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1941 120 listed as a Custom Body Town Car, by Rollson.

http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/cars-for-sale/packard/120/1769564.html

Not sure what to make of it...

Haven't we seen this car (or perhaps one of the other two) on this forum, or am I reading too many Packard books? While an interesting concept in a very formal car, it's certainly not one I'd choose to call attractive. But then again, I am not descended from either Astors or Vanderbilts.

My grandmother who did have both money and a chauffer for her Packards between World Wars, did seem to have a sense of propriety in the cars she chose to be seen in. Only once in a series of black closed sedans did she go off the reservation with a 1938 or 1939 yellow Super Eight convertible sedan. She must have enjoyed her second childhood with that one because it lasted her until the Buick-buying started after the war. Her brand loyalty appeared to be with a particular salesman who had moved from a Packard dealership to a Buick one. By that time she had reverted to conservative Buick Roadmaster sedans and the chauffer had gone off to other things. Her daughter drove that Packard convertible that her mother passed down until one one of those Buicks was cast off into her direction. I sure wish it had been kept in the family. If it had been this Rollston formal sedan, I might not have wanted it as much.

Not sure what to make of it...

I think you can very safely assume it's a legitimate car, Rollson (and Derham as well) did a nice little business with custom and small series semi-custom jobs on the 120 chassis. Rollson in particular was known for the "razor-edge" formal sedan style. Pictured is a similar 1941 by Rollson, this the ex-Kevin Gaffney car; this was done on the 160 chassis short wheelbase and the conversion was done on a sedan. Since the body and interior from the cowl rearwards was discarded, starting with a 160 was a smart economic choice.

Also pictured, another Rollston razor-edge job, this on a 1934 1101 chassis, this one a bit more severely formal with the vertical split windscreen. Owned at one time by the Vanderbilts who bought it 2nd hand to help out a friend in financial distress (or so the story goes).

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One would have thought that a customer with the money to afford a custom coachbuilt car would have been put off by buying the "low end" model instead of a 160 or 180. Going to that expense and then rolling up to the country club or opera in something so mundane could have been traumatizing to Mrs. Gotbucks. Since there was a nice business on the 120 chassis, aside from a lower cost which I imagine the coachbuilder took the most advantage of, is there something else that made the 120 more the acceptable choice -- like maybe Packard didn't offer something that was needed or wasn't available on a senior chassis.

Purchaser's perception of cost versus value received.

Two more photos of Rollston-built junior formals, these on the 1938 "Eight" (120) chassis. In addition to the cost advantage, they were certainly more nimble than their senior counterparts which perhaps was an attractive feature.

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The 120 was quite a snappy car due to less weight, and It still had the long hood like the 160. Possibly was a better choice in large cities.

The ad also states "museum quality," which in my book means it's neither good enough to win prizes at shows (vinyl instead of leather, cotton instead of wool, rattle can chassis paint, modern-looking wiring, paint instead of woodgraining, etc.), nor mechanically sound enough to take on tours.

The lines do fit the 38 body style much nicer.

Also, in doing a little hunting I found this nice write-up:http://www.coachbuilt.com/bui/r/rollson/rollson.htm

One of the 3 is pictured along right side, about 2/3 of the down the page.

It's pretty cool that the company still exists, because they were able to branch out into new endeavors that leveraged their skill set.

The real shame about Rollson and its connection to Packard (and others who they built bodies for) is that their archives, once complete and intact, were rifled by some thoughtless hobbyists that Rudy let in to view them; some documents purloined and the balance generally left in a shambles so we really don't have the benefit of the once complete Rollson archives anymore. Derham's archives survived somewhat better and what's left can be browsed on the CCCA Museum's site.

From an aesthetic point of view, this car is a little off putting. Perhaps, as stated in other posts, it's the severity of the lines that give it a boxy-look, not the sleek flowing-style of other Packards of the same period. But, I'll readily admit, as Sgt. Schultz in the old TV "Hogan's Heroes" used to say, "I know nothing."

as always
Garrett Meadows