Re: 1956 Packard "Esquire" Replica

Posted by BH On 2013/2/14 17:40:59
Yes, I was referring to the car's appearance - as even you, in your opening post, called it "a rather sad looking specimen".

It's impossible to tell from any photos what truly lies beneath a repaint - even if it had been restored to original colors. That's why I've always preferred to buy an unrestored original - even if it needs restoration. Though I don't know anyone who enjoys rust repair, you can see that many who frequent the P'info forums are willing to bite the bullet if it's the "right car".

Sadly, a proliferation of rat-rods in recent years have inspired too many newcomers down the "dark path". Regardless of the paint work and missing brightwork needed, I can only imagine the cost of replacing the interior with correct materials, now. Glad to hear the previous owner understands the error of his ways, which clearly affected the car's marketability.

I firmly believe that as long as it's your name on the title, you're fully entitled to do as you wish with your own property; however, some people fail to fully consider the consequences of their approach. Though it may not satisfy a purist of the "Nth Degree", I suspect that that your clone/replica will be of great interest to many Packard V8 fans.

So, I hope you'll take the time needed for your cashflow to keep up with the budget to achieve top-notch results with your project. If the repro Esquire scripts (that I've seen on eBay) are any indicator, then you appear to be on the right track. BTW, I agree with your re-interpretation of the trunk script, which parallels the addition of Caribbean script to the trunk lid on 56th Series models.

This Post was from: https://packardinfo.com/xoops/html/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?post_id=117702