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Some time in the past my 53 Cavalier has had some scruffy body work done. There's a reason the skirts are not on the car. At some point I'll start peeling off the layers and repairing it correctly. In the meantime I'm going to see if I can find some fenders that are in better shape.

Looking at the parts book it looks like the rear fenders (part #'s 447226 & 447227) are the same on the '53 Cavalier, Patrician, Clipper Deluxe Touring Sedan and Clipper Club Touring Sedan. Am I correct to assume they are the same for those same models in '54, but not before '53?

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They would be the same on any 1951-1954 Senior Packard except for the Pacific and Convertible. Of course, unless it's a 1953 Cavalier or Patrician the trim holes would be different. If using parts from a junior car, it could also be done with some grafting which you would probably have to do anyway.

Thanks Don! So any 4 door sedan that had skirts, 51-54, would be the same fenders, except the trim holes, correct? I'm pretty sure I'm understanding you correctly, juat double checking. That would open up possibilities.

Would this be true of doors and front fenders as well?

Don't forget that the junior models did not have the same taillights (1951-1953 were vertical while 1954 had the thumbnail type) so if you wanted to take a fender and replace it at its original seam along the top and down the back it would have to be from a senior. Otherwise some mid-panel cutting and joining would be necessary.

It appears that they need to be replaced from the trim down, which would be a handy place to hide a seam. But, that's before taking anything apart. I know there will be more than meets the eye!!!

The 51-52 Clippers are not the same fender shape as the 53 senior cars.
Depending on how much you need to replace, the 53-54 Clippers may not work either as the door frame opening is different.
You would be safer to stick to a senior 4 door sedan. The issue you run into is finding one that isn't rotted in exactly the same place.
Nothing makes a project harder than having to undo someone else's bad work!

I'll find out some day when I get brave enough, or crazy enough, to peel things apart. It's bound to be worse than it looks! 😬

The front fenders on all 51-54 models are all the same except for the trim mounting holes. The holes are easily patched and you have a fender to make a template for new holes if you need it.
On my last project, I had rust holes, badly patched, on both front fenders of a 54 Convertible. I was planning to graft pieces from another fender but I found a very decent pair of 53 fenders so just replaced the whole fender. As a bonus the 53 fenders were not undercoated. I paid $100 for the pair. I had the 53 fenders stored in my garage for four years before I needed them but they saved me a lot of time and trouble eventually.
So start looking now and maybe you'll come across a good deal somewhere.

I had a larger problem with the badly repaired rear fenders since I needed the two door version. Not only are these models rare but any car that had decent rear fenders was too good to part out. I eventually fabricated my own fender patches out of sheet metal. It was a time consuming but ultimately satisfying task. The hardest part was getting the wheel opening the correct shape/size to accept a fender skirt. This may be a good option for you if your rust out is confined to the area from the wheel back as this part is a pretty simple shape. You may be able to tell what you need to do by looking at the inside of the fender behind the repair to see how extensive it is.

I haven't a faint idea how to link to old posts, but if you type "skin grafts" into the advanced search, you can find a post that might be helpful. I have used this trick on many rear quarters.

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Here's the LINK.