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I've never seen a period picture of a 9th series eight with a painted radiator except for town cars with all bright work painted, the Light Eight, and one used car paint job.

So to me grinding the chrome shell and painting it is a modification more destructive than putting later fenders, wheels, and headlights on it.

Before April 1, 1932, all the cars should have a chrome shell. And all the Dietrich Custom Eights came with a chrome shell. They just weren't painted.

That may be the case. You said it looked like crap, and I was just commenting that I didn't agree. I think it looks better. And certainly a customer could have ordered it that way, just like he could order his Eight to have Twelve bumpers. And it certainly was done, as you mentioned with the town cars.

Perhaps it's too bad that one single precedence makes it okay for anyone restoring a car to follow suit. I have a beef with early-'30s Cadillac owners completely chrome plating their wheels when there's only one photographic proof that it was ever done... and it was on a Hollywood car. So now every other concours-quality Cadillac V-16 has the Hollywood chrome wheels on it. The same goes for the same vintage Packards with all-chrome wheels.

Hollywood dictates restorations. That's why we see so many "restored" cars with white sidewall tires.

That's why we see so many "restored" cars with white sidewall tires.

West, I'm not a fan of blackwalls on all prewar Packards by any stretch of the imagination, and I certainly don't at all like the all-out jazzed up cars that can appear at Concours. But certainly whitewall tires were far more common on higher-priced cars and I suspect more common than you think. They are on a significant number of cars pictured in the factory brochures. Have you ever gone thru the Packard factory photos of, say 1932 thru 1936, and noted how many have whitewalls? If not, I think you'd be surprised.

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Thanks, Dave. I didn't segue very well. That rant was referring to cars in general, Model As, Plymouths, Dodges, etc.

Amen West, blackwalls were the norm for most car in the period, whether new or used, high or low priced. In fact, in period street scenes any car with whitewalls stick out like a sore thumb.

Chrome wires on Classics......just the modern malady.....too much money, no taste. Though I would like to see a '734 Speedster with chrome disks and blackwalls.

Steve

I believe there is a factory photo of a boattail speedster with chrome discs and blacks. I don't care for it. I'd rather have just the chrome-plated hub sleeve with painted disc wheels. I do love the looks of disc wheels, though. Makes the car look like its moving while standing still. Plus, really easy to keep clean.

If you look in the parts book there is only one part number listed for the 9th series radiator shell while the shutters are listed by color.

The Individual Custom Eight was styled by Dietrich before the V-12 project was finalized. If Ray Dietrich wanted painted radiators he would have done it that way.

I have one period picture of an 11th series eight with a painted shell and it was an export model. More popular was the chrome shutters and shell option on the eight. The brochures for the eight have a couple of pictures with painted shells but the option was not common. However, the parts book clearly shows a part number for a painted shell beginning with the 10th series.

That doesn't change my opinion on using grinders on those shells so they can be painted. The chrome shell is a different part number and once you take a grinder to it there is no turning back. It is ruined. Like spray painting an old musical instrument.

And it looks like "wannabe" (crap). Might as well street rod the thing