Well, it’s been months but I will continue the tale of our Packard.

After getting the radiator re done, cleaning the engine block best as possible and a new water pump we put the car back together. FINALLY I thought, I’ll get to drive this dreamy Packard that I had been spending all of my extra time and attention on. I did get to drive it, but not very far. We limped the car home, with it chronically overheating most of the way. It would only run maybe 10 minutes before it would begin to boil, and I would pull over and wait for it to cool off again in fear of damaging the motor. It did make it though, and I was very happy to see it home and in the driveway. I knew that the car was not drive able with the engine in its current state, more to come on that later.
Pictures from March of 2018

Attach file:

---

  IMG_7055.jpeg (461.92 KB)


  IMG_7074.jpeg (336.58 KB)

Ken, thanks for the tip. When I had the radiator redone it was supposed to be a “high flow” but modern style core. Perhaps that is the issue.

Mixture, valve lash & timing have all recently been checked.

Thanks again!

Packardsix1939, that’s a fantastic story. I had a friend that use to export cars to Finland, which is where he’s from. He has some amazing stories of buying cars out of the newspaper and driving them from Southern California to Baltimore to have them shipped to his friends, eagerly awaiting them across the ocean. Many of those cars that were exported in the eighties, are still owned by the same owners who commissioned to have them sent across.

And so as shown in the previous post, we began the task of removing the radiator from the car to have it recored

While the radiator was being repaired, I took it upon myself to restore the steering wheel. Finding tips on this website and others, I found a product by jb weld called plastic weld that would prove suitable for the repairs. Nearly 5 years later it has held up very well for an amateur first attempt

The steering wheel would get refinished one more time during the engine rebuild, as there were a few imperfections I was not 100% satisfied with

Pictures from January 2018 to March 2018

Attach file:

---

  8575A1D8-9ED4-4B5C-9018-F2AE7BD99952.jpeg (109.20 KB)


  F524FB65-1E84-4329-A633-66BE115CC07D.jpeg (184.31 KB)


  AF23B953-E105-4483-873E-A54AE6E4B93B.jpeg (254.87 KB)


  EE5AB20E-FD43-4849-A4AB-46887B92911D.jpeg (286.07 KB)


  DF6CB7B7-F922-4D22-A93A-095762455A78.jpeg (210.54 KB)


  AE7A95E7-7825-4A5C-9801-D394A2B54FFF.jpeg (267.81 KB)


  D5794AEF-A797-4371-BF7A-0FFDDB2E4F2E.jpeg (257.59 KB)

Here’s some pictures once we brought the car to my uncles property, who also was kind enough to trailer the car there for us, so Ernie if you’re reading this, thanks again for all of your help. Pictures also show after doing some light interior cleaning

Finally a picture of what we found once we removed the thermostat housing. Obviously some cooling system repairs were in the cars near future

Pictures from October 2017

Attach file:

---

  A32918EA-6873-4AAA-8F1D-CDFD07EB4A05.jpeg (327.29 KB)


  2B1F8586-0718-40F8-8BB0-B7A2444A8BC4.jpeg (236.65 KB)


  F0370AA1-AC04-4689-BBE7-2F51F4E9ADC7.jpeg (85.73 KB)


  3F497F37-4C62-4F58-98E3-99011B95F401.jpeg (276.84 KB)


  D812B506-014B-4F4D-B858-B04D3EDDD6BB.jpeg (118.08 KB)

Packardsix1939, thanks for sharing photos! Looks almost exactly like our 120!

Humanpotatohybrid, that trip was nearly 2 years and I’m trying to recall everything. Seems to me we did a chassis lubrication right before the trip, inspected drive line and brakes/suspension, we brought an extensive tool kit but nothing insane just things like fuel hose, an extra radiator hose, some spare wire. The one main component we did bring along was a water pump, because if for any reason it failed it would be hard to get one on the road. Otherwise that like one spark plug wire, points, condenser, cap and rotor.

I had to look back at photos, the rebuilt engine had 3,400 miles on it when we left for that trip. So things like having a worn out engine were not issues for us on the trip. It didn’t burn any oil, and it doesn’t leak.

I guess the main suggestion I would have would be make sure things like suspension and drive line are in good condition, as well as tires and brakes. Major safety items aren’t fun when they fail. And be prepared to break down. I’m not saying you should expect it, but be prepared so if it does happen you know what to do. Plus it’s less frustrating if you already have it in your mind that it’s possible.

I attached one of the many photos from the trip. It was most definitely enjoyable and memorable. Also probably the best way to have a cup of coffee early in the morning.

Attach file:

---

  7A494584-8F76-4EEA-B54A-0B829464EE36.jpeg (193.31 KB)

I don’t want to hijack Ken’s thread so maybe I should begin a new one for this.

Verified temperature with a laser temp reader

Using a 160 degree thermostat currently

Water distribution tube properly in place.

The engine has about 5,000 miles on it since being rebuilt, it’s just seeming to run warmer now then it has before.

Thanks again

Well, I’m starting this project blog nearly 5 years after acquiring the car. Better late than never eh?
I acquired the car in 2017 from a long time Packard collector, who has sadly since passed. The car had sat outside for some time, but luckily items like the paint and interior have held up ok and have not needed to be redone as of yet, however in the near future.

Soon after getting the car, my father and I embarked on getting the car roadworthy. He taught me how to go through the brake system, we went through the cooling system and got the car running. Plagued with chronic overheating, we pulled the head off and found multiple burnt valves and a few stripped head studs. Next embarked a full rebuild.

Some time later, everything was back together and the car was road ready. My partner and I embarked on polishing the older lacquer paint job and it was/is stunning.

We’ve taken the car on a few long distance trips, the furthest being from Southern California to the Monterey peninsula in December of 2020, just over 800 miles round trip.

It’s been a fantastic car, most recently we had the pleasure of showing it at the San Marino motor classic. Anyways, I’ll attach some photos and do my best to keep this updated.
Thanks for following along

Attach file:

---

  E85D2116-E859-490B-ADA1-1600C3D156D6.jpeg (304.07 KB)


  883F9682-40DD-4FBE-960C-E26B0C1A4805.jpeg (179.70 KB)


  477134F5-EF64-4480-BBEC-6D358821CD4A.jpeg (238.25 KB)


  2FA6DE75-D31E-4D28-9A86-FF2AACF0BB06.jpeg (411.38 KB)


  65347D88-DDAB-4BF6-9957-6FB84C42800B.jpeg (493.15 KB)


  DF9EACEA-0909-40F3-82B7-69DD518AAA7E.jpeg (629.62 KB)

I did recently try the factory fan, still running warmer at idle and high speeds
Thank you for all the recommendations.

Hi Ken, have been following along for awhile, thoroughly enjoy your blog, so thank you.

I have a 39’ 120 Club coupe. Has about 5,000 miles on it since a full engine rebuild, and I’m beginning to experience some of the same overheating woes that you were. I had my radiator recorded before the engine rebuild, and even re flushed and checked before the new engine was installed. After the rebuild, I installed a 7 blade flex fan to help maintain the temperature while it was being broken in, but now it doesn’t seem to be helping and my engine as well will begin to run anywhere between 180-200 depending on load, speed, and extended idling.

Anyways my intent with this now rambling question is, do you think your radiator was the main issue for running warm? Thanks