For Sale at Auction: 1934 Packard Twelve in Carmel, California

Packard Vehicle No. 73925
Chassis No. 901758
Engine No. 901712

Packard's Eleventh Series models of 1934 are widely considered some of the finest American automobiles of the Classic Era. Chief among them was the vaunted Twelve, the company's prestige leader, featuring the wonderful V12 engine which the company had debuted in 1932. The modified L-head design displaced 445.5 cubic inches and could develop 160 horsepower, enabling swift performance accomplished with utter quiet and smoothness, and rested under an impressively long hood ending at a radiator shell flanked by headlights with matching, subtly vee'd headlamp lenses. Overall, the appearance was one of classic elegance and old-fashioned grandeur, but with a definite performance edge, which was exactly what Packard had desired to achieve.

Bodies on the Twelve were very well-designed and smartly tailored. One of the most striking factory body styles produced for the Eleventh Series Twelve was the Coupe-Roadster, developed from a custom convertible coupe design originally drawn by the great Raymond Dietrich for LeBaron on the 1931 845 chassis. Mounted to the 142-inch-wheelbase 1107 Twelve frame, the crisply-drawn lines translated extremely well to the factory-built version, with a relatively low windshield, close-coupled doors, as well as a highly notable top design that folded nearly flush with the rear deck.

Of roughly 50 examples produced, only about 20 original and authentic twelve-cylinder Coupe-Roadsters of the Eleventh Series survive today. At a list price of $5,330, the Coupe-Roadster carried a figure that placed it well beyond the reach of all but a few buyers at the height of the Great Depression. This Coupe-Roadster, Packard number 73925, was discovered in exceptional original condition. The history file contains photos documenting the car as it appeared before the restoration, a solid and original example that retained its bodywork and major components. That originality gave RM Auto Restoration an authentic foundation for the body-off restoration carried out in 1993. The owner specified a subtle medium metallic green over a contrasting chassis and undercarriage finished in dark green, a combination correct to the period. The interior was trimmed in rich olive green hides set against correct Mosstread carpeting, with burl wood accents throughout the cabin.

Because the car had survived in such sound order, little wood or metal replacement proved necessary during the work. No expense was spared in pursuit of the owner's standards, with restoration costs reported to have exceeded $300,000, and the result is regarded by many as among the finest and most correct cars of its type. Since 2000, when it was acquired by the current owner, the Packard has resided in one of the most significant collections of pre- and post-war automobiles, where it has been kept to an exacting standard and exercised on pre-war touring events.

The car has been faithfully maintained throughout its time in the collection, with numerous receipts on file, including consistent attention from Bob Mosier in Inglewood, California. In more recent years it has been serviced by Henningsen Machine Shop of Salinas, California, whose invoices from 2019 record an extensive program of mechanical sorting that included a new fuel line, electric fuel pump, and fuel-tank cleaning, a full clutch rebuild with new discs and rebuilt pressure plate, a brake adjustment, a coolant flush, four new tires, and road testing. The work attests to careful and ongoing stewardship, and the car remains in excellent condition today.

The Packard has been recognized at the highest levels of judging, earning AACA and CCCA National First Place awards. Concours appearances have included Amelia Island, Meadow Brook Hall, the Burn Foundation, Greenwich, and Castle Hill, among others. A letter on file also indicates that the car was invited to be shown at the 50th Annual Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in August 2000. Today the restoration continues to present beautifully throughout and surely ranks among the finest of the just 20 examples known to survive of these significant, Raymond Dietrich-designed, top-of-the-line Packard Twelves. Built at the height of Packard production, they rank today among the most collectible American automobiles of the Classic Era.