As the custom coachbuilding industry faded out of existence in the early 1940s, American luxury automakers slowly discontinued the factory-catalogued "semi-customs" that had topped their lines for over a decade. Packard was among the last to offer bodies by coachbuilders Rollson and LeBaron, with the latter being a division of Briggs by 1941, however it still produced beautifully appointed and largely hand-built bodies in limited numbers.
Most of LeBaron's final Packard offerings were formal limousines, which were to be driven by a chauffeur. However, in 1941 only, an "owner-driver" variant, the Sport Brougham, could also be had. It was essentially Packard's version of the Cadillac Series 60 Special, and it featured a striking design, with narrow chromed window frames and a "formal" rear window on the shorter 1907-series chassis, as well as a sumptuously appointed five passenger interior.
The engine, a 356-cu. in. L-head inline eight-cylinder engine 160 bhp, three-speed manual transmission with factory overdrive, independent front suspension with coil springs, live rear axle with semi-elliptical leaf springs, and four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes. The wheelbase is 138 in.
This series 1907 custom Packard has a great history. One of only 99 Sport Broughams built by LeBaron, a division of Briggs, this two-tone blue and silver model with approximately 58,000 miles is one of only 20 known to survive. The known owner history includes George Oxford and Don Hanson who sold it in 2001 to Tom Mix; proprietor of the famous Foreign Motors dealership in Boston, Massachusetts, Mr. Mix made his living from new Mercedes-Benz and Rolls-Royce, but his passion was Packard and he built one of the finest collections over a 50-year span in the hobby. Many of today's award-winning Packards of the 1930s and 1940s can trace their history back to time spent in the Mix stable. The car was in restoration at the time of Mix’s death and the project was completed since 2006 by Paul Adrich. This Packard has been driven about 2,500 miles recently on two CCCA Caravans. With factory over-drive this is a perfect vehicle to continue touring. In 2016, the car was mechanically serviced by Stone Barn Restoration including replacement of all lifter bodies. The power windows have also been recently serviced, with a new pump and solenoids.
To this day, it retains its original engine, as well as the original vehicle number tag on the firewall.
