Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

Owen Dyneto in post 11 gives best advice to start. Removal of distributor is rather easy. Then its bench work sitting on a stool which is about as easy as any automotive work can get. So there is nothing difficult about it. Distributors are rather simple. Not much to them.

If the distributor is not advancing the timing then that would create an overheat problem under some driving conditions especialy sustained speeds over 30 mph.

Fuel advice:
Once you get the car dolbied out then experiment with variuos gasoline brands for yourself.

Your expectations for fine tuning the engine to perfection relative to minor ping and "overheating" maybe unreasonable. I don't know. Maybe not. Modern day gas among other products tend to vary in quality and anything that resembles a benchmark standard. So any fine tuning or other measures taken today might not have the same results 3 years from now.

Any of the brand name fuels should do well. MAYBE!!!! I would avoid cut rate fly by nite brands. In my case Marathon will ping SLIGHTLY while BP SEEMS EXCELLENT.

THE PROBLEM:
Gasloline staions are gasoline stations. Which means that a car owner never really knows what they are buying. Many gas stations have "nite dumps" which means they are buying somekind of cut rate bulk bulk fuel from maybe any spurious source and selling it as brand name. Look, its a racket.
So just have to experiment for yourself with various brands and grades of gas. Gas in your region mite be completely different from gas in my region or any othwr region. ITS A CRAP SHOOT!!!!!! Just have to experiment for youself.

Gasoline recommendations:
One has to be careful with "heard on the street" local recommendations. I know a few locals that swear by one particular brand of gas. Sure, for their damned near brand new puddle jumping 4 cylinder Kamakazi mobilewith all of the e-controls on the engine. Or others that swear by some othwr gas brand for their trailor queen christmas parade mobile. One size does not fit all.

Gasoline recommendations:
One has to be careful with "heard on the street" local recommendations. I know a few locals that swear by one particular brand of gas. Sure, for their damned near brand new puddle jumping 4 cylinder Kamakazi mobilewith all of the e-controls on the engine. Or others that swear by some othwr gas brand for their trailor queen christmas parade mobile. One size does not fit all.

Pulled it today (95 degrees and muggy-ouch!) and found coppery shavings in some quantity. Waiting for new bushings. Will keep you posted on how this plays out.....

Maybe I'm not getting it right but if you're looking for engine ID #s this might help. Yes, there are numbers stamped by the oil filler tube...........but I've seen some that have been altered and one not stamped......maybe factory replacements. In addition there are casting numbers on the block over the torque convertor area. These are LARGE bold numbers and are clearly visible. #s ending in 527=320, 275=352, 971=374. After parting 120 Packards I've seen lots of weird stuff.

Pulled it today (95 degrees and muggy-ouch!) and found coppery shavings in some quantity. Waiting for new bushings

Pat, assuming you're referring to the distributor shaft bushings, if you have trouble finding them let me know; I've got a sizeable assortment of NOS ones, though unmarked by part numbers so I'd need the OD, ID, and length. If you need them and I have them, you're welcome to a set.

Mike -

I believe patgreen's query on the Utica engine plant identification number location was prompted by a deviation from the book specs for timing on very early production 374s - per SC Vol. 29, No. 12 (p. 65).

Because the VN number could not be applied until an engine was staged for vehicle assembly at Conner, Utica stamped its own unique identification number for tracking purposes. (I'm not sure about its use on short blocks or cylinder and piston assemblies.)

However, the main point of that SC article is now moot, in this particular case, since the owner advised (in post #20 of this thread) that his car has the later distributor (#1110880) - per STB 56T-14.

Not sure why Packard advised leaving those early engines set at 5-degrees, as there's no disclosure of any mechanical differences from subsequent production - until STB 56T-14. Even with the later distributor/conversion, that bulletin specifies base timing of 10-degrees, but then goes on to recommend dialing that back to 7- or even 5-degrees, if needed.

Still, thanks for the casting number reference - always good info to have.

Quote:

How very thoughtful of you! However, they are available and I already have a set from Max. Really appreciate the offer!

I should know by now that nothing about a Packard is simple.

Did I note that I have a 1110880 distributor (Delco)? I ordered two bushings from Max per their illustration. The upper bushing fits fine; the lower does not. It appears that a second upper bushing is what is needed in the lower position.

Can anyone shed any light here?

The distributor needed a number of very small parts, which I hope I have located.

Duane and I have spent some time with reference material the distributor in question.

It now seems fairly certain that it was rebuilt; apparently a lower bushing could not be found. As far as we can see, the hole was reamed out to accept the top bushing which was then installed.

Having Max send me another top bushing and we will hopefully be good to reassemble.

And run the car. At normal temps. With full power. And air, if it is still needed....

Stay tuned for yet another thrilling segment of "As the Packard Turns" an uncensored reality show about an automotive diva........