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

Quote:
The two black wires I see in your photo both need to stay. The longer top wire from the nut at the points to the nut on the black bakelite block is the signal from the points that goes on to the coil. The black bakelite is just an insulator and the stud thru it completes the path to another terminal which is outside the distributor case. That outside terminal connects to the coil and is probably where the old outside condenser connected. Any wire that was between the old condenser and outside terminal could be eliminated.

The shorter wire connecting between a screw threaded into the case near the cap hold down clip to a screw on the plate where the vacuum advance arm fastens is a ground wire. Because the plate is mounted on bearings and continuously moves, it may not always have a good solid ground so that wire is present to provide a reliable ground connection from the metal distributor case to the points and condenser can.

The new condenser wire would connect to the nut at the top of the points just as the picture from the SM shows. Because clearance is tight and the plate moves just be sure to mount the condenser can so it does not touch anything else that moves and route the condenser wire so there is no chance it will rub or get caught on the rotor or anything else .

Thank you I will absolutely do that unfortunately I won't be able to do it for another 5 hours probably but I will definitely do it I'm going to go pick up a condenser after work and head right over to the garage I can't wait to get that done and potentially get a spark lol then I can work on getting it started and running

Is there a distributor cap and rotor that would be compatible with the 53 Packard cavalier maybe at AutoZone or Napa etc

Here is the parts cross-reference page for electrical components:

Electrical Cross-Reference

So for the Cap:
NAPA RR158

Rotor (non-resistor, may need to use Resistor plugs if you want to use the radio):
NAPA RR159

Points:
NAPA ECHLIN CS-77 or CS-77A

Condenser:
NAPA ECHLIN AL-869

That's perfect thank you appreciate it

Yeah so I looked up the part numbers for the points I couldn't find points under those numbers however when I just put in points in the search it came up with a bunch of them but I'm not sure which set would be good for that

Looking further down in the Cross-Reference, look at:

Echlin CS777A

Some of the xref numbers may be obsolete now since a lot of the data that started the xref was compiled a dozen or more years ago.

Packard used both Delco and Autolite electrics and they will interchange on the engines. Packard may have started out with a specific item used on certain models but there is no given that is still the case today. One significant issue is the number in the xref may have been correct for what the original finder of the xref number thought was the correct component on his car but it is possible a previous owner before him swapped a component with one from another model.

This parts swapping was a very common occurrence in the years after Packard went away and parts became harder to find. Many old unwanted Packards populated junkyards at that time and were salvations for someone looking for a hard to find or just an inexpensive repair.

To get the proper items for your distributor, if you have the xref number as a start that is good but I would also suggest you take the cap, rotor, etc in with you. If the number proves useless the clerk may still be able to refer to them and possibly come up with a current number and can match to what you have and see if it will work. If all else fails, our vendors have researched this and I believe all have kits with the common items already crossed.

Thanks guys I appreciate it if I find a particular rotor cap that works with it I will get the parts numbers and put them on form for other people

There should be a model number on the distributor somewhere, usually a small metal plate. With # that you can find the parts.