Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

Hi,I am going to ask a question that I think I know how most of you will answer.

I was fortunate to buy a very straight and solid 47 Super 8 custom Club Sedan #2125-2377.

The engine was very poorly rebuilt, and does not have enough compression to run. I am in the process of pulling the engine out for a re-build. I understand that I could easily get $5000 into a rebuild. By the time I rebuild the engine, re-do the interior, re-chrome grill and bumpers etc, I will have more into the car than I could reasonably sell it for.

Also,should I try to get away with just boring and new pistons and rings, or does it only make sense to bite the bullet hard and do a 100% rebuild while the engine is out?
The brearings, cam etc look good.

I have a 47 Hudson with a 350 Chevy conversion that cost less than the 356 Packard rebuild. The Hudson runs great and is fun to drive.

I understand that a 350 Chevy in a 47 Super 8 club sedan will "spoil" the Packard. What makes sense here?

Also, is Kanter my main source for parts? I need pinion and front trans seals for sure, and a drivers vent window frame.

I would very much appreciate your comments and advice.

Thanks, John Verity, Boise, Idaho

That's a pretty hard circumstance to give advice on without knowing what parts of the prior rebuild were poorly done, and hopefully some parts well done. And until the engine is stripped you probably won't know that.

The HAMB crowd will tell you that a Chebby motor will increase it's value. It will decrease it's unique character for sure.
If you are not in a hurry, you could fall into a good deal on a decent used or rebuilt Packard mill. Upon inspection, yours may not need that much.
Make some calls, do some digging. Who knows what will pop up.

Well it's your car, you can do whatever you want with it. If you want a nice running car then sell the Packard and go buy something new, there are a lot of upgrades and the prices aren't bad for new cars. I have been to some car shows and all you see are Hopped Up, Tricked Out Mustangs so many that after awhile it's like BORING! Then I will see a couple of old cars thinking alright, now here will be when a car was a car and all I see are V8's stuck in looking all the same again. Before buying a car I think a person should look at it and say do I really like the car as it is or Man this will make a Smoken Hotrod or are you buying a piece of history and when you show up at a car show you have something unique. Of course you will probably never get your money back out of it but that is why we call it a hobby. The enjoyment of rebuilding it or just working on it and learning how it works, makes one think about all the time and effort that was put into building cars back in the day. Today people push a button and their car starts, I myself I push on the gas pedal and my car starts. Packard build very strong and dependable cars that held up on the roads back in the day, but with roads today I would expect a Packard to last even longer. And with the improvements lubricants you should get many more years of enjoyment.
Yes you could put a V8 in and it would run just fine, put an automatic in also and get rid of the Old Three on the Tree, while your at it put disc brakes all around, change out the supspension on the front, add power steering, of course it would be a 12 volt system, but keep the old school body and the name Packard on it or keep it original and show, this is how the cars were made back in the day.
Well that's my 2 cents.
Wes

Thank you all for your response and comment.

The 356 engine had new standard pistons with knurled skirts installed in over taper bores. #4 cylinder appears to have had a frozen piston forced out. There is no cylinder with more than 40 psi compression!

Bearings look good. Will have the engine evaluated by a good local motor machine shop.

I agree that 100% original is better. The car is very solid and the engineering, design, and robustness of the car is impressive. I am told that only 20 of the super 8 custom club sedans are registered in the USA. The car came from the So. Cal. Desert south of Palm Springs.

John Verity

When the SBC fad is over - and it is a fad and it will be over - what will you have. A Chevrolet with custom body work. Ten years from now, when GM has quit making the 350 and, more importantly, the electronics that make it run you'll have a car that is only good for parts.

