I was going through some of my car magazines and found this small article in the January 2001 issue of Car Collector magazine about a listing in Dennis Adler's book "The Art of The Automobile -- The 100 Greatest Cars". A panel of international collectors, automotive historians and designers consulted on the final collection. Each was based on engineering achievements, performance and styling. The 8 Packards are:

1911 5-48
1915 Twin Six
1933 Custom DietrichV Winshield sport coupe
1933 Dietrich Special sport sedan "Car of the Dome"
1934 Twelve 1107 couple roadster
1939-42 Darrin
1942 One-Eighty Clipper
1953-54 Caribbean

Other marques had multiple entries such as Duesenberg, Mercedes and Ferrari. Packard and Mercedes had the most.

Take the list for what it's worth.

Craig

Just last week (Dec 8, 2017) I got my 55 Pat back from a local high quality custom & classic repair shop (Top Notch Repair, Pahrump, NV). It's the first set of problems I've had with it since March 2001 when I bought it. The repaired problems were:

1) Original rear axle assembly had a couple of problems, to wit: (a) D-side outside bearing broke and tore up the outer axle and oil seal. (b) The center section had developed a serious whine due to a leaking pinion lube seal which allowed the lube level to get too low at one time. This low level probably burned up bearing(s) or R&P or ?.

2) The 3-prong brake light switch broke the plastic top which caused brake fluid to leak out. This was a Volkswagen replacement switch.

I talked to my friend Paul in Las Vegas and because things I had done for him, he volunteered the entire rear end assembly out of a 55 Patrician parts car he had if I would come over and remove it...which I and a couple of friends did.

Because I'm getting too old for this sort of swap, I had the local shop do the swap. The used replacement rear end assy from Paul was excellent. I had the shop also do a drum brake overhaul on it at the same time. The front is a disc brake conversion and needed no attention.

I had the shop replace the 3-prong switch with a standard 2-prong one because I have the T-L auto-level box removed (another story) and my Pat is converted to fully manual T-L control.

This info is just FYI. Something eventually breaks on these great old Packards, although it seems pretty rare. My Pat is driving great again with no noises from the rear end.

Craig

Quote:

Speaking of a fan shroud: V-8 Packards don't have one, of course. I am finishing constructing one for the Panther which has an oversize 4-core radiator and an A/C condenser in front of that. Pictures, explanation and P/Ns in about a week in a separate thread for those who are interested.

Craig

Quote:

Actually, this is only half correct. You WILL have to raise the rear of the car by sitting on the rear bumper and then turning off the switch in order to change the rear tire...NOT LEVEL. The reason being that otherwise, the top of the rear tire will interfere with the top of the rear fender well opening even after the skirt (if so equipped) is removed. Ask me how I know...LOL!

Also, I NEVER use the bumper jack on front or back as all it really seems to do is bend the bumper supports and put the bumper out of whack. Instead, I use a floor jack and jack stands on the frame.

Craig

Looking good! Specs on the engine?

Craig

Whippersnapper55 Quote:

I have a B-W T-10 4-speed in my Panther (originally 56 Clipper Super with T-U). This is a non-trivial conversion. You need original MT bellhousing & flywheel. I went with a RAM hydraulic clutch rather than the "Rube Goldberg" Packard parts. A Chevy 3-finger 11in clutch will bolt up. You also have to modify the T-U crossmember or find an original MT. A modified or custom driveshaft is also required. I got 2 T-10s in order to make one good one. You can modify a Summit or Hurst floor shift to make it work. See these pages on my website for some details:

http://1956packardpanther.com/Panther/4SpeedManual.html
http://1956packardpanther.com/Panther/floorShifter.html

Good luck.

Craig

PM sent.

Craig

Leeedy Quote:

This is not a big deal, but it is a lot easier if the engine is on an engine stand, as I did on my Panther engine (originally 56 Clipper 352, now 374).

Others should thank you for bringing up this simple option.

Craig

How many gross of $10,000 bundles does it cost?

Craig

Thanks Dave, I'll check it out.

Craig