Studebaker 1950 Commander Owner's Manual

CO

N T

EN

T S

Instruments

and

Controls
Run-in Period
Operating the

Car

Lubrication

If

you

must

change

a tire

Maintenance

and

Car.

of Car

Service

and

Adjultments

Seasonal

Sorvicel .

Technical Reference

Data.

Index.

A

WORD

TO T

HE

OWNER

You

ARE UNDOUBTEDLY AS PROUD of

your

new Stude-

baker

as

we who de signed

and

built it. Y

ou

will

want

it

to

give you first cl

ass

performance

at

all

times

under all

condit

ions

of weather

and

roads.

And

you'll

wa

nt

to

keep

. its sp

arkling,

shining, new

car

appea

rance.

To

tha

t e

nd

we

have

assembled

in

this

book

informa-

ti

on which we believe will guide you . We

have

included

the main answers

to

the

questions of W

hat

you

have

, Dow

it

is operated, a

nd

How

it

is

car

ed for.

We

have

not atte

mpted

to

ma

ke a r

epair

or

adjust

men

m

anual

of

this Guid

e,

for such a book would

be

of

little

value

or

interest

to

the

average ow

ner

. We

have

included,

however, some

te

chnical service

inf

ormation

so

that

\

will be able

to

give this book to

any

mechanic

for

ezp.erg

service

or

adj

ustment

if

such e

ver

becomes necessary

w

you

are away fro

m

the vicinity

of

an authQ

ri:z;ed Stud'e-

bak

er

deale

r.

Such

an occ

asion

rarely ar

ises,

for

you

have

thel as-

su

ran

ce

of a friendly, natio

n-wide dealer

service

orga

niza-

tion.

In addition,

Studebaker regional offi

ces and facto ry

parts

depots are conveniently

l

ocab~d

in leadi

ng cities

t

hrough

out the country.

Always

lo

ok for

the

Studebake

r a

uthorized service

sign.

It

mea

ns specialized a

nd exper

ienced atten

tion to

your car, and a continuing

interest

in yo

ur satisfactory

use

of

it.

THE STUDEBA

KER

CORPOR

ATION

SOUTH BEND

27.

I

NDIANA

2

ST

UDEBAKER FACTORY

,WARRAN

TY

WE WARRA

NT E

ACH

NEW MOT

OR

V

EHI

CLE

sold

by

us

to

be

free

from

defects

in mater

ial

and work

manship under normal

use and

service,

our

obligati

on u

nder

this

warranty

being limited

to

maki

ng

good

at

Studeba

ker factories

any

part

or

parts

ther

eof, including

all

equip-

ment

or trade accessories

(except

tires) supp

lied

by Studebaker

as

standard

or optional equ

ipment,

which

shall, within

nine

ty

(90)

days

a

fter making

delivery

of

such

vehicle

to

the origin

al purchaser or

before

such

vehicle

has

been

driven

four t!lOusand

(4,0

00) miles

,

wh

ichever

event

shall

first

occur,

be

ret

urned

to

us with,

transportation

ch

arges

prepaid

and

wh

ich

our

examination shall

disclose

to

our

satis

fact

ion

to

have

been thus

defective;

this

warranty

being

expr

-;;

ssly

in

lieu

of

all other warranties,

express

or implied, and

of a

ll

oth

er

obligations

or liabilities

on

our

part,

and

we neither

ass

ume

nor

aut

horize any

other

person

to

assume

for

us

any 'oth

er

liabili

ty

in

con

nection

with

the sale or

use

of

our

mot

or

vehicles.

This warranty

shall

not app

ly

to any

motor

veh

icle

which

shall

have

been repai

red

or

altered

outside

of

Stu

deba

ker

factori

es

in

flY

way

so

as,

in

our judge

ment,

to

aff

ect

its

stability

or reliability,

1101'

which

has been

subject

to

misuse

, neg

ligence

or

accid

ent, nor

to

an~

commercial motor

vehi cle sold

by

us

which shall

have been operate

at a speed exceeding

the

factory

rated spee

d,

or

loaded

beyond

thfe

fact

ory

rated

load

capacity

. /

THE STUDEBAKER 'CORPORATION

SOU

TH

BEN

D 27,

INDIANA

We

reserve the

right

to

make

changes

in design

or to

make

additi o

n~

to

or improvem

ents

upon

our products wit

hout

incu

rring

any

ob

ligations to install

the

same on vefLicles previou

sly

built

.

