Why Was the Studebaker 170 CID Champion Six the Most Underrated Engine in America?
By the late 1930s, America was still recovering from the Great Depression.
Millions were out of work.
The auto industry was struggling.
And even giants like Ford and GM were tightening their beltS.
Amid this chaos, a small company from Southbend, Indiana, Studebaker, was fighting to survive.
They had no massive budget, no state-of-the-art factory, but they had something Detroit had forgotten, the desire to build a simple, durable, and affordable car for ordinary people.
So in 1939 they unveiled a mechanical miracle called the Studebaker Champion 6, a humble 170 cubic inch engine that would go on to save the company.
Yet behind its simplicity lay a daring piece of engineering and a story that would make even Detroit’s biggest players stop and take notice.
Before 1939, Studebaker was in dire straitS.
Once the pride of Indiana, known for its horsedrawn carriages, the company struggled to adapt to the brutal world of modern automobileS.
Ford and Chevrolet dominated the market with cheap, powerful V8S.
While Studebaker’s heavier, more expensive cars were losing ground faSt.
Sales were collapsing and the Southbend factory was on the verge of shutting down.
That’s when Studebaker’s leadership made a bold decision to build an all-new car.
Smaller, lighter, more fuel efficient, and affordable enough to keep the company alive.
A new engine was the key.
The engineering team led by Barney Roose, a brilliant mind from Pierce Arrow, was tasked with creating a power plant that embodied three goals: lightweight, durable, and efficienT.
The result was the 170 C in inline 6, a modest yet brilliantly designed engine.
The engine displaced about 2.8 8 L used an inline 6 configuration and featured a traditional L head design with both the block and cylinder head made of cast iron.
At first glance, it looked simple, yet that simplicity was its secret to absolute reliability.
No excess parts, no complex systems waiting to fail.
Output was a modest 78 horsepower at 4,000 RPM, but torque arrived early and smoothly.
That made the Studebaker Champion surprisingly capable, climbing hills, hauling loads, and covering long distances without breaking a sweaT.
Weighing just 450 lb, it was much lighter than the Ford Flathead 58, which came in around 600 lb.
That difference reduced chassis stress and improved fuel economy, achieving nearly 25 m per gallon, a dream number for the 1930S.
Chief engineer Barney Roose also created a special oiling system that ensured even lubrication to every cylinder, no matter the angle or road condition.
Thanks to that, one test champion engine famously ran over 150,000 mi without a major rebuild.
A nearly unbelievable feat for 1939.
And when World War II broke out, the Champion 6 was quickly adapted for military duty.
Studebaker supplied thousands of trucks, communication vehicles, and field equipment to the US Army and its allieS.
Many of them were powered by an upgraded 170 cubic in inline 6, an engine that could start in mud, freezing winds, or even under snow without hesitation.
Soldiers who served in Europe and the Pacific often recalled that a studaker never quiT.
The body could dent, the springs could break, but the engine kept on running.
As one mechanic famously said, “If you’ve got oil and gas, that Studebaker will get you anywhere on Earth.”
As the 1950s began, America was filled with optimism.
The interstate highways were expanding.
Cars had become symbols of freedom, and Americans were craving more power than ever before.
It was the age of giantS.
The Chevrolet 58, Ford Ylock, and Chrysler HMI dominated every headline.
Yet, while all of Detroit was obsessed with massive V8s, the Studebaker Champion 6 quietly proved its worth.
Instead of chasing horsepower numbers, Studebaker focused on what customers truly cared about, durability, smoothness, and fuel efficiency.
Studebaker kept refining the Champion 6.
The compression ratio rose from 6.5 to 1 to 7.0 to1.
Power climbed from 78 to over 110 horsepower thanks to improved carbburation and ignition systeMs.
The Econ06 became famous for delivering 25 to 30 m per gallon, leading American magazines to nickname it the engine that sips, not gulpS.
Interestingly, Studebaker even experimented with a supercharged version to push performance further.
But the project was scrapped when the added power proved too much for the champion’s lightweight chassiS.
