I put a 3rd brake light on my 38. I mounted it on my license plate. BTW show judges don't deduct for safety features.

I changed over to radials on my 38 coupe and did find a difference in handling to the better. I too have the Diamondback 700R 15 Whitewalls. I use a product from Casterol called Super Clean and it does a GREAT job on the white walls.

I have the stock 4:36 rear end and I'm running 700R 15 Diamond back radials

I have posted my findings before but I'll do it again. Using a GPS and a tachometer - my 38 coupe with the R11 runs 66 mph at 2500 RPM

I do believe the gear vendors units run $2000-$3000. For that kind of money go with a 5 speed Tremec

I got the column shift to floor shift conversion instructions from Peter Packard on this site. I solved the X frame issue by making some plates and and cut the X frame to make it removable on my 38 120. I think the frame is shorter on the 36 but you could most likely do something similar. The O/D makes a world of difference driving on today's modern roads.

Last year I pulled the door hinges from a 38 sedan that had been sitting outside since forever. I used an impact screw driver and all the screws came out without any problem.

When I put an R11 in my 38 120 my cost was the transmission (complete with governor.solenoid, lockout cable and relay)and having a drive shaft made. But I did do all of the work myself -modifying the X Frame converting to a cane shift and wiring.

I don't know if this is possible on your Packard but I had a somewhat similar problem with my Fiero once- drove me crazy. No matter what adjustments I made the gears would grind. Turned out to be that I had too much pedal throw and the nose of the TO bearing was pushing the disk onto the fly wheel. I found the answer by accident when I only pushed the clutch in half way and it shifted fine. Easy enough to check.

Thought about the ignition cutoff - pressure switch to a normally closed relay to coil power.