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When new, would a 1938/39 Packard 120 actually hit 100 mph?

When I had my 1939 110 coupe in the 1980's I ran it on the freeway at 75 mph all the time.

It had overdrive.

Never tried to go 100.

Jim

In November 1935 Packard wanted to show the public that their new junior cars were just as reliable as the senior cars.

So a 1936 Packard 120 sedan was randomly selected off the production line at the Detroit plant, shipped by rail to the Packard Proving Grounds, and subjected to a grueling 174-hour, 15,432 mile endurance run on the test track. Average speed was 87.5 mph and IIRC that includes the time used for pit stops.

Impressive for the day, but not a 100 mph average. One could speculate that: (1) if you accounted for the time lost in pits stops and (2) the track is oval, that MAYBE the 120 could have hit 100 mph on one of the long straightaways - MAYBE.

In the photo below PPG workers perform maintenance on the car such as refilling fluids and changing tires during one of the scheduled pit stops. Notice the pheasant stuck in the radiator grille.

Also is a photo of Carl Altz, a test track driver that started at the PPG in 1934. He is holding a sign that hung around the outside of the PPG when the November 1935 test was underway. Carl was 96 when I took that photo of him with the sign.

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As others have said, there are probably some records of these cars attempting to hit the century mark on what we'd now call a premier closed circuit course, such as the Packard Proving Grounds.

These cars might not make it that fast because relatively few American cars could (perhaps excerpting Cords and Auburns) in that price range. But very expensive cars might have if their price was not a factor in the comparison. Perhaps the fastest upper-medium priced car that could come close was the aptly-named Buick Century with a large car engine in a smaller-bodied car. Centurys sold well to the image Buick advertised.

But remember, in the late thirties there were mighty few stretches of roads where 100 mph could be safely attained. Highway speed limits were about 50 mph at best, and a few years later, a national wartime limit of 35 was established. With its large frontal area, what must have been a hellacious drag factor, a rather high rear end ratio and tire technology that we'd consider primitive today, not many Packard 120s would ever see much more than 80. Back then 50 was our current equivalent of 80.

Given the lack of current safety features, I'd consider anyone who'd try and drive a Packard 120 of that era over 80 to be a fool, even if the car could achieve the speed. A 75 year old car has earned the right to travel at graceful speeds. And a Packard like that does look good doing things gracefully.

In the interests of accuracy, the Packard depicted in the pit stop photo above is a 1936 Packard Eight model 1402 seven-passenger sedan, not a One Twenty. The same photo can be found on page 348 of the Kimes "Packard: A History of the Motor Car and the Company" book. There are additional photos of the car on pages 348 and 349 along with written commentary on the endurance run. As with everything in that book, the segment makes for very interesting reading.

My first Packard was a low mileage original 1937 Packard One Twenty sedan that I purchased in 1974. Sometime I'd say in 1975 I took it on an expressway to see what it would do. I had it up to an indicated 85 MPH when I had to brake for slower-moving traffic ahead. The car suffered no ill effects from that run. I think it still had more in it to give at 85 MPH. Do I think it could do an indicated 100? Absolutely! Would I recommend to anyone to try this on an open road? Absolutely not!

Very fascinating. Thanks for sharing the pics.

Can you imagine contemporary drivers putting along at 35 mph? And many thought 55 mph was a snail's pace back in the 1970's.

I wouldn't dream of driving a brand new vehicle 100 mph, much less a near-80 year vehicle. Like you, I wouldn't push it.