Vehicle Description
1950 Packard Eight Series 2103 Touring Sedan
In 1949, (and still in Oregon and New Jersey today), gas stations
pumped gas for their customers, and there was a skill in not
overfilling the tank. Packard had to be a favorite for gas station
attendants. As a Packard gas tank was being filled, there was a
whistling sound. When the tank was full, the whistling stopped and
there was no overfill. Now the pump does this for you.
For consignment, a torpedo back pontoon fender styled Packard 2103
which was lovingly referred to as a "bathtub" type. While this was
considered futuristic, during the post-war era the 1948-1950
Packard styling was polarizing. To some it was a sleek and blended
classic with modern; others nicknamed it the "pregnant elephant".
Test driver for Modern Mechanix, Tom McCahill, referred to the
newly designed Packard as "a goat" and "a dowager in a Queen Mary
hat". This consignor stated 59,414 mile car was purchased new by
our consignor's father's business partner's wife on December 22nd
1949 and when the business partner passed away in the 50's our
consignor's father bought the car from the widow. Come 1993 the car
was passed down to our consignor and the rest as they say is
history. A very original example ready to be driven, shown and
enjoyed and as an extra morsel of deliciousness the original bill
of sale and owners manual are included with your purchase.
Exterior
A miles deep application of Grenadier Maroon bathes the exterior of
this car. It has a few areas of scratches and just chip offs, but
nothing that detracts from the overall beauty of the design. Plenty
of chrome trim adorns this maroon bubble and is in mostly good
condition excepting a few areas on the front and rear bumpers that
have a light misting of tarnish. Speaking of the chrome, the
designers at Packard clearly couldn't get enough of it as it
encompasses nearly the entire front of the car. Multi layers of
wrap arounds, steps and bars ooze class and style and chrome
trimmed headlights are tucked into the top fronts of each
semi-pontoon fender. A simple stainless spear front to rear on the
bulbous sides and more bright work adorns the front, rear and side
wing glass. All of this glass is clear, and Packard badged dog dish
style wheel covers are shiny and clean mounted to the Grenadier
Maroon 15-inch steel wheels.
Interior
On the doors, very nice fuzzy broadcloth mixes with lower vinyl
panels, with in tan. A slight bit of chrome edging and chrome
handles have bakelite bezels and the top rails of the doors are
adorned with faux wood grained metal. Inside the seating is a tan
and cream striped broadcloth, and the front split back bench and
rear bench with arms sit in brown vinyl covered tubs which float on
rubber flooring upfront, and tan carpet on the rear. The faux wood
grained metal continues on the dash front and dash top which has a
chromed bezeled instrument cluster, and massive central horizontal
chromed grid radio speaker cover. All lighting controls and blower
controls are pushbuttons, lined up at the bottom of this grid and
just below are cream bakelite knobs for the heater controls. The
instruments are a beautiful charcoal black backed design with
hashmarkcircling with 3-dimensional off-white art deco styled
numbers and pointers. A tight mohair headliner in tan is seen
above.
Drivetrain
An inline 288.6ci 8-cylinder engine is in an original engine bay.
Surface rust abounds on the block and head, but new spark plug
wiring can be noted. A Carter downdraft 2-barrel carburetor feeds
the fossils, and a 3-speed manual selective sliding gear
transmission with a 3.90 gear back end completes the
drivetrain.
Undercarriage
An array of varying degrees of surface rust is seen all over the
undercarriage. None of this though appears to be impeding the
structural integrity of this car, even on the rockers. It is more a
visual annoyance than anything else. Drum brakes are all around and
in front providing the quality Packard ride is an independent coil
spring suspension up front, while in the back are traditional leaf
springs.
Drive-Ability
A great running and driving example that starts right away and
performs as it should. These Packard's are reliable and
mechanically sound. A few frowns to note are the head and tail
lighting not illuminating, the signal markers not flashing, and the
brake lights not lighting.
A 2 family owned car, with the consignor having owned the car for
the past 30 years after being passed down from his father. A very
clean interior, really nice paint, and an interesting design line
will lead you to "ask a man who owns one", when referring to the
Packard
239256503
23-1950 Packard
925-Eight Series Touring Sedan
6503-Sequential Unit Number
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 850 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display. This vehicle is located in our
showroom in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, conveniently located just
1-hour west of Philadelphia on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The
website is www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888)
227-0914. Please contact us anytime for more information or to come
see the vehicle in person.
