Re: Is this color correct?

Posted by RogerDetroit On 2012/8/15 22:31:19

The body color is incorrect and the instrument panel is also incorrect.

As someone mentioned only Packard Blue is non-metallic - true. All the other blues, Barola, Crescent, Algiers and Legion have a metallic/opalescent/luminescent base. That alone makes it incorrect. I have seen Barola and it is much darker than in the car presented.

Because the ad included a factory drawing I would guess they were trying for Algiers Blue and missed. It is much lighter and more subtle than what they did.

The instrument panel MUST be woodgrained. Check out the Data Book for 1941. Look at pages 25, 26, and 28. There are multiple citations where Packard describes the 110 woodgraining as Cuban mahogany and the 120 has burled walnut. Nowhere does it exclude open cars. I would rather rely on the voice of Packard in the Data Book over the seller or amateur restorer. Page 28 even has a nice photo of a woodgrained panel with the caption, "The striking new instrument panel of the Packard One-Twenty combines burled walnut graining with the chrome and plastic.

Steering wheel color needs to match the dash plastic. On page 30 of the Data Book there is a photo and two citations that the steering wheel is, "...finished in tones to match the plastic trim of the instrument panel." In other words, if the dash plastic is blue, then the steering wheel should be blue.

Personally, I prefer to rely on Packard's own voice as spoken in the Data Book to that of the seller or someone guessing.