Re: AACA Museum Packard

Posted by Packard53 On 2007/1/30 19:51:47

Jim: Thanks for getting back on this matter so fast. I took the information you people had printed on the display sign and looked at as a person who might be interested in Packards and might do some research.

If that average person does some research on the history of Packard and research on the information given about the Packard that was on display, that person can come away very confused, about what is actually the truth. The sign is full of errors right from the beginig to the end, that its not even funny. Let me just skip over the errors in the sign on Packard history.

So the average persons takes the information that you give on the car based on the horse power and the statement that the cars has a long wheel base. Go to his reference book sees the all the 120 models for 1936 are rated at 120 hp with a wheel base of 120 inches. Go to the next section of his reference book sees a listing of 130 horse power engine for the senior model straight eight and sees bigger wheel bases for those models longer than 120 inches. Looks at the body styles under the senior line for 1936 and see convertible sedan all the door are hinged on the B pillar and the bumpers look different, from the model he has seen on display at Harrisburg. Then the fellow figures some body has made a mistake. So he takes the information given him and goes to the 1937 models and see no convertible sedan listed under the 120 model line for 1937. Goes to the senior model line and sees listing for an engine of 130 horsepower and sees a listing for convertible sedan, and see a picture of the car notes that the front doors are hinged on the A pillar and the back doors are hinged on the B pillar. Looks at the style of bumper on the senior models for 1937 and comes to the conclusion that this has to be a 1937 Packard Senior model.

So just for the heck of it I loudly took the position that it was a 1937 Senior Packard model, to get a responce from the AACA to point out the fact that when you print information that is incorrect like you did about the car and the history of the company, you are doing the general public a great dis-service.

The bottom line to all this is that make sure the information you print about a car or the history of the company that produced the car is correct. I just can't understand with all the fine research materials that the AACA library has, the fine museum that you are part of, that such errors could happen.


John Shireman