The 1928 GB Commander was a descendant of the Big Six, being powered with the proven 354 cu in (5.8 L) engine, modified to deliver 75 bhp (56 kW; 76 PS) at 2400 rpm.

[1]: p259 In Australia, a crew of three drivers led by Norman "Wizard" Smith tackled overland records using a Commander roadster.

On a 3,000-mile run from Fremantle to Sydney, they smashed the previous record by 12 hours 23 minutes despite traversing 450 miles through blinding rain, and having to ford a river when a bridge had been washed away.

[2] These sixes were the last descendants of rugged cars designed for poor roads in the early 20th century—loaded with torque and strong in construction.

Immediately following World War II, Studebaker dropped its President models, and the Commander again was elevated in the lineup.

Raymond Loewy's highly distinctive shape for the 1947 Commander and Champion, spectacular on their Starlight coupe, led if it did not create a boom in America's trunk space.

However, in late 1952 Studebaker produced one prototype of a 1953 Commander convertible to determine if the model could be profitably mass-produced.

When the prototype convertible was no longer needed, engineer E. T. Reynolds ordered the car to be stripped and the body sent to the secret graveyard at the company's proving grounds west of South Bend.

The Commander line was extended with the introduction of a lower-priced Custom sub-series, being basically a Champion with a V8 engine.

1964 Studebaker Commanders most commonly had a dual headlight arrangement which they shared with the Challenger though quad headlamps were optional.