I knew this car seemed familiar. About a year ago, we got a solitary shot at the Cohort of this rare Packard drop-top in motion. Now, about a year later, it shows up again, and on this occasion captured by Staxman in a parking lot in British Columbia. Talk about a find adding some classic elegance to a humdrum location.
With a few more shots in hand, this chromey and classy Packard deserves a second –and closer– look.
If you wonder, it’s indeed a rare survivor. As I told in last year’s post:
“Only 2,268 droptops came out from Packard for 1953. 750 of them being Caribbean models, and 1,518 belonging to today’s find. For ’53 this “smart new Convertible” was powered by a 180hp Thunderbolt 327cid Straight Eight, with four-barrel carburation and chrome-plated pistons. By all accounts, an incredibly well-balanced and silky smooth powerplant. Part of the magic of the Packard name and its dignified ride.”
As usual, more than one Packard fan added his thoughts on the maker’s Straight Eight in that post’s comments section. It’s a recurring theme in such Packard posts.
As for other specs, for ’53 Packard offered two wheelbases; 127″ and 122″. This convertible, along with the coupes, rode on the shorter 122″. Shifting was via an Ultramatic, standard on the convertible.
Styling updates for the ’53 line were mostly limited to trim, as they wore bodies little changed since ’51. Since that date, featuring a low and wide interpretation of the Packard radiator/grille, with various degrees of decoration. From toothy to less cluttered, with the ’53 falling somewhere in between.
Against the offerings of the Big 3, the Packard interior comes across as rather restrained. In all, a package that offered subdued elegance. A practice that went against the grain in those increasingly flashy 1950s.
The ’53’s Chrome winglets atop the rear fenders are nicely visible in this shot. A way to make the older body catch up with those Jet Age trends the rest of Detroit was pushing at the time.
One last view at today’s subject, the typical classic that comes out of storage to bring some style to the summer. Let’s see what other surprises these sunny days bring in the next few weeks.
Related CC reading:
Cohort Outtake: 1953 Packard Clipper Two Door Sedan – A Stripper In Nevada
WOOF! Great cars. Fine example.
“Chromy and classy”…I agree 110%!
Stodgy and a bitheavy handed, imo, but overall an excellent automobile. However I’d disagree that the 327 Thunderbolt was the greatest of straight eights, I’d give that honor to the dohc 420 cu in 265 hp straight 8 of the Duesenberg, or Packard’s own indestructable 356 cu in straight 8 with 9 main bearings. That said the 327 was itself an excellent engine.
The 9-bearing engine got some tweaks for the 1954 model year giving it V8-like power, but with a straight 8’s intrinsic smoothness and lack of vibration. I’d probably prefer it to the new V8 that was used in ’55-56; however, I much prefer the rest of the car from those last two years to the overly plain-looking ’51-54.
Nice car, they could only build what they could sell, so numbers are lowish, Packard didnt quite keep up with styling trends but the Packard reputation kept the factory going, they built fine cars for a very long time, and then it turned to custard.
Kaiser-Frazer got in trouble a number of times for building more than they could sell.
I caught the car at the Great Canadian Superstore, 350 SE Marine Drive, Vancouver–a humdrum location indeed. I didn’t get to talk to the owner, but I did strike up a conversation with another admirer of the car. He was surprised to learn that a young John DeLorean played a role in designing the Ultramatic. I was actually in Vancouver for a few days around the time Jerome got the in-motion shot, but I didn’t cross the car’s path at that time.
Those are B.C. collector-car plates.
I came across this one a few years back as well – beautiful car!
I came across this one as well a few years back – beautiful car!
Look at the license plate…it’s the featured one! 🙂
Subdued elegance was a hard sell against the flashy blingy-ness of the post war Cadillacs. It also didn’t help that the Cadillac, was in my opinion, a superior car in every aspect to the poor Packard. The post war prosperity created an expanding market for the Nouveau Riche, and the Patrician buyers of the earlier Packard models, found themselves out of step. Still, this Packard now appeals to the old man that I have become. It’s a beautiful survivor.
Automobile Quarterly put out Packard The Pride in 1989, and this car is featured, then owned by the son of local hoteliers who bought it new. I can’t imagine he’s still around, but glad to see it’s stayed local.
Wow! I’d be afraid to leave that in a parking lot! “Stellar/stunning”.
Until you pointed it out I’d never noticed the grille echoed the earlier ‘shouldered’ radiators.
Those hood ‘coves’ remind me of the pre-Farina Morris Oxford… (sorry!)