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

Hi

For the 1948 introduction, the 22nd Series convertible was available months before the sedans but fast forward to the introduction of the new 1951 24th series and the convertible and Mayfair hardtop trailed the sedan by months? Wonder why they made such odd marketing decisions?

Steve

Perhaps tooling etc. took more time to complete. For the 22nd series introduction the initial emphasis was on the convertible because there had been none in the line since 1942. But to me the more interesting question is why those two models were (originally) introduced in the base 200 series and not mid- or top-of-the line models. OK, so they quickly elevated them to the "250" status, but still poor placement in the product line IMO. It took until 1954 for the Convertible to become a senior car!

It might have something to do with the problems Packard was having with Briggs getting car bodies. When Walter Briggs died in 1952 Chrysler and Briggs entered into negotiations for the purchase of the body manufacturing group. It would have been hard for Packard to develop and build very many convertibles if they took away production of the better selling sedans and hardtops. Note that in 1955 and until the end of its Detroit run, Packard produced only one convertible in very limited numbers; there were no other senior or Clipper convertibles ever again.

Also, as air conditioning became more popular during the 1950s, the demand for convertibles declined. By the 1970s, convertibles almost disappeared. Note that Ford produced an all-convertible line of Thunderbirds from 1955 to 1957, then the numbers of hardtops began to diminish the demand for convertibles.

Hi

Good analysis. On Owen's question of why would they initially planned the convertible and Mayfair as 200 series models, that speaks of the total emphasis by management upon the mid-priced market. As such, the 300 and Patrician 400 got short-shrift, deprived of the then hot-selling hardtops and showroom-draw convertible so beneficial to their main competitors Buick and Cadillac.

While the upgraded 250 Mayfair and convertible are nice cars, they were pale efforts compared to what should have been available and what the Super and Custom Eights had been. Trying to promote the '54 Convertible, given it's 122" wb and overall length against the 130' wb Cadillac 62 with its long flanks to a public then in love with the same.....! The only consolation for Packard was that Lincoln had painted themselves into the same corner with their downsized 123" wb "Road Race" models.

The Briggs/Chrysler management changes shouldn't have caused much problem during 1950-51 when the 24th Series was in development. After all, the Connor Avenue plant had supplied all the 22nd and 23rd Series sedans and convertibles plus long-wheelbase models without such delays. They had even taken on the long-wheelbase sedan production initially handled by Henney for the 21st Series. So, capacity for hardtops and convertibles shouldn't have been a problem. Ferry and company just weren't quick to realize how the lack of such higher image models was a detriment, how they could have been a boon to overall sales.

Steve

While the upgraded 250 Mayfair and convertible are nice cars, they were pale efforts compared to what should have been available and what the Super and Custom Eights had been

Honestly, even the Patrician of 1951 couldn't compare to the former Custom 8s of the 21st/22nd/23rd series. IMO it wasn't until 1953 that the Patrician reached the level it should have been from the get-go.

IIRC, in 1947 when the convertibles first were built, Packard had a twin assembly line that was intended to accommodate the 200,000 cars a year that George Christopher had promised the dealers. So, it was easy to start building the new snazzy convertible while the older style 1947 sedans and coupes were still being built as well.

I think they timed it like that because Packard had previously always sold a higher percentage of convertibles in their model mix than their competitors, and a drop-top had been missing from the product line for 5 years. It was supposed to add excitement to the brand and increase the traffic in the dealerships.

From a production standpoint, it also gave you a lower volume model to work out your bugs before full production began on the entire 22nd Series.

Too bad Packard couldn't have worked the bugs out somewhere before commencing the production of the V8s!