BAT

TERY

WARRAN

TY

THE

;J.~

LARD

,

STORAGE

BATTERY

COMPANY

provides

a 90

day

standa

rd,~ct

~r

y

"

irar

ranty

on

the battery. They

also provide

an

ad

j ustment: policy prorated

on a

sliding

scale based

on

the length

of

service

of

the

bat

ter

y.

Your Stu

debaker

deal

er

will

be

pleased

to

handle

deta

ils

of

batteryn

warranty

ser

vice

for you.

RRANTY

A PHILCO R

ADIO

warranty

,J

gistration

tag

is

attached

to

each

radio

whf'n

it

is

shipped

from,.th;

factory.

If

your

cllr

iH

equipped

with

Il

!'lIdio,

your

dealer

will'

fill

in

the

tag

properly

Ilnd

attach it

to

the

radio. This

tag

is

necessary

to

obtain

radio

wnnanty

service

from

you!'

Studebaker

dealer.

J

!

4

L

OCATIO

N OF VEHI

CLE

NUMBERS

SE

RIAL

NUMBER

The seri

al

number

of your

car

is sta

mped

on

a

pla

te

attac

hed

to

the

left

front

door lock

p

illar

post. Re

cord

it

in

the

space

prov

ided.

E

NeINE

NUMBER

The

engine

numbe

r is

stamped

on

a ma-

chin

ed

pad

at

the

npp

er

left

front

of

the

cyl-

inde

r block. Record

it

in the space

pro

vided.

T

he

body

nu

mb

er

is sta

mped

on

a p

late

a

ttached

to

the

dash under the

hood. Record

it

in

the

space

pro

vided:

.'

~l'

I gnition and front

do~

t

~

___

_

__

_

This

number

is stampe

\ ' on

Ii

me

tal

tag

furnished

with

the

keys\ Record

it

in

the

space

pro

vided.,

\

,

Package Compar

tme

nt

and

Lu

ggage Com-

partme

nt

Doo

rs:

;.

,

.

~

____

_

This

number

is

stamped'

Qn

~

the, compart-

ment

key

or

on

the

lock

hou

sin¥.;,Rec

ord

it

.

..

",\'-

..

~ '''': )~'~

.m

the

spa

ce provIded. " , .

PAINT AND TRIM: W

he

~~,~ring

paint

mate

rials

be

su

re the

body and

serial

n

UIll

\1rii

above

af:"

well

as

the

paint

f~'~

_ : .

..

1.

-

~'.l.:

symbol

printed

on t

he sticker

attac

Jlt

ed'to.

th-eundersideof

the

pac

kage

compart

me

nt

aC~6mpany

yo~r

order

.

, '~,

When

trim

mat

eri

als

are

needed,

it

is

imp

orta

nt that

the

serial

and

bo

~

numoers

which

you

have

recorded

above be

furnish~d.

·

i

5

'L

t

...

REAR

VIEW

MIRROR

,,"

-,~,

.:

WiN

DSHIELD

WIP

ER

CONTROL

)

£#"

..&::

.

!£

"

p.

DOOR

WINDOW

DOOR

REMOTE

HANDLE

YAP

" 'GHT

--------

-

GEA!tSHIFI

LEVER

....-

BR

IGt-IT LIG

HT

SIGNAL

'"

5"fEDOMETER AND ODOMET

ER

GAGES

(HEAT-OIL-FUEL-

AMPERES)

HORN

PUSH

BAR

-----

ASH

TRAY --------

CIGAR

LIGHTER

--

----

CLiMA

TIZER

AIR CONT

ROL

DEFROSTER

CONTROL

~

FOG LIGHT SWITCH -'!
CLiMA

TIZER

WATER

CONT

ROL

HO OD LOCK

RELEASE

- -

--

OVERDRIVE

CONTROL

--

-~

COWL

vENnLATOR INN

ER

DOOR

AC

CELERATOR

PEDAL

---

-

BRA

KE PEDAL

----

--

~

CLUTCH

PED

AL--

---~

ST

ARTER SWIT

CH B

UnoN

-

HEADLIGHT

BEAM

TCH

, ~e:

INSTRUMENT

AND MAP LIGHT

~

SWIT

CH

HEAD AND PARKING LIGH T

SWITCH

INSTRUMENTS AND 'CONTROLS

The driver

of a new ca

r should become familiar

with

the

functions

of

the ins

truments and contr

ols illus

trated

on the opp osite. page before operat

ing

the car,

Th

eir

func-

tio

ns are described below. Standard equi

pment

varies on

different models. The illustration includes

standard

and

extra

equipment.

