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

Hello, newer/ish owner here of a '51 300, 327, ultramatic.

1) When i was entering my car in the registry, the paint code i have on my "VIN" plate was not on the list for '51. The plate is marked with an "X". Car is black, and i believe it is the original color. All the door jambs, under hood, and inside of trunk are the same color.
Not sure whats up with that? Some kind of odd option maybe?
Trim code is listed as "71".

2) Fuel gauge is slightly voodoo. Fill the tank, sometimes it reads FULL, sometimes 3/4. I have topped off the tank with the gauge on EMPTY, put in 12 gallons. HHMMMM, not a real big dilemma, just an oddity.
My guess is sender getting funky after 73 years ? Right track ? or look elsewhere first ?

3) The Ultramatic performs well, seems to shift ok. But leaks out of multiple places, shift rod, something from inside the bellhousing, and the pan gasket. Crawling under it, and adding fluid is becoming a real pain.
Looking for a good supplier for a "reseal" or full seal kit for it.

4) Wiring harness. Does anyone make a replacement harness for these ? My harness is complete, but the cloth covering is getting rather brittle, really brittle in the engine compartment. Really don't want to let the smoke out of anything.

Thanks all.

G'day Two-bit,
to PackardInfo, and for including your '53 300 Touring Sedan in PackardInfo's Packard Vehicle Registry.

I believe Black was code X in almost all years and was a constant or considered a given as far as Packard was concerned. Some of the paint charts will list an X for black but don't have a corresponding color chip and others do not even mention it. Here is a bit from the 52 Ditzler chart which for all practical purposes will be identical to 51 showing an X. The 51 Dupont chart has no reference to black at all. Starting on page XIV in the intro section of the 48-54 parts manual is a color code listing for those years the manual covers. Description of materials used with the upholstery trim codes follow the paint codes.




The fuel sender is the most likely culprit on the gauge issue. The support that holds the resistance wire has probably warped or the wiper is not making good contact so the value is changing and gauge is getting false info in spots. You can take the sender out after dropping the tank and check it with an ohmmeter to see if there is a smooth change from approx 73 ohms at empty to 10 at full. I would almost bet you will find the numbers jump around quite a bit during the float movement. New 51-56 repro senders are available from our vendors and a couple of aftermarket suppliers. Sometimes they can be cleaned but often it is almost better to replace them than try to repair since repairs don't always seem to be all that successful or last all that long. Note that there may have been an early and late sender for 51 so depending on where your car falls there may be some slight difference that would need to be considered or worked around. As far as I know the repro senders will work on all 51 models though.

Seals are a common issue after so many years. Some can be obtained aftermarket but depending on how many you want to change the best suggestion is talk to our vendors -- Kanter Auto, Max Merritt, or Tucson Packard and see if any have just a seal kit. The pan gasket can be easily changed. To stop a leak the throttle and manual shaft can sometimes have a second seal added in addition to the one in the car if the shaft area where the new seal will ride is undamaged but to do it properly and for any of the others except maybe the rear seal the trans will need to come out.

Almost any of the vintage loom places make new looms. RI Wiring, Y n Z Yesterday's Parts, Potomac Packard and a couple of others all have Packard info and can make one that duplicates the original in look but a complete new loom will not be cheap. Most of the time the usual wire issues can be covered by just getting what is called the main loom. The body loom and most of the accessory looms are fairly well protected and usually do not get the same amount of deterioration caused by the engine heat and grease.

I have a 53 Cavalier, basically the same car, just a couple years newer.




1. Your car should be DAL-9100 Black, same as my car. My Trim Code is 84.
packardinfo.com/xoops/html/downloads/1949-1951_Ditzler.pdf

2. I cleaned my fuel tank and my sending unit, both were pretty gunky, and the sending unit has been working well since and is pretty accurate. I would suspect cleaning your sending unit will fix your issue. The sending unit can be disassembled........carefully. If you do remove the sending unit you'll probably need a new o-ring.

3. My transmission was leaking from the shift shaft, output shaft, oil pan, and throttle valve shaft as well. I was able to replace those four and cured the pan leaks, output shaft leak, and throttle shaft leak, but the shift shaft, which is the worst of the four still leaks. I have a mark on that shaft which I think is buggering up the seal. To remove that shaft the transmission has to be out, so I have left it for now. I purchased seals from Kanter.






4. You could make your own harness if you're so inclined. I think there was a post on here, or maybe FB, of a guy that pulled his harness and then duplicated it. Original cloth wire is available, but not cheap!


These are great cars! Enjoy!!!

Ultramatic you need a pan gasket, bell housing gasket, tailshaft gasket, and 4 shaft seals. The converter gasket is probably OK. But might as well check it out, remember to scribe balancing marks and where the weights go.

You may want to wipe it down then just run it in neutral on a lift and check for leaks. Leaks from the bell housing will very likely be the front main seal (converter shaft seal).

YnZ’s Yesterday’s Parts make a perfect reproduction harness. Not inexpensive but it also takes far less fuss and time to install than it does using a generic harness. Their harnesses are well-labeled and come with a good terminal list of what goes where so you can’t go wrong!

Thank you all for the information and insights.

Before resealing the Ultramatic it appears as though i need to do some research and start learning how this is constructed and proper procedures.

I may just order a new sender for this winter, and when i have the trans out, that would probably be a good time to drop the tank, and replace it.

If it seems fine aside from leakage, then you can probably just replace the seals. Depends how much you want to dig into it and how much mechanical experience you have. Generally it's prudent to at least check for worn bushings and excessive clutch wear while it's out of the car.

Quote:

If you're dropping your tank it will give you a chance to give it a good inspection and cleaning if necessary. Along with cleaning up and painting anything that is rusty. I'm a great one for taking a 1 hour project and making it an 8 hour project!

If it were me, and I was dropping my Ultramatic, which I will do one day, I would get a rebuild kit and replace seals, bushings, clutches, etc. A kit from Max Merrit is about $400, not much if you can do the work yourself. This is certainly outside of my area of expertise, but so was replacing valve guides on my engine! I'm often in over my head when working on my car, but with plenty of research and time things have been working out.

OK, here is another question.
packardinfo.com/xoops/html/downloads/servicemanual5154/FuelExhaust_XII.pdf

The diagram (on pg 16) shows a spring on the end of the pivot rod that controls the heat control valve. I don't have that spring, and, previous owner put mechanics wire around the counter weight holding it in the "up" position.

If i am reading, and understanding this paragraph correctly, my car has the heat control valve hard wired in the "cold engine" position ? If so, i wonder if this may have something to do with my engine temp issues. Engine only seems to run close to 200*F head temp after pulling some of the larger ridges in my area. ie: 800 ft of elevation change in 10 miles. After the climb, temps drop back down to the 170*F range.

Am i right ? or am i missing something ? (besides that spring).
Thanks.