Once a major player in the USA, Packard found itself in trouble during the late 1950s thanks to a variety of internal and external factors and didn’t survive to see 1963.
However the marque was for a time a leading luxury car maker, became tied in with Studebaker and proved capable of innovation.
In a profile on the 1956 Patrician we noted: “In 1955, the cars underwent another major restyle, this time by Richard A Teague, finally gaining a modern overhead valve V8, innovative torsion level ride suspension and a redesigned chassis. The new exterior trim made it a simple matter for Packard to offer two- and three-tone paint combinations, and the wraparound windscreen was state-of-the-art for the time.”
This example is running a 374 V8 with automatic transmission.
Located near Byron bay in NSW, it’s on the market for $35,000.