Re: Ex-Packard Designers

Posted by Steve203 On 2014/7/18 23:52:55

So, was the AMA satisfied by those very small changes?

For what it's worth, the "Standard Guide to 1950s American Cars" says at the top of page 193:

By 1952, Packard Motor Car Company was forced to change its traditional thinking and adopt the annual model-year change system used by its competitorshttp://books.google.com/books?id=l096ebZSm9EC&pg=PA193&lpg=PA193&dq=packard+forced+model+change+1951&source=bl&ots=OI3NyAkJ-v&sig=e_cvtU8Ito1A5JlzwDQm_l-zC4E&hl=en&sa=X&ei=ufTJU8KBKYayyAT7kYGgCA&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=packard%20forced%20model%20change%201951&f=false

That page does not say how or by who Packard was "forced" to conform to annual styling changes. It is apparent that the transition to annual styling changes came about rapidly just as the post war seller's market came to an end.

That page also comments on a presentation at a 1934 SAE conference advocating the shortening of the service life of automobiles, the begining of "planned obsolecence", as described by Vance Packard in "The Waste Makers"

...appeals to purchase something because it is more expensive, or because it is painted in a new color. The book also brought attention to the concept of planned obsolescence, in which a "death date" is built into products so that they wear out quickly and need to be replaced.http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/250912.The_Waste_Makers

People living here in the rust belt can tell you how fast cars rusted out from the 50s through the 70s. I have to laugh when I watch the film released by Fisher Body in 55 that brags "through rust proofing protects them for a lifetime". In Michigan "lifetime" was 5-7 years.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbquyC8Xz5Y