Italian coachbuilding; American muscle; Virgil Exner-penned baroque styling; the Stutz Blackhawk had it all. And for only $15,000, Nice Price or Crack Pipe wants to know if you think it's all too much?
Yesterday, over 59% of you voted to carve Nice Price into the jack-o-lantern-hued Gumpert Apollo. Today we're throwing you some Graceland-approved ‘70s kitsch. Revived in 1971, the Stutz brand catered to car buyers of means, but not necessarily those with an appreciation for the aesthetic. With a total production run of only about 500 cars, and an original window sticker bordering $45,000, the Blackhawk was not intended for everyone. This one is a mis-classified (rat rod?), and under-tired '75 Stutz Blackhawk, for which the current owner asks a Hyundai-esque $15,000.
One famous owner of multiple Blackhawks was singer and failed bathroom pharmacist Elvis Presley, who plopped his ever increasing girth behind the respective wheels of four separate examples, including one prototype, between 1971 and 1977. The last known picture of the King was taken behind the wheel of Blackhawk number four on a late night trip to the dentist.
Elvis presumably chose the Stutz for its solid Pontiac Grand Prix underpinnings, including GM's massive 425bhp 455cid Rocket V8, which moved the Ghia-built car from zed to 60mph in a lively 8.5 seconds, and on to a 130mph top speed. This all had a price, and for this two and a half ton car it was 8 mpg fuel economy.
Another aspect of the Stutz that Presley likely found attractive was the birdseye maple and gold-plated interior trim. Sadly, this $15,000 '75 has some of both missing. There is the possibility that you could recoup some of the purchase cost by pulling the rest of metal trim and sending it to Cash4Gold, perhaps even earning enough to cover a respray of the orange peel-crazed paint. Other than those few cosmetic issues, the car is claimed sound, and even has a clock in the steering wheel hub. A clock in the hub!
So does $15,000 for this Stutz make you say It's Now or Never? Or does that price leave you All Shook Up?
You decide!
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