1973 Excalibur Phaeton Series II, Nut and Bolt Restoration, Removable hardtop!!

1973 Other Makes Phaeton Series II Phaeton Series II Description

1973 Excalibur Phaeton Series II

We at MotoeXotica Classic Cars are pleased to announce that we have procured another Excalibur! We have sold over a dozen of Excaliburs in the past couple years and we can proudly say that this is the nicest example we have ever seen let alone ever offered up for sale! The recent nut and bolt restoration is absolutely stunning and the overall condition is nothing but professional, the undercarriage really tells the the story on this excellent example Series II Excalibur! Previously owned by the longtime NASCAR race car driver Bobby Wawak’s family in Addison Illinois.

Dressed in a brilliant copper upper and black lower finish, the car’s paint is in excellent condition, with good trim pieces. The glass panels are in good order, the lights on the car are in excellent shape. The car rides on wide whitewall tires, size 225/75R15, with wire wheel covers. The car’s body panels are straight and solid, including the copper hardtop and the black soft roof cover plus the engine bay is tidy. Out back is a trunk for storing luggage. The bumpers are in excellent order, much like the rest of the exterior.

Inside, the car’s black leather interior is in gorgeous condition. The black, leather bucket seats are in similar excellent shape, as is the matching carpet. The black instrument panel looks new and a wood-rimmed, three-spoke steering wheel complements the look of the dash and the seats. The steering column and gearshift console comes from that year’s Chevrolet Corvette. The door panels are in great condition, are the mirror glass and the gear shifter. Completing the interior is an Alpine AM/FM stereo with CD player. The red removable hardtop and black side curtains are included and are in excellent shape to match the rest of the high quality of the car.

Designer Brooks Stevens took the Excalibur tradition that stretched back to hand-built sports cars in the early ‘50s and shifted into road-going cars with the Series 1 Excalibur in 1965. The road-going Excalibur combined a coachbuilt fiberglass body that harkened back to the classic 1928 Mercedes-Benz SSK with modern underpinnings for contemporary ride and performance.

By 1970, Excalibur was well established but had engendered the birth of numerous imitators who were helping satisfy the demands of a market that the limited Excalibur production alone could not. The Stevens brothers didn’t want to increase their production rate for fear it would adversely affect the impeccable build quality that they wanted the public to enjoy. So, they launched the Excalibur Series II, an all-new car despite the fact that it perpetuated the S1 styling. As the old Studebaker Lark chassis was no longer built, David designed a new ladder chassis, which had a two-inch longer wheelbase. The suspension components were borrowed from the Corvette, as was the four-disc braking system. Tire size went up and the rubbers were mounted on wheels especially designed for the car. The 327 CID V-8 engine was replaced by a new 350 CID unit, which, with its anti-pollution equipment, still managed to develop a healthy 300 hp. The “Muncie” four-speed manual transmission became standard, with a Turbo-Hydramatic three-speed unit available as an option.

The Excalibur SII justified its extra cost over SI with its supplementary equipment. This included air conditioning, variable ratio power steering, adjustable steering column, servoed brakes, “Positraction” locking rear differential, chromed wire wheels, stereo, two spare tires mounted in the front fenders, driving lamps, air horns and constant level rear shock absorbers.

Despite the added mass of this luxurious equipment, the Excalibur Series II was capable of really sporting performance: 0-60 mph in under seven seconds and a top speed of 149 mph! Unfortunately, the production figures showed a steep decline at first with only 37 cars in 1970 and none whatsoever in 1971. What happened next is quite inexplicable, for from a production of zero in 1971, the figure rose to 122 the next year. Today the Excalibur Series II remains the rarest of all Excaliburs, with a total production number of only 342 against the Series I’s 359.

The reason was that David and Steve decided to retool the chassis and install a new engine. The first few series II cars built in 1970 had a box type rear frame section with a Chevrolet Camaro front frame stub bolted on. Then in 1972 the chassis was a new one, although still a ladder-type affair reinforced by a central ‘X’-shaped member and featuring a removable bolt-on front section. Wheelbase had once more been stretched to 112 inches and the whole new chassis assembly housed an equally new engine, a 454 CID big-block V8 that was used in Corvettes at the time. It offered the power to go with the looks. This was used through 1974. The Series II Excalibur used Chevrolet Corvette-spec engines in conjunction with a ladder-bar frame until 1975.

Many celebrities have owned Excaliburs, including Bill Cosby, Frank Sinatra, Steve McQueen, Dick Van Dyke, Tony Curtis, Shirley Jones, Sonny and Cher, Dean Martin, Jackie Gleason, Roberto Duran and Paul Harvey. One of the most enthusiastic owners was Phyllis Diller – she purchased four of them. The former king, Juan Carlos I of Spain, was another customer.

Competition to this Excalibur in 1973 included Jaguar’s E-Type V-12 Convertible, Mercedes-Benz’s 450 SL, Jensen-Healy Convertible and Alfa Romeo’s 2000 Spider Veloce.

This car is currently located at our facility in St. Louis, Missouri. Current mileage on the odometer shows 5,450 miles. It is sold as is, where is, on a clean and clear, actual mileage Ohio title. GET OUT AND DRIVE!!!

VIN: 736236

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