The Golden Hawk was Studebaker’s dream car; it was flamboyant and powerful, comfortable and exclusive, sleek and youthful, and the top of the Hawk line, with Flight Hawk, Power Hawk and Sky Hawk making up the rest of the family for 1956. In spite of everything the Hawk line had going for it, Studebaker sales slipped to just over 80,000 that year, with about 4,000 being Golden Hawks. Studebaker thought maybe the Hawk lineup was too expansive, too broad and confusing, so for 1957, the Hawk line was reduced to just the Silver Hawk and Golden Hawk. A 289 CI V-8 engine would supplant the Packard-sourced 352 CI V-8 in 1957, too, meaning 1956 would be the only year the Golden Hawk would use the big displacement engine that produced 275 HP. This 1956 Golden Hawk is presented in the striking two-tone finish of Rosebud and Snowcap, and it underwent a 5-year, frame-off restoration that brought it to a level that’s likely better than South Bend ever intended. With the Golden Hawk featuring Packard’s Ultra-Matic transmission, power steering and power brakes, this car’s interior is a place of stunning freshness and style; the dashboard is a strip of engine-turned aluminum nestled in a black padded vinyl surround, with sporty gauges, an AM radio and a clock spicing up the image. The door panels are equally as stylish with a silver, black and white combination, sustained by the seating upholstery, which is white vinyl with gray, patterned cloth inserts. The seat is even power operated. Rolling on wide whitewall tires with wheels topped by full-size wheel covers, the Golden Hawk has tinted glass and the original brightwork—a nice detail on the trunk is a dealer badge reading, “C&H Motors Las Vegas.” While the paint and brightwork sparkle, the scene under the hood is likewise as impressive, with the brightly colored components and labels adorned as they were from the factory so long ago. Difficult to find in this color combination and in this condition, the Golden Hawk was the car for people considering alternatives like Ford’s Thunderbird, Chevrolet’s Corvette and Chrysler’s 300B—interestingly, the Golden Hawk was proven quicker in 0-60 MPH and quarter-mile contests between all of them.