IG

NITION

SWITCH

Th

e i

gni

tion

switch

is

operated

by

m

eans

of a key

which,

when turned

to

the

right,

sup

plies

cu

rre

nt

to the ignition

system

and

accessories.

Turned

to

the left,

the

key

completes

the

ele

ctrical

circuit

to the gaso-

line gage,

radi

o,

and

other

accesso

ries

but

not

to the igni

-

tion.

The ig

nition

key

should always

be

removed whe:l'bYou

leave the car.

STARTER

SWITCH

The

start

er

is

cont rolleu 1

by a button

~

on

the

toeboard

loc

ated

directly

beneath

the

clutch pedal.

By completely

depres

sing

the

clutch

peda

l,

the

electrica

l

circuit

through the

sta

rter swi

tch is comple

ted.

'Do rlot

operate

starter

when the

engi

ne

is running.

.

AMMETER W

hen the e

ngine

is

not

running

and any

of the

electri

cal

circuits

are

in use,

the

ammeter

will,

register

a di

scharge (-).

Wi

th the

engine

run

ning

at

a

reas

onable speed, even though all e

lectrical

circ

uits are

in

use, the

amm

eter

will

register a charge

(+)

u

ntil the

bat

-

t

ery

is completely

cha

rge

d,

after

wh

ich

the needle

should

swi ng

back an

d r

em

ain around

the zero

mark.

Any

abn

or-

mal fluctuati

on

of the

ammeter

needle

in

either

directi

on

is a si g

nal

to

the driver

to

have

the

electrica

l sys

tem

checked and

serviced by

his

authorized

Studebaker

dealer.

HEAT INDICATOR

The

temperat

ure

of

the

coolant

in

the

engi

ne cooling

system

is

shown

by

the

electric

hea~Jll

dicat

or

which, under

normal

conditions,

should

regt~

approximately

170

0

F.

(76,7

0

C.

).

In Hummer,

and

on

hot,

l

ong drives

this

may norma

lly be a littiP hig-her.

If

the

gage

regis

ters an

:IiJl'upt

or

continuous

rise

to

7

..

»,

212

0

F . (100"

C.),

stop the

car

immedia

tely and inv

gate.

Check the

water

level,

fan

belt, hose co

nne

ctions,

al

look

for

wate

r leaks. Co

ntinue

d use at 2120 F . (1000 C.)

will

cause ser

ious d

amage

and unnecessary expen

se.

The gage

re

gisters only

when

the

ignition

key

is

t

urne

d either

to

the

rig

ht

or

left.

Check the

water

level frequently.

GASOLINE GAGE

The

gasoline

gage registers

wh

en

the

ign

itiun key is

turn

ed

either

to

the right or le

ft.

If

you

wish to

kn

ow

the

quantity

of

fuel

in

the tank when

the

engine is not r unning, t

urn

the ignition key to

the lef

t.

It

ta

kes

about

30 seconds

for

the gage

to

register

aft

~

the

ignitio

n key is t

urne

d.

OIL PR

ESSURE

GAGE

The

oil

pressure

gage

ind

ica

tes

t

he

work

ing pressur

e of t

he

oil

as

it

cir

culates w

ithin the

'

engine.

Norm

ally, the

gage

will register

bet

ween

20 and'

40 po

und

s (1,4

an

d 2,8 kgs.) at 40 miles

(64 km

.) p

er

hour.

Th48

gage

doe

s not indicate the

am

ount

of

oil

in

th

e cTankcase.

If

t

his

gage

should fluct

uate rap

idly

or drop to zero,

STOP the

car

immedi

ately

and

check the cause .

