(This was originally posted at the other site on 11/23/2010, and was never posted here until now)
It’s mysterious enough that a genuine CCCA-designated classic car suddenly appears curbside in my neighborhood. And not just any true classic, but the immensely desirable and infinitely awesome Clipper Super Coupe, the most powerful and fastest American car of its day. But the mystery deepens: why did its owner try everything possible to keep me from photographing it the day I first found it, and then why did someone deface it by pouring paint over it the very next night? No, it wasn’t me.
Before we get started on this strange story, for a frame of reference, here’s how it looked on the day before, when I first drove by.
This Packard is the biggest find of the year so far, rivaling the official CC logomobile, the 1950 Cadillac Series 61 Coupe for top-dog status. But in terms of the human elements connected with each of them, they couldn’t be more different.
Mike, the Caddy’s owner, proudly showed off his pride and joy, took me for a memorable ride, and is now a friend. The guy that presumably owns this Packard threatened me in numerous ways. Bid vibes surrounded him and his car from the minute my eyes laid on him. But it wasn’t just me; someone else must not like him very much either.
I had been tooling down West 24th, scanning the side streets as always, when I saw the big black rear end two blocks down. At first I thought it might be a Volvo 544, or a big Olds or Buick from the fastback era. I drove around the block and as I turned onto Taylor, that distinctive Packard Clipper front end came into view.
The 1941 Clipper was a milestone car for Packard, the most handsome and advanced new car of its day. It was a response to Harley Earl’s groundbreaking 1938 Cadillac Sixty Special (top in photo below). The sleek Caddy made quite a splash, and Packard needed to up the ante or fall behind.
In 1940, they hired Dutch Darrin to come up with a quarter-scale clay proposal in ten days(!), which he did, but the design was a bit too progressive for staid old Packard. Darrin’s original design had the front fender flow all the way back, and dropped any hint of running boards. But the quote “success has many fathers while failure is an orphan” applies all too well here; there is endless controversy over the Clipper’s true patrimony, which also involves Briggs Body, Packard chief designer Werner Gubitz’ team, George Walker, Alex Tremulis and whoever else wants or deserves a cut of the credit. We’ll leave that endless debate to others. Clearly, a healthy dose of typical Darrin taste and flair survived, including his hallmark touches which reappeared in more modern form in the 1947 Kaiser and Frazer.
The Clipper appeared as a four door sedan only in 1941, riding on the 127″ wheelbase of the senior Packard, and initially used the 120’s 282 CID (4620 cc) straight eight engine. It was actually wider than it was tall, which was highly unusual, and at least as pioneering a design as Earl’s Caddy, if not more so. And thanks to a positive reception, Packard quickly adopted Clipper styling across the board for 1942. Only one big problem: WW II.
Arriving just some six months before Pearl Harbor, the Clippers were on the market barely a year before production ceased. This would have consequences in 1948, when Packard face-lifted (body-bulged, more accurately) the Clipper to go against the all-new 1948 Cadillac. We covered that painful part of Packard’s history and demise in our other Packard CC, the 1951 200 here, so let’s just dwell on this long-hooded elegant beast here.
As mentioned earlier, this is a CCCA recognized true classic, of which very few post-war cars qualify. It applies only to the two top-line 1946-47 Packards; this Super and the more lavishly-trimmed Custom Super, in recognition of these cars being carry-overs from the pre-war era. Maybe it’s also because of the powerplant. The Supers for 1946 and 1947 were endowed with Packard’s ultimate straight eight, the 356 cubic inch mammoth that was introduced in 1940, and was the final and finest expression of the genre.
This giant slab of engine weighs some one thousand pounds. The crankshaft, which swings a mean 4.63″ stroke, alone weighs 105 pounds. Supported by nine main bearings, it is virtually impossible to tell that these engines are running, unbeaten in the “balance a quarter on its side on a running engine block” trick (see video here). That half ton of engine represents one full quarter of the weight of this Coupe, which at 4,000 lbs is not all that hefty for today’s standards.
With 165 hp and enough tug-boat torque to start off in top gear, the big eight outclassed all its competition in power as well as refinement. One hundred mph plus was genuine and effortless. The Clipper Super offered the kind of refined speed that the Bentley R-Type Continental became famous for a few years later.
