Great Cars: PACKARD
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- Опубликовано: 24 окт 2017
- While many have forgotten that it ever existed, and many people weren't even born before the last Packard rolled off the assembly line, it is a car that still excites the passion of car lovers around the world. To them, it will always be enough to cite Packard's once famous ad, "Ask the man who owns one." We'll see how this company’s autos became known as the "cars built by gentlemen for gentlemen." And learn how a quiet and confident disdain for typical marketing ballyhoo propelled Packard to the top of the luxury market before its demise in the 1950’s.
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My dad, driving a 55 Pontiac tried to beat a 55 Packard up the hill to Lake Arrowhead from Los Angeles, in 1956. It was close, but the Packard clipped the win....big V8!
"If you think you can build a better car, you should" has birthed so many great automobiles.
My father was a Packard fan. He had a 39 sedan and a 40 convertible that no matter how I pleaded and begged, he'd never put the top down. It would blow mom's hair all out of shape. However, one sunny day dad and I were in the car without mom and he put the top down. I'm well into my 70's now but I'll NEVER forget my father and me driving into San Fernando, Cal. in that 40 Packard on that beautiful day with the top down.
What a wonderful memory. They were the top of the line. But not showy.
Packard fan is a brand of those staffs when it's a hot day..?
Your a lucky guy.
John Oakes very nice. Great memory!
beautiful and very personal memory and story Sir, thank you for sharing it here. I enjoyed reading it and it got me wondering about those long gone days of that era past.
greetings and God bless !
Years ago, early 60s, my big brother picked up a Gilroy, CA barn find, a '37 Packard 1502 V12 in surprisingly good original, complete condition--for $700!!! He cleaned it up and with assistance from an area pro, Jack Passey, rebuilt the engine and other systems to bring the car back to sweet roadable condition. He kept the car for several years, entering it in area shows and yeah, I got to cruise with him from time to time in it. THAT was cool!
When I was born my parents were driving a 1941 Packard Custom Super Eight One-Eighty. I love looking at the photos of my young 19-year-old mother holding me in her arms standing next to that enormous car - for she is only 5' 1" tall. She was a gorgeous woman with Hollywood beauty and it was fitting that she was driven around in that Packard. She didn't get a driver's license until she was twenty-five. Alas, by the mid-1950s, my parents were driving Studebakers exclusively until the company folded in 1966. We always had the sports car model i.e. President, Golden Hawk, and the GranTurismo two-door coupes. I liked those too.
In 1965, dad bought a Pontiac GTO - by 1967, the last Studebaker was sold and they owned Pontiacs for the next 30 years.
As for me - I love Jaguars and that's what I drive.
Packard was always one of my favorites.I had a 1955 Packard Clipper.
Just picked up a 55 Clipper Custom and saved it from the scrap man 👍
My dad was born in a mill village in South Carolina in 1934. He was always a fan of Packard and owned a 1937 (I think) and 1941 (I think) in his later years. He’s no longer with us but I think I now understand his enthusiasm for the brand.
Packard was the first car to offer Air Conditioning from the factory, I think that's "cool".
My grandparents had senior Packards and one of the cars in which I learned to drive was a '53 Caribbean. Great cars!
wholeNwon
Oh man, my long time Dream car ! And what an awesome car it was !
@VW But he said grandparents!
To be clear(er), my grandparents had the senior Packards. My grandmother would often drive herself and the children (too fast) who would squabble over the jump seats in at least one of them. It was my uncle who had the Caribbean when I was learning to drive. There was also a newer Cadillac convertible. It was more powerful and larger than the Packard, as I recall. But it lacked the solid feel of the Caribbean and I thought the seats were more comfortable. At least some of the power equip. was hyraulic I think and that was interesting to a kid.
You must be older than me born in 1961 the first two cars I ever drove .. My parents '49 Chevy and '61 Belaire Chevy both had 3 on the tree plus the Belaire had Borg Warner Overdrive
I have lamented the demise of several fine American automobile companies over the years, but to me there has been no greater loss of an automobile company than the legendary Packard.
