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Friday, March 15, 2013

1941: THE STREAMLINED PACKARD CLIPPER

One of my favorite web subjects is the "AUTOMOBILIA" folder in the Hamilton Library Local History Collection, and in that collection the many full color ads from magazines that have yet to be scanned and posted. Can you imagine buying that beautiful Packard Clipper for $1375.00? The demise of automobiles for every day American consumers was on the horizon as the industry was to be converted to the manufacture of tanks, armor, and other heavy steel products.

3 comments:

RALPH LUCARELLA said...

HI TOM....1941, THAT WAS THE YEAR I WAS WORKING WITH MY FATHER AT THE VERITAS FIRING SYSTEM. THE OWNER OF THE COMPANY HAD A PACKARD AND WOULD LOAN IT TO US ON OCCASSIONS. WE DROVE IT TO THE SHORE AND IT WAS THE BEST CAR I EVER RODE IN. WAS'NT IT AMAZING THAT A CAR LIKE THAT COULD BE BOUGHT SO REASONABLE. REGARDS.

rayfromvillapark said...

Hi Tom, You've hit the ball out of the park,with this 1941 Packard Clipper Sedan. A car on my want list; that never happened. Either a day late, or a dollar short, over the years. This model was introduced in March of 1941, as a late addition to the line. It was a medium priced car, placed between the 120 series and the 160 series. It was a styling departure for Packard, who most times made only evolutionary changes to their cars. It carried a lower silhouette, no running boards, and front fenders that faded into the doors. The dash was new and the car rode on a 127" wheelbase. They added a fastback coupe in 1942, and expanded the line from lowly six cylinder models, right up to the Custom 180, until WW II ended production, February 1942. This style lasted into 1947. My uncle Frank's brother Tony, who owned the bar on the corner of Cass and Lamberton Sts.,owned a beautiful dark Blue 1947 Clipper. I remember it well, as my uncle borrowed it a few times to impress my Aunt, when they were dating. These cars have always been in my thoughts over the years. I finally bought a 1949 Packard DeLuxe Eight, it road like a Rolls Royce, but the styling wasn't the same. These cars are sometimes referred to as bath tub Packards, and lacked the grace of the earlier Clippers, even though they were cut from the same cloth. rayfromvillapark

Tom Glover said...

What would we do without your auto expertise, Ray? I hope you understand the impact your comments make to keep this website on the popular side. That goes for all the other old timers who add so much to the posts on this site. we are approaching 8,000 pages and still going strong. Question: Where will this website be in another ten years? twenty years? 'tis a puzzlement.

Tom