Details:
Oldtimer Australia is delighted to offer for sale a lovely 1922 Packard Single Six Model 126 Sport Tourer.
The early history of this car is not known. It is understood to have been a factory right hand drive car that was delivered new to Australia. Further, it is understood the car spent most of its life in Bourke in north west NSW before it was taken to Tamworth.
In May 1976 this Packard was offered for sale by Barry Smith from Tamworth. The car was advertised by him in The Packardian as 1st Series 6 cyl Sports Tourer, complete but needs restoration. There are photos on file showing the car sitting in a field in a very poor state. The advert did not mention it, but there was also another first series single six parts car and lots of other parts included in the sale. Interestingly, one of the photos on file shows a filter attached to the side of the car which suggests that it has been modified to run on gas. Apparently, this was common modification carried out during World War II due to fuel shortages.
The car and all of its spares were purchased by Packard enthusiast David McCredie from Sydney. Transporting everything home was quite a challenge and required a truck, two trailers, a utility and a second trip to pick up the smaller parts.
Then the real challenge started! An assessment was made to determine what needed to be done to restore the Packard to its former glory. The first problem which needed to be resolved was the chassis. It appeared the car had been involved in an accident and as a result the chassis was badly bent. It was quickly determined that the best solution was to use the spare chassis from the parts car which was in excellent condition. It was a 133 chassis so it had to be shortened to the required 126 wheelbase. Fortunately, everything else on the chassis was identical to the original one and no further modifications were required.
The next challenge was the body. Some of the original woodwork had survived but it was in poor condition. It could not be restored, but it did provide excellent patterns to make the replacements. Kiln dried Queensland Maple and Tasmanian Oak was used for the new frame. Surprisingly, all the body panels except for one door could be reused. Progress was slow but steady. Obviously all the mechanicals, including the engine had to be rebuilt. The engine was completely stripped and every part was assessed and replaced if necessary.
When the time came to paint the car a decision was made to go for a black over grey colour scheme with red pin striping and red wheels. We think that was a great decision and as you will see from the photos it suits the car perfectly. All the brightwork was nickel plated as Packard would have done back in the day.
The restoration was finally completed in 1985 and the car was registered in NSW. The moment it was registered, the car was taken for a short drive around the block to make sure everything was operating correctly. It passed all the tests with flying colours and the next day it was taken on a trip to Mildura.
This Packard was never meant to be a trailer queen. The previous owner used it regularly and the car was seen at a variety of rallies in all the Eastern States of Australia and in South Australia.
In 2020 after 44 years of ownership, this fabulous Packard was sold to the current owner who lives on the Gold Coast. It joined his eclectic collection and since then it has been used sporadically. Importantly, the car has been started regularly and serviced when required.
After crawling all over this car you would not believe that it was restored some 40 years ago. Credit has to be given to the previous owner who did an incredible job restoring the car. It was a labour of love that took him 9 years, but he has done an excellent job.
There is no better testament to the quality of the restoration than how well this car presents and drives today. Sure there are some minor imperfections in the paint consistent with a car which has been used the way its makers intended, but you would think the car was painted 10 years ago. The paint work is still in excellent condition and it has retained a strong depth of colour.
All the bright work on the car does not appear to have aged at all since it was all restored. The majestic grill, the lights, the Packard logo, the original motometer on top of the radiator and the bumpers are all in very good condition.
The soft top and the side curtains are in excellent condition. Putting the top down is something of an origami exercise, albeit quite a simple one once you know how! The design is incredibly well thought out and engineered. Quite often the soft windows in side screens turn yellow if they have been exposed to too much sun, but that is certainly not the case on this car. The rear windscreen is made out of Perspex and is in good condition. The same can be said for the front windscreen, which is actually made up out of two sections. The top part can be opened to provide some fresh air on a hot day.
The wire wheels are in good condition with no evidence of any kerb rash. They are shod with Lucas tyres, size 33-4½/500-24. The tyres are old and should be replaced.
For safety reasons modern indicators were discretely fitted in the front and rear bumper, however, due to an ongoing electrical issue these have been disconnected.
The car is still running its original 6 volt electrical system.
Make no mistake this is quite a big car with an imposing presence. This is one of those cars that the more you look the more you will see!
