(BELIeVE IT OR NOT.... i got to try it this morning. The Packard 5672 windshield will NOT fit a 57 Chevy 4 door sedan.

The 5672 windshield is 3/4" shorter vetrically than the opening of the Chevy. There is also significant curvature difference at the bottom curve at the corner.)

Could you check to see if the gasket from the Chevy fits the Packard windshield and body opening?
I've been trying to get my hands on a gasket, but most of my collector friends lost all of their old parts when Katrina hit. I am also trying to find a glass shop that is specializing in classics to see if they have a gasket in stock that I could try.

(HOWEVER, this doesnot rule out the possibility of other I'change. It ONLY rules out I'change between Packard sedan and 57 chevy 4 dr sedan. ALTHO the curvature misfit at the bottom corners is making it look less likely.)
I just find it hard to believe that Packard, with the way they used parts from other marques, would opt to design a windshield that was specific, at this point in their business life.
It may not be what we want to hear, but at least we can rule out an interchange for the 57 4 door...

Kudo's PackardV8 for trying this out.
John

PackardV8
(pos. or neg. ground does not effect the starter.)
I'm not positive, but I believe there should be no negative impact on the solenoid, however reversing polarity on the starter may have an impact on the direction it spins.

(What is an "EZ 21" wiring harness????)
As MrPushbutton stated, EZ21 is a universal wiring harness system used mostly by streetrodders. It has the advantage of additional circuits and the newer mini fuses.

(buy some wire and use the old loom as a pattern for the new loom. The only issue is terminals for places like the headlite sw., lighter stoplite sw. etc. I don't know where to get those terminals.)
My first impulse was to build a new harness by hand, since I have done this several times in the past, However, the current value of copper has driven the cost of primary wire up so high, that it is more cost effective to purchase a premade universal harness. Plus, most of the new universal harnesses are made using crosslinked wire which is easier to work with, is higher heat resistant, and lasts much longer.

BH
(Mind you this wrapping tape is for harnesses that had a vinyl covering. Harnesses in vehicles from earlier years used a fabric covering; some even had a fabric loom that was woven around the harness.)
I've been in the same boat with tape wrapped harnesses. My '55 does have the tape wrapped harness, and I would probably either reuse it if it was in better shape, or hand build a new one if copper was cheaper. But as I said earlier, I'm building a driver and want to add more options and reliability. I may use some of the split loom, or a combination of harness tape and heatshrink. One thing I learned is that electrical tape gets sticky really fast. There used to be a fiber based product called "Friction Tape" that relied on stretching the tape to activate a small quantity of adhesive, then wrapping it over itself for adhesion. This worked really well since it would stick to itself, but not to the actual wires. Unfortunately, it's pretty much impossible to find this stuff anymore, and it wouldn't look very good anyway since it was a sickly dark grey color with a matte fabric finish.

HH56
(A lot of cars accidentally had their batteries reversed with no ill effects on anything. The only thing I would think might warrant caution is if something like compensator switch or radio components have been modified or replaced with some of the modern solid state conversions some clubs are offering.)
I was more concerned about the instruments, radio, and torsion control system, and was hoping that someone had already run into the reversed battery issue and had some firsthand knowledge.

Thanks to all for the info, and please keep it coming. Although I've been working on cars since I was a teen, and am 60 now, there are always things to learn.
John

(you have thrown it out there that you aren't concerned about originality)
It's not so much that I'm not concerned with originality as it is that a lot of the parts for this car are missing and since I want to build a "driver", I'm more interested in the creature comforts.

(What's wrong with the wiring harness? '55-'56 Packards have a plastic insulation wiring harness and I've yet to see one on a functional car (not a junkyard car or left outdoors for 40 years to rot) that had a bad wiring harness.)
My harness has hardened and a number of the circuits show high resistance when measured with a VOM. This would lead to reduced power to the circuit and would ultimately cause long term problems.

(The torsion level compensator box will have to be gutted and fitted with new relays so that the box sends out a hot (+)12V when leveling is called for)
I spent a few minutes looking over the wiring diagram for the torsion system and it appears that the conversion should be pretty straightforward. Unless I'm wrong, the relays should not care if it is positive or negative ground since they only rely on a completed circuit to activate the coils, so they could just be wired in the opposite direction. Same with the limit switches. My concern would be the compensator motor since I'm not sure what happens to make it run in a reverse direction. If it just applies a reverse polarity to the same windings, then reversing the wiring on the motor should take care of that as well.


(You are pretty much going to have to use a stock starter, I don't know of any replacements in the Summit catalog. The '56 starter is negative ground, so it sounds like you had a happy accident with that.)
Agreed. It is big and heavy though!! ;^)

If you are able to clear up the issue regarding the TL motor reversing, I would be very appreciative.

Thanks,
John

Hello All,
New to this site, but have had my Packard for about a year, and am really just starting to get some work done on it. My biggest problem is that the car was disassembled when I purchased it and I am now up against the wall on a major decision. The vehicle is a 55 Constellation and has the 352 ci V8, but is missing the starter and generator. I purchased a starter a while back and just discovered that it is from a 56, and not a 55. I also need to replace the wiring harness and have decided on one of the EZ 21 circuit harnesses. My plans are to build a driver, not a show car, and to ultimately add AC (I live just outside of New Orleans), and maybe some other power options, so originality is not paramount.
What I'm asking is: Should I just pursue acquiring a stock starter and generator, or should I consider changing over from 12V positive ground to 12V negative ground? What impact on things like torsion level controls and motors, gauges, etc., would be encountered when changing from positive to negative ground?
TIA,
John

Hank,
It looks like you and I are in similar scenarios. I also have a 55 Constellation that I am restoring. Mine, however, was disassembled when I purchased it, and I am in the process of putting all the pieces back together again. Please let me know if you locate an alternate source for the windshield and rear window gaskets. I have heard rumors that the "Tri 5" Chevy windshield gasket is the same as the Packard, but I have not been able to verify that fact. I have a couple of friends with early Chevys (55 and 57) and am waiting for one of them to replace his windshield so I can get the old gasket, intact, to test fit in my Packard.
Please contact me via private messaging if you would like to chat about the rebuild process.
Thanks,
John