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

So the Marvel Mystery Oil System. That's in my engine? That little black canister in the way back of the picture on the firewall? Is that a rare accessory or was that pretty popular? Could anyone tell me what it does, exactly. Besides lube the upper cylinder. Thanks!

That's it, puts MMO in the manifold to be sucked into the cylinders and provide a little light lube on its way into the cylinders.

I believe it was a period aftermarket thing, someone correct me if they ever came factory.

You can still buy them new, and they still look period correct:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Marvel-Oiler-Replacement-Ampco-Top-Cylinder-Oiler-/130456005666?pt=Vintage_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item1e5fc8ac22#ht_500wt_1182


I don't know how much good they really do, but i always think glass jars for washer fluid etc in older cars look good, so i got a kit for my 50, if just for looks if nothing else.


Edit: Damn, i see HH56 beat me to the pic of exactly this same thing. I still think the label and the design of the unit still looks vintage, if not pre 50's but still 50's-60's.

In case everyone decides to go nuts bidding on the oiler on ebay, Ampco has a website www.ampcolubes.com. They even list injector plates for 1935-1952 Packards. The glass bottle kit is $59.95 plus $12.00 for shipping and handling and $5.00 for an injector plate.
While they don't come right out and say it's a Marvel Mystery Oil Lubricator knock off, they do say it is from a previous design not their own. They also suggest putting Marvel Mystery Oil in the jar.
Considering that the biggest problem my '51 had was sticking valves, I really think I might pop for one.

I don't know that I'd go so far as to stay sticking valves was chronic with flathead engines in general, but it certainly was encountered with some frequency. Lots of possible causes, failure to properly ream the guide ID when guides were replaced, excessive blow-by, predominance of low-speed driving and short trips with cold engines, and the like.

Whether MMO or use of an oiler actually solves the problem, I suspect most of the evidence available is anecdotal. But in 1938 Packard did recommend a slight rework of the guides when the problem occurred, here's a picture from the 1938 service manual.

The oiler probably falls into the "might help, can't hurt" category.

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I just got off the phone from talking with the mechanic that's doing the valve job on my '51 about this package. He said given that these engines which were designed for lead and now have to deal with no lead PLUS alcohol; he thought this sounded like a great idea. So I'm going to try and nail one.
I have one question. They list an adapter plate for Packard 8s (except 120) from 1939-1952 and Packard 120 from 1935-1947. My '51 has the 288. Is the '51 288 the same set up as the '47 120? Or would I go for the plate for the non-120 8cyl?

Buy the one that's listed for your car.

For 1948, Packard rationalized their engines so all would share the same 3.5 inch bore; thus the bore/stroke of the former 282 was reworked to a 3.5 inch bore and thus became 288 cubic inches. So the two engines, while strongly related, are not the same.

POSTSCRIPT: Apologies for expressing myself poorly; the two are strongly related ancestrally, not physically.

Got it!

Thanks Owen; that was just what I needed to know.
I really think I'm going to go for one of these. As my mechanic said "at worst, it won't do any harm and will probably do quite a bit of good!

I do recall the MMO system as being aftermarket, yes. What year were those introduced in for my model Packard?

Four points:

1.All valve guides fropm 1948 up (and posibly earlier) wewe made with the relief as orig equpt. The purpose is to make a small reservoir to lubricate the valve stem and prevent sticking.


2. Alcohol and the removal of lead do not present a problem to, for example, 1962 Fords or 1971 Cadilacs which wewe designed for leaded gas. Therefore it will not present a problem for older Packards. The major problem of unleaded gas for older cars is if they are driven under severe load, such as towing a trailer, the MAY burn valves. There was a "the sky is falling" scare spread years ago about all pre-unleaded cars needing to be retrofitted with hardened valve seats, but no mass calamity has happened.

Also unleaded Amoco gas was sold for 40+ years and those cars did just fine.

3. The 35-47 small motors 120 (3 1/4") bore had an intake with 4 unevenly spaced carb mounting studs, thus using one type of adapter. The 3 1/2" bore 40-50 356" and the 48-54 288, 327, and 359 had evenly spaced studs , and thus another adapter.
The 288 is NOT a 282 with bigger pistons It is an entirely new engine which is longer and had bigger bore spacings.

A top oiler is "cool" but entirely unnecessary. In addition , oil will be burned in thje combustion chamber thus polluting the environment. It is bad enough that our vehicles run "dirty" in today's standards without adding to the problem.

I was gonna say that anyone that's ever seen a 282 and a 288 would know immediately that they're not the same engine, not even close. The only thing they have in common is 8 cylinders and made by Packard. The 356 is closer to being a 288 than the 282 is, the 288 is NOT a "reworked" 282.