The....force....is ....strong
 

Two friends of mine are Merc heads for the most part, however, if you mention Packard both of them bow towards Detroit as both of them are of the opinion that nothing has ever built better than a Packard (including Rolls which one of them owns a 1937 model). The problem is that their philosophy is starting to wear off on me. Do I resist or let the draw take me over? I have already been seriously eying a few 1948-1953 models. The 1948-1950 'bathtubs' have a strong draw on me. I have been reading about the history of Packard. Their principles of build quality in 1905 puts cars today to shame. Do I need therapy?

No you obviously need a packard!

I have always admired the bathtub bodied ones too.

The engines are antiquated though compared to the ohv caddies and such.

Tom W

Yet when maintained very smooth and amazingly quiet.

I look at this and I lose control:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=016&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=260205695814&rd=1

The Packard straight eight was a marvel of quiet quality in its day. By the late forties though it was very outdated....that probably contributed to Packards demise.

I used to see a black limo of that era on the way out to one of my favorite houses (that I designed and built.... a full boat solar home). It was parked in an old masonry garage with windows. The last five years or so though, it is not there anymore.

It is a handsome car in Limo form.

I like the forty nine caddy limos too.

Tom W

The Packard will probably be better therapy in the long run.....literally.

Luke, let go. Come over to the dark side . . . . (Sound of heavy breathing . . .)

I saw a great survivor of a 1949 Packard the other day. I really liked it as well, but my heart belongs to the long wheelbase cars from 1934-35. Too bad I will never have the cash to buy one.

The last couple years before they merged with Studebaker they had a decent V8 but it was heavy...

They sound very expensive.

From the book that I am reading on Packard they did seem to transition to newer technologies after many other manufacturers already had. They were later than many on using multiple cylinders, four wheel brakes, hydraulic brakes, and overhead valves. Yet this is the same company that developed their first V12 in a very short time and introduced features such as the automatic clutch, ride control, and four wheel self leveling suspension. Also, Packard's early power steering and automatic transmissions where more advanced than others. They were not out for performance, but for comfort and durability.

My two Packard friends are passionate about the post war straight eight engine for is quietness, smoothness, and torque.

This has even become the my wife's belief.:eek: Hmmm.....what else will she let me have? (I want a W108.014, a W111, a W113, W120.110, a 189.010..............)

It is getting more difficult by the day to have any resistance. There was a '48 that I was going to look at, but it got snagged up.:( Both of my friends are looking for me. Neither has said anything to me, but I believe both of them have a goal to get me into a Packard before the fall of this year.

Packards are nice. I can't wait until the day I can buy nice antique cars. My first buy will be either a split window beetle or a Split window 23 window deluxe samba

Packard. Trying to relive the experience.
 

They really are, when you try and keep one fixed and in running shape.

A friend of mine got one, (about 10-15 years ago.) It was a 1956 "The 400" model, a coupe, local to the SF bay area all its life, even to the original 1956 yellow and black plates it came with.

Just another Baby Boomer wanting to relive his childhood again, because his father used to own one of them when he was a kid.

One of the worst money pits I ever heard of.

I lost count of all the "Ultramatic" transmissions and self leveling suspensions that had to be replaced over and over. He finally had to convert the thing to a Chrysler "Torqueflite" transmission, trading originality for reliability.

He had thrown over $20,000 at it, (you can do that if you are a lawyer that never had babies) and it still had thin paint, cracked glass, pitted chrome, and lots of other problems.

Road manners? You have GOT to be kidding me. It doesn't have them. Corners like a brick going sideways, and rides like a ballooon going down a river....

Still has problems, but it is coming back. He belongs to the club and goes to the meets, is the editor of their club paper, called the "Cormorant" or something like that I think.

He also owns a couple of really nice BMWs, and 1989 Rolls Royce Silver Spur but of all his fleet, that old Pink and White 1956 "The 400" Packard really gets the looks.

1956 was the last year of the "real" Packards, a competitor to Lincoln and Cadillac.

Talk about a kick in the nads, when I was in high school there was a Packard that was abandoned at a friends dad's apartment complex, IIRC it was running and in pretty good shape; there was also a 1978 Chevy K-5 with snow plow that I purchased for $5000------------------he wanted $300 for the Packard. I did make some serious loot (even by todays standards) with the K-5 but hindsight is always perfect.

Back then Snowblower were rare and I could reel in more than $1K on a snow day.

My friend who is the curator likes encourages me to find a 1948-1954 because many were sold and parts are not too back to get. he was telling me that he goes to NAPA to get brake parts for his which I believe is a 1941.

Also, my 1999 E300 between 48K and 64K miles had nearly $2800 in repair! Now what is expensive?

The challenge for me would be that if I get one I am going to want to drive it 6-8 months out of the year.

I've just been looking at Packards on the internet. Ebay has 12 of them for sale in various conditions and at various prices. I like the prewar ones a lot more than the postwar ones.