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  Reed plans big things for a car company that produced some stylish vehicles ... Studebaker concept pictured.

Revival attempts to the long-dead Studebaker marque are underway in the US.

But details are sketchy and the patient may be in for a long recovery period.

Colorado-based clothing shop owner Ric Reed has bought the rights to the Studebaker car company that ended its life in 1966 after 64 years of vehicle manufacture.

Reed plans big things for a car company that produced some stylish vehicles, particularly in the 1950s and 1960s. But first he must find funding and then embark on his six-step plan that proposes the company first put its name to a range of Chinese scooters before moving into vehicle manufacture with hybrids. But even before that starts, Reed says on his website disclaimer that "we are almost ready to sell Studebaker shirts and hats."

Reed, who runs the Big Kahuna apparel company in Colorado, bought the rights to the Studebaker marque from his business partner. He says he wants to "revitalise Studebaker's classic labels like the Lark, President and Hawk."

"As the entrepreneur at the helm of Studebaker Motor Company, it is my earnest goal to create vehicles that are in some way reminiscent of classic Studebakers, or in other words, definitively Studebaker, yet brought into the 21st Century, and again to see Studebaker Motor Company the American Icon it once was," he says.

He says it is his dream to reopen the old Studebaker factories in Indiana and employ Americans. He also wants to make a hybrid car because he believes electric vehicles still need development - ironic given Studebaker's first cars in 1902 were electric.

Despite the 46 year gap since the demise of Studebaker, the marque is popular with enthusiasts. The US Studebaker Drivers Club, for example, has 12,000 members.