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Thank you!!! Not meaning to nitpick a compliment, but the paint job is a 20-footer out of bright sunlight. Underwhelming to say the least. There's a manageable sized dent in the driver's front fender (all my 127" wb cars have bad driver's fenders), and there doesn't seem to be much rust. The A-pillar floors are okay, and when I get the crap out of the trunk, I can see how that floor is, but what I can see seems sounds. It may have spent the bulk of its life garaged, which would be a plus.


I did some standing-and-staring underneath the hood. It seems that the brake lines have been replaced, maybe with s/s. The seller says that the distributor was rebuilt, and he changed the water pump. I wonder what front end bolts he didn't re-install.


The hood closes and locks with less effort than I have ever encountered with that arrangement. The locking arms move easily and there's none of that metal-on-metal noise like on all my others. Also, the doors work very easily.

The 39 Coupe in West Covina looks like a very decent car. I think I see a overdrive lockout button under the dash, so that would be a definite plus. That paint is really red! Packard offered a red in 38 but not in 39. Closest they had in 39 was two choices of maroon.

It would keep it simpler but would require different wheels than the front.

My most recent post on this topic was just to “close out” where I ended up. I ended up with the “115C” sending unit from Max Merritt and everything is great… The point being that what MM is selling as being for a 115C actually fits a 120C. What they are selling as for a 120C, is too long.

To late now.

But Ross's shift mod is the way to go

By the way, you can check your throttle pressure adjustment by road testing the car. On nearly full throttle acceleration, you should feel it shift from low to high without the engine revving any higher once it began the shift. If the engine flares up then the adjustment is too low. If the car does not come out of low until 50+ mph then you are either on the gas too hard, or your throttle pressure is very high, or your linkage is set to the wrong hole.

Then, when coasting to a stop, the downshift to low at about 6mph should not have an obvious engagement. Since pretty much zero power is transmitted when that shift occurs, they made it very soft. If not then your throttle pressure is too high.

Here is the linkage under the hood. Note the linkage "A" near the bottom. It shows an optional extension kit held on with 2 screws. You should either have it in the top hole where the one screw is, or in the extension kit hole.

Let me know how it goes. Might as well get it good so to have the nicest shifts and least wear from the start.

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That would keep it simpler.


It's all theoretical for the moment anyway, but more information is better than less.

Actually I have the parts necessary to convert it back to a senior grille. I used to have the taillights too which were specific to the Convertible and to the Pacific but I sold them some years back.

Packard Don. Took another look at the photos for the '54 Convertible from Alabama. The grille center bar is smooth so it must be from a Clipper. As we all know, the 1953 and 1954 Senior models had a grooved center grille section. Another thing that will have to be replaced. This one could get expensive and fast. Wonder what else is either missing or wrong. But the body shell itself looks exceptionally straight, so at least you have that to work with. I see so many of these 1951-54 ragtops that are total rust buckets. Had one myself once (a '51) and I ended up losing a lot of money on it.

I could not find a replacement sending unit to fit my 1940 110. I found KM Lifestyles Mfg.They rebuilt my old one for less money than a new one in a reasonable amount of time. The phone number is 508 798 2445 ask for Mike. .I recieved it in the return mail and found it to be well done and it matched the gauge on the dash perfectly. I note in the photo that your pick up tube has caroded of and is probably not long enough. That can easily be repaired by extending it with piece of proper sized tubing and the rightsized solder coupling.
Jim Long