Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

Does anyone have pictures of the tach located at the glove box?

Thanks.

There is a photo of the drive here and I do remember a couple of photos showing the head if you want to search for them or perhaps someone else remembers where they might be. The member who posted the drive photo says he had posted one earlier showing the head and I think flackmaster posted a photo of another unit he had laying in his trophy case.

Very rare option and an even rarer generator needed that has the drive gear on it for the tach.

CD, here's a shot of the 1939 accessory tach in the '40 120 i owned 1974-83, in an article "Down to the Interstate in Ships: Modern Speed in Vintage Iron," about final gearing, avoiding valve recession, etc. Since the '40 dash virtually the same as '39s, it fit perfectly. Packard offered it for '39 because it was their first year for overdrive, something Chrysler offered since 1934, and the last generation 1936-38 Pierce-Arrow 8s & 12s came with as standard equipment. In the Pierce, the speedometer had three coincentric rings showing rpm at a given speed in both overdrive and underdrive.

The Packard tach drives off the generator like a T-series MG or early Corvette. Unfortunately, you lose your clock and its glovebox door position better for the passenger, but such cars have a narrow front seat. The senior version of the tach for the junior-based '39 319-ci Super-8, that engine in its last year, it and the 446 leftover Twelves sold in '39 replaced by the new 356, an enlarged version of the 120's 282-ci engine with four more unnecessary main bearings for marketing's sake, and the Wilcox Rich hydraulic valve lifters Cadillac had since 1936, has a slightly different face. But both accessory Packard tachometers came with 5,000 rpm faces, about as comical as the '37 supercharged Cord's 150-mph speedometer (all 1936-37 Cords came standard with tachs whether blown or not), or a '58 Thunderbird's 140-mph speedometer, or a '38-on Buick's 120-mph speedometer.

Maximum hp for your engine at 3,600 rpm, a speed you do n o t want to sustain. If you haven't already got overdrive, add it to your '39 club coupe. Jeff Adkins, Moose Motors, Penngrove, CA (Petaluma in the North Bay) has some. packardguy54@sbcglobal.net (707) 792-9985. Jeff also has 1935-56 Packard mechanical and electrical parts, drum brake parts for all domestics Auburn through Zephyr, and rebuilds components. Please tell him Mike, '47 Super Clipper, Walnut Creek, referred you. Get an R-11, slightly simplified over 1940-early '48's R-9, more plentiful and less expensive. This moot if your '39 has factory overdrive on its one-year-only R-6, which lacks the later units' electrical monitoring but works fine. So long as you fill and check transmission and overdrive separately, they rarely give trouble, and if they do, it's invariably a loose wire or bad ground, less of a problem in a '39 R-6.

BTW, CD, after the Cad/LaSalle transmissions in his 1960s methanol "top fuel" 1,000 hp Chrysler hemi rail dragsters blew apart, Don Garlits switched to a junior R-6 gearbox (no overdrive) and problem solved.

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About 30 years ago, I spotted this 1939 Six coupe for sale in a local used car publication (Connecticut) and went to look at it. While the car was very rough and probably only good for parts, it did have the rare glove box tach option. Not sure what ever became of this car, but I would sure like to have that tach on my current '39 Six as well as the rare chrome wheel discs.

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In the pic above something doesn't add up to me. It looks like there are hands for a clock hour/minute, though the hands don't match (they extend on both sides of the fulcrum) either of my 39 Six clocks. And if it was a tach, two arms? So, to me it gives the impression that if that tach glass does belong to the inner part, and the car is stationary, is there a tach arm we aren't seeing and/or was the tach more like a tach/clock combo? I am sure I am missing something.

Also, what is the empty space to the left for? Was that a space for badge when the car had a radio?

The Tachometera did indeed have two hands. One was stationary and attached via a knob inside the glass so the user could set a reference point similar to later tachs. The rest of the unit is nearly identical to the speedometer internals. I have three or four of these in my shop and one of the right angle adapters. But have never seen the generator itself as big Kev mentioned.

That explains it! Thanks...now less perplexed and it makes sense.

39SixSedanMan beat me to it about the second needle which is indeed a reference pointer. My first Packard in Bellevue, WA was a 1939 Six Touring Sedan but with the more common clock. However, in nearby Seattle there was a 1940 120 Touring Sedan with one which was the only one I ever saw in person although I've seen lots of photos over the years. I'm not sure how handy a tach would be with it clear over on the passenger side, though!

Really have no idea what the cut out on the glovebox next to the tach was for and remember wondering myself when I went to look at the car all those years ago. An accessory clock for use with the tach option? Hole is so neatly cut that it appears factory. Anyone have an idea?