Ny late paternal grandparents had a 1937 Packard that my late favorite took her driving test in it in Buffalo, New York in 1941. When it came time to park the car my aunt had a hard time parking it that the DMV examiner who gave my aunt the driving test tried to park it himself, he too had a difficult time parking it. The DMV examiner told my grandfather that he better get another car. My late aunt,late mother & late uncle called that Packard the Queen Mary, it was their largest sedan my late grandparents had.
I learned to drive in my Dad's '56 Packard. Me with my learner's permit and my mom would go cruising around the county on Sunday afternoons. Thing was a battleship. Would sink into the asphalt on hot days. Good times.
My uncle had a 1939 Packard Touring Sedan with a burgundy interior and exterior. I only rode in it twice. What I remember is that it was like riding in a massive, velour-themed dining room. The ride was flawless; I felt nothing even going over the nastiest roads here in Pittsburgh.
A little known fact-
As there was a 40% Tariff on all USA built cars & parts in Canada, they ALSO had a Packard plant in Windsor, Ontario from 1931 to 1939. Only the bare unwelded body panels and necessary mechanical parts got shipped from Detroit. All rubber was made in Canada, the glass was sourced out of England(no tariff with commonwealth countries). The plant was shut down in Sept 1939, when Canada entered WW2. It never reopened after the war
My grandfather kept a postwar Packard in mint condition until the day he died. It was a very well-made car.
The 51-56 packard survive in large numbers and are durable classics of great quality.
This otherwise good video ignores them, and that is a shame!
The 55 and56 model cars were technologicaly advanced and were very comfortable.
Cars to be remembered and respected.
I agree. The 1951 models were much more beautiful than the 48-50 models. I wander what de Lorean did in 1953, when there were no new designs. There was a beautiful 1954 hybrid that from the rear looked like a1955 Clipper.
There is an elderly man who is a long time friend of my father.....who is a big Packard fan......he has several of them in various stages of disarray on his property.....sad.
I just discovered your channel yesterday and I'm enjoying this series.....I just subscribed.....thanks for posting such great content!
Elegance, rolling works of art. It was a shame to see them meet their demise in the late 50's.
Thank you King Rose!
My father had a 1951 Series 200 Packard sedan. That car was so nice!
He was a salesman and drove many miles a year. The body began to
give out long before the straight-8 engine. I still remember that huge
back seat (4 kids) with itchy mohair (wool) upholstery (We brought
cotton sheets to drape across the bench seat in the back) I remember
many trips to the lake in that car! -- Good memories.
Dad sold the Packard it to a neighbor's teenager who wanted to make
a hot rod. (We never saw the completed hot rod)
I had Packard in high school in 1959, no idea what year the car was. It had a load leveler switch on it and my buddies would climb on the front bumper and I'd turn on the load leveler until it leveled out and then turn it off. When they got off the number, the car would have a huge rake, angling from high on the front to low at the rear. We'd drive around for a while and then do the reverse with them standing on the rear bumper. Then, when they got off, the front of the car would point toward the ground and we'd drive around with people wondering what happened:).
How could you not know the year of the car you owned and drove? I know the year of every car I've owned and even know the models and years of every car both my parents owned since 1960
I believe the '55 was the first year of the torsion level suspension In the Packards.
Years ago I saw a 1955 Packard being put up for sale. Other than belts, hoses and spark plug wires, it was in original condition, immaculate except there was a lot of sun fade on one side of the car's upholstery. This could have been easily re-dyed to make the car almost like new, it only had... if I remember right, about 10 thousand miles on it. Oddly, the dealer that sold it originally was still in business, but of course they weren't selling Packards they were selling Lincolns by that time. The engine ran so smooth, if you didn't see the fan blade turning, you wouldn't know it was running at idle. Actually it looked much like a 55 chevy that had been working out and was pumped up a bit. One unique feature was hydraulic shocks that would automatically level the car if you loaded the trunk or had people in the back seat, or both. Even though Packard wasn't what it used to be by this time, it was still a great car. I always thought 55 was the last year for Packards, but this vid says they were around until 59. Maybe they just stayed around long enough to sell off excess inventory, I don't know about that.
The last Packards were the 1956 models. There were false Packards in 1957 or even in 1958, but they were really Studebakers.
