1937 Packard 115-C Junior Sports Coupe

SHANE BACKHOUSE’S 1937 PACKARD 115-C JUNIOR

SPORTS COUPE

WORDS AND PHOTOS GREG PRICE

Why a Packard? Well, as the advertising blurb back then said “Ask the man who owns one!” so I did, but I had to wait nearly 57 years before I got the opportunity to actually do so, but it was worth the wait!”

Back in 1964, which was a couple of years after the previous owner of this magnificent machine bought it, I had a crush on a young lady whose father had a couple of decrepit 1936 Packard sedans, resplendent with twin side-mounted spare wheels, parked down beside his house in the Auckland suburb of Mt Eden. They had been lying in state (yes, they were already in a real state, condition-wise) but I never plucked up the courage to actually knock on the door and ask if either was for sale. In any event I wouldn’t have had a clue as to how to get them going, but dreams are free, right? As luck would have it, the owner’s daughter became known to me through work, and I quickly established that the cars were NOT for sale. Damn! But over subsequent years I passed the house frequently and the cars remained there untouched for many years. I don’t know what happened to them. But there was just something about how they looked, even in their sad state, that acted like a magnet to my fascination with the marque – in part, attributable to my years at boarding school perusing old National Geographic and Saturday Evening Post magazines’ car advertisements in the school’s library.

Which brings me to Shane’s coupe. It was previously owned by one Roger Hill and it also became disused and was laid up under Roger’s house in 1971, where it remained until 2003. In the interim 33 years it accumulated a significant coating of coal dust from Roger’s basement coal storage bunker, but at least it was

First time in daylight for 33 years

sheltered from the weather, a factor which contributed to the car remaining in fairly good nick. Once Roger decided to let someone else have a turn at being custodian of it, he approached Shane’s dad (Dave), but he had too many projects on hand at the time, so Shane seized the opportunity with both hands and became the proud owner of this quite rare Packard Junior Sports Coupe. But before I detail the restoration process we need to first look at a bit of history surrounding the Packard Motor Company.

BRIEF PACKARD HISTORY

According to an article on 1937 Packards published in an issue of Special Interest Autos, February 1982, Packard had a sensational year in 1937, having produced so many cars and made heaps of money. It was the new eight-cylinder model that supposedly did the trick a couple of years earlier, and as a result the company was accused by some of abandoning the luxury market, where its straight eights had dominated. Packard was one of several independent auto makers which included the likes of Studebaker, Nash, Hudson and Hupmobile. Packard was well known for its luxury cars, which many a movie star lusted after and in fact were frequently photographed alongside. Clark Gable and Bette Davis spring to mind. However, Packard was eying up the mid-priced market and decided to go for it. The wheel base was chopped by five inches – the difference being entirely in the length of the hood, and the newly developed six-cylinder engine was fitted. The twin side-mounted spare wheels were also a casualty of the rethink. But where other car makers had tended to be innovative with the likes of a turret top (for example) Packard retained the old-fashioned fabric insert on the roof, and didn’t introduce an overdrive option until some years later. Despite lagging behind the likes of General Motors et al, the 1937 Packard sixes still had class, it still looked like a Packard, rode like a Packard, and sold exceptionally well, in fact some 65,000 cars for 1937. Unfortunately Packard’s reign as top seller (among the independents, anyway) was short-lived. The recession of 1938 knackered everyone’s sales, Packard’s included, but they managed to hang on to first place among the smaller manufacturers for one more year. Studebaker then introduced their low-priced Champion, while Nash offered a high-styled car with a narrow, tall grille that was clearly inspired by the LaSalle. Packard fell to third place, and two years later it dropped to fourth, which it occupied for the company’s remaining years.

WWII of course put paid to the plans of most if not all car manufacturers in the USA. By 1941 Packard was heavily involved in military work, more than any other manufacturer, turning out Rolls-Royce Merlin aircraft engines, (I never knew that!) as well as the great V-12 Packard marine engines that powered the Navy’s legendary PT boats. This, coupled with a public perception that Packard no longer had the ‘massive’ look, being lighter and shorter, meant that they lost ground to Buick. However the Packard Clipper saved the day a wee bit, but…enough of the history. There is a very comprehensive book entitled Packard – A History of the Motorcar and the Company by Beverly Rae Kimes, which tells you everything you might want to know about the Packard Motor Car Company, and then some.

THE REBUILD

On getting the car home to Christchurch, the first job was to wash off the 30-plus years of accumulated coal dust and other debris associated with basement storage. Turns out it had been painted green at some stage, but the original colour was a cream/ off white, if the wheels were anything to go by. Then came the removal of the body from the chassis which was facilitated quite ingeniously by setting up a lifting device to the house’s upstairs veranda, and lifting the body up while the rolling chassis was moved out of the way. The chassis was completely disassembled and sent away for sand blasting and powder coating. Meanwhile Dave tackled the woodwork while the body was sitting on a purpose-built jig. Incidentally this was the last year Packard used wood in its body work. During the rebuild a parts car was sourced from West Melton and provided some of the necessary mechanical odds and sods that were in better condition than those on the coupe. The body was placed back on the chassis for a trip to the painters for gap finishing. Once that was completed, the body went back on the jig while the chassis was reassembled with the nice restored bits. All this work had taken up nearly seven years, due to some issues with an earlier panel beater, so another tradesman was entrusted with the completion of the work. In 2008 they both decided to move into top gear with the restoration, with the intent to attend the 2012 Vero International Rally. The freshly painted body (Cherry Black) was bought home on the evening of Friday 3 September 2010 – the day before the first major Christchurch quake. Fortunately, but unlike many other Christchurch classic cars and motorcycles, there was no damage. The next job was to refit the body to the chassis, using the same ingenious method as before, but with more padding to protect the paintwork. My thoughts on hearing about this were that they were lucky they hadn’t been carrying out this work in one of those Auckland-type leaky buildings with the clip-on patios, lest the whole lot crashed down on the newly restored classic! But Dave’s house has some super-strong pillars holding the veranda in place so no problems were encountered.

