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The worst part about it is this guy has a hand full of Packard's and deals in Studebakers. He had a whole warehouse full of them and the Doc's he had, the plates on the car, etc. seemed to jive with the story. He has several Clippers he has restored so he is no stranger to them. Just disappointed it was not a true survivor as stated. We will still enjoy the repairs and the driving.

Received my response from the seller. He swears that the car was exactly as her purchased it from the original owner. If true, I still find it hard to believe that if the car was driven from 56-67 and then parked, that the engine would need to be replaced being on the road that short amount of time.

Here is the story I was given on the car.


1956 Packard Patrician 4 door I purchased this car in 2003 along with another Packard from a gentleman who drove them up until 1967 then drove them into his heated machine factory and left them there for 36 years. When the state wanted the land for our local airport he decided that at 79 years old it was time to sell the cars. After 3-4 months of going back and forth i finally got him to sell them to me .I had a tow service bring two rollbacks to the factory and take them to my house in 2003 and they were put right in my garages. Summer of 2003 I started to work on them . With gas in can and some in carb the car started right up. Took the gas tank off and had it opened up and boiled out and lined and resealed at cost of $200.00. The tank in in trunk and was not installed. This Packard has 374 cu in 6.1 L 290 hp original engine, Electronic Push Button Ultramic for 1956 (only Year made with this on Patrician. 4 Door sedan last on rolled off production line on June 25, 1956. Ultramic transmission featured a lockup torque converter with 2 speeds . Torsion - level suspension. Sold for $4160.00 in 1956 122 in wheelbase , 1748 four door sedans built, 1031 two doors Only built from march thru June 1956. Patrician was used for the 4 door top of the line sedans. Executive was introduced in spring 1956 the executive was aimed at the buyer who wanted a luxury car but couldn't justify Packard's pricing. total of 3375 patricians rolled off the line in 1956 they have hooded headlamp. Today Aug 12 2013 I went out and put a battery in car and some gas and the car started up till the gas in carb was used up , brakes are down. Before i would put tank back on you really need to clean or change the gas lines. You are welcome to come and see the car the body has little rust , most chrome good. couple extra things in trunk. It has power seats, power windows , seatbelts that were not needed in 1956 good interior, good head liner all glass good. Car is being sold as is as it is 57 years old , ready for you to restore. The car #s are 5682-4508 with 290 hp.

Item specifics
Condition:

Make: Packard

Transmission: Electronic Push Button Ultramic Model: Patrician

Body Type: 4 door Trim: 4 door

Vehicle Title: Clear Engine: 374 cu in 6.1 L

Fuel Type: gas Drive Type: rear wheel

For Sale By: owner Mileage: 80,000

Disability Equipped: No Exterior Color: Blue

Warranty: none Interior Color: Blue

Year: 1956 Number of Cylinders: 8 cylinder

Mad at myself for being trusting. Guess the next car wont be like that.

Hard to believe? People blow up engines all the time, even to this day.. 80,000 miles in 11 years of running is plenty of time for an engine to be ruined for any number of reasons. "I thought you had put antifreeze in it...." That's why they listed engines in the parts book.

Remember that these cars had all the resale value of used Kleenex for very many years. Its more a wonder that when the original engine went south the whole car was not unceremoneously tossed away.

Jack Vines is right--the difference in performance will be indistinguishable. A 352 with a 3.54 axle will run away from a 374 with a 2.87 in any event, and still be quiet at any normal cruising speed.

Well, Now that we know for sure it is what it is. The only reason I am upset is that we put a lot of time into choosing the right car to restore as we wanted to do a correct survivor for monetary investment purposes for legacy pass down. Had I wanted to just restore and alter the power train etc. I would have opted for a 60's-70's Mopar Mussel.

Either way, we will restore the car either with a correct 374 or the jerked over 352 painted 374 correct which visibly will not notice to the untrained eye. Either way according to the appraisers I will now wind up with a #3 rating rather than the #1 we were shooting for. That winds up being a $12k hit on the value.

Bottom line, still love my Pack and I will enjoy her for many years to come. Thanx for all the input thus far.

Dear Lord, I have truly learned "half of what's wrong with a Packard when you get it is due to the idiot before you." - And All the Packard Owners Said....Amen

She looks like a fine car. You are not that far into it. I'm sure it would sell easily and then you can buy another with the originality you desire.

Troy -

Sorry to hear things didn't play out as expected.

However, I don't think as much emphasis is placed on numbers-matching engines in the Packard segment of the hobby as it is in muscle car circles - certainly not like Bloomington Gold certification for Corvettes.

That is, a factory-supplied service engine should not be frowned on, especially if it is of same displacement. Such engine would have had no VN number stamped, in either location (as previously noted), by the factory (only a Utica number). Previously, dealers were advised to stamp straight eight service replacement blocks with the original VN (and sometimes an additional suffix), but the practice may have lapsed by 55-56.

However, when a service block of original design was no longer available, Packard often approved and provided additional instructions and parts for installing substitute, as noted in various service newletters. In fact, in 1959, Studbaker Service Bulletin No. 350 (p. 7) actually advised dealers that 1955 stripped (service) engines (320- and 352-cid) were available for installation in 1956 cars.

Personally, my preferences would be for an original numbers-matching engine...else, a service engine of correct displacement...else, a used/reconditioned motor from a donor vehicle of same type/displacement.

The only wrong turn you took was not validating the VN on the engine before you struck a deal. As soon as you saw it was not there, that should have raised a red flag for you to dig a deeper. Once you got to the bottom of the matter, you might have been able to negotiate a lower price for the car.

Otherwise, it looks like you have a good, solid, project car, and factory A/C is not all that common in that period of automotive history. If it were my car, I would do the rest of it up right. If everything else works out according to expectations, the motor could always be swapped out at a later date.

thanx BH that is what I am going to do. she is one fine car other than that. One aspect, I could always punch the 352 out to a 374 and paint it to 374 stock. Visibly the engines are identical to the untrained eye for the local car viewers.
I am used to restoring aircraft and that has a different set of criteria, matching numbers are not that important for some of the vintage birds. A few years back I did a WWI Eindecker EII. All I had was frame and rotted skin. Fixed her up used replica parts and it looked great to the Novice.

Thanx to all for the support, I need to focus on this as a great hobby and Family project we started on and not so much focus on the magic gem.

And if you would like, I have a 56 Patrician engine (really!) that I would love to sell you. Or for that matter, an entire 56 Patty parts car. PM me if interested.

Got 10 hours of good wrenching time today. Boy was it cold today. Got the engine and tranny out. Rebuilt dozens of Engines but this was the first Automatic Transmission I ever separated. I must say, it was a great learning experience. Taking a look at the Torque Converter, I can see why the tranny was puking. Whoever took it apart last time gouged the input shaft with a screw driver so something and it has a sharp metal gouges that chewed right through the seals.

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I'm in the thread late Troy.....but I think it's pretty cool that your Patrician may have a factory replacement engine. Can't be may of those out here in the world today. My inclination would be to keep that engine, rebuild it, and put it back into the Patrician. You could weave a wonderful old tale with such a story. Adapt and overcome.

Enjoy your Packard!