@@joseantoniovargasmendoza7141 well by the 50's they weren't exactly the kind of cars that Packard was known for. The most interesting thing on the 55 was a self leveling rear suspension.
We had such a good time tooling around in uncle Julius's 1909 Packard, Lawrence deserves the credit for rebuilding the car from a scrap heap find (the owner, an old Indiana farmer, had converted it into a truck and wore it out from work). It shifted so smoothly and the gearbox was so quiet you could have almost thought it had a modern automatic transmission! Plenty of power, I thought it had the torque of a farm tractor, but the beauty of a work of art. I do hope they restore the Packard plant in Detroit, it would make a great home base for Packard again.
Some of the most Beautiful cars ever produced. Would love to have one as a driver .
My GrandFather had Packard from the early 20 threw the late 50.In the 60s he had to go to Cadillac.I miss those Packard My Grand dad had.
I'm lucky enough to have grown up in a household that had 4 Packards (though we only really cared about 3). My dad's favorite, and mine, a Series 2, a 243 built in May 1926 as the company transitioned to the Series 3. Only Packard still left in the family, it has a Series 3 windshield. As I understand it, the car was owned by only 2 families. The first bought it to replace a 1916 Packard Touring car. My dad bought it from the same family in 1966. This one is also a Touring, and when it cooperates, is a pleasure to drive, albeit being a real handful. But that huge straight 8 engine, that a couple years later would be the Super 8, is super smooth, sounds great. Only real issue I have with it is dealing with the ravages of ethanol.
I briefly owned a Packard a1953 model , I drove it about 1000 miles when the engine blew , my dream car a very lovely piece of art work .
Great video as always and a Thumbs up liked. Its nice to see the history of great cars you post to your channel. The other day I asked my young son in law what is a Cord and he told me you plug It in and comes in up to 100 FT links . Its sad that lots of young people of today have no knowledge of the great classics. Yes LOL, I am afraid to ask him what a KAISER is because he would probably say its a Dinner Roll ! Anyway great videos as always and Thanks for the history bud.
My dad owned a Packard, he always remembered that car fondly.
One of the beauties of Packard was the quality of even the nuts and bolts. Another was the elegant simplicity of its engineering. My grandfather bought a 1927 touring sedan from a friend. Eventually the car needed new piston rings. Granddaddy, who had no mechanic's training at all, put in the new rings, and crankshaft bearings, to boot! He put it back together and drove it for many more years.
In '61, as a boy of 15 I rode from Indiana to Elmira NY in my sister & husband's white'53 Caribbean convertible which had been ordered new by Ruth Lyons, a Cincinnati radio and TV personality. My brother in law, who worked for Bendix in Elmira, had bought it for $2300. It took lots of gas so they sold it for $3300 & were proud of their financial prowess. He kicked himself for the rest of his life for selling that car...he didn't like to talk about it.
They had a great look. At least you had a fun ride.
That was one of the cars in which I learned to drive. Still have very fond memories of it.
I grew up riding in Packards. My Grandfather always drove them. When my Dad got out of College and got married again (my Mom died when I was 1 yo), I was sure disappointed to be riding around in a Ford. I got over it.
My Dad owned a '51 200 model, he always said it was the best car he ever owned. I grew up hearing lots of great stories about that car so I just had to get one. Two years ago I purchased a '53 Cavalier, looking forward to making my own memories with this fine auto.
Hello there! How's that '53 Cavalier treating you?
Hello Jake, I appreciate your interest. I have not done much with the Cavalier, hopefully this fall I can get started on my shop so I can have a place to tear into this car and build it into a reliable driver.
@@floyddianetti9023 Interesting stuff. I hope it turns out well. The few people I know that are into Packards tend to look with disdain upon the 1950s models, so I hope you can make something of it! The loss of both Packard and Studebaker was tragic. An irreplaceable part of America died with them. P.S. My first car is a 1962 Studebaker GT Hawk. It took me SEVEN YEARS to get her and I would sooner die than get rid of her.
Sounded like a Senior Sean Connery narrator... excellent 👍.... “ just asks the man that owns one...”... simply !
Glad you enjoyed it
R.I.P. Sean Connery.
