Pampered Family Packard

It takes a village to raise a child. It takes a few families to care for a car like this one. This is the kind of car they write stories about. Bought new in 1939 as an anniversary present, it is a gorgeous example of American manufacturing and ingenuity. It has been looked after as one would a child, and has been the pride and joy of everyone who has owned it.

This Car’s Past

This is a two-and-a-half family car. It was sold new in Bradford, Pennsylvania. The original owner sold it only when she had to give up driving. While it was briefly in the possession of a private collector, the niece of the original owner bought it back, feeling it was best to keep it in one family. When lack of garage space forced her to sell it to the current owner, continuing the top-notch care of the vehicle was of the greatest importance and the highest priority. It has been a treasured member of the family in every generation that has owned it, and it shows.

History of the Model

The Packard Six was introduced in September 1936 as a 1937 model. The success of the Packard One-Twenty, a lower-priced eight added to the product line in 1935, convinced Packard management that a range of models in the mid-priced market was essential to survival in the Great Depression. The One-Twenty had sold at three-and-a-half times the volume of “senior” Packards, the Eights, Super Eights and Twelves, in its introductory year. The Six displaced the One-Twenty as the most popular Packard by 1938, and in 1939 outsold all other Packards combined. New features that were year were a column-mounted “Handi-shift,” replacing the floor-mounted gear lever, and heavier rear springs.

Preservation History

The car has been lovingly maintained during its lifetime, driven an average of 2,000 miles per year when in regular use. Except for one repaint, it is in near-original condition. The original leather upholstery has been covered with red vinyl and the convertible top has been replaced. Otherwise originality extends throughout the car, right down to the floor mats. Current mileage shown is 56,609, and many service records accompany the car, as well as numerous photographs taken during its life over the years. As a result of this low mileage and faithful care it remains a remarkable car to drive.
Market Trends

All Packards are collectible. Although the Full Classic “senior” Packards are the most sought-after, the Packard Six, the best seller in its day, enjoys great favor in the collector community. Along with its older and larger brother, the eight-cylinder One-Twenty, it occupies a unique niche among affordable prestige cars of the 1930s, and offers extremely good value.

Summary

They say it takes a village to raise a child. It takes a couple of families to care for a rare gem of a vehicle like this one. You’ll want to care for it as best you can, too. Just ask the man who owns one.
Kit Foster, Automotive Historian

“Undoubtedly the Packard company could not have survived the Depression without this product line.”
Beverly Rae, Kimes, the First Lady of Automotive History