Looking through the 51-54 STB's and SC's and I never really saw a trend to there being significant problems with the 51-54 series cars. The motor design was pretty much the same as it was for the previous 10+ years. Of course there were early issues with the Ultramatics, but by 1954 they were pretty well seasoned (except for the GearStart).

IMHO think one of the things that hurt Packard was how long it tool Packard to come out with a V8 compared to it's competitors. If you looks at the Salesmen Databooks from 1946-1954 that still made reference to V8 engines as being "to complex". Thats eight years beating the same drum. Packard was laggin style wise and by 1954 the Rheinhart body style was now in it's forth year, and it was showing competitively, and hence the changes to the Rheinhart body style in the 55 series.

Also think that the move to Conner, and the fact that Packard had to rapidly start making their own bodies again in '55 really upset the applecart, and caused the build problems that were evident in the early 55 series cars. Also the first year of any new redesign is going to have it's bugs and adjustments. So look at everything that was happening at Packard for the 55 model run in the last quarter of '54:


-Move to the Conner Plant
-Updated Body Style
-Bodies now produced again by Packard not Briggs
-First year for the new V8 after 20+ years of Straight Eights
-First year for the Twin-Ultramatic
-Still in the process of dealing with the Studebaker merger/purchase
-Economy was in a downturn between '54-57

But again...all this is just my

Ok the first coat is dry so I thought I would quickly mount the air cleaner to see if any "adjustments" need to be made to the support bracket before the final coats as the bracket appeared to have a few bends in it.

So after a little bit of adjustment, I got the cleaner to sit level from side to side. One question I have is that when the filter is mounted the oil bath side of the cleaner has a bias to towards the firewall. If this normal? Or should it be exactly perpendicular to the motor/carb? I noticed the bracket mounting hole in the head, is not perpendicular to the carb inlet.

Also if you look at the first picture the clear sit up pretty high. Is this going be ok for hood clearance. Obviously I am asking those with a Oil Bath cleaner on the 51-54 motors.

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By '51, the cars would break axles if you sneezed ,

Of course the problems with the 56 axles (made by Dana) are well-known and unforgiveable. But earlier Packards with axle problems? Never heard of any chronic problem with them. I've driven and been around all manner of Packards for nearly 50 years and the only axle failure I'm personally aware of was my 34 Eight.

vacuum wipers are worthless.

Obviously either or experiences, expectations, or both are quite different with respect to vacuum wipers.

Mike Dubrinski was there last year. He parts out 55 and 56 Packards for a LIVING!

Dulinski, not Dubrinski. And a very nice gentleman to do business with, I might add.

Here is the the Oil Bath Cleaner after I removed the dings, skim coated it with a little filler, primer, and first coat of "underhood" black.

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Keegan,

Here is a link to the best $50 I have spent in driving a "rollin' restoration" vehicle.

The Collector Car Restoration Videos

http://www.carestoration.com/

These two guys are brothers who have restored many, many classic cars. They share their techniques on everything. They get a body off the frame using only a floor jack. Amazing to watch, yet so simple. They built their own 'body dolly' for storing, moving, and rolling a body around for repairs. These guys are amazing. And they did it on the cheap by finding creative ways to save money while doing quality restorations.

As deep as you are going into this Packard, you would get even more out of this set of tapes than I have. You seem to have the shop space to do what you need to.

These DVDs could help you save enough money to have a Packard worthy of driving your kids to college in in the future. (I sound like a salesman, but I'm just a satisfied DVD buyer).

Also, consider Minnesota Packard Club's Technical Workshop on the first Saturday in November. It is always in Montgomery, MN south of you about 60 miles(?). I am going for the second year. Mike Dubrinski was there last year. He parts out 55 and 56 Packards for a LIVING!

http://clubs.hemmings.com/clubsites/minnesotapackards/events.html

[Saturday, November 1 - 8:30 A.M. - Technical Seminar and Packard Ladies Day - Meet at Earl and Jean Sejrup's home and shop in Montgomery, Minnesota.]

Maybe you already know about this stuff. If not, you would enjoy both the videos and the Club.

Keep up the good work.

DanL

It is usually the three middle mains which are the worst first, but I've seen all five into the copper. I'd say 80% of Packard V8s have had main bearing replacement and the crank turned .010", but less than 50% have had rod bearings. I have found one with .003" oversize piston pins in STD bore pistons. I have yet to tear down an engine which has been bored oversize. Every Golden Hawk engine had evidence of a dropped valve. One had a sleeved cylinder, one had the entire top of a piston gone, one has nicks in the bottom of a cylinder bore, evidence of either a broken piston or thrown rod. The OEM Packard intake valves are just too heavy for the springs. Add the problem caused by the first-generation retainers being too soft and it didn't take many races to drop a valve.

thnx jack vines

I would personally go with the electric conversion, as vacuum wipers are totally worthless. I've had several cars with them and I've never had any luck with them, even when rebuilt. They went to electric wipers for a reason, and that reason is vacuum wipers are worthless. If you want to keep an "original" look, try a '55-'57 Chevy wiper motor, it will bolt on and still use the original cable. All you have to do is add a power wire, as the ground is integral with the bracket.

Yes - I agree - we owned several Packard from that era. But bear in mind they were still "pre-war" in design, execution, and to some extent, material. As I noted elsewhere, I was particularly fond of our '47 Super Clipper which, with the pre-war "356" engine, transmission, and overdrive, would eat anything I came across, for breakfast.

I dont know how you'd research it, but the auto industry news of the early-mid 50's had a ball with the famous incident at an auto show. A Packard executive had to KICK his way out of the back of a new Packard, in front of the news media, because the door fit was so miserable it wouldn't open when he tried to climb back out after a "photo op". By '51, the cars would break axles if you sneezed near them ( I dont now recall where Packard bought its axles). The gross inadequacy of that miserable "Ultramatic" transmission has been beaten to death elsewhere in this and other forums.

I can drive my pre-war Packard over the dismal conditions of the sorry excuses for cow-trails we call roads here in northern Arizona at any speed, without rattle or hood/body "flutter". Compare that with what happens when you hit a road imperfection with a 1951 or later Packard. The later hood stampings had NO bracing whatsoever.

Compare that "fluttery" feeling of the '51 and later, with the solid feel of a General Motors luxury car of the that era.

I once severly lacerated my hand because I got careless, and rested it between the back of the front door and the body of my '51 convertible - that's how bad those weak bodies would flex and flutter on anything but a smooth road surface. General Motors convertibles, by the 50's, had a nice tight draft-fee snug convertible top design. Packard was still using the old-style snaps to fasten the back quarter of the convertible top. Forget to un-hook them when lowering the top, and you'd often tear your top's fabric. If you rememberd to snap em after raising the top, you still had drafts unknown in the GMC products.

Keep in mind that after 1930's, Packard had pretty well abandoned the actual manufacture of autombiles, being essentially an assembler of parts designed and produced by others.

Of course Packard, even before WW II, like other manufacturers, purchased starters, generators, carbs., interior fittings, brakes, wheels, in fact, even entire chassis frames from outside suppliers. I believe it was for the 1940 model year that Packard bodies were no longer built by Packard.

So there wasnt much left for Packard management to screw up. But a combination of management greed and incompetent..well, they sure found a way to do that !