A lovely tribute made for the most beautiful car ever conceived and built.
Nice overview and reasonably accurate except for the 1948 Clipper comment as there was no such thing. The Clipper name was dropped after the 21st series (1947) and wasn’t revived again until the 26th series (1953) on a shorter wheelbase entry-level Packard. By 1956 and for that year only, Clipper was a separate make and available as a 4-door sedan and stylish 2-door hardtop. Mid year, the top of the line Clipper Custom was discontinued and replaced by the Packard Executive which was also on the shorter Clipper wheelbase but had the Packard front fenders, grill and trim along with higher end upholstery. Around that time, the remainder of the Clippers, the Deluxe and Super, got a small Packard script on the lower right corner of the trunk lid.
Excellent story. They put more steel in bumper than a new car has in the whole car. I would love to have one of these cars.
But not as a daily driver. For that, you'd want a modern car: quiet, safe, functional, comfortable, air-conditioned, fuel-efficient, and stone reliable. Steel content notwithstanding.
I drove a 1941 Packard 110 convertible for many years. It was a cream color, with red leather interior, and a black top. It was a stunning looking car, albeit with a 3-speed column shift and a 100HP 6-cylinder engine. It was a junior car, not an esteemed senior model, but I enjoyed it immensely. The only thing I drive now is my wife crazy. I miss that car.
suddenly I feel elevated and sophisticated after watching this ! :-)
That Expo car they built is drop dead georgous car!!
A Studebaker dealership in my neighborhood closed in the 1950s and a brand new 1955 Packard sat in the window well into 60s. I thought that someday I would save enough shoeshine money to walk in and pay cash for that baby. Then one day , the building and the car where gone. Que sera.
Oddly, the program didn't really talk about the great Packard factory! Packard made many advances in producing cars, not just the cars themselves.
My Dad had 5 different Packards. He loved them and had to go to Cadillac when they went out of business.
Oh jeeez, from Royalty to mere gross opulence. He must have been sad...
Cadillacs and LaSalles were really something at that time. They were innovative and very stylish. Wouldn't it have been great if Packard had continued to build exceptional well built and innovative cars with beautiful stylish designs like in the '30s to this day.
Great cars, those Senior Packards were something else, but even the junior cars are something special (Like Doc Brown's in Back to the Future). We lost a bit more of Packard today, January 23, 2019. The iconic Packard bridge over East Grand Avenue in Detroit collapsed.
My good friend, Ed Herrmann had one of the juniors and it was a gem. I read about the overpass coming down. I'd thought someone had bought the plant and it was being saved. Such a shame. I'm guessing the land is probably pretty toxic and needs a great deal of work to make it safe for housing but I can see it being used for mixed-use housing and businesses. Should be called the Packard district and that arch should be rebuilt.
@@KingRoseArchives I agree 100% on the arch being rebuilt. I don't know what the structural condition of the buildings are but if they are solid some very interesting things could be done with them. What is going on in South Bend with Studebaker's Building 84 is fantastic.
My grandfather and two of my uncles were Packard men right until the end.
Nice
Wow! My favorite car, bar none!…Gob-smacked when they mentioned John DeLorean and the Caribbean…
Beautiful eye candy…
It’s always felt like it’s very own ad. Each time you see a Packard, you know what to expect.
If you’re kinda wealthy, you buy a Cadillac, if you’re yearning for a Exotic/Import ya get a Rolls-Royce. If you’re a big fan of the local flavor, you get Packard.
Not to mention, the Packard race cars packed a punch when it counted
Thank u for introducing us these beautiful classics
I come here to here that hauntingly beautiful theme music. Also the content is always fit for a king and smelling like a rose. This is class RUclips - don't demon-it-ize and hands off.
Nice video and Great cars, Thumbs up liked.
Did you know that the Packard Clipper of the mid-1950s had as optional a push button auto transmission selector that was located on an extension arm that stood out on the right side of the steering column? Unlike the push buttons on the Chrysler Corp, cars, it was an electrical arrangement whereas the button would activate the transy selector.
I remember seeing one at Barrett Jackson yrs ago. It was much better placed than the 58 Edsel buttons, which were on the steering wheel hub.
