1955-57 What-If Line-Up
Posted by Mahoning63 On 2010/11/22 11:12:13
With the wonders of modern graphics here's a Thanksgiving holiday what-if for 1955-57 line-up. Always thought Packard had a great chance but aside from avoiding the quality issues and a litany of other wrongdoings, they needed to lower the vehicle height and redirect the brand up. Key elements of this what-if include:
- bodies lowered 2 inches, taken out of midsection. No more chair-height seating, which would fade from American cars within a few years anyway
- front track widened 2 inches for straight-through sides that blend into the rear fenders. Effectively widens the front half of the car by 2 inches.
- frameless windows on sedan similar to '41 LeBaron Sport Brougham for body strength with sporty style
- 6" extended wheelbase limo and phaeton for unique 6-passenger response to Cadillac's 8-passenger limo
- reciprocate with Nash/AMC by purchasing its fabulous 1954 air conditioning system that became the industry standard
- drop the Clipper and focus on the $3,500 near luxury market (1955 New Yorker/Roadmaster volume: 120K) and $4,000+ luxury market (1955 Cadillac/Lincoln/Imperial volume: 187K)
- $4,000+ Packard would have larger V8, torsion-level ride, interior upgrades and two-tone sides
- show the bankers mock-ups and beg them for the extra $10M to bring to production. The bankers were probably still open to the idea of a successful Packard in 1953.
- plan for volumes in the 60,000 range, split equally between the lower and higher priced models. Higher margins than Clipper would make these lower volumes profitable just like in the old days
Have also included a before/after image of the front to show the difference a 2 inch lower height and 2 inch wider body can make to proportions. Tried to work in the Panther show car theme, which I always thought had potential. The image is very rough, even a bit scary, but hopefully demonstrates the beneficial change in proportions.
Many thanks to owners of the '56 Executive that these images are based on. And as usual, all comments welcome.
Paul West
Attach file:
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(29.22 KB)
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- bodies lowered 2 inches, taken out of midsection. No more chair-height seating, which would fade from American cars within a few years anyway
- front track widened 2 inches for straight-through sides that blend into the rear fenders. Effectively widens the front half of the car by 2 inches.
- frameless windows on sedan similar to '41 LeBaron Sport Brougham for body strength with sporty style
- 6" extended wheelbase limo and phaeton for unique 6-passenger response to Cadillac's 8-passenger limo
- reciprocate with Nash/AMC by purchasing its fabulous 1954 air conditioning system that became the industry standard
- drop the Clipper and focus on the $3,500 near luxury market (1955 New Yorker/Roadmaster volume: 120K) and $4,000+ luxury market (1955 Cadillac/Lincoln/Imperial volume: 187K)
- $4,000+ Packard would have larger V8, torsion-level ride, interior upgrades and two-tone sides
- show the bankers mock-ups and beg them for the extra $10M to bring to production. The bankers were probably still open to the idea of a successful Packard in 1953.
- plan for volumes in the 60,000 range, split equally between the lower and higher priced models. Higher margins than Clipper would make these lower volumes profitable just like in the old days
Have also included a before/after image of the front to show the difference a 2 inch lower height and 2 inch wider body can make to proportions. Tried to work in the Panther show car theme, which I always thought had potential. The image is very rough, even a bit scary, but hopefully demonstrates the beneficial change in proportions.
Many thanks to owners of the '56 Executive that these images are based on. And as usual, all comments welcome.
Paul West
Attach file:
(80.71 KB)
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