Re: driveaway

Posted by Leeedy On 2015/8/10 13:09:44

I am looking at early posts in this thread. Something apparently not understood here is that the one photo showing a lot full of cars simply shows the "driveaway" lot at the intersection of East Grand Blvd. and Mt. Elliot next to the plant. This was the official name of the lot, but not the sole function of the lot.

When Packard referred to "driveaway"... that was merely the name that was actually give to that small branch of the company. It did not mean that every single car in this lot was actually, individually driven away! It was just a title of the lot and the small division of the company (or depending on time frame-name of the contractor).

There was a yellow brick building which was the very last building erected in association with PMCC. This building faced Mt. Elliot and was on the corner of a side-street entrance to the lot. The illuminated sign on the building overhung the sldewalk and was framed in brushed stainless steel. The sign varied over the years in what it said, but at one point it was lettered, "Nu-Car Driveaway."

Again, this did not mean that people showed up there and drove their cars away from this point. Those who took factory delivery went to a special showroom that faced Grand Blvd with windows. They were welcomed there and actually picked up their car on the Packard company street that ran through the plant. The car would exit out onto East Grand Blvd.

However, the cars in the big lot indeed left mostly by truck and by train. This is a fact. The truck drivers would load up and check out at the building I mentioned. In this building was the small staff that managed the train loading and the truck loading and bills of lading, etc.

This building (at last check) still exists today, but the windows have all been bricked in. As I said, it was the last building erected in association with the Packard Plant on East Grand Blvd. It was also one of the very last buildings there that was associated with PMCC to close (around 1960-61).

Today, part of the old lot still exists. Some of the land was first taken over by a supermarket and now is some kind of food cooperative. No idea what the yellow brick building is used for, but it has some kind of function to this day.

Otherwise, yes, indeed there were various actual drive-aways where customers and dealers actually drove off in a new car. Some were at the Packard Plant... others at the Proving Grounds and elsewhere. Yes these took place, but this was not the only meaning or function attached to that terminology when PMCC used it.