Re: Would it have been easier to salvage Packard than Studebaker?

Posted by Rusty O\'Toole On 2010/11/23 21:43:02

Look at what the competition was offering by 1957 or even in 1952.

Packard stood pat in styling and engine design from 1951 to 54. This is when they fell behind. A strong effort in 1955 and 56 was not enough to save them.

Look at the reality of the marketplace. Car sales fell off generally in 1956 and there was a recession in 1957 and 58. All car makes suffered loss of sales. When the market revived the demand was all for compact cars, the medium price field was moribund. Remember this is the period when DeSoto Nash Hudson and Edsel went out of business while Rambler set new records, and the Lark Falcon Valiant and Corvair were the exciting new cars.

Packard should have had an OHV engine no later than 1952 and major facelifts of the 1951 body for 53 and 54, and an all new body for 1955. They might have made some hay when the medium price and high price cars were selling, in the early 50s.

The Studebaker merger was the last mistake in a series of mistakes going back years. But it's hard to find fault when the right course was far from obvious at the time.