I'm not sure that this is a uniquely Packard problem, but I've never had it happen before & this group has proven its metal before:

The brakes on my 2362 had been working well until about a month ago when it started pulling hard to the left. I noticed on loose gravel that the left front wheel was locking up. Most online searches bring answers geared to disc setups but generally folks say it's either a bad wheel cylinder (sticking) or hose (collapsing). Made sense to me, so I called up Max Merritt and ordered a pair of both. I decided to start with the left: no change. Today I did the right; again, no change, better or worse. Well, it wasn't all in vain: the hoses were starting to crack & the cylinders had plenty of age as well. So, what next?

The previous owner installed a new master cylinder; steel lines were not changed. Nothing looked out of order when I pulled the drums. The shoes aren't new but not down to the rivets, either. When jacked up both sides were adjusted to spin free with no brakes applied; this afternoon I had my wife apply the brakes while the right front was in the air and they sure seemed to be doing their job.

Steer me straight, fellas!

Not CL, but I thought it was worth sharing, as spotted in a local "shopper" classified ad this week:

55 Packard 352 V8 engine, complete, incl. trans., $295. Call 302-242-7240.

This would be in southern Delaware, I think that exchange is Milford.

I was thinking about this and it occurred to me that, in rural areas such as where I live, if you have money it most likely is related to agriculture. That was especially true in the era when Packard was in business; their customer's would have been big-time farmers (1,000+ acres back then, I'd guess), owners of canneries or pickle factories, feed/seed/fertilizer company owners...even a bank president would have to be very well connected to ag.

There are at least of couple of those IH dealer buildings still in use locally: Hoober Equipment (formerly Tull Brothers) still sells Case International in Seaford, DE. In Hurlock, MD the former Parker IH is now a convenience store.

I have an ashtray for Quillin-Valliant International-Packard. Not sure where they were located? Especially in small towns there were all sorts of strange bedfellows. I know of one dealer that was very big in Rambler while also being very big in heavy GMC trucks. Another sold Ford tractors & Rambler from the same lot. In Dover, DE you could buy, from C.F. Schwartz, Chrysler-Plymouth, International trucks & Toyota off the same lot well into the 90's (just Toyota these days, probably a very good business decision!).

I've daydreamed quite a bit about the 4 companies & how they might have survived; even with hindsight it's a challenge to come up with a legitimate scenario. I like each company & wouldn't mind someday owning an example from each. My random thoughts:
-Did Hudson bring anything to American Motors that Nash couldn't have done on it's own? Sure, they picked up an additional dealer network, but was it worth the cost?
-A Hudson-Studebaker marriage could have produced some interesting high-performance cars. Might the step-down replacement have looked better as a re-bodied Studebaker than a re-bodied Nash? Imagine a Hudson Hawk.
-The only way I can see Packard surviving into the 60's would have been if they truly became the Rolls-Royce of the US: very limited production, very high end, very few model year changes. If, like RR, they could have become a major aircraft engine supplier they might have held on with the car business as a sideline. As it was, I don't think a Nash-based Packard could have competed against Cadillac/Lincoln/Imperial any better than the Packabaker. They really needed a home-run in '55-56, akin to "The Forward Look/Suddenly...it's 1960!" from Chrysler Corp in that time frame. They needed longer/lower/wider, not just matching the competition but beating it by a couple years. If Packard could have introduced, in 55/56, a car that looked like most any full-size car from 1960...it would have moved the needle.

I've been away from the car (and this forum) for a few weeks as the dear Mrs. very, very much wanted me working on some other projects besides the Packard. Well, tonight I had time to do some work. I pulled the top off the carb and here is what I found:
1) It was bone dry.
2) It looked terrible; lots of old "dust" in the bottom of the bowl, a dried up looking seal (I think on the accelerator pump? I'm not that smart when it comes to carbs).
3) The float appeared adjusted to specs. I dropped it down a bit and put things back together. As always, the car started quick (even with that dry bowl) but was loading up something awful. I took it apart a couple times and tried lighter adjustments but it's still too much. I didn't try a test drive.

At this point I think I need a rebuild, regardless if that fixes the problem. As much as I enjoy doing things myself I think I'm going to find an expert. I do like the idea of changing the hose; it's the kind of problem that I remember reading about in old magazine articles.

Thanks, Howard, that should be very helpful! I'm working on a series 23, btw.

"I'm pretty sure that the OD worked, but it would not kick down. Back to the drawing board. Pulled out the kickdown switch AGAIN. WD 40 got it to work, and it tested fine, though it took some pressure on the plunger. Put it back in. Tested the poles in relation to accelerator position and
NADA. The accelerator will not move the plunger far enough to break the OD relay circuit."

This is some troubleshooting I need to do...where is that switch located? My OD works fairly well but won't kickdown which makes for some very sluggish get-aways if I don't slow down enough at an intersection. A hassle to use the knob all the time.

Heat shield: I found it in the trunk with some other parts. I'd been planning on painting it and getting it bolted on. I'll make that a priority.

Float level: I wanted some confirmation from "Packard People" before attempting it, so that's good information. I'd seen it mentioned on other sites but with newer carbs. I'm always a little leery of opening up a carburetor as I've had some bad experiences in the past. Hopefully this will be so simple that even I can't screw it up

I've researched my problem online in a variety of more general forums bought wanted to run it by the real experts! Stock 2362 with a 288, WGD carb. Like many of these it runs on the hot side if you can believe the gauge, though it doesn't show any other signs of overheating. It normally starts great; unless it has sat for a couple weeks it will fire up in a few seconds with warm starts besting many fuel injected cars, though when really warm it can take a little cranking (few extra seconds).

The first couple times I drove the car I had trouble with it stalling on low-speed turns (turning into a parking lot, or onto a city street) and then it would crank but not start. Wait maybe 5 minutes and it would fire up and be okay. I blamed this on vapor lock and installed an in-line electric pump as this worked well with an old Ford I have (except the Ford wouldn't do this at low speeds but on the highway). This seemed to improve things but I'm still having trouble. Recent examples: start the car, no problem, let it idle for a couple minutes. (If anything it seems to rich from a cold start.) I drove 1/2 mile down the road, make a low-speed right turn & it stalls. Takes a couple cranks but it restarts. I drive another mile to the hardware store, come out, starts right up. Get to the end of the street, another low speed right turn, stalls, cranks to beat the band but won't start. Let it coast back into a parking space, wait a few minutes and it fires up. Drives fine the rest of the day. Then, yesterday: starts up fine, drive it across town, right turn into the store parking lot is a-okay. Come out after a few minutes, starts right up. Drive back home & when I make the slow right turn onto my street it stalls, cranks, no start. Took the top off the breather, choke is about 1/8 closed. I don't see any signs of gas in the carb but I don't know that I should. After a couple minutes the choke is closed slightly more, maybe 1/3. I then get a slight stumble while cranking but not enough. Then I placed my hand over the opening, blocking all air, and it stumbled then fired right up, running fine. Maybe a red herring-maybe it was just time for it to be over it's typical 3-5 minute crankiness? Drove home & I couldn't make it act up.

Today I played with it in the driveway, let it idle a lot, ran it at a fast idle, watched the choke gradually open. Wouldn't act up. Kinda tired of having to troubleshoot it on the side of the road!

I have some ideas but would like to hear yours. Thanks!