Continu

ed

operation of the

car

under

these conditi

ons

will

proba

bly

cause

serious' damage.

tOCKS AND

KEYS

' Two

sets

of keys

are

furn

ished

wi

th

the

car. One

key

opera

tes the fro

nt

door exte

rnal

locks and the

ignition

switch.

The oth

er

key

operate

s loc

ks

on the pac

kage

compart

me

nt

door and

the

luggage com-

p

artment

li d.

To p

reve

nt ul1authori zed

persons

from

purch

asing

a

du~licate

ignition key, the

-py

num

ber does

not

appear

on

the

lcey

or

on the fac

e. of"

the

l

o~k,

b

ut

is stam

ped

on a

small

me

tal

tag

s

uppl!~d

with

the

keys.

The

compartment

key

number

is st

am12

ed on the key

or

on

the

lock hou s

ing

.

B

ot

h

k<,y

numbers shoul

d be recorded on

page

5

of

this

8

.

anual

and

elsewhe

re

amo

ng the

own

er's

permanen

t pos-

sessions,

after wh

ich

the

me

tal

tag

shou

ld be destroy

ed.

Dupli

cat

e keys may be

orde

red

by

key p

umb

er

from

the

nearest

au

thorized

Stu

debake

r dealer .

If

the key

num-

bers

are

not

kno

wn,

the order

must

be

accom

panie

d by

the car

serial number.

Fr

ont

door

lock con

trols

are

des

igne

d so

th

at

either

f

ront

do or, locked

from the inside,

may

be

opened from

t

he

outside with the key.

This

is an ad

van

tage

in

parking

lo

ts

whe

n close pa

rkin

g blocks one door. .

If

an inside

front

door handle is set

to

"lock" po

sitio

n

with

the door

op

en and

the

door

is

then

closed, t

he

lock

relea

ses;

Studebaker

front

doo

rs

must

be key-locked

in

such circums

tances.

The

key will al

ways

unlock

either

of

the front door

s f

rom

the ou

tside

no

matt

er

whether

it

has

\ been locke d from the i

nside

with the

door lock control

or

~ocked

from

the

outsi

de

with the

key.

The

next three par

agraphs

explain the

op~ration

of

the door

locks. . .

l.

Front

door

inside

handles,

when pushed

up from

t

he norm

al

posit

ion

to

lock

the door from

the

ins

ide,

will

spring back

to

the normal

posi

tion alt

hough

the

lock will re

ma

in

set.

2.

The front doors are

locked

from the

out

side

by

m

aking

one-qu

arter

t

urn

with

the

key. T

urn

the

key clockwise on

left front

dooFs a

nd

cou

ntercl

ock-

wi

se on

rig

ht front

doors.

Retu

rn the

key

to

the

v

erti

cal

posit

ion

to

remov

e it

from

the

lock. To

unlock

th

e f

ront

doors

follow

the

same

procedu

re

e

xcept

turn

the

key

one-quarter

ru~n

in

the

opposite

direction to

that

used

to

loek

tbe

door .

3. To lo

ck eith

er

rear

dbor

of

sedans, ·simply

mo

ve

the

ins

ide

door

hand

le

upward,

wheth

er the

door

is op

en

or

closed.

The

door' will

remain

locked

un

til

the

insi

de

rear

door

haiidle is moved down-

ward

to the

full open position.

9

.

~

HOOD

LOCK

Th

e hood lock

safeguards

your

batte~

car

bur

etor,

and

other

un{}er

-the-hood

equipment

against

theft

and

tampering

as

long

as

the

car

doors are locked.

The

hOod

control

(marked

"H")

is

the middle

one

of

t he

three

controls located on

the driver's

si de of t

he

car just

below

the

lower

end

of .the

instrument panel.

To

unlock

the

hood, pull

the

control until t

he aut

oma

tic hood

lo~k

is

released. To

raise

the

hood, release

the saf

ety latc

h as

illus

trated.

As a sa

fety measure,

after

raising

the

hood ,

rem

ove

the

end

of

the

hood

prop

from its

. br

ack

et

and.pla

ce .

it in t

he

hole provided on

the

underside

of the hood at

the front.

C

are

should always be

taken

in

raIsmg or

lowering

the

hood.

Never

try

to force

the

hood lock

or

safety

lat

ch ..

This

might

affect

adjustments which

would r

esu

lt in

an

improperly

operating

part.

