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The Triumph motorcycle brand was quite successfully revived by a completely new company with no ties to the original one. Cars would be a bigger challenge, and I for one don't wish to see a Packard revival. The legendary real one will have to suffice.

It is possible to revive an old name after the company goes out of business. It is possible to revive an old romance after the love has died. It is possible to relight a cigar that has gone out.

But it's never quite the same.

And in every case, the longer you wait the more taste suffers.

Owen -

I don't recall the list of Packard firsts being posted and discussed here, but back at the AACA Packard DF, several years ago.

It was a list found on the PAC website that bore some resemblence to a verison that I had seen published many years ago, in print, which was originally distributed by PMCC back in the early '50s, IIRC. However, this online edition had been loosely updated, and the poster was looking for even more additions.

Problem is, when anyone holds up a list like that, it just begs for scrutiny. Not only did that happen in the Packard DF, but the list was also posted in the AACA's General Forum and got shot full of holes there, too. While there were some questionable items claimed by PMCC, no one could agree on exactly what constituted a "first". I can only imagine the how many "hostile" letters it would generate if such a list had been published in a mainstream hobby magazine.

Now, I would applaud anyone who was willing to do the exhaustive research needed to authenticate and update the original material to arrive at a bona fide, clarified, fully-supported and -footnoted list, but armchair discussion ain't gonna cut it.

With that, I return you to the original topic.

Q: Can old brands be revived?
A: (short answer)NO

BH, ah the problems of the written word. When I said "here and there" I didn't mean HERE and there, just the proverbial here and there. The most vigorous exchange I recall was on AACA and no doubt the same one you recall.

As I said just a few posts ago, I have no interest in going thru that exercise again.

Revive an old brand? Sure, that's easy. Four tires, a couple seats, a steering wheel and your choice of badge and, - voila! - a revived brand.

Problem is you can't recapture the era in which your brand of choice flourished. Packard, as most like to remember the company, was the product of an industrializing America awash in new wealth and a people that knew few limits and still believed in their own manifest destiny. Figure out a way to revive that and you'll have Packard back.

Hi

No, people shouldn't even try, because every try has produced either a pale imitation or, more often, an embarrassing one the denigrates Packard!

What Packard was, as ScottG points out, was very much a product of it's era. Something that could only come to be within a specific economy and culture. That situation no longer exist, any revival results in an anachronism.

Do the better thing to preserve what was, buy a Packard, any Packard, especially one in danger of being lost. Restore it, share it with others, spread the word about what was, enjoy it's qualities, be it's steward and conservator, carefully find its next generation conservator.

And, never waste resources on new Packard revivals.

Steve

I find it strange that many perceive a revival as somekind of spiritual resurrection of a bygone era or for reminiscence.

Consider a complete and exact reproduction of any favorite vintage vehicle. Chassis, Body and trim. It would be a good start even if drive train (engine,trans and axle) were to individual owners request. From there begin reproduction of the expensive items such as original design engine and drivetrain.

The Packard world seems to be steeped in somekind of effort to chase the ghosts of PMCC. IF the tri-5 chevy, model A and other similar crowds had done that then there would be even fewer remaining examples of those badges than there is of Packard.

Go ahead. Build glass cases around the originals. But modern platform with a legendary name is only an emblem. Nothing more. And glass breaks real ez.

Maybe someone should "discover" a stash of original frames and body parts (year of your choice) that have been in some, long forgotten and obscure location just waiting to be assembled into a Packard motor car. Worked for Shelby.

There is no easy answer to this. Avanti, Challenger, Camaro, VW Beetle, and Mini Cooper have all been revived, and quite successfully. That is because these were very distinctive cars that were "modernized" into the current version while trying to remain close to the original vehicle. They also have the support, financial, and dealer backing of a large manufacturer (except Avanti).

Then there are things like the new Bugatti. I feel that this car has absolutely zero to do with Bugatti. They could have slapped any name on it. Maybach has nothing to do with the ones of the past also. It is just a big Mercedes.

Packard is a different story. The last true year was 1956. This is far less contemporary than any of the current modernized versions. Chrome, fins, and 1950's glitz do not translate well into modern car designs. If you are not using 1956 as your base, then what year are you going to use? All the ones in the first paragraph are based on the original version. What is the original Packard? 1899? Not practical or desireable. So everyone picks a year, or couple years, and translates their own modern version of it. Or they simply slap a few Packard design cues on a car that otherwise looks nothing like a Packard. Ending up with a design that few like besides they guy that created it.

Then without support from a major manufacturer, these unfavorable ideas have little chance of getting off the ground.