1936 Packard Super Eight Convertible Sedan by Rollston

James Ward Packard believed that they could build a better horseless carriage than the Winton cars owned by Weiss (an important Winton stockholder) and, being himself a mechanical engineer, had some ideas for improvement on the designs of current automobiles. The story goes:

Packard was not completely satisfied with the Winton car he had recently purchased. He wrote Alexander Winton with his complaints and suggestions; however Mr. Winton, offended by Packard's criticism, challenged Packard to build a better car. Packard responded by doing so, his marque outlasting Winton's by many decades. Packard runs his first automobile in Warren, Ohio on November 6th,1899.

In September, 1900, the Ohio Automobile Company was founded as the manufacturer, while the cars were always sold as Packards. Since these automobiles quickly gained an excellent reputation, and there were more automobile makers that produced - or at least planned to - under the label "Ohio", the name was changed soon: On October 13th, 1902, it became the Packard Motor Car Company.

From the very beginning, Packard automobiles introduced a number of innovations in its designs, including the modern steering wheel and, years later, the first production 12-cylinder engine. All Packards had a single-cylinder engine until 1903.

While the Cole 30 and Colt Runabout were US$1,500, the high-volume Oldsmobile Runabout went for $650, Western's Gale Model A roadster was $500, and the Black went as low as $375, the Packards concentrated on cars with prices starting at $2,600. Packard automobiles developed a following among wealthy purchasers both in the United States and abroad.

Henry Bourne Joy, a member of one of Detroit's oldest and wealthiest families, bought a Packard. Impressed by its reliability, he visited the Packards and soon enlisted a group of investors—including Truman Handy Newberry and Russell A. Alger Jr. On October 2, 1902, this group refinanced and renamed the New York and Ohio Automobile Company as "Packard Motor Car Company", with James as president. Alger later served as vice-president. Packard moved its automobile operation to Detroit soon after, and Joy became general manager, later to be chairman of the board. An original Packard, reputedly the first manufactured, was donated by a grateful James Packard to his alma mater, Lehigh University, and is preserved there in the Packard Laboratory. Another is on display at the Packard Museum in Warren, Ohio.

The 3,500,000-square-foot (325,000 m2) Packard plant on East Grand Boulevard in Detroit was located on over 35 acres (0.142 km2) of land. It was designed by Albert Kahn, and included the first use of reinforced concrete for industrial construction in Detroit. When opened in 1903, it was considered the most modern automobile manufacturing facility in the world, and its skilled craftsmen practised over eighty trades. The dilapidated plant still stands, despite repeated fires. Architect Kahn also designed the Packard Proving Grounds at Utica, Michigan.

1906-1930

From this beginning, through and beyond the 1930s, Packard-built vehicles were perceived as very competitive in the class of high-priced luxury American automobiles. The company was commonly referred to as being one of the "Three P's" of American motordom royalty, along with Pierce-Arrow of Buffalo, New York and Peerless of Cleveland, Ohio.[citation needed]For most of its history Packard was guided by its President and General Manager Alvan Macauley who also served as President of the National Automobile Manufactures Association. Inducted into the Automobile Hall of Fame, Macauley took Packard to the number one designer and producer of luxury automobiles in the United States and was highly competitive abroad, with markets in sixty-one countries and gross income of $21,889,000 in 1928. Macauley was responsible for the iconic Packard slogan, "Ask the Man Who Owns One."

Packard built trucks as well as excellent luxury cars. In 1912, a Packard truck, carrying a three-ton load, drove from New York City to San Francisco between 8 July and 24 August.the same year, Packard had Service Depots in 104 cities. The Packard Motor Car Showroom and Storage Facility at Buffalo, New York and designed by Albert Kahn in about 1926, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.

1931–1936

Entering into the 1930s, Packard attempted to beat the stockmarket crash and subsequent Great Depression by manufacturing ever more opulent and expensive cars than it had prior to October 1929. The Packard Twin Six (designed by Jesse Vincent) was introduced for 1932 and renamed the Packard Twelve for the remainder of its run (through 1939). For one year only, 1932, Packard tried fielding an upper-medium-priced car called the Light Eight.

As an independent automaker, Packard did not have the luxury of a larger corporate structure absorbing its losses, as Cadillac did with GM and Lincoln with Ford. However, Packard did have a better cash position than other independent luxury marques. Peerless fell under receivership in 1929 and ceased production in 1932. By 1938, Franklin, Marmon, Ruxton, Stearns-Knight, Stutz, Duesenberg, and Pierce-Arrow had all closed.