,.

/

Lower

the

hood firmly so

that

the

automatic

hood

latch

and

the

safety

latch

are

fastened

securely,

. LIGHT CONTROL SWITCH A

pull

type

switch

control

1S located

on the driver's

side

of

the

lower

instrument board

to oper

ate the

tail

lights,

parking

lights,

and

headlights.

PARKING AND

TAil

LIGHTS

Pull

light

switch

control

to

the

firs t

posit

ion

for

parking

and tail li

ghts.

HEAD

LIGHTS

AND

TAIL

LIGHTS

Pull

the

light

switch

control

as

far

out

as

possible (second position)

to

operate

the hea

dligh

ts

and

tail

lights.

HEADLIGHT BEAM CONTROL SWITCH

The

foot

-op

er-

.

ated switch

to the

left

of

the

clutch

pedal

operates

the

. head

lig

ht

beam.

Pressi

ng

down on

the

switch

will

change

the

hea

dli

ghts from cou ntry

to

traffic beam,

and

vice

versa

as

traffic cond

itions

require. Wh

en the

country

beam

is

in

uSe

the

red tell-

tale ligh

t in

the

speedometer

face

will

be

lighte

d. Use

the

traffic

beam

when approaching

oncoming

,

'\ tra

ffic

and

in

city dri

ving.

\

I

NSTR

UMENT

AND

MAP

LIGHTS

The

instruments

are

lig

hted wit

h non-gl

are

bl

ack

light.

The

lights

are .cont

rolled

by

a pull

type switch

located

next

to

the

headlight

switc

h.

,

Pull

the

control

to

the

firs~

position

for

ins

trument

lights

.

Pull the

control

to

the

second

position

for

the

~ap

lig

ht

when

front

doors are closed.

The

map

lig

ht

is on

whenever

eit

her

fro

nt door

is

open.

DOME LIGHT

The

dome

light

goes on

in

2-door

mode

ls

when

either

door

is opened. In 4-door moaels

the dome light

goes on

when

either

of

the

rear

doors

is opened. Wh

en

the

doors

ar

e closed, the dome light

may

be o'Rerated

by the

switc

h just to

the

rear

of

the

right front

d09r. '

There

is no dome

lig

ht

on

convertible

models.

LICENSE

PLA

TE LIGHT

The

light for

the "rear

license

plate

is loca

ted

in

the

center

of

the

luggage

comparttiten

t

handle

. The

ligh

t operat",s

whenever

the

headlights are

t

urned

on.

STOP

LIGHTS

They

light

whenever

the

brake peda

l

11

is

depressed,

making

a

distinct

red

lig

ht

shine

to

wa"

follow

ing

vehicles.

LUGGAGE COMPARTMENT LIGHT

Th

is

light

goes on

when

tail

lights are lighted and the

luggage

compartmen

t

lid

is

ope ned. The luggage compaT

tme

nt

light

is

available

at slight e

xtra

cos

t on Champion Delux e

m@

dels.

PACKAGE COMPARTMENT To open

the package

com-

partme

nt door

after unlocking, turn

the rotary

knob

to the

right and

open door. A light (ext

ra cost

on

Cham

pion

models) g

oe

s on when the door

is

opened.

ASH

RECEIVER

To remove the tr

ay

for

clean

ing,

pus

h

down on

the

retain

er while pulli

ng

outward

on

the tray.

FRONT

SEAT

ADJUSTMENT

T

h~

front

se

at

is

eas

ily

adjusted

forward

or b

ackward

by

rai

sing

the

control

lever

at

the

driver's

si de of t

he

seat

(as

shown in the

illus t

ra~

tion) which unlocks the m

echanism and

permit

s the

seat

to be

~hifted

to

the

desi

red

position.

In

ad~ition

to this

quickly

adjus

ted

shift

, t

her

e a

re

thr

ee basic p

Of;>itions

in

which

the

seat can

be

bolted by

,

.'

your

authorized Stu

debaker

dealer

to

acco

mmodate the

leg

len

gth

of t

he owner.

Fro

m a

ny

of

these

basic

positions,

th'e

"'

front

"~~a

t

a

dju

stmen

t mec

hanism

will

give

you

the

full

adjustment

range.