Ray Fridley It was an option on Packard but uncommon on Clipper. In fact, for 1956 only, Clipper was a separate make.
Lovely art works worth drooling over. You've got to give credit to these visionaries. Makes you wonder whether these retros shouldn't be brought back.
Excellent and informative video. Thanks for putting this together so that folks can learn about the history of a great company and its products.
Hopelessly inaccurate in many ways
Nick Jervis UK 🇬🇧
Ask the man who owns one
My dad had 56 studebaker golden hawk and swap out the engine 374 from a Packard carabean with his 354. Same size engine that that bolted right in. Plus he added dual 4 carbs. It was pretty fast.
In the early '50's my Grandfather had a old Packard with a long hood and a fan under the driver's seat....I didn't see anything wrong with it....Not wrecked and no rust....I went with him and my Dad to the junkyard where it was junked....That is a sad but true story....
My first car was a 1947 Packard I paid $ 125 in 1957
Great score, kid!
$125 in 1957 would be $1,147.56 in 2020 currency. Assuming your Packard (Clipper, judging by sales numbers) was driveable and in good condition, I would say you got your money's worth.
I love this series.
Beautiful I loved watching this video and I learned a few new things about one of the greatest and most beautiful automobiles ever made thank you.
The early models and especially the touring sedans were works of art
Gotta love Packards. I'm 24 years old going on 25 soon and my dream car is a 1947 Packard Super Clipper 2 Door. So, I'm very old school.
Good dream car
You are a young Man with great taste. Period. Keep looking, it's worth it ! Good luck son !
I myself own a 1962 Studebaker GT Hawk at the age of 19. I have my eye on Packards as well, but out of them all, I would have to go for a 120 four-door sedan.
My grandfather owned a agency in Jacksonville fla. I spent a lot of time there. It even had a shop that would make a set of seat covers for your car once you picked out your fabric. Packards were pricey cars and when the olds 88 came out and sold exstreamly well. The agency went out in the early fifties. I really liked the models of the fifty’s.
We had a 1937, I learned to drive it that incredible automobile.
This vid's making my 'sunday'! Thanks for posting.
There is a great Packard car museum in Fort Lauderdale which I recommend for classic car buffs. When I was a kid in Bermuda I remember that a funeral homethere had a big rounded Packard hearse.
BEAUTIFUL PACKARD CARS AN ALL TIME FAVORITE OF MINE JUST GOT AMODEL OF A 1953
Rose-tinted glasses, yes. Some very stylish and elegant cars in the Thirties, though.
Excellent video, and thanks.
Please do an entry on Hispano Suiza!!
Absolutely a GREAT video! Thank you!!
23:58 is my fav and it's such a shame they dont make cars like this anymore:(
Such a shame they're gone. The industry said they were the one car company we couldn't afford to lose.There once beautiful manufacturing plant, the largest in the world when Albert Kahn designed it, sits abandoned, forlorn, and gutted, never to see anything manufactured there again. A dying symbol of what was once a great American city.....
Narrator Reg Abbiss absolutely MAKES the Great Cars series!!
20 years ago I spoke to one of the directors of a small local haulage company that was closing. They ran a small fleet of Foden lorry's and the guy told me it would have been cheaper to buy Ford lorry's and replace them every two years than run the Foden lorry's for five years. Foden were Roll's Royce of lorry's and at that time owned by Packard of USA which I did not know until then. Foden which had started with steam lorry's in the 1850's had already gone out of business. Farrant's yard of High Brooms closed with a lovely fleet of 10 year old Foden's which presumably went to another branch of this century old Kent, UK company.
Turns out I got it wrong it was Paccar, of USA (easily misheard)
Thanks for sharing this. I didn't know that Packard had any holdings in the UK.
@@KingRoseArchives turns out I got it wrong it was Paccar, of USA (easily misheard)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foden_Trucks
Great video just great !!! Thank you .
Like the one from Back To The Future. Doc's cream yellow convertible.
Thank you for using your industry's best voice overs . .
Beautiful works of art . If I could I would own a dozen of these beauties .
The Mustang fighter plane wasalso a thing of beauty . This design age is unparralleled
My first Packard was a 1950 . While still in High School . Wish I still had it now.
