Quote:
PackardV8 wrote:
Rusty. Test bucks are always needed as long as anything is in production. For further testing and refinement for current oncoming model years.
The prototypes started being built long before '55. According to one source, the first automotive prototype, following the working Cyclecar, was a 1951 Packard known as A-1, tested for about a year after completion.
The next test car, the A-2, was a 1953, followed by 10 1954's.
So there were a total of 12 experimental cars prior to 1955. Since the frames in '55 were essentially the same setup, the system was thoroughly real-world tested by the time it was fitted to a production '55.
How many test '55s were made is not stated in my source. It does state that 11 of the original 12 Reinhart bodied cars, were destroyed, but Allison drove the remaining one "for many years" until an irreplaceable prototype part broke.
As far as the Patrician pictured above, I have only seen one photo of Bill Allison in front of the grill of a '55 senior, which could be the Patrician. It's on pg 593 of the Kimes Packard History. The above information on the prototypes is also from Kimes, pg 590-591.
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