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... if my car originally came with power or standard steering.

I bought '53 Patrician from a yard, and the steering gear, engine, and trans were already gone when I bought the engine. I've recently found the steering column parts in the trunk, but with little knowledge learned about Packards to this point, I haven't a clue how one discerns what type of steering the car may have come with having so little to work from.

About all I have for clues is the shaft, and the gear's mounting bolt pattern on the frame rail. I'm guessing the bolt patter is identical regardless of steering type? If these cars ever came with build sheets in them, I doubt one still exists in mine.

For whatever it may be worth, I've noted this car was apparently ordered with a lot of options due to the parts I have identified. No power windows or seats, but everything else seems to point toward a buyer who wanted about as much as they could get their mitts on.

Any help will be of great help.

Warm regards!

Miracles sometimes happen so feel around the top of the metal cover over the glove drawer for a narrow strip of paper that might be taped on. That is where most lucky people have found build slips that might still be in the car.

The steering box mounting hole pattern is identical standard vs power so not much help. One possible way to tell if it had power steering is look about 6" in front of those steering box mounting holes for another set of fairly large holes on the outside of the frame rail. I think there were two -- maybe three -- but essentially one above the other. Don't know if the holes were on all frames but probably so. Power steering cars had a heavy bracket for attaching one end of the power cylinder. That bracket would have used those holes so you might be able to tell if it appears there was something mounted in that spot at one time.

As the steering gear box had different internal ratios for manual versus power steering, you could check the ratio of your gear box and compare it to the specifications for power and manual steering.

Thank you, Gentlemen. Your responses will certainly help me to hopefully discover the answer to my question.

Warm regards!