Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

Packard Newbie here...My wife and I purchased a Packard Clipper Super Panama about a month ago. It was sitting for about a year and i was able to get running with some new points, plugs, etc. My question is, the brakes seem to work very well until you have you either hard brake or have constant stop and go. At that point, the brakes won't hold periodically and the car creeps forward slowly with both feet mashed down. I have to throw it in park. Once the light turns green it's all good again. Could this be grease or something on the shoes? shoes getting too hot? I tried to check the fluid...but that's another area where I need help....where the heck is the res for the fluid? I have seen them in floorboards before, but not this one. Help! Thanks.

On 55-56 power brake cars the booster and master reservoir is just forward of the pedal in the engine compartment and directly under the steering column right next to the firewall. You need to lean way over the fender to reach it. On a manual brake car, the master is under the floor almost directly behind the accelerator pedal and near the transmission. There is an access plate under the carpet.

In addition to checking the fluid level it could be the brake shoes are out of adjustment, worn or even grease soaked. The engine idle speed could also be high which could be trying to move the car and putting a lot of extra work on the brakes.

Here are illustrations from the parts manual showing locations. Manual on the left, power on the right.

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  master locations.jpg (152.10 KB)

G'day 1955packardclipper,
to PackardInfo.

I invite you to inlude your '55 Clipper Super Panama in the Packard Vehicle Registry.

Thanks! It must be manual because I did see the plate under the carpet, but I didn't want to remove the rubber gasket under the pedal. There are also 4 directly around the pedal that look to be going through that plate. i didn't want to just start removing things. I may take a photo tomorrow if time allows.

That may be a bit difficult. VIN Plate on door pillar is gone and the number on the engine comes back to a 1956 constellation. The car is definitely a 1955 super panama. Sometime in its past they did a motor swap. No way to actually tell anything more about it as the number on the firewall (anti-theft number?) isn't able to be tracked. Bummer.

The plate is present whether needed or not so not an indication. The pedal arm for manual brakes goes thru the floor and nothing above the pedal pad while power brakes have the pedal arm attached and suspending down from the firewall with the pad at the bottom and just a thin rod going thru the floor.

definitely power brakes.

At the rear of the carb is a hex-shaped check valve which provides vacuum to the power brakes. I'd say there is good chance it is stuck, or at least close to stuck and not allowing enough movement of air to keep up with the demands of the booster. A crushed or deteriorating hose might have the same effect.

Thanks! I'll check that out as I'm trying to find the brake fluid reservoir. Ha.

Out in the engine compartment, look beneath the steering column - a nearly flat rectangular cover with an offset fill plug.

On my cars, I ended up removing the flat cover (carefully, to save the gasket) and reorienting it 180 degrees for better access to the fill plug and opening.