Re: A Marketing Anomaly to Ponder

Posted by Craig the Clipper Man On 2014/7/29 13:59:06

It might have something to do with the problems Packard was having with Briggs getting car bodies. When Walter Briggs died in 1952 Chrysler and Briggs entered into negotiations for the purchase of the body manufacturing group. It would have been hard for Packard to develop and build very many convertibles if they took away production of the better selling sedans and hardtops. Note that in 1955 and until the end of its Detroit run, Packard produced only one convertible in very limited numbers; there were no other senior or Clipper convertibles ever again.

Also, as air conditioning became more popular during the 1950s, the demand for convertibles declined. By the 1970s, convertibles almost disappeared. Note that Ford produced an all-convertible line of Thunderbirds from 1955 to 1957, then the numbers of hardtops began to diminish the demand for convertibles.