Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

Hi All -

Sorry if this has been asked & answered previously, but I wasn't able to find anything on the forums, which I've been searching for a week.

I have an opportunity to purchase a 1952 200 DeLuxe with Ultramatic. This would be my first Packard, I've been lusting after post-war Packards for 18 years.

hemmings.com/classifieds/cars-for-sale/packard/200/1835249.html

Seller is local, very friendly and I am going to see the car in person tomorrow. I don't know what I don't know, what is there that I should look out for? I'm not looking to get a car that's going to give me investment returns, that's not how I look at the car hobby for me. I just want something that can act as an entry point to Packard, that I can work on, drive and enjoy.

Thanks for your help!

G'day Trevor(tAnthony),
Although you're a loooooong time PackardInfo member this appears to be your first post so

Looks like a pretty neat '52 200 Deluxe but I really don't know enough to advise you. Instead, I invite you to include this, or any other Packard you might purchase, in the Packard Owner's Registry.

Check the rocker panel bottoms and inner for holes/ poor workmanship. Steering should not be sloppy or wander. Driving in H you should feel one decent shift as the convertor locks up somewhere between 15 and 40 under moderate accel. Of course the engine should sound even and not smoke. Ride is somewhat floaty, but not bobbing up and down.

Thanks. I did a little digging on the seller and found the car listed elsewhere on a very hard to find personal website with (what I believe is) a very high price. That's their prerogative, but feels a purposefully evasive. But I shouldn't judge until I meet them.

I'm not an expert on the high-pockets cars, but that does not look like a "done to original" interior. Respectable job , but there is a difference.

The car looks like a pretty respectable driver but be sure to check out the lower metal with a magnet.
What are they hoping to fetch? It will not bring 15K.

Well, on Hemmings it is listed as "inquire for price" on the phone he mentioned he's trying to liquidate, knowing he'll have to let it go below market value and that I should make him an offer after I look at it. After my digging around I found it listed on another site with a price of $14,000.

Now granted I don't own any Packards, but I know enough about the company and the car to know that price is nowhere within the realm of reasonability. The 200's were produced in (relatively) high numbers and are (relatively) unloved when compared to the rest of the lineup.

Interior does not look right. Chrome looks great but needs to be verified. Check for rust is a must. I can't comment on price but somewhere less than asking price for sure but all in all looks like a very decent car.

Note also that it appears to have had a starter button added to the dash which was done by drilling a hole that would have to be repaired to be stock. On this vintage of Packard, the starter switch was in the carburetor and accessed by flooring the gas pedal.

From the pix it looks like a lot of rust bubbling through some bondo in the lower panels. Which makes me suspicious of floorboards, trunk floor, fender edges etc. so crawl under and look at those areas, a lot of work if it's a Flintstones car to weld in new floors etc. otherwise it looks clean but more like a $3K car tops than $14K. Parts are readily available from normal sources and the main Packard parts dealers. Check if wiring has been updated, otherwise plan to do that as petrification will make shorts common as the insulation flakes off. It's a 60+ yr old car. So look at the brake lines, fuel lines, and wiring for rust and decay. Those door panels are original so the fabric will be real fragile. And the seats may well just be covers over old rotten stuff, so the padding could be all mouse nests. You don't know what conditions it was stored in during it's life and how complete the repairs were when they got it driving again, so the level of hobby work you're looking forward to will be seen by careful detective work on your pre buy. I'm a pessimist but you want to bargain them down from a position of knowledge, and they want a buyer to see shiny things and give in to lust. And no matter how much money gets put into it like you say it won't be an investment vehicle. Some modernization isn't a bad thing, like the starter button - the carb switches wore out and stuck, so good riddance although a neat system when it worked. Good luck!