@Gen. Lee Interested Regrettably, Packard quality had taken a nose-dive in the 1950s. The reason for this is because the top management felt pressured to increase production and become a more mass-market car company. This effect reached its nadir in 1955 when a lot of Packard's production was recalled due to body fitment and UltraMatic transmission issues.
What a great documentary. Excellent narration, very informative and wonderful film footage. And those cars ! In a word, WOW!!!
I love orphan brands . Its on my Lottery List with a great deal of oddball AMCs , Studebakers , Triumphs , and MGs , Tuckers , Citroens , Hudsons , Kaisers , and Willys's
Tell me about it! I myself have a 1962 Studebaker GT Hawk as my first car. It took me SEVEN YEARS to get her and I'd sooner die than give it up.
My grandfather was a distributor for Packard and Studabaker in Jacksonville Florida
I have a wonderful photo of my father washing a post war Packard limousine. He had to have a ladder to wash the roof.
Really excellent video. Thanks for the effort.
The funny thing about early Packards is they could do a mile a minute but not on public roads! They weren't smooth enough, so they poked around at 35 or 40.
My '48 Super 8 was my daily driver for years. Only problem was that it wouldn't start below 16 degrees f. Did everything a "modern" car could do, but with pizzazz!
That was great ! I really enjoyed that ! High point of my day.
Thank you, that was very interesting & well done
I almost got one a hotted up 56, green on green. MY smart uncle left it to me in his will. Another uncle got custody until I was old enough to drive. By that time he had bought 2 corvairs. He ran them each into the ground. By the time I got out of school, he had let my Clipper turn into a lump of rust, sitting forlorn in his driveway at the back of his 2 bedroom tract house. It never moved again. Damn his dimwitted hide.
i'm thankful that there was a packard and many others, they are a great legacy to ww2 and the automobile. but, there's a huge aftermath and story. the abandoned packard plant for starters.
The very first car that I ever drove ( summer 1959) was a 1941 Packard Super 8.
That was awesome.
Great video! I never knew about them!
Better keep those treasures off the road today with all the folks texting and talking on their phones.
you have a point, but anyone with pockets deep enough to own one these days can certainly afford to have it repaired, even if it's "totaled".
Oilhammer04
You got that RIGHT !!!!!!
If these cars are not being driven on the road, being seen in public view, who will care about them?
@@myrryxmas Not true.
Excellent video - beautiful cars!
Charles Webb was in his first class and had to go home to get a good time with him to the car he was a car and car seat car and car cars 🚗 is a nice
Packard ranged from 1899 horseless carriage to a tail finned 1956 model as of real Packard.
*Unfortunately, I remember (barely) when Packard/Desoto/and Studebaker were still on the road* *'Packard' for some reasons never saw 'the handwriting on the wall' and simply didn't understand the new post-war market at all and kept going after the Cadillac/Lincoln market instead of focusing on the 'new middle-class buyer' that wanted a stylish 'affordable' family car...especially 'station-wagons' for grocery-shopping and 'driving vacations' to 'see America'*
By the early 50s, Studebaker had plugged up the low and middle class sectors of the market as the largest Independent. Packard had to be at the top or nowhere at all.
Great vid. The thirties were the greatest auto designs ever. The depression killed everything.M.
Good 1940's background music too! M.
I owned a '50 Packard when I was in high school. It was huge and had that big straight-8 engine. I had to leave it with a family member when I enlisted in the military. When I got back some anal born kids had gotten inside it and destroyed the interior. At that time the costs to repair the car were just too much and it was scrapped. Now I wish I had been able to find some way to keep the car. It always ran smoothly and had never even had a minor fender bender. Too late smart, as some would say.
My grandfather had a soviet Lada :/
Thanks 🙏 for
very useful video
Adultery. Many have said that was the demise of that company. Sad thing is; it did not have to happen. Cool video, thank you.
Had no idea the Packards wers that FINE.
Some consider it the finest car ever.
@@gregorytimmons4777 Personally, I prefer Studebaker for my four-wheel fix but I have to admit that Packards were solid automobiles.
Love The Theme Song !