Packard also had one other advantage that some other luxury automakers did not: a single production line. By maintaining a single line and interchangeability between models, Packard was able to keep its costs down. Packard did not change cars as often as other manufacturers did at the time. Rather than introducing new models annually, Packard began using its own "Series" formula for differentiating its model changeovers in 1923. New model series did not debut on a strictly annual basis, with some series lasting nearly two years, and others lasting as short a time as seven months. In the long run, though, Packard did average approximately one new series per year. By 1930, Packard automobiles were considered part of its Seventh Series. By 1942, Packard was in its Twentieth Series. The "Thirteenth Series" was omitted.

To address the Depression, Packard started producing more affordable cars in the medium-price range. In 1935, it introduced its first sub-$1,000 car, the Packard 120. Car production more than tripled that year and doubled again in 1936. In order to produce the 120, Packard built and equipped an entirely separate factory. By 1936, Packard's labor force was divided nearly evenly between the high-priced "Senior" lines (Twelve, Super Eight, and Eight) and the medium-priced "Junior" models, although more than ten times more Juniors were produced than Seniors. This was because the 120 models were built using thoroughly modern mass production techniques, while the Senior Packards used a great deal more hand labor and traditional craftsmanship. The Junior models were very fine cars; they were just not in the same quality league as the Seniors. Although Packard most certainly could not have survived the Depression without the highly successful Junior models, the Juniors did have the effect of diminishing the Senior models' stellar and exclusive image among those few who could still afford an expensive luxury car. Adding insult to injury, the 120 models were more modern in basic design than the Senior models. For example, the 1935 Packard 120 featured independent front suspension and hydraulic brakes, both features that would not appear on the Senior Packards until 1937.

1937–1942

Prior to 1937, Packard was still the premier luxury automobile, even though the lion's share of cars being built were the 120 and Super Eight model ranges. Hoping to catch still more of the market, Packard decided to issue the Packard 115C in 1937, which was powered by Packard's first six-cylinder engine since the Fifth Series cars in 1928. While the move to introduce the Six was at once brilliant—the car arrived just in time for the 1938 recession—it also tagged Packards as something less exclusive than they had been in the public's mind, and in the long run, the Six hurt Packard's reputation of building some of America's finest luxury cars. The Six, designated "110" in 1940–41, continued for three years after the war, with many serving as taxicabs.

During World War II, Packard again built airplane engines, licensing the Merlin engine from Rolls-Royce as the V1650, which powered the famous P-51 Mustang fighter, ironically known as the "Cadillac of the Skies" by GIs in WWII. It was one of the fastest piston-powered fighters ever and could fly higher than many of its contemporaries, allowing pilots a greater degree of survivability in combat situations. They also built 1350-, 1400-, and 1500-hp V-12 marine engines for American PT boats (each boat used three) and some of Britain's patrol boats.

1946–1956

By the end of World War II, Packard was in excellent financial condition but suffered from several management mistakes that became visible as time went on. Like most other U.S. car makers, the firm started production in 1946 with modestly restyled 1942 models. As only tooling for the Clipper was left, concentrating on this design was the only option. There were several engines and chassis available, but basically only two body styles to choose from. The 4 door Touring Sedan looked very similar to the introduction model of 1941 and the 2 door Club Coupe was ageing quickly because of its fastback styling. Industry trend went in another direction: The light and airy looking 2 door Hardtop.

Although the postwar Packards sold well, the ability to distinguish expensive models from lower-priced models disappeared as all Packards became virtually alike. Further, amidst a booming seller's market, management had decided to direct the company more to middle class models, thus concentrating on selling lower priced cars instead of more expensive - and more profitable - models. Worse, they also tried to enter the taxi cab and fleet car market. The idea was to gain volume for the years ahead, but that target was missed: Packard simply was not big enough to offer a real challenge to the Big Three.

Instead, Packard's image as a luxury brand was further diluted. So, Packard lost buyers of expensive cars and couldn't find enough prospects for the lesser models to compensate. Of course, the shortage of raw materials immediately after the war - and that was felt by all manufacturers - hurt Packard more with its volume business than it would have when it had given more attention to the luxury car market.

The Clipper, although a graceful automobile, became outdated. So, in 1948, Packard presented its first postwar body - prior to its competition from the major firms (Cadillac, Lincoln, and Chrysler). In fact, these cars were heavily facelifted Clippers. The design chosen was of the "bathtub" style, predicted during the war as the destined future of automobiles. Six cylinder cars were dropped for the home market, and a convertible was added.

The new design cleverly hid its relationship to the Clipper. Even that name was dropped - for a while. But it looked bulky, and a bulky nickname it got: The "pregnant elephant". When a new body style was added, Packard made the mistake to introduce a Station Wagon instead of a 2 door Hardtop as buyers requested.

Packard left the luxury car market silently through the back door. Although its former glamour shined again in the mighty Custom Clippers and Custom Eights, built in its old tradition with excellent craftmanship and only the best materials, Cadillac now set the "Standard of the World".