One of the first things you will notice as soon as you look inside the car is how well the interior presents. The leather upholstery is still in excellent condition with no sign of any rips or tears. The carpets are also in excellent condition. Once you have made yourself comfortable behind the large timber steering wheel you take in the dashboard, which is minimalistic yet elegant. The art deco style instruments are in beautiful condition. Centrally located you will find one instrument which holds the rolling speedometer (which is so cool!), the odometer, a trip meter and a clock. On the left you will find the ignition and the controls to operate the lights. On the right you will find the amp meter and oil pressure gauge.
Once you know how, starting this Packard is relatively easy. The first thing to do is open the right side bonnet and turn the fuel tap on. Then climb back into the car and turn the key for the battery isolator, which is located on the floor, to the on position. On the steering wheel youll find two levers. On the left hand side you have the advance and retard lever and on the right the hand throttle. The timing should be retarded and the hand throttle set up at a ¼ position. You wait patiently for say fifteen seconds for the fuel to flow from the vac tank to the carburettor. Then turn the ignition on and press the starter button, which is located on the floor, with your left foot. Every time we have started this car it has fired up easily. The six cylinder engine almost immediately bursts to life and quickly settles into a smooth idle as you fettle the controls.
The engine sounds just great and immediately gives you confidence that all 54 horses are present! Yes, the owners manual states that the 1922 Packard Single Six Model 126 engine has 54 hp. We slowly drive the car out of our showroom and out on the open road for a short test drive and photo shoot. As you will note from the photos this car has the centre accelerator pedal, which is surprisingly common on cars of this era. In laymans terms the brake and accelerator have swapped places! You get used to this pretty quickly and out on the open road first impressions of the car are really positive. There is plenty of power on tap and the car keeps up with modern traffic surprisingly well. It has no problem keeping to the speed limit. The gearbox is a three speed manual crash box with a central gear change and traditional shift pattern. This car performs, handles, steers and stops better than you would expect for a car built in 1922! This is a very nice and for its age, a very capable car to drive.The current owner has run out of space to store his growing car collection. He does have another prewar Packard in the collection, so he has made the difficult decision to make the car available for its next custodian.
Accompanying the car is a small photo book showing how the previous owner found the car in 1976 and his journey to restore it, some historical documentation and receipts, various tools and an original owners manual.
In the 1920s Packard became the number one designer and producer of luxury automobiles in the United States. We understand why!
Highlights:
- Beautifully presented example.
- Fabulous colour scheme.
- Runs and drives well.
- Relatively easy to drive.
Price $84,950.
Background:
In the 1890s the brothers James and William Packard founded the Packard Electric Company specialising in electrical manufacturing. Soon after that they also founded the New York & Ohio Company, which specialised in the manufacturing of incandescent lamps.
On his travels throughout the United States, James started to take interest in the horseless carriage and wanted to develop one that did not rely on steam or electricity. The Packard brothers produced their first automobile on November 6th 1899, the Model A Packard and drove it on the streets of Warren, Ohio. Soon after the brothers teamed up with George Weiss from Winton and production was up and running. Between 1899 and 1903 they built 400 cars. These were sold under the name of the Ohio Automobile Company. The business prospered and in late 1902 the company was rebranded as the Packard Motor Car Company and production moved from Ohio to a purpose built facility in Detroit.
The Packard brothers stayed involved in the company for the next couple of years but by 1909 started to move away from the business. Under company President and General Manager, James Alvan Macauley, Packard became the number one designer and producer of luxury automobiles in the United States and was held in the same regard as the Pierce Arrow company of Buffalo, New York and the Peerless company of Cleveland, Ohio.
The Great Depression hit car manufacturers hard but Packard managed to survive and shifted focus on mid-range automobiles when the interest in higher priced cars diminished. This turned out to be a good move and Packard saw their sales triple in 1935 and double in 1936.
Packard is well known for its iconic advertising slogan Ask the Man Who Owns One, however, it should also be better recognised for its engineering achievements and innovation.
Some of the major innovations bought to the motor car by Packard included: the H pattern gear shift, the modern steering wheel (which replaced the tiller), the first production 12 cylinder engine, four wheel brakes and air-conditioning on a mass produced motor car.
In 1954 Packard merged with Studebaker which turned out to be the beginning of the end for Packard. The Packard name was phased out by 1962 and the last Studebaker rolled off the production line on March 16th 1966.
As a luxury motor vehicle manufacturer Packard was best known for its eight and twelve cylinder models, however, the company had great success with its six cylinder range of cars also. The Packard Sixes had many of the benefits of their big brothers but were more competitively priced, hence, appealed to a broader market.
