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John,
The 41 Clipper came out as a new model with the 282 cu in S8.
What modifications were made in that engine to boost the HP by 5hp and increase the compression ratio?

DanL

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DanL, that is correct, the '41 Clipper used the 120 engine. From what I can determine it was the availability of better quality gasoline after the War that allowed an increase in compression ratio and a resulting bump in b.h.p. Thanks for your comments.

I am not saying it is a bad engine.I am saying that by 1937 Luxury cars had given it up.Pierce kept it into the late 20s and probably caused them to go into bankruptcy (thank God Studebaker save them).As far as the argument that Packard used them in earlier years-yes.It was the big engine of the day.But to compare a Dominant Six to the 1937 six is like comparing a Hemi to a Model T ford engine.

Pierce Arrow's loyalty to the six cylinder concept hardly caused them to go bankrupt.

They brought out a brand new straight eight of their own in 1929. Then they followed it up with a new and excellent V12 3 years later. They produced their last car in 1938, ten long years after giving up the 6.

They were still producing the old fashioned hand made cars with wooden framed bodies. New designs of cheap mass produced cars were nearly as good for all practical purposes and a lot cheaper to produce. That is what finished them off, a lack of customers willing to pay a lot of money for a product that was still superior, but no longer as far ahead of the mass produced cars as they used to be.

Packard avoided this fate for another 20 years by moving with the times and bringing out a cheaper car of their own.

The 110/Six wasn't meant to be a true luxury car competitor anyway, by any stretch of the imagination, but to go head to head with Pontiac and the smaller Olds/Buick and their ilk. This it accomplished, by any definition, in so far as being the class of that class, and along with the 120, gave Packard another 20 years it otherwise wouldn't have had. In many respects it was functionally superior to the Packards of 5 years before, at a fifth or less of their price. Most Packard experts acknowledge them as excellent durable cars all 'round. The six engine, by all accounts, seemed to have played it's supporting role very well.

Now to ask: is anyone aware of functional/mechanical upgrades or parts substitutions that are desirable to undertake for the
Six that is to be in regular use? Such as improved bearings, valve seats, oil pumps/filters, and other such?

And a related query: Are replacement parts starting to be increasingly sourced in China by vendors, as they are in Mopars these days? Suspension parts in particular have been in question there. A most deplorable trend. What is happening with folks like Merritt, Kanter, Hirsch et al?

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I don't think anything but economics has happened. NOS is quickly becoming non existent and Packard is not the highest demand car for repro parts. A vendor in order to source something has to order a minimum quantity. While he might sell 10 for a Packard, might sell 1000 for a Ford or Chevy. Of course, he still has to buy a minimum of say maybe 500. That's probably the biggest hurdle in our Packard stuff.

Gets to a point where putting money and design time up front to buy 500 might take a lifetime to get back--unless it is such a thing that could command premium dollar and the few needing it would be willing to pay whatever the cost. China (and India) just happens to be places where 500 costs the same as 100 anywhere else.

One of the other posters mentioned his company looking into some piece for a Ford and discovered with minimum, it would cost so much to make that to sell & make a few cents, no one would buy. Same with proper V8 pistons one of our vendors was thinking of having made. Probably why Mopars also have the same issues.

I have a friend who is an electronics expert specializing in high end tube audio. He buys parts from China for resale. When he tells them he wants the best parts they can make, not the cheapest price, they are thrilled to bits. They can, and do, supply high quality. By the way the price is still cheaper than anyone else, though it may be much higher than their cheapest products.

The moral is the Chinese can make good parts if anyone wants them, and will go to the trouble of doing the quality control, plus of course, paying the price.

Howard,

Agreed. I comes down to number. When you look at the 55/56 V8 motors, you have a relatively small number of cars made. Then you have to figure out the survivor rate. Then out of the survivor rate, how many people would actually be buying those particular parts from you. That's a pretty small number.

Just compare that to the 288/327/359 motors were they were made for 4+ years, lots of the parts are interchangeable, and there is a larger population out there. Even so those number are relatively small when compared to any of the Chevy, Ford or Chrysler motors.

It's all about amortizing the cost of tooling and production over the number of units, time, and of course demand. Sometimes the only way to make the numbers work is to get them made off-shore. The question people need to ask themselves is would you rather had an original quality part at $500 assuming you can find one, or someone is making one. Or a Chinese made one at $100 that is comparable to the quality of aftermarket parts you get from Autozone, Pepboys, etc and is easily available. Obviously if you are talking internal engine parts your choice may be different. But for relatively easy to change parts I am betting the $100 part would be much more attractive.

I am sure that is quite true. Are the vendors providing Packard parts of Chinese provenance, and if so, are they upfront about it? That's all one can ask, I suppose, but it is good to be able to have the information one needs to make a choice.

No doubt the Chinese are "able" to provide quality when they wish to, but too many recent examples can be cited of intent to do otherwise. One is not reassured that that will be the case, and vendors may not be asking for it in any case, if pure profit and not quality and service is uppermost in their minds.

There are some excellent threads on MOPAR websites showing, including photos of dissected parts, clearly inferior ball joints, for example, being sourced in China by hitherto dependable companies such as Moog. It is enough to give one pause. I, for one, would be more than happy to pay the price for top quality parts... with vendors,I'm not so sure.

Perhaps I should have made this a separate thread, it is an important topic for all of us.

Back to 6 cylinder engines, are there desirable mods, upgrades, or material improvements to be made for cars to be used frequently with alcohol gas? Or best oils to use - straight or multigrade, synth or dino? ZDDP needed for these engines?