My 1951 Packard 200 Deluxe is all stock. The big scare that kept me from getting into Packards years ago was parts and price of parts. I was delighted to find out that in both cases, the fear was completely unjustified. Mechanical parts are plentiful and cheap - and I'm not talking about the quality. When I go out in the morning it ALWAYS starts instantly - more "instantly" than does my Lincoln Town Car. I've never driven a Packard older than my '51(s) except for what was my Grandmother's 1935 120. But from people who have and whose veracity I believe in have told me that there is no road in today's world that the Packards from 1940 on up cannot feel at home on. Indeed, the faster I drive my '51, the better it likes it and seems to sort of hunker down and goes! This is with a stock Ultramatic too - which I've found to be as smooth and purposeful as the electronic overdrive automatic that's in my Town Car.

I have found that both my running Packards, the other being the '55 Patrician can do almost everything my late model daily driver can do. The "almost" is cornering in the '51. It does roll over into a commercial for seat belts (to keep you behind the wheel) but when I drive the '51 I'm usually in a different mindset - one that enjoys the drive and the marvel of a sixty four old car that can and does do all that the designers intended it to do. I wish I had held up as well. The 1955, if I'm in a hurry, will let me drive it just as fast and hard as my Lincoln. In fact the '55 with the Torsion Level Suspension corners and tracks just as well and in some situations handles better than the Lincoln.

About the engine, I think you'll find that there is very little wrong with it. The low compression was something a previous owner ran into with what is now my '51 Patrician. It needed the valves unstuck and I'm almost willing to bet that's what your main problem as well. If you let these engines sit over time, the valves will get stuck in the open position or not completely close. Both have the same symptoms you are describing.

My best advice see if you can find someone to let you try driving their 47. If not that, then get enough done to it so that the Packard - the WHOLE Packard can show you what it can do. Once it does, that top of the tree, limited production full classic (I believe) will make you forget all about the SBC.

One more thing. If you are driving your complete Packard and something should happen, if you have any mechanic in you at all, I from what I've read it sounds like you do, these cars are so simple, that you can probably fix it on the spot. If you're driving a new car (whether is has a Packard Skin or that of a Chevy) and it quits - about the only tools you'll need is a cell phone and AAA card to take the whole mess to a repair shop. If it's something electronic, you'd better hope Chevy is still offering the part - something less likely with every passing year - or you've got a Lawn Ornament.

Please, just see what you'll be missing.

Jim L. in Oregon. Thanks for your informative and encouraging reply. Where do you live in Oregon. I am in Boise, Idaho. John V.

Hi John, I'm in Portland.

Although it's a little belated on my part, welcome to the group!

I just watched a Jay Leno's Garage video about an outfit called Derilect that installs a new Morrison Chassis and drivetrain under old cars to make them handle and perform like today's high performance cars. The featured car was a late 1940's Buick Comvertible that to all outside appearances looked like a barn find- bad paint, deteriorated chrome....the works.
The driveline was a 700 hp Chevy big block with 4 wheel Wilwood discs and rack and pinion steering and other modern features neatly concealed.
It was an impressive car that I am relatively sure set the owner back over 6 figures.
Changing a motor on your Packard to a SBC will not enhance the value of the car in itself and will make purists crazy. It is your car and you can do with it as you please. I just suggest that you do a bit of thinking about what maintaining the car will cost and what use you plan for the future. Modern higher power engines should be mated to older cars with brakes, suspension and steering upgrades to match or you risk injuring yourself,or others. If you do not plan to drive the car as your primary mode,of transport, finding a replacement engine or having yours rebuilt should end up costing no more than converting to the SBC and with less hassle over mounts, and other needed adjustments.
You must like the looks of the car or you would not have it. Getting it running and operating safely should be the primary concern. Just have fun with it

If your bearings and such from the bottom end are good, then it is really not that expensive to bore it out, slap in some new pistons and rings, and do a nice valve job. A Club sedan is very rare and will probably repay your effort.

Over the years I have found that my satisfaction comes not from collecting cars, but from collecting driving experiences. That is why I don?t feel duplicating a readily available drving experience is so interesting.