Enough for the historical preamble: I parked my old Ford truck and greeted the owner, who was just headed toward his house. I’m always eager to introduce myself and explain my intentions, even when it’s not necessary for a car parked on the street. And I’ve always gotten a friendly response, especially with the more exotic and unusual cars. One of the few paybacks of owning an old or unusual car is getting some love and attention. Not this guy.
He had a sour look to start with, and instantly started yelling at me insisting that I can’t photograph his Packard. He made a cryptic remark along the lines of “I’ve had enough problems with this car, and it won’t be here much longer”. I tried in vain to reason with him and explained that I have every right to shoot it sitting on a public road, but he started jumping in between me and the car, and threatening to call the police. That was an empty threat, but he became more agitated and aggressive, so I let it go for now.
I drove by a couple of hours later, and grabbed a few quick shots from my car before he came running out the door. I figured I would let him simmer down overnight, and walked over the next day. What the hell! That very night, someone had come by and dumped white paint all over that black Packard’s long tapering roof. Or was it a giant bird? This time the owner was not sitting by the window waiting for me; the curtain was drawn, and there was no response. I got my shots, and left the poor thing sitting in the drizzle, with paint dripping down its flanks.
Who knows what that was all about, but it certainly wasn’t random vandalism. That very rarely happens around here anyway, and this car was clearly targeted. The owner’s extreme agitation and paranoia the day before made it obvious that there were “issues” surrounding this car.
It’s still sitting there, forlorn like a black rock the sea gulls have adopted. Undoubtedly, this Clipper has a future brighter than its current state. These are very desirable cars, for obvious reasons. I’m still getting over having found my second genuine CC Packard within a dozen blocks of my house. What’s next; a CC Duesenberg with patina? And I’m trying hard to get the Clipper out of my head; not only wondering what happened to it, but imagining tooling this majestic coupe down the McKenzie Highway on a warm summer night, and opening the cutout on the exhaust. Nothing quite beats the sound of a big honking Packard straight eight (listen for yourself here and here). And although I like my cars rough and ratty, a little scrubbing might be called for.
My guess as to what happened: this Packard has obviously spent a very long time in a barn or shed, from the look of the rotted tires. Perhaps the current buyer made a deal with the former owner that somebody else isn’t any too happy about; possibly another buyer, or a family member of the former owner. Who knows?
Update: A couple of months after this was originally written in 2010, I got a tip that the Packard was for sale. I drove over and saw that the latex paint had been mostly scrubbed off. I took some more pictures, and found out shortly afterwards that the ad had been pulled. There was obviously something odd going on, but the Packard did leave not long afterwards. Here’s a few shots without the white paint.
I hope it’s found a happier home.
I wonder if it was in the middle of an estate war? Great uncle so and so dies and all four nephews want his old car.
Been involved in something like that once and hard feelings are still there thirty years later.
Never experienced that, but there’s a saying that you don’t know someone until you divide an estate with them. Knives Out is a great cinematic take on this.
What a find! Looks absolutely original, down to the tires. Last license renewal appears to be in 1953, so I doubt if it has driven much since then.
1946 was just about the end of the road for Packard as a serious competitor to Cadillac. The newly styled ‘48 Caddy with its V-8 and Hydra-Matic just blew it away and Packard never seriously challenged again. Still, these tank-like machines with that enormous straight eight are an important part of automotive lore.
One can only imagine what would have been if George Mason’s dream of merging Nash, Packard, Hudson and Studebaker into a viable big three competitor had occurred.
The ’48 Caddy didn’t have a V8, it had to wait another year for that. But yes, once it arrived, the flashy styling and modern, powerful engine left Packard looking increasingly dowdy with prewar styling used until 1951 and the prewar straight eight until 1955. Packard instead aimed downmarket and tried to make it up on volume, which wasn’t possible given postwar parts and materials shortages. They should have used that situation to rebuild their high-end image.
The Nash/Packard/Hudson/Studebaker merger probably would have been brought down by Studebaker, as well as the troubles of merging four lines of disparate cars made in different places by different people. Studebaker wasn’t considered for the merger until after their buyout by Packard years after Mason’s merger was first floated. In retrospect, Willys/Jeep would have been a better partner than Studebaker; it’s the one real survivor amongst the postwar independents.
The ’48 Caddy had the new styling, but still had the 346,150 hp V8 flat head. It all came together, in ’49, when the new 331, 160 hp ohv V8, debuted.
