Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

g'day all, I have mentioned this before but I am very supportive of fitting Packard running gear to modernise Packards. My 1938 Richards 120 has a 1954 327 bored out 60 thou ( 340 ci _ and running 8.5 comp through a Holley 600). I am running an R6 Packard overdrive and this combination really surprises the local BMW's. I have seen 190kph on the GPS and it is sh@t scary. I have also fitted remote booster power brakes and a set of Rosary beads. I have converted the car to 12V alternator and it is a fab daily driver..a bit heavy on the fuel....but Prada was not inexpensive...Summary...you do not have to go out of the Packard stable to modernise your Packard. Convert to 12v alternator for night driving, fit a souped up 356 with R11 overdrive and buy a few shares in Texaco.... Kind Regards PT

Attach file:

---

  (156.63 KB)

Quote: "I added power breaks and a set of rosary beads"


Peter, is it optical illusion or is that windshield raked on your 38?

Peter, is it optical illusion or is that windshield raked on your 38?

Apologies for jumping in, but I believe that's a Holden-bodied Packard.

Quote:

Hi Boosqaut,

I have been in your shoes on other forums with my other hobbies (antique boats). You will find that there are people that are very passionate about there cars (nothing wrong with that) and will go at great lengths to press their opinions, sometimes very blunt on you about your vehicle in hopes that you will change your mind. Whether you are asking for their opinion or not it comes with the territory when posting on any forums you will just have to learn to ignore those certain posts.

I look at this way. It is your car and build it to suite you. If you want to build it to someone elses liking, then open a restoration shop lol. I do appreciate the fact that you made the effort and posted the engine and trans here so the core people of the hobby could have the chance to have first dibs on it and the fact at another Packard will be back on the road and not on the way to the crusher regardless of what drive train it is sporting.

It is better to drive and enjoy your car the way you want it.

Also I want to make it clear this is my own opinion and does not reflect on Kanter.

James

Hi

The Richards body is the same one used on 1938-39 Studebaker sedans. If I recall the coverage on those in both Packard and Studebaker club publications, T.J. Richards Body Company was also a Studebaker distributor down under...correct me if I'm wrong.

As for the main discussion: do as you will with your Packard, you've been advised of the up and down sides of whatever approach is taken. Some are tactful with their advice, others not. You do have to live with it, and ultimately it will get sold, no one yet has taken a car to the grave with them.......that we know of.

As much as an advocate of all-Packard-as-built or with-Packard-built-upgrades as I might be, ask me if I would want a 1940-48 Lincoln Continental running its original anemic H-Series V-12? I'd gladly rather have one with a later Lincoln Cosmopolitan flathead or better a '56-'57 368 ci OHV.....so no one is a pure purist!

Steve

If the transmission of the pulled engine shifts as nicely as mentioned, that alone makes the whole package a very good buy for the gentleman who purchased your spare parts. New gears cost around $700 for a set. Good exhaust manifolds are also very hard to find. This complete engine/transmission was one-stop shopping for someone.

While I am also a fan of keeping old cars original (authentic), I think that generalizing your opinions about Boosquat and what he does, and assuming that he won't finish what he started, is not fair. There are many modified project blogs on this site, and I do not believe they get this harsh treatment.

Ah yes, T. J. Richards body, not Holden. I knew better - my failing memory.

What I don't understand is why anybody chopping Packards to make hot rods would post on this sight. I don't think this is a good place for that.

It's no different than expecting approval from the Virginia historical society after turning Washington's birth place into a strip joint.

To say that hot rods keep Packards on the road is like saying that child prostitution is a program that provides employment.

I for one think a project like this is better kept private or in another forum. I don't send nasty emails to dealers selling junk hot rods. I just look at those cases as being a sad situation that doesn't lead to anything positive.

The states don't discriminate in the issuance of historic plates based on whether the car is a hot rod. I think that is because the cars are so unroadworthy they don't accumulate much mileage and don't represent a threat to roadway safety.

I remember a guy - Giff Oborn - who had the one of the Banacek cars. It had a non-authentic Chrysler flat head in it to do the TV show. If somebody said they dropped a Chevy Six into that thing to get it down the road I wouldn't say much.

To me this hot rod thing is just taking an axe to these cars. What's left is only good for a few trim parts. As I said in the beginning it's turning cash into smoke.

I don't want to know anything about these projects because I find them disturbing. Ditto some of the negative modifications being done in restorations that can't be reversed; which is why I don't deal with some of those nuts anymore.

First of all, I did not post on this forum seeking anyone's approval or disapproval, all I wanted to do was advertise the availability of an engine and transmission to those who desire to restore their Packard using genuine Packard parts. I posted on this forum to provide access to a very scarce Packard engine for someone who needed it to complete their restoration.

I could have junked the engine if I did not give a damn about keeping Packards on the road or understand the value of originality.

YOU started this whole thread with your nasty suppositions about the car in the background of the photo of the engine. You have followed that up with a series of insulting and presumptuous statements about my intentions, personal integrity, and motives.

If you are so concerned with originality, I imagine you are using oil from the 1930s in your Packard, genuine rayon cord Fisk tires, etc.

How many restorers cannibalize sedans to restore coupes and convertibles? How many coupes or sedans had their floor pans cut out to "restore" the rusted out floor of a convertible or convertible sedan? What about those who change the body style by fitting another factory body to an existing chassis because they wanted a touring car or a convertible sedan instead of a touring sedan?

A great many car owners make some concessions to safety and practicality if they wish to operate their cars on a regular basis. What is acceptable and what is too much? Swapping an alternator for the generator, converting to 12 volts, upgrading front brakes to discs, replacing bulb and reflector headlights with sealed beans or conversion kits permitting the use of halogen bulbs, replacing crumbling wiring with modern wire hidden within a period correct cloth covering, swapping in a more modern Packard straight eight, using Coker wide whites that happen to be the more modern radials rather than bias tires, substituting polished stainless steel louvers for hood sides or a stainless steel version of the Cormorant because it is lower maintenance, etc. etc.

I did not expect a positive reaction to my proposed modifications, and I realized that many purists would be critical of any modification deviating from factory correct.
This is one of a number of places I posted the engine for sale. The Packard owner who noticed my ad on Ebay was polite, very knowledgeable about Packards, desired to restore his Packard and was very pleased to find someone who had what he needed to complete his restoration. He did not badger me about my intentions and wished me well with my Packard and my efforts to get it back on the road.

I will go over and join the folks in the modified forum and leave you to the pristine world of uncompromising originality. If I come up with any additional parts that someone might need or could use, would it be OK for me to post the ad for those, or will you start all over again about how horrible it is that I am not using them myself?

As a forum ambassador I am going to invoke the privilege of authority and ask that posts to this string be ended. First, this member is new to the website and came here to offer the takeout engine for a reasonable price. That he is upgrading his drivetrain for modern convenience is not, and has not been, a matter for debate on any other "modified" threads, so l therefore request for the good of the decorum of this website, and especially in respect to this new member who appears to wish nothing more than to proudly fly the Packard flag, that further sparring about his morals, future plans and/or religious or political beliefs, immediately cease and desist.

Thank you.

DAF