Re: What a shame

Posted by Craig the Clipper Man On 2014/2/7 20:56:08

You know, if Packard were in business today, its cars would not look anymore like its cars from the 1940s or 1950s anymore than Lincolns or Cadillacs. It is absurd to think that anyone trying to design to modern version of a brand that went extinct in 1956 (for all intent and purpose, apologies to Studebaker). Packard today would definitely be as cutting edge as Mercedes Benz or Audi or Cadillac, with a plethira of state-of-the-art electronics, safety features, and aerodynamic styling. To assume that a 2014 Packard would resemble anything like a 60-year-old antique is unreasonable.

While I am not particularly fond of the 1999 model, I do not think that the attempt was not necessarily a bad one. It is not perfect, of course; but compared to abominations like the Excaliber and Avanti II. Those were truly abominations, compared to what they were based upon.

In 1955, Packard, struggling as it fought to survive, managed to bring out a new V-8 engine, an updated body, a revamped transmission, and, most astonishingly of all, a complete torsion bar suspension. This was not the actions of a company chained to its past, but the actions of a company that wanted to go on living: Innovative, modern, and cutting edge.

This is what Packard's founders and presidents would have wanted: cars that set the standards for their times with a clear eye to the future. Anyone who is willing to try to recreate that concept deserves our respect, not derision.