Wow, John,
You and I are on different planets!

John
Some cars were painted that way from the factory, but that lighter color on the bottom makes the car look top heavy in my opinion.

Oh, and IF you're going to put white sidewalls on, you absolutely have to paint the wheels a dark color. It looks very corny, whimpy, spindly, with light wheels and white tires.

The darker the better, in my opinion. I love the colors of both of Tom's cars. Keep the contrast to a minimum. Dark body, even darker fenders.

Kev
That is a great idea. Do you mind if I include that in one of my upcoming issues of Antique Automobile?
Thanks.
West

Yes, I believe there are two screws that are sort of accessible behind the dashboard.
First, you will need to work on the flexibility in your neck.
Once you've loosened up a little bit, you'll need to lay down with your legs facing up, your head jammed as hard as it can go against the accelerator pedal (slightly turned and rammed up against the brake pedal) and with a small, but bright, flashlight in your mouth. It would be a good idea to have someone who knows tools standing by your side, and who doesn't mind fetching what you need, and whose ears don't mind a few coarse words. Also, those nuts are small, and seem to find a way of getting lost. Once you lose one (or two) you can steel one from the glove box side.
You'll need to do a lot of looking, while moving hard-to-move batches of wiring because those screws are back there somewhere. Once you have it out, you'll never, ever, not in this lifetime, want to do it again. You might want to replace the light bulbs while you're back there. Also, you may need to disconnect the trip re-set before you do anything, as well as the speedo cable. If you have an overdrive, you might need to remove the lever to give you a little room (if you want to call it that) to get your hands up there.

Rule number one: It's impossible to beat the flat rate time.
Rule number two: Accept rule number one and don't even try.
Rule number three: Take a brake if you start to get frustrated (like, overnight).
Rule number four: Start first thing in the morning (after breakfast). That way you're not already frustrated with something else that happened that day.

Other than that, it's kind of fun. Especially if you get it all back together and everything works. I found it important to have the old harness back there (even though it takes up a lot of non-existing room), disconnecting one wire at a time, and replacing one wire at a time.

The front shocks on a 1940 S-8 WILL mount on either side, though I don't know if there is any problem with doing so. I accidentally mounted mine backwards, then when I noticed, I swapped them back (no driving in between). My original set DID have different markings on them 1966 C&D.
I don't know why the 1941-42 wouldn't mount backwards, as it's the same chassis and same shocks. My question is... Would it be detrimental to the shock if installed on the wrong side?

Mike
A coincidence. I have a 1940 Packard 180 touring sedan that was also delivered through Reid in K.C.

Thanks. I'll get right on it.

Van
I just so happens that I live in Dayton. I haven't been to the Museum for a while, and did not know they had such a car. I'll try to get over there after Thanksgiving and see if I can get the numbers for you.
West