Same body as this remarkably well-preserved and original 1939 Twelve Formal Sedan, recently shipped off to new owners in Scandanavia. This particular one is in fact built on a leftover 1938 Twelve body, as were about half of the 1939 Twelves. Note the cane shift, still available on the Twelve only.

Photos by this writer.

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Thanks for the number, and sorry but I have no record on that car. I can tell you that the number falls within a cluster of other Twelves and is fairly early within the model year production. Good luck with it!

And the theft-proof number is ............41XXXX?

Are you saying the plate is destroyed or missing? If not, how about a photo of it, and what is the theft-proof number? That is the large 6-digit number embossed on the cowl.

The Packard recommendations that I've seen called for SAE 50 motor oil. I get it at NAPA.

Colin, the vehicle number would be more useful than the engine number.

I see what appears to be a black arrow as pointing towards the area that typically has a crankcase vent in the center body of the pump. If so, gasoline leaking from there indicates a leaking fuel diaphragm. If that is the case, fix it quickly as you are also diluting your crankcase oil in addition to the fire hazard.

Apologies for jumping in. From your description it sounds like you should retard your timing 1-2 degrees and reevaluate your hot start situation. You are probably already at the pinging stage and just haven't been in the situation where you observed it.

Less viscous oils offer less resistance to flow, run cooler, and thus circulate more quickly which means they transfer heat better which is particularly important with poured bearings. My choice, assuming your engine is clean internally and in good condition, would be to select a modern major brand single viscosity detergent oil of the viscosity that Packard recommended for the temperatures you expect to encounter. I use CAM-2 or Formula Shell SAE 30 detergent in the not too dissimilar engine in my 1934 Eight.

Excellent analogy Joe, right on target!

As long as you're willing to accept plug wires walked around the cap to new positions and the distributor body in a different position than shown in the service literature, you can correctly time with any oil pump engagement. But not necessarily true universally for all engines.