The ‘48 Caddy did indeed have a V-8, albeit the old flat head. The modern OHV V-8 arrived in ‘49.
Only a few years back I filled a lien sale on an abandoned 47 Super Clipper Packard, four door, that had been left on a lot of mine in Lemon Grove, California. It was a total rust bucket in terrible overall shape. After welding in a new trunk pan, new rockers, and floor boards, I gave up and sold the car. It had the 356 engine that ran good and was, as the article pointed out, a classic. Some NOS parts were found such as the rubber window seals, tail light lenses, and,”Cat whiskers” for the front fenders. Wonder what eventually happened to the car. Was it completed or used as a parts car?
The last 3 youtubes are unavailable now.
Wish I was there Paul – unfortunately, in this country your experience is the norm – not the exception. Everyone thinks they’re being wound up for a ripoff. You’d think they’d realise that the people with the buckets of old house paint don’t say “Hi” in daylight hours
I just watched a 1954 movie, last night, where a bad guy being chased, drove a duplicate of this car, off a cliff.
Awesome car and oddly enough I saw a dismantled engine for one recently I took a spare 1724cc Hillman block to a reconditioner to have the bores measured for wear and there was a huge straight 8 flathead engine block on a stand by the counter upon asking I was told it was a Packard and the big one, somebody is getting one rebuilt so there must be a car somewhere that belongs to it, pity about the white paint but it appears to be water based and would probably come off with a good waterblasting.
I like reading old car ads that emphasize things I’ve long taken for granted. Imagine ease of lifting the trunk lid being a major selling point… Also, wow that’s a wide price range for a single car – $907 to $5,500.
Was the V8 really a major improvement over straight 8’s or was it just the trending thing at the time? Everything I’ve read seems to indicate the Packard inline 8 was an incredibly smooth, vibrationless, durable engine. The OHV V8s did add power, but did they trade in some of that buttery smoothness to get the extra power? The other supposed V8 advantage was their smaller size, but neither Packard nor Cadillac shortened their hoods when the V8s arrived.
(oops that should be Packard only – I keep forgetting Cadillac used a flathead V8, not a straight 8, prior to 1949)
Paul mentions that this straight eight weighed 1000 lbs. The 1949 Cadillac V-8 was large thing in itself and came in at 750 lbs. That’s a full 25% less material.
The day of the flathead was over by 1949 and everybody knew it. The V-8s had a lot more ability to be developed over the course of production. The flathead engine was a developmental dead end.
Someone failed to inform AMC, which used a flathead six as the base engine in the Rambler American all the way through the 1965 model year.
The old flathead eights were smooth, but were also known for having a healthy appetite for gas. The new V-8s gave both better gas mileage and acceleration.
Road tests of Cadillacs in the early 1950s invariably mentioned not just their superior acceleration, but also their surprising fuel economy. The economy was even more impressive when one considers the weight of the car, and the use of an automatic transmission, which in those days used more gas than a manual.
I am sure someone knows the story of this car, as there aren’t too many of them around. I found an ad from 2000, for a Model 2106 year 1946 Super Custom Clipper club sedan (2 door with fastback roof), black paint with tan interior, in original condition and driveable. The owner claimed that only two are known to exist among the Packard clubs. I may or may not have the correct model here, as there were a bevy of models, back in the day.
The old Oregon plates on this one suggest this is not the one in the ad, but someone likely knows something about this car.
It is funny what we remember. The recall this article like it was only a short time ago. What a lovely car and strange story. I do hope the car found a caring home. It certainly looks like its worth saving.
DAMN! That must have been one helluva BIG seagull…
I am with Dave Saunders above – This article resides in the “recent past” section of my memory.
I love the concept of a stick shift car with enough torque down low to allow for high-gear starts. I started to think that all it needed was a torque converter a-la Dynaflow, but then remembered – wasn’t the later Packard Ultramatic nothing but a torque converter that locked up for high gear? Who needs multiple gears when you have all that torque?
Turns out the Ultramatic always had two gears, manually selected until 1954 when a D position was added which shifted from low to high gear automatically. Very good article:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultramatic
I remember when this story first ran and am going to suggest that there’s nothing more to it than the owner being some sort of angry, weirdo crank who, in an effort to ‘retaliate’ against all these people bothering him (probably no more than one annually) about his car, poured the white paint on the car himself to make it un-photogenic. That’ll show ’em!
