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I will be ordering my exhaust set soon from Waldron exhaust just up the road a bit from me,http://www.waldronexhaust.com.

Question, to Resonate or not. While I would opts for somewhat quiet as the Patrician is a "Luxury" ride, I also would like a bit of "Bite" that would not be out of proportion with the style of the car.

I have read no Resonate could give me this, but I also read where Glass packs have been subbed for the resonator and give a quiet ride with a bite when the 4 barrels are opened.

Thoughts?

When I did the exhaust on my 56 Carib I opted for glass packs in place of the resonators and I was pleased with the result. Normally very quiet unless you really get into it and then just a bit or a bark.

I personally like resonators on these cars. When done correctly (with good mufflers and resonators)you won't hear a thing out of the tail pipes, which is how I think a Packard should be.

John, I agree. Doing mine with glass packs was a not very intelligent decision of mine at the time. I had just bought my Carib and knowing what a money pit they can become I decided to minimize unnecessary expense and just do essential mechanical needs and enjoy driving. I look back today after a new and correct interior and a very professional paint job at Automotive Restorations (they of so many Pebble Beach winners) and some chrome work and I just laugh! I paid $12,000 for the car and though I'm not underwater in it I'm certainly closing in on it.

But there have been good things as well, not a single bit of rust or prior body damage - the body straight and as clean as the day it was built. And at 97,000 miles and engine that still runs great with good compression and oil pressure. And again as with cars that have never been off the road, no significant mechanical issues, just routine wear items. And about 20,000 miles of driving enjoyment. Ross' Ultramatic job is just an absolute joy to drive.

So here I am wondering why I was cheap when it came to resonators - but not entirely unhappy with the result. If the current aluminized steel system gives up the ghost while I still have the car, I'll go back to pure stock.

I'm thinking about taking it on the 9th Henry Joy Tour which has just been announced.

http://www.packardclub.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=3052

On the last one I did, the resonators didn't fit so they were left off and straight pipe subbed. The result was not objectionable at all. And, given resonators rot out first, beneficial for the rear quarter panels.

I don't know why they call them resonators. I only know that when you look at the rear quarters on those cars the effects of exhaust blowing through rotted resonators is evident. The 60-68 Lincoln Continentals have the same problem. The resonators rot and blow exhaust on the sheet metal.

Of course there is always stainless. But that is getting hard to find.

My car came to me with stainless duals, without resonators. It still looks brand new in spite of being 7-9 years old. I'm not one to drive it on wet streets to prevent further feeding of the Tin Worm, but the exhaust sure does look nice from underneath. Better yet, it also sounds Packard-like; a low, dignified quiet rumble at idle and a bit more assertive when the throttle is pushed. I wouldn't change a thing (perhaps a bit more tire clearance) but be aware that stainless expands and lengthens more than aluminized steel. You can almost watch the rear tailpipe grow from their cool positions in the rear bumpers. So far, no clearance issues with frame rails.

One more thought, on the subject of resonating or not: the further back you get from engine heat, the corrosion factors increase. Resonators would go first in a steel system. From my Dark Days of automotive service in the 1960s, Ford pushed their mufflers all the way back in an effort for Quiet equals Quality campaigns. Mufflers would rot in two years with that change (plus leaded gasolines). This led to them introducing aluminized steel mufflers to quiet customer complaints about the rear mounted mufflers that never really got hot enough to deal with corrosive condensation build-up.