmanship. Since no blueprints nor technical
drawings of period cargo compartments for these trucks remained,
Mr. Kurtz conducted relentless research using period photographs to
design and construct an authentic bottler's delivery body for the
rear of the truck. Compounding the dilemma, prewar truck-body
production was highly localized, non-standardized, and tailored to
highly individualized special orders and requirements, with
often-miniscule job lots the order of the day. Nonetheless, Mr.
Kurtz devised and built an appropriate and fully functional cargo
box for the Studebaker. Complementing the truck's cab very nicely
and built with a sound structure to accommodate heavy loads as
originally required, it also features internal product shelves,
large sliding doors at each side and various additional
compartments with drop-down and side-opening doors. Evocatively
detailed in a classic yellow/black paint scheme plus lovingly
recreated Coca-Cola company logos and signage, faithfully recreated
aluminum cargo box features traditional wooden beverage cases, and
even a highly collectible vintage Coca-Cola cooler. Mechanically,
the robust 138-ihnch wheelbase Studebaker K15 chassis frame cradles
the truck's later-model 245 cubic-inch Studebaker L-head inline
six-cylinder engine, which had already been rebuilt by Mr. Snider
before Mr. Kurtz purchased the project. Developing 102
factory-rated horsepower and 205 foot-pounds of torque with 7:1
compression and a Carter single-barrel carburetor, the engine is
mated to a 4-speed manual transmission and added overdrive unit.
Correct hub-pilot truck wheels, painted red with chrome hub caps,
include duals at the rear, and 4-wheel drum brakes provide stopping
power. Predictably, the reborn K15 attracted a great deal of
attention following completion, with the truck successfully working
its way through AACA judged events. Accolades include achievement
of the AACA Senior National First Prize (2004) and Grand National
First Prize (2007). Feature articles on the K15 in Auto Restorer
(December 2005) and Hemmings Motor News (January 2007) document for
posterity the obsessive level of detail applied to the restoration
by Mr. Kurtz. This striking Studebaker will undoubtedly appeal to
wide variety of enthusiasts, commercial vehicle collectors, and
Coca-Cola memorabilia collectors alike. Offers welcome and trades
considered For additional details please view this listing directly
on our website
https://hymanltd.com/vehicles/7140-1939-studebaker-k15m-truck/