Even the engineers were surprised by how much this little engine could handle.
By the late 1950s, the atmosphere of the American auto industry had changed completely.
Consumers were no longer focused only on durability.
They were swept up in the race for speed and power.
Detroit had entered the era of performance where every year brought engines that were stronger, larger, and packed with more cylinderS.
Meanwhile, the Studebaker Champion 6 with its traditional Lhead side valve design was starting to feel outdated.
Competitors like the Ford Falcon, Chevy 2 Nova, and Plymouth Valiant had already moved to the more modern overhead valve layout, which delivered better efficiency, cleaner combustion, and easier maintenance.
Studebaker tried to catch uP.
Engineers experimented with new cylinder heads and higher compression ratios, but production costs kept rising while sales failed to recover.
The rest of the industry surged forward and Studebaker was quietly left behind.
By 1960, when nearly every competitor had adopted OV technology, Studebaker’s Champion 6 remained loyal to its old side valve cam design, a system that dated back to the 1920S.
It was proof of the company’s belief that if it isn’t broken, don’t fix iT.
But that same mindset cost them the chance to evolve.
Realizing they were falling behind, Studebaker began introducing a series of modest upgrades to keep the engine relevanT.
The cylinder head was revised, ignition improved for quicker starts, compression raised to 8.0 to1, and a new Stroberg carburetor offered smoother throttle response.
The goal was to make the Champion 6 feel more modern while retaining the simplicity that longtime customers valued.
In practice, the engine continued to power models like the Lark, Daytona, and Champ pickuP.
Cars aimed at practical buyers who wanted dependability over performance.
These were farmers, clerks, and longhaul drivers who believed a Studebaker may not be fast, but it always gets you home.
In 1961, the company experimented with an upgraded Skybolt 6, an OV conversion of the Champion design, but the project was soon cancelled due to cost overruns and a weakening corporate backbone.
Each attempt felt like one more breath of a once great engine refusing to surrender.
By 1964, the Champion 6 quietly ended production, closing the chapter on Studebaker’s era of pure mechanical craftsmanshiP.
Yet, its influence reached far beyond its final year.
Though the company faded away, the ideas behind the Champion 6 continued to shape American engineering through the 1960s and 1970S.
Studebaker’s philosophy of simplicity, durability, and serviceability became a blueprint that other automakers adapted in their own wayS.
While Detroit chased ever bigger V8s, six-cylinder engines like the Ford 144, Chevy 194, and AMC 232 carried the same spirit the Champion 6 had pioneered.
Compact, efficient, and unshakably reliable.
What made the Champion 6 stand out wasn’t its power, but its endurance, its ability to keep running, to be repaired easily, and to perform consistently under any condition.
Its solid block construction, efficient oiling system, and ideal weight to power ratio became technical inspirations for the next wave of American inline sixS.
Even engineers who left Studebaker took that knowledge with them, influencing engines such as the Chevy 230, Ford 200 and AMC 1999.
All sharing the same quiet reliability and humble brilliance that defined the Champion 6.
For many workingclass Americans, the Champion 6 wasn’t just a machine.
It was a companion in everyday life.
Farmers driving to the fields, mechanics heading to their shops in old larks, and families cruising down Route 66.
Studebaker was woven into their simplest, most genuine memorieS.
In the gentle hum of the Champion 6, people heard the sound of diligence.
Never loud, never rushed, just steady and honeSt.
In small towns across Indiana and Ohio, the sight of a studaker rolling quietly past the courthouse square remains a nostalgic image of America’s working spiriT.
Today, though the company is gone, Studebaker clubs thrive across the country.
Enthusiasts spend years restoring old champions, keeping their original 170 cubic in engines alive.
Many say that hearing one start again feels like meeting an old friend who never lefT.
For them, the Champion 6 stands not just as proof of durability, but as a reminder of a time when America believed in its own handS.
When craftsmanship was a matter of pride and every rotation of the crank meant something.
And perhaps that’s why even now the spirit of Studebaker still lingers quietly but proudly in every garage where an old engine still breatheS.