CLUTCH PEDAL

The clutch pedal

disengages

the

clutch

.vh

en

dep

res

sed, engages

it when

released.

The

clut

ch peda

l,

de

pr

essed

to the

floorbo

ard, also oper

ates

the

starter but

ton

loca

ted

dire

ctly

under the

ped

al.

STEERING POST GEARSHIFT

The steering post gear-

shif

t is operated

in

the

conventional

manner, and p

rovide

s

th

ree speeds f

orwa

rd

and

one speed

reve

rse.

LUGGAGE

COMPART

MENT

LID

AND

LOCK

The

luggage

compartme

nt

lid is controlled

by

a lock and

hand

le w

hic

h

form

the

right

"wing"

of

the rear eInblem incorporatin

g

the

lice

nse

plate

light

and rear

license pla

te

brac

ket.

The

luggag

e com

partment

lock is op

erat

ed w

ith

the

same key

whic

h op

erates

the

package

compartme

nt

lock.

To open

th

e lu

gga

ge

compartment,

unlock t

he

handle

wit

h t

he

key,

press

down s

lightly with

the

left han

d on .

t

he

left

"wing"

of the

emblem

and

at the sa

me time

raise

\

~he

right

"wing" app

roxim

ately 45

0

,

as

shown in

the· illus- .

tr

at

ion.

The

lid can nO

'N

be raised.

Counterbalanced hinge

sprin

gs keep the

lid in

the open

posi tion

for

you

r con-

venie

nce in rem

ovi

ng luggage,

spar~

wh

eel, etc >

To close the

luggage

compartment,

place (he

h

ar.~d

le

in

its

straight hOTizo'Yl,ta

l position.

Th

is is

important

to

s

ecure the

latch

when the lid is

lowered

. !Jo

ck

the

handle

·

a

nd remove the key. Lower lid firmly

to

be

sure

-

<it

has

latc

hed. T

he

tig

ht

rubber

weat

herseals

have a $pring

a:e,ttpn

whic

h will tend

to

hold lid

in a slig

htly rais

ed posit

}prf

unless

it

is firmly closed.

BR

AKE

CONTROLS

Braking

pressure

is

applied

to

I>.,

fo

ur

wheels in proportioll to

the

amount

of

foot

pressurto.

ap

plied to

the

brake

pedal.

The

parking

brake

lever

operates

independently of

the

hydraulic

brake

system, apply

ing

brake

pressu

re

to

the rear

wheels only. To

set

the

parking

brake,

depress

brake pedal and pull back on pat-king brake handle.

To re-

lease the

parking

hrake,

depress

brake

pedal, pull 'back

slig

htl

y on

the

handle,

press

the

release

button

with the

thumb,

and

let

the handl

e move fo

rward.

WINDSHIELD WIPER

AND

WASHER CONTROL

The

win

d-

sh

ie ld

wiper

control knob, located

at

the

top

center

of the

instrument

board, m

ust

be

turn

ed clockwise

to

operate

the

wi

per

blades. Speed

of

the

wiper action

can

be

governed

by

thi

s control.

The

windshield

washer

(on

car

s so equipped) is oper- .

ated

by

turn

ing

the

windshield wiper cont

rol

counte

r .

...

cl

ockwise

and

then turnin

g

the

contro

l clock

wise to

ob

tain wat

er

flow

and

wiper

operation.

Washer

automat

-

ically

shuts

itself

off

when

the

cycle

has

been completed.

Windshield

Washer

is availab

le

at

extra

cost.

SEAT

CUSHION AUXILIARY SPRINGS To

vary

the

front

seat cushion resiliency

for

the

driver

or

fron

t se

at

pa

s-

senger, Select- O-S

eat

cushion

springs are

available as

an

accessory.

These

springs

may

be inst

alled

in sets

of

fo ur

and

are

supplied

in

two

degrees

of

resiliency, firm

or

extra-

.;.

firm . One

set

may

be installed

in

the dri

ver's

side

or

one

set

in t

he

passenger's

side

of

the

front

seat

or

in

both

sides

of

the

seat

cushion.

Your

Studebaker

dea

ler

will be

happy

to discuss

Select

~

O-Seat

springs

with

you a

nd install them

as you wish.

Sele('t-O-Seat

Springs

are available

at

extra

cost .

14

•