Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

I've seen some nice painted upper dashes on '55 and '56 Packards. I'm wondering if that is correct in some cases? Were all of the Packard V8 dashes padded from the factory, or was it an option? The curve of the metal is really quite striking. Of course, hitting it with your head would be, too.

Padded dashes were an option. If I get the chance, I;ll rummage through my stuff and find the cost.

Believe that's right, I know of at least one original unrestored '56 Clipper Deluxe that has an original painted dash.

I always thought padded dashes were standard equipment, at least in the seniors. I see no RPO code for padded dashes as optional equipment. I've never seen a senior w/o a padded dash except in examples where the owner tells me it was removed because it was unsightly and too expensive to redo. I've seen an Executive w/o it and the owner believes it was that way pre-restoration, in that car it's painted with a very distinctive, irregular surfaced "non-glare" type of paint. Of course the Executive was very much a last-minute creation.

EDIT - obviously the Executive referred to above had the padding removed at some point, as so many have been because of the cost of redoing. But if the vinyl skin is in good condition, a very credible job can be done by heating it, pulling it back, and inserting sheet foam.

EDIT 2 - owner of the Executive mentioned above says the dash was originally padded but it was removed and not replaced.

The Trade Letters that I used to compile the 55-56 RPO charts had a code TP for "Instrument Board Trim Pad" equipement.

The trim pad was shown as standard on 55-56 Seniors, including the Executive, and 55 Clipper Customs. It was listed as not available for 55 Clipper Deluxe and Super models, but optional on all other 55-56 Clippers.

Decades ago, I saw an unrestored Executive sedan in W. Penna., which did not have the padding, but the top of the i/p appeared to have been brush-painted in a semi-gloss black. IIRC, it had black/white interior.

Thanks BH for the definitive answer. I did consult your RPO code charts (downloaded, perhaps not current) as I do often but guess I missed that entry. Those charts were a significant piece of work on your part and a very significant resource - thanks again for them.

i prefer the non-padded version. the sun makes the pads look like crap over time and most i have seen don't look that good.

my 56 Pat shows no evidence of having been padded. the paint, tho not in the best shape, is a dead on match to everything else. Its pouring outside, but if memory serves, my 55 pat parts car is not padded either. the other 55 is padded.

Why would one put a padded dash back into one of these 55-56 cars? If your head/face smacks one during an accident, it would not make any difference to your survival.

Oops sorry! I asked a pragmatic question instead of an originally-correct one.

Craig

Thank you, Owen.

I did make one revision to each table to clarify some minor points and to correct the status of some equipment for the 56 Executive.

Keep in mind that the RPO codes are not listed alphabetically in my charts, but merely in the same order in which they appeared in the original Trade Letters. I've yet to see any rhyme or reason for the order in which Packard presented them, but using that "order" makes it easier to audit the entries against source info - as more becomes available.

All we can do, then, when looking for a specific option, is to be sure to review all of the rows.

However, because we don't have all the Trade Letters for 55-56, it is possible that offerings may have changed from what is listed. Again, I'll be more than happy to make further revisions if someone can supply missing letters.

Meanwhile, the pattern laid out by the available info seems to fit my observations.

Now, I have seen a few restored cars that should have had a padded dash, but suspect they were omitted, and the metal simply painted to match, due to lack of an affordable and/or authentic repadding service.

Of course, during the last days in the bunker, it is also possible that some material was omitted.