Gerald Perschbacher
Packard’s straight-eight preference in the 1920s was a dominating influence among luxury car makers. The choice in that bygone era was based on reasons of simplicity, economy of lesser moving parts than a V-8 engine, ease of assembly and power. The likes of other adherents, such as Duesenberg, cast an additional luxury aura around the inline configuration.
Still, from the late 1930s onward, Packard’s history was practically pricked and plagued by a growing urge to relinquish its inline for the more modern V-8 format that dominated high-end sales in the early post-World War II era. By 1955, even Packard and Pontiac, two major holdouts, jumped into the V-8 era.
A review of major articles in Packard’s mainline prewar publication, Packard Inner Circle, and its postwar equivalent, Packard News, shows the emphasis the company put in its marketing of its engines through its grassroots dealership sales force. As the corporate HQ in Detroit set the pace, salesmanship followed.
In August 1939, Packard Inner Circle headlined, “Price? $ 867 at the Factory! Quality? Better than Ever!”
The main emphasis was on low prices for better, finer cars in the medium-priced field. The cover of that issue was brimming with nine action photos of Packards being tested at speed on the Packard Proving Grounds. Among proponents in that action-filled event was Jimmy Lynch, a nationally known test driver who raced Packard Senior Eights for 1940 against those of Senior 1939 models with nary a thought beyond inline eights. It was as if Packard had not even acknowledged the existence of a V-design. Yet Packard had been a leader in the V-format with its Twin Six for 1916, which was designed by Packard’s venerable chief engineer, Jesse Vincent. This often is seen as a response to Cadillac’s V-8 of 1915 as a rising star attempting to eclipse the likes of higher-priced brands, especially Packard. By 1924, Packard abandoned its V-type Twelve and settled its pattern to inline improvements, but for a V-12 limited to its highest-priced, low-production Twelve models from 1932-1939.
In October 1946, when the shift to ethical business patterns graced the early postwar return to normalcy, Packard News notched up the corporate business image as “second to none” as elder dealer D.M. Campbell in Boston was quick to state. Dealers in 25 other major locations chimed the same note. No one in the “Packard family” seemed to care for anything to sell but the inline eight.
Packard’s golden anniversary, marked in 1949, promoted the company as the maker of “fine cars” that had outlasted most of its competition and still outsold them (including Cadillac). But not for very long. Still, unheeding of indications, heads of Packard’s future did not bow to the growing demand for a V-8 under a car’s hood, even though such a move may have placed Packard on a higher road for the future in its anniversary celebration.
Packard’s straight-eights were fabulous performers overall, acceptably economical and practically ironclad, plus trouble-free with substantially less moving parts as a V-8. As for pep, the Packard eights were no slouches with manual transmissions. Packard’s own Ultramatic was very good and competed well against Hydra-Matics. But regardless, the handwriting was on the wall. “Old-school” thinking ignored the major shift to V-8 motoring that Cadillac and Oldsmobile innovated with their lightweight, economical and powerful overhead-valve V-8s starting in 1949.
As time ebbed, Packard stuck to its old guns under the hood, but introduced crisp and modern styling lines for 1951 through 1954. That last year saw the final bow of the magnificent inline powerplant, as the sales force weakened in large cities and small towns. Cries arose for a V-8! Loudest among those voices was that of the new corporate president, James J. Nance, a great success at Hotpoint who was offered the head spot at Packard.
He introduced his new “Packard Plan” in Packard News’ “1952 Special Announcement” issue. Readers were convinced of a sales chasm. “The buying public over forty years of age remembers Packard as the only prestige product in the automotive market prior to 1935. People under forty have heard of Packard’s former prestige but never knew a time when it existed.” Nance wanted to split the lines into high-priced Packards and medium-priced Packard Clipper ranges. Fortune magazine characterized Packard’s movement under the title of “Packard’s Road Back.” It was a bold initiative that soon had a V-8 in its future. Large banners sported: “Now…look to PACKARD for a Great New Era!” and “A Great New Car with Grand Old Name!”
Had circumstances and finances allowed, Packard would have launched a car with a V-8 nestled under-hood during its last major Detroit styling. But the idea was held back for a rafter of reasons. When the heavily facelifted 1955 range debuted, it carried the V-8 with some unfortunate teething problems.
In its news release for Jan. 5, 1955, Packard’s News Bureau announced initial plans for its V-8 went back to 1946, and that, more recently “under sanction of the AAA contest Board, a Packard … with a pre-production V-8 traveled 25,000 miles in a total elapsed time of 238 hours, 41 minutes, 44.3 seconds, for an average of 104.737mph.” Horsepower ranged from 225 to 260 with a compression ratio of 8.5-to-1 and torque rated at 355 lb.-ft.
Still, it was not enough to stem the tide.
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