Repairing '55 Clipper seat panels

Posted by Craig the Clipper Man On 2017/7/3 10:08:34

For more than a year now I have been scouring the Internet in search of what must be the most elusive part for a 1955 Clipper -- a left side seat panel for an electric seat. I have seen 1 right-side panel for sale on eBay, but that is the only one I have ever seen.

Sixty-two years ago when it was built, the seat panel for the Clipper was probably viewed as little more than window dressing; so I don't think Packard put a lot of thought into how the panel rested atop a roughly 1-inch-by 1/8-inch steel tab jutting up from the center of the seat. This post is stationary; so every time someone sits into the driver's seat, the seat and panel drop down. This means that the plastic panel is continually being pushed down onto the post.

After 62 years, the seat panel plastic is dry and brittle. It has been repaired many times and I just don't know how much more it can be repaired. I would appreciate any and all advice for carrying this out.

Craig