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

Hi all,
My 47 Custom Super Touring Sedan is in the shop for among other things, a complete new wiring harness. In the process of wiring the headlights, we found a rust hole about the size of a golf ball at the very top of one of the headlight buckets. The top of the fender is solid. I have not owned the car long, and I thought I did a thorough check for rust in my pre-purchase inspection. Now, I am concerned about trouble spots I probably missed. Besides the obvious, (floors, bottom of trunk, fender wells, bottom of doors, etc.) are there particular trouble spots with the clippers that I should really keep an eye on, or have investigated before it leaves the shop?
Thanks.

Rust usually occurs in places like that because of mud that get thrown up there by the tires. This dries and gets wet, and more mud and dirt collects and it rusts out areas and pockets were it collects. Very common issue.

I must have broke loose 75lbs of hardened dirt/mud from the underside of my Clipper. Also several large mud-dauber nests.

Thanks Kev,
Your observation makes perfect sense. Mud Daubers = Alaska paper wasps, probably cousins.
Sounds like a tedious, but very good process. Undercoating is very popular up here and lots of shops do it. On a used car the process starts with a thorough cleaning of the undercarriage. It might be worth having the car professionally "cleaned" after each driving season, so long as the process is relatively gentle.
Thanks for the good advice.
Mark

It's been a long time since I owned a 47 Clipper but I recall that there is a place in the front fenders just above the horizontal grille that can also collect dirt and be prone to rust.
The body mount at the outer corner of the floorboards by the front door hinge pillar is another common place for rust in the early Clippers and bathtub models.