When Packard's president George T. Christopher announced that the bathtub" would get another facelift for 1951, influental parts of the management revolted. Christopher was forced to resign and loyal Packard treasurer Hugh Ferry became president.

Although Packard did well during the early post-war period, supply soon caught up with demand and, by the early 1950s, the independent American manufacturers were left moribound as the Big Three (Ford, GM and Chrysler) battled intensely for sales in the economy, medium-price, and luxury market. Those independents that remained alive in the early Fifties, merged. Nash and Hudson became American Motors. Packard president James Nance, feeling that Packard could no longer survive alone, purchased Studebaker. However, Nance appeared to have no awareness of Studebaker's serious financial woes. Studebaker's management was notorious for building the wrong car at the wrong time, while the cars people wanted were always in short supply, strangling the company financially as a result.

Unable to afford an all-new design, Packard restyled the old "bathtub" models with a more modern body that resembled typical cars of the early 50s. Sales were slower than before, despite Packard's attempt to recapture the luxury market with such limited edition, luxury models as the Caribbean convertible and the Patrician 400 Sedan. In 1954, Packard stylist Richard Teague was called upon by Nance to redesign the old body once again, for 1955. To Teague's credit, the 1955 Packard was indeed a sensation when it appeared. Not only was the body completely updated and modernized, but the suspension was totally new, consisting of torsion bars front and rear, along with an electric load-leveler control that kept the car level regardless of load or road conditions. Crowning this stunning new design was Packard's first modern overhead-valve V8, displacing 352 cubic inches, replacing the old, heavy, cast-iron side valve straight-eight that had been used for decades. In addition, Packard offered the entire host of power comfort and convenience features, such as power steering and brakes, air conditioning (even in the Caribbean convertible, a Packard exclusive at the time), electric windows and more. For 1955, the Clipper became a separate make, with Clipper Custom and Deluxe models available. "Senior" Packards were built in three body styles. Each body style had a unique model name. Patrician was used for the four-door sedans, Four Hundred was used for the hardtop coupes, and Caribbean was used for the convertible.

Despite the new design, Cadillac had already captured the luxury market, with Lincoln and Imperial behind. Reliability problems with the automatic transmission and all those electrical gadgets further eroded the public's opinion of Packard. Sales fell for 1955, and Packard looked more terminal than ever.

For 1956, Teague kept the basic 1955 design, and added more garish touches to the body. Headlamps were hooded in a more radical style in the front fenders, slight shuffling of tinward distinguished the '56. "Electronic Push-button Ultramatic," which located push buttons to control the automatic transmission on a stalk off the steering column, proved to be trouble-prone, adding to the car's reputation as a lemon which would soon become an orphan. Model series remained the same, but the V8 was now enlarged to 374 cubic inches for Senior series. In the top-of-the-line Caribbean, that engine put out 310 horsepower. Clippers continued to use the 352 engine, however.

1957–1958

In 1957 and 1958, a Studebaker President-based car bearing the Packard Clipper nameplate appeared on the market, but sales were slow. These badge-engineered Studebakers were derided as Packardbakers by competitors and the press, and failed to sell in sufficient numbers to keep the marque afloat.

While the 1957 Packard Clipper was less Packard than it was a very good Studebaker, the cars sold in limited numbers, which was attributed to Packard dealers dropping the franchises and consumers fearful of buying a car that could soon be an orphaned make.

The 1958 models were launched with no series name, simply as "Packard." These cars were the last gasp of what, thirty years earlier, had been the biggest-selling luxury car marque in the United States.

Concept Packards

During the 1950s, a number of "dream cars" were built by Packard in a desperate attempt to keep the marque alive in the imaginations of the American car-buying public. Included in this category are the Packard Panther-Daytona, based on the '54 Packard platform, with a sports-car type body. The Request was based on the '55 Four Hundred hardtop, but featured a bizarre, narrow and upright Packard fluted grille reminiscent of the postwar "bathtub" Packards. In addition, the "Black Bess" was an engineering mule built to test new features for a future car. This car had a surprising resemblance to the 1958 Edsel, with front fenders showing off the dual headlights resembling a Plymouth from that era. This car was destroyed by the company shortly after the Packard line was discontinued.


Studebaker-Packard pulled the Packard nameplate from the marketplace in 1959 to focus on its compact Lark.

In the early 1960s, Studebaker-Packard was approached by French car maker Facel-Vega about the possibility of rebadging the company's Facel-Vega Excellence sedan as a "Packard" for sale in North America. The proposition was rejected when Daimler-Benz threatened to pull out of its 1958 marketing and distribution agreement, which would have cost Studebaker-Packard more in revenue than they could have made from the badge-engineered Packard.