I agree with Randy Berger. My 56 Patrician had older bias ply tires when I bought it, but I changed to Diamondback wide white radials and they were excellent. Unlike Randy I found the handling to be a lot better with the radials. The bias plys tended to wander on secondary roads. I like Diamondback because they use fresh radial tires from major tire manufacturers and vulcanize the wide white rubber to the outside, any width you choose.

Horsepower in the fifties were just as likely to be documented by the Sales Dept. as by Engineering. In an earlier thread we finally concluded that the 1955 Patrician engine and the 1955 Clipper Custom engine were exactly the same. Yet Packard claimed 260hp for the Patrician/400 and only 245hp for the Clipper Custom. Even Packard fudged when the Sales Dept. demanded it.

As was pointed out earlier in this thread the 6v sealed beam headlights are not the brightest. I have a 40 Chrysler and I replaced the sealed beam units with a look-alike lens which accomodates a 6v halogen headlight bulb. Much brighter. I got mine from Bill Hirsch in New Jersey, phone: 1-800-828-2061, item # 2 EH-SSB, cost $90. for two about two years ago.

Looks are a personal thing, and the Caribbean hood was a great way to differentiate the Caribbean from the other senior models. Still I believe the senior 56 Packards had the most beautiful hood ornament in the industry, sharper than Cadillac or Lincoln and better looking than the 55 senior hood ornament.

Sorry no, it has been too long ago.

Some years ago I replaced the spark plug wires on a 1956 Caribbean I owned. I bought a "universal" set from WalMart which worked fine. The wires for the set had been purchased from the Packard Wire Division of General Motors and each wire had "Packard" on it in original Packard Motors script. It really impressed the uninformed.

The conspiracy theory would make more sense if the Studebakers for 1958 hadn't been just as ugly.

It never ceases to amaze me that S-P did such a great styling job on the 57 Packard, and on very short notice. What amazes me more is the truly terrible job they did on the 58s.

I have a 40 Chrysler straight eight and it runs and starts fine with 6v. Unless you want to add modern electrical/electronic equipment I would leave it the way it is, The only reason I would ever convert to 12v negative ground would be to add air conditioning.

I had bad luck with Hanlon on my 56 Patrician bumpers. They had to be redone elsewhere. A Hanlon rep told me that they do not copper plate, only nickle and chrome, which probably explains why it peeled.