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Re: The Search For The Missing Packard Pan Americans (and a bit about prototype Caribbean #1)
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Okay, all of this stuff will be covered in the upcoming article to be published in The Packard Cormorant magazine. However, in the meantime, both the white car and the gold car were extensively modified, with the white car being the worst of the two. So I don't recommend going by much of anything you see on either of these two cars as a historical reference. Again, the original Pan American door logo scripts were gold plated. Trust me on this.
Posted on: 2018/8/8 18:07
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Re: The Search For The Missing Packard Pan Americans (and a bit about prototype Caribbean #1)
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Hi Steve... Neither. The logos here are from a Pan American currently undergoing restoration. They are dead original, just as they were removed from the car. Very delicate pieces too! But all intact. But... it would be nice if I could get my hands on the medallions that MichaelP posted on here a few years back. Wonder where they ended up?
Posted on: 2018/8/8 18:02
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Re: The Search For The Missing Packard Pan Americans (and a bit about prototype Caribbean #1)
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Which car? There were 6 Pan Americans... and keep in mind that several of these cars were modified. Pan Am #1 was hugely modified. Anyway... the original door logos were in gold, as you see here.
Posted on: 2018/8/8 0:19
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Re: The Search For The Missing Packard Pan Americans (and a bit about prototype Caribbean #1)
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Thought you might enjoy seeing these. And yes, they are real... and yes, they are original! Now... whatever happened to the little triangle medallion and Henney logos that MichaelP once posted on here? Attach file:  (464.59 KB)
Posted on: 2018/8/7 13:24
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Re: '52 Imperial Parade Phaetons
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Ahhh. Great video footage. Does my heart good to see the old United Artists theater back in her prime. This was a beautiful, beautiful theater inside. Last time I saw the theater, she was in terrible shape, boarded up, abandoned and unloved. Sad. And nobody today seems to know it but the same building where the UA theater (shown here on Bagley Avenue) was located was actually the national headquarters of the AAA Automobile Club. I once ran computers for them in this very building which was a wonderful place to work. The whole area was peppered with classy hotels, restaurants, theaters and night clubs. All gone now. Directly across the street from the AAA National Headquarters building was the headquarters of the AAA of Michigan. Years later AAA pulled the plug and moved everything to Dearborn. Just up the street was the fabulous Michigan Theater where Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr. once performed... and where Disney's Peter Pan debuted. Incredibly, that beautiful theater was gutted, walls knocked out and turned into a parking lot. Heartbreaking to see. Should I mention this was all just steps from where Henry Ford once tinkered with cars made out of bicycle parts? Thanks for the time machine trip back to the glory days...
Posted on: 2018/8/7 13:12
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Re: '52 Imperial Parade Phaetons
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Yesss... but in the video Jay fell into the usual repetition of the mythical "Kelsey-Hayes wire wheels" story. Not. The wheels on these cars (the ones Jay is talking about) as of the update by Creative Industries were all made by Motor Wheel Company-not Kelsey-Hayes. K-H wires were different and yet they continue to be mis-identified nearly every time wires are mentioned in print, in auctions, in videos and on and on. One would think that by 2018 this automotive history ought to be known-especially by so many knowledgeable sources. Anyway, Motor Wheel also made the wire wheels for Packard in the 1950s. And the original 1952 versions of the Imperial Parade Phaeton cars carried Borrani wire wheels with simulated knock-off hubs-still not K-H. These wheels were deleted during the updates at Creative Industries and replaced with units similar to Chrysler production wires which again were also made by Motor Wheel Company. The biggest difference between the Packard and the Chrysler wires was the center cap. However, the Imperial Parade Phaetons and any Imperials so equipped actually differed ever so slightly from mere Chrysler wheels. And Chrysler wires differed from Dodge and Plymouth wire wheels although all carried the same center cap. Ask me how I know...
Posted on: 2018/8/7 12:52
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Re: '52 Imperial Parade Phaetons
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Hello... of course, the coachwork, engineering and finishing of these cars was done by Creative Industries of Detroit-who also did the Packard Panthers... Packard Request and serviced/rebuilt the Predictor (after it caught fire and turned the roof into a barbeque grille and the passenger door into a window toaster!). This despite not being credited as such. By the way, the car at the Petersen has been changed more than twice and does not have the same appearance today as either of its original guises. And it is a mystery how what is claimed to be "red" leather is actually very brown in the car at the Petersen. The NYT article is rather laughable and obviously written by someone far too young to realize that these cars indeed could be and indeed were "parked on the street" despite the silly claim that they were "too big to be parked on the street". For crying out loud... New York City never saw a longer limo than the Imperial Parade Phaeton??? "Stretches 20 feet"... 20 whole feet??? How many classic era regular cars did that? 20 Feet sounds big to a young person of today... but it just sounds big. C'monnnn! As for Information about the Chrysler Parade Phaetons and the compendium book of Chrysler Idea Cars mentioned here, this is also included in the book, Creative Industries of Detroit- The Untold Story of Detroit's Secret Concept Car Builder. By the way, there is a Chrysler Parade Phaeton shown in the book on Page 15 with an edit error on the caption under the image. It should state that the car shown is a late version rather than "early" version. The book that has the Parade Phaeton info and is pointed out in one of the posts here is also shown and talked about on Page 56 of the Creative Industries book. Finally, the car pictured is not the 1952 version. It is the updated version. One is one. The other is the other.
Posted on: 2018/8/2 23:31
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Re: The Search For The Missing Packard Pan Americans (and a bit about prototype Caribbean #1)
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Holllld onto your potatoes!
Hehehehehehehehehehehehehehe... Found another one of the missing Pan Americans... and have one beyond that in my sight! Been searching for this one for several years. And there's a lot more to the story. Wait until you see the issue of The Packard Cormorant with the whole story. Coming later this year!
Posted on: 2018/7/28 14:05
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Re: The Search For The Missing Packard Pan Americans (and a bit about prototype Caribbean #1)
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I am very, very, very pleased to say... guess what I found today?
Posted on: 2018/7/27 18:47
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Re: '56 Patrician New Owner Questions.
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Some additional information important to this car...
Many of the folks rebuilding these transmissions do not understand this equipment and try using methods used on conventional automatics to rebuild... then end up damaging the transmission. A couple of very important points on the 1956 Twin Ultramatic transmission that are almost always ignored, or not known, but can lead to troubles: 1.) The 1956 Ultramatic is all aluminum case and bell housing. If one uses 1955 or earlier torque specs (many people have done this and could not figure out later what was wrong), the bell housing bolts will strip the threads in the case and adios muchacos. The front gasket will leak forever after that. And there will be other problems. Also those bolts need to be installed in the precise exact factory positions or... you get a leak again and other problems. 2.) The mating between the pan, gasket and case needs to be clean, dead flat (pan flange and case) and properly torqued. Over-torque it and you've got stripped threads or distorted pan flange or both... and then you've got a leak again. 3.) The torque converter halves need to be marked in such a way (PRIOR to disassembly) that they are re-assembled in the exact same position as when they left the factory. Most people doing re-builds on these converters/transmissions don't seem to know this fact and end up with a vibrating trans or worse. And then can't understand why and blame it on the Ultramatic. If your torque converter flanges don't have a mating mark, they are probably assembled improperly.
Posted on: 2018/7/24 20:53
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