Re: '66 Packard Model Car

Posted by Mahoning63 On 2012/8/29 11:27:13

I think there was a very strong case for an AMC Packard, planning commencing in early 1964 for a '68 or '69 MY intro. Bayliff was a small operation, AMC was a major OEM with a full complement of staff. I would argue that it didn't really matter if the Packard was designed and engineered in Wisconsin so long as the content was right. By the 60s and 70s, OHV V8s had become commodities and AMC's would have worked just fine for a Packard, especially the 1969 390. No new investment would have been needed there. The basic unibody structure was also fine and AMC was intent on tooling a longer hood, front fenders and underhood changes for the Ambassador anyway; the money could have just as easily been redirected to make a Packard.

What were the real differentiators that would have made a Packard stand out had they survived in the first place? Styling was one. Exner created a decent theme that honestly said "Packard" - nothing earth shattering but potentially a stand-out if done right. What else? Two areas that come to mind are interior appointments/quality and chassis. This is where American cars were starting to fall behind. Ex had spec'd out a top notch interior for the Duesy revival so there is no doubt he would have done the same for Packard. With the chassis, an independent rear suspension was the big opportunity. Corvette had it for the 1963 MY, Mercedes for several years prior.

In December 1963 when the Exner renderings appeared in Esquire, Abernathy, on the job now for 22 months, would have (or at least should have) been pondering lots of options and directing his planners to scope them out at a high level, and would have already approved the 1965 MY Ambassador 4 inch hood stretch, possibly the 1967 MY 2 inch body stretch but likely not the 1969 MY Ambassador 4 inch additional hood stretch (they probably didn't realize they needed it at this time).

He wanted to move AMC into higher profit, larger, more luxurious vehicles. He knew that AMC Corp. was one brand going against the Big 3's largely successful multiple brand strategy. He had T-Bird 4-pass's 6-year and Riviera's 1-year sales data through the 1963 MY and 1st quarter 1964 MY sales, all of which indicated that something big was afoot in the luxury coupe segment. Now all of the sudden he had in Exner's Packard rendering an intriguing possibility - a brand, a design language and a car all rolled into one compelling vision and directed at the very segment that was taking off. He knew Studebaker was on its last leg and would have likely sold AMC the Packard name for a pittance. And he should have seen Mercedes out of the corner of his eye and what they were discovering about the American buying public, namely a desire for more sophistication and a willingness to pay for it.

What Abernathy may not have realized was that AMC needed a shake-up in its design and quality control depts., which the new Packard might have inadvertantly forced.