1956 Conner Production

Posted by Dave Brownell On 2016/4/26 9:38:00

For those of us who share our automotive enthusiasm with Packards and other makes, boring stats can become fascinating. I think my Corvette friends can out-do almost anyone when it comes to dates, changes and parts number correctness. For me, their publishing of the vehicle number of the last Corvette produced each month of a production year allowed me to accurately tell when each of my four were produced, either in St. Louis or Bowling Green.

The various accounts of the many Perfect Storms of Packard's final year in Detroit continues to grow; the latest having to do with the confusing overproduction and dumping of past models to compete with current cars in dealerships. Ward even comments that only 229 cars were produced in February to smoothe the mix between stock and demand. Was anything easy coming Packard's way in 1956?

With factory shut and slow downs, is there a comparable way to determine, say when my Executive hardtop (5677a-1352) entered the fray in those last few months? I know that they were introduced March 5, but with that low production in the month before, it's unlikely that mine primed the dealers stocks before the introduction. With only a comparative few Executive hardtops made in the final three months, having a final vehicle number for each month of the 56xx series would be enlightening. Is the only answer to my question in the South Bend archives or might it be elsewhere?