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Board index » All Posts (Fyreline)




Re: My '34 Twelve Sport Sedan Concept
#21
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Fyreline
Very, very nice indeed. While the difference in size between the front doors and the rear, and the shape of the rear side windows compared to the rear of the roof are perhaps a bit imperfect, that's just a subjective opinion. In any case, there are numerous felonious acts I would perform to own it.

Posted on: 2013/12/6 22:45
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Re: One Sunday in downtown Tucson AZ
#22
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Fyreline
These photos are like the trifecta for me . . . One of my favorite postwar Packards, in one of my favorite color combinations, in one of my favorite places. My middle son lived in Flagstaff for a while a few years ago, and we got to explore a bit of your beautiful state . . . Phoenix, Sedona, Tucson, and of course the Canyon just above Flagstaff. Great shots of a great car.

Posted on: 2013/12/2 9:04
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Re: It's time to chip in here!
#23
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Fyreline
Thanks for the reminder that nothing is free. Contribution sent . . . Now for the rest of you:

"Go thou and do likewise".

Posted on: 2013/11/17 19:14
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Re: Has anyone ever seen a 56 with predictor fins? pics inside.
#24
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Fyreline
I like it. If it's a factory modification, I've never seen any other photos of it. If it was done privately, it's a pretty neat job.

Posted on: 2013/11/14 17:02
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Re: Heidi Klum celebrates Halloween
#25
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Fyreline
I agree . . . Looks like a 1934-styled Packard replicar to me. Interesting that both Heidi Klum and the car are made up to look older than they really are. Ms. Klum's Halloween make-up is quite effective, done to show how she would look in extremely advanced years. I guess the moral of the story (if there is one) is that older cars tend to get better-looking as the decades pass, older people . . . Not so much!

Posted on: 2013/11/2 8:38
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Re: Studebaker / Packard Stock
#26
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Fyreline
And what's more, it's worth more than my actual share certificates from pre-bankruptcy General Motors . . . Quite literally not worth the paper they are printed on. Oh well, I have one that looks nice framed on the wall as artwork, alongside the one from Duesenberg.

Posted on: 2013/10/22 8:51
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Re: What SINGLE factor MOST contributed to the demise of Packard?
#27
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Fyreline
I guess I may as well chime in on this topic. Many good points have been presented here, and some good insight into the reasons behind some of the decisions that Packard management made over the years. The sad reality is that any independent automaker faced a significant uphill battle in the postwar era . . . As evidenced by their survival rate. In order to be successful and commercially viable, an independent has to offer "something different" than the Big 3. While we usually equate that to mean smaller, lighter, cheaper, or with more flamboyant style, there's no reason an independent couldn't offer a car a cut above the Cadillac, Lincoln or Imperial. Whether or not that strategy would (or even could) be a winner, Packard was certainly capable of doing so.

In retrospect, and in light of the 1957-58 Packardbakers (which were not intrinsically bad cars, just bad Packards), I'm sure most of us wish they had at least tried. You know, the old "Better to die with a bang than a whimper" thing . . . Which tends to ignore the fact that at the end if either choice, you're still dead. I guess we have to try and forgive Packard for not doing what we as enthusiasts would have liked them to do. I don't think they tried to "out-GM GM", I just don't think the post-war market was willing to support an additional luxury car choice. As postwar Buicks, Oldsmobiles and. Chryslers became more refined and featured Hydramatics and Hemi V-8s, those were the cars postwar buyers spent their dollars on. As Packard went through its downward spiral at the end, I'm not sure any scheme could have saved it. How and where in the postwar timeline that ignominious end could have been prevented makes for great discussion, and talk of villains and conspiracy theories makes for great drama but that's about all. If there had been a clear path to continued postwar Packard profitability, do we really think Packard would have chosen not to take it?

So, to answer the original question, what single factor most contributed to the demise of Packard? In my opinion, there is no one single factor. I feel that the answer lies in the actions of the major manufacturers in a changing postwar economy, and Packard's reactions to their actions. Not having a V-8 sooner was certainly a factor, quality issues and moving production facilities were certainly factors, Some questionable leadership moves certainly didn't help, but over their history GM, Chrysler and especially Ford had their own postwar leadership issues. There are a lot of little pieces to the postwar Packard puzzle (and a few larger ones), and they don't add up to a clear single cause you can point a finger at and say, "That killed Packard".

I guess some if the saddest words are always "It might have been . . ."

Posted on: 2013/10/21 8:45
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Re: Here's a barn find that's NOT a Packard...
#28
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Fyreline
I always (OK, usually) try to examine automotive styling trends in the context of their time . . . As a child of the 50s I remember many of the cars we now consider over styled, over-chromed and over-finned when they were new. My uncle had a new '58 Cadillac Fleetwood Sixty Special in robin's egg blue with acres of stainless steel trim on the sides, and as over the top as that car was (and I thought it was the most beautiful car I'd ever seen, even better than his 1954 Buick Skylark that it replaced) the '59 Caddy that came out the next year made it look downright spartan. Again, taken in the context of the rock 'n roll, hey-a-nuclear-war-is-coming-anyway-so-who-cares 1950s, they weren't anywhere near as outrageous when they were new as they now appear. I agree that there were (are?) certain styling elements the Italians seemed to get right, but overall, their sense of proportion skewed away from larger cars after the war. Understandable, as no one in Europe could afford a large car even if European manufacturers had been making them, which very few were. Still, the need for postwar European auto manufacturers to export in order to survive - and that meant to the USA, where the money was - should probably have produced a few more exceptional large-car designs than it did. Even if it had, though, a country whose tastes in the 50's included such cars as the Edsel, Desoto and 1958-1960 Lincolns probably wouldn't have embraced a slick Italianate large sedan.

Too bad. A nicely Italian-styled mid-1950s Packard (or Pontiac, or Plymouth for that matter) would have been a tasty treat . . . But in the end, would in all likelihood have made little or no difference to either the Italian economy or the demise of Packard . . . Or Plymouth . . . Or Pontiac.

Posted on: 2013/10/9 22:05
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Re: Here's a barn find that's NOT a Packard...
#29
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Fyreline
While the 1948 Vignale Packard (on a prewar 120 chassis) is an attractive car, I think calling it very attractive may be a bit of a stretch. From certain angles it suffers a bit, but weighed against other contemporary 1948 designs it's OK. It was recently refinished from bright red to black, which actually helps a bit in my opinion. In any case, I believe the observation that exceptional postwar large-car Italian designs were few and far between is still valid. It's not that there were NONE . . . There just weren't many.

Posted on: 2013/10/9 14:34
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Re: Here's a barn find that's NOT a Packard...
#30
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Fyreline
Glad you added the qualifier "postwar" in there, which allows me to agree with you, Steve. Very nice prewar large cars of Italian design were not that uncommon, such as the lovely Lancia Astura and many larger Alfa Romeos. After the war, not so much. As you pointed out, the Dual-Ghias and Chrysler show cars were almost entirely American designs built in Italy.

And while I had not initially noticed the similarities between the barn-find Abarth car and the Darrin Packard design in Bev Kimes' book, it's definitely there. Interesting, but perhaps coincidental. Who knows?

Posted on: 2013/10/9 9:05
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