I don’t remember if I had ever read this aricle previously (I didn’t start reading CC until after it had its own site), but reading it just now, I had the same thought as you. I think the owner poured the paint on the car himself to deter Paul from taking pictures of it.
Of course not. Why would he then have washed it off right away? And there was no way he could keep me from taking pictures anyway, which I did.
It makes no sense to deface an old car you’re in the process of selling.
He obviously pissed someone off in the process of selling it, and they got back at him.
Paul,I ended up with this car it was in Dayton Ohio at the Dayton Packard museum’s warehouse. There was a fire where they stored donated cars.I cleaned the place up and kept some of the cars. This car happened to be outside in the yard. It still had some of the white paint on it. But now when I got it there was a big dent in the driver’s door which was caused by the fireman. If I can find a picture I will.
Richard, I’m so glad to hear it survived and is in good hands. Thanks for letting us know.
Look at the front license plate?
I thought of the Packard owned by Jerry Jeff Walker down in Key West. Immortalized by his buddy “Marvin Gardens”…wonder what became of it.
I drive by a 4 door version of this car every day. It’s even black just like this one. It’s been sinking into the ground for 30 years that I know of. It’s probably been where it is for 50. Too far gone to save but still too good to scrap. Just a shame to see it barely visible under the brambles. A full blown classic just rotting away. Oh!
Having owned 2 ’50s Packards, I always wanted one of these, in 4 dr Super or Custom Super form. The big series coupes are far rarer but imo a bit fat looking in the rear, to me the 4 drs are far more elegant, the Custom Super a real American Rolls Royce in my opinion (better actually), with it’s beautiful tailored interiors, great build quality and magnificent 9 bearing motor. Now it’s too late as I’m too old to deal with a manual shift and steering on a car this big and heavy.
Not many know that the smaller wheelbase ’46/47 Clipper was still available with the big 245 flathead 6. Those are super scarce, and not as sluggish as you might think as it was a very torquey engine. A very few were taxis.
I agree entirely that the four-doors are more elegant. And interesting you mention the six: a really nice silver four-door ’46 six sold in Australia in 2016 (for a pitiable $16,000 AUD, which is currently about $12K USD!) Being RHD, as was once required for registration here, I suspect it has been here since new. Hopefully the link below works.
https://www.shannons.com.au/auctions/2016-shannons-sydney-spring-classic-auction/EC964D8EB53DN09L/
Once you seen one, that’s about as many of the 1946-’47 Clipper Super and Custom Super Club Sedans (Packard’s term for the two door sedan models) as you are ever likely to see in this life. I can count only two in years of Packard Club meets. The PAC Roster listed only seven a few years ago, four Supers and three Custom Supers, all 1947’s.
Although the actual factory records are lost, estimates based on recorded highest body numbers have provided enough data to conclude approximately 600 Super and Custom Super club sedans were built for the 21st Series 1946-’47 model years. The ‘Junior’ series 120″ wb Clipper Six and Deluxe Eights are more common, though still thought to have been perhaps 15% of the total productions for those models.
As described, they are real road locomotives whether touring or club sedan, silky smooth, quiet, effortless torque, wonderfully crafted, among the finest American cars of the period. Costly but quality is, more a car of the pre-war era than the postwar when temporary style overtook quality craftsmanship and engineered longevity dismissing those intrinsic values as passe.
I am here for the drama! I need to know what this guy’s deal was…
…and is equipped—Chrysler weren’t the first—with a giant bruiser of a gear-reduction starter; I’d not be surprised if the starter alone weighs 40 pounds.
Whut in thaa?… O.o
I’ve been around a couple of Packards- one or two with the 356, but most with the later 288/327/359cid engines, but have never encountered one equipped with a gear reduction starter. It looks like they switched to a direct drive starter around 1949, so that would explain my not hearing one, as both 356 cars were 1949 or 1950 model years. But shure ’nuff, I finally found a video clip of an earlier 356 starting, and there was the sound. Much less pronounced than the Chryco wail, but it’s there! Schweet!! Thanks for learning me something, eh.
Keen! Got a link? I’d like to hear that.
Pretty short crank… guessing that the engine was already warmed up. If this didn’t get clipped at the right time, forward to 3:05
https://youtu.be/NwvKaeKxOiA?t=179
Hot damn, listen to that! The cadence is a little different—this would be a 6-volt system, surely—but instantly recogniseable as what it is!