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Although the focus here on PackardInfo is on Packard automobiles, from time to time other Packard related items are showcased. This is one of those. It was found in the AACA ""Not Mine" For Sale Forum as was the '42 Packard Panel Truck I referenced in this thread in PackardInfo's Packard Vehicles For Sale Forum.

The Packard connection? A Liberty V12 Engine powering the Gar Woods boat.

Link to the Facebook Marketplace ad.

Link to the AACA Forum.

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  Liberty V12 Power.jpg (170.17 KB)

Wow!

A beautiful boat. You buy it (and, for a paltry sum, maintain it.) I think all of us on the forum will be thrilled to share a ride. My recollection is that GarWood Boats was the main competitor to Chris Craft, who had the lead in prestige.

Anyway, a beautiful boat. I had pictures of some when I was a kid.

Thanks for the post.

Phil

I once owned a Gar Wood winch....

We had a ‘50s Chris Craft Cavalier for decades but it didn’t hold a candle to this huge GarWood! I image that Chris Craft did make one that was closer in specifications, though.

I know the liberty as an aircraft engine but was used in marine for PT/higgins boats, etc.
I worked on one painted wooden boat and I wouldn't own one. It's a maintenance nightmare. You got to keep them wet/swelled or they leak. They look terrific with all sleek styling, chrome & brass trim, etc. but takes a crew to keep it that was. Wood - that's all they had starting off.

They used to run the 12 Merlin's & Allison's in hydro racing. I don't recall many Liberties there. I think they were passe by then. Correct me if you know. I lived on the river starting ~40 years ago and the annual hydro races would be held right outside my apartment and those old Allison's were the unlimited choice, like the miss Bud, etc. They were replaced with the tunnel turbo jets. All these race power plants have roots in the military. War's a hot bed of innovation due to the urgent necessity war creates. Brain thinks faster when bullet fly at it.
The old Cad flat 348 was dualled as Shermin tank powerplant. Interesting stuff military and early evolution of things - at least to me. So if you're trying to "soup up" and old flattie, in my opinion you're going in the wrong direction. Today HP comes easier than from yesterday. The "muscle car era" is really happening now. WE drooled over 400+ HP back in the day, '60s. Now "par" is twice that.

This could be a "gem" see below:
excerpt:
Inventor, entrepreneur, and boat racer Gar Wood set a new water speed record of 74.870 miles per hour (120.492 km/h) in 1920 in a new twin Liberty V-12 powered boat called Miss America. In the following twelve years, Wood built nine more Packard V-12 driven Miss Americas and broke the record five times, raising it to 124.860 miles per hour (200.943 km/h). He also won five straight powerboat Gold Cup races between 1917 and 1921, and the prestigious Harmsworth Trophy nine times between 1920 and 1933, at the helm of his Miss Americas.

Cf: my current 250 HP outboard bass boat runs in the lows 70s, if you like a squirrelly ride. I keep it nice and stable under 70 now - getting old. Two Packard v-12s to get to the same speed range circa 1920, aka boat anchors! ha, HA, HAAA!

Enjoyed reading about your experiences in boat racing. I agree, repurposed WW-I aircraft engines were used in marine and auto racing applications. They had the power to propel boats and vehicles to record setting speeds back in the day. Maybe I missed something, but I don't think there were any Liberty engines used in PT boats. PT boats were equipped with Packard designed and built V-12s which much different than the WW-I Liberty aircraft engines. The PT boats used three engines.

Quote:
John,

I have seen two Liberty powered vehicles, one a MAB (aka Malecit et Blin), the other an about 1930 Packard Tourer re-engined with Liberty V12, I've attached a photo of the MAB, which was chain driven, unfortunately can't locate a photo of the Liberty powered Packard. Another photo I was going to post was GAR Wood's Miss America X(powered by 4 V12 Packard engines producing 7,600hp each. Quite a step up from the Liberty's 400hp!) which is resident at the Packard Proving Grounds. Can't locate the photos I took of Miss America X in 2018 when I visited the PPG, instead heres a link to a Website which has info on Gar Woods and his record breaking boats.

Seeing I'm on a Packard V12 bent, I've attached a link to an article I wrote at the time, 2014, I saw the MAB and went on to see a Packard Merlin V12(Only about 1,400hp) powered Supermarine Spitfire, a WW2 fighter aircraft, at an airshow at Temora, a country town in NSW(A State) of Australia. I'm not "tech savvy" so the Temora Aviation Museum article may or may not travel well through cyberspace!

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Stop Press!!!

Found my PPG Miss Americ X photos, see below



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Also found pic's of what I remembered as a Liberty V12 powered Packard. Memory not as good as it used to be, obviously NOT a Packard(Don't know the make) but Liberty V12 powered nevertheless.




Kev, used the photo embedding feature for these pics, I really like it!

Great! It does making telling the story easier rather than just having all the pics appended to the end.