Re: Ex-Packard Designers

Posted by Dave Brownell On 2014/8/3 14:39:26

For years I thought that I liked the Plymouth Plainsman (except for the cowhide fur upholstery), but seeing it with older eyes, the thing looks squat and fat and utterly lacks the charm or innovation I had credited it with. The roll down tailgate window feature was from the future, but Leeedy's comments on doglegs and difficult entry points make me think that I would never want it as a servicable car. Imagine the pain of kids riding backwards in a third seat while parents try to talk to them. Or the difficulty of extracting grown people gracefully over a tailgate. The things we have learned the hard way.

On the other hand, the middle picture of Packard's 57 Black Bess makes me think this might be George Mason's ghostly revenge for not combining Packard into his dream of an AMC merger. From that rear quarter view, it is hard to miss the influence of a 1960 Rambler sedan. Talk about shared body panels and substructures! Packard designers must have considered this the love letter to win back George Romney. The influence of the Predictor is there, but what showed up is something far more Nash-like.