The race was now on to get the car finished so Shane and family could attend the Wanganui-based Vero International Rally in 2012. This necessitated fast-tracking the VCC Vehicle Identity process – a requirement for attendance at the Vero Rally. Shane finally got to drive the Packard for the first time, just three days before the rally! One of the hiccups during the rebuild was that a well-meaning professional responsible for relining the clutch plate had made it too thick, thus upon assembly there was no clutch. Unlike most cars, because of the Packard’s criss-cross chassis, gearbox withdrawal was not possible without completely removing the motor. Then Shane introduced some Kiwi ingenuity and made a couple of modifications to the clutch pressure plate (spacer washers) which gave him a modicum of clutch movement, which was enough to enable participation in the rally, and most importantly, getting there and back. Remedial work is planned for some future date, but as both he and Dave have adapted to driving with the modified clutch (as had I after my test hoon down the road) the obtaining of a round tuit is awaited in the interim.

The rally trip seemingly went without a hitch save for a failed Mexican-made condenser. The rally’s activities included a trip to Fielding, and some local excursions around Wanganui. A particular highlight for Shane and his family was a chat to, and a photo opportunity with, Nick Mason who is Pink Floyd’s drummer. Nick and his wife had been invited guests of the VCC at the International 2012 Rally. Way to go, Shane! ‘Another Brick in the Wall’.

Once back in Christchurch, the next notable occasion was winning the Canterbury Branch Post Vintage Restoration of the Year trophy for 2012. The coupe looked magnificent outside the Cutler Park hall with snow on the ground.

The only outstanding work (aside from the clutch) is the fitting of the wide white wall tyres that father Dave wants to fit, but Shane is adamant that they will not be going on the car in his lifetime! Seriously Shane? They would really set it off, but in the end it’s your car and while Dave’s membership of the ‘White-Wall Tyre Appreciation Society’ is quite safe, yours has unfortunately lapsed (lol).

THE TEST DRIVE

Once again, I’m really grateful to be entrusted with getting behind the wheel of someone else’s pride and joy, and particularly in this instance. First up was to familiarise myself with the flight deck instrumentation, which is nicely presented on the woodgrain dash. The NZ Police were on the Cutler Park grounds for dog training, and when I saw how far out of reach the handbrake was, I was tempted to ask one of them to assist with reaching the lever which is located about 10 feet under the front dash – the long arm of the law and all that. However Shane helpfully pointed out that reaching through the steering column made it much more accessible to us shorties.

Because of the clutch issues, when I first let out the clutch, probably in this instance using too much throttle, there was a little shuddering, but then we were off and away, and then I muffed what should have been an easy shift into second gear. Never mind Shane, the bits and pieces of the gears are easily retrieved by draining the gearbox oil. (Just kidding!)

Once out the gate and on McLeans Island Road, the Packard accelerated away quite quickly and smoothly and before I knew it we were at the 80kph limit. Steering was very direct for a 1930s steering box, and the suspension was also very smooth. This was probably due to it having independent front suspension, which was a rarity on many 1930s cars. As I couldn’t easily reach the handbrake for one of my now famous handbrake turns, I opted for a quick visit to Orana Park, which meant in one gate, tight right turn and out the other. This time I took off in second gear which was shudderless and surprisingly smooth. Then it was back in the Cutler Park gate and over the tree-rooted drive, to where Dave was anxiously waiting our return.

Another hour or so and I would have probably mastered the clutch thing so I can see why Shane is more interested in driving the car, especially after some seven years of hard restoration work. But I can also see why these cars appealed back in the day, as they oozed opulence, even these smaller straight-sixes, most of which had wide white walls (hint, hint).

If you don’t believe me, check out some of the advertisements on Mr Google. You cannot fail to be impressed. Cabin wise there was ample room for three across the front bench seat. His whiteknuckled gripping of the door frame while I was driving was only slightly off-putting, I’d have to say. (Just kidding again, Shane!). The interior had been nicely upholstered in period style fabric and certainly looked the part. Hiding in behind the glovebox was a modern radio/CD player, with the FM aerial cunningly hidden under the vinyl roof – which was where the original radio aerials were located.

As the photos depict, this is not the ‘two boot’ model, rather it has a rumble (dickey) seat and a boot! And just to cap things off,

Shane managed to source a Packard Flying Lady hood ornament to sit atop the radiator grille. This Flying Lady was supposed to represent a combination of perfection in motion, speed, power and grace. It was an extra-cost factory accessory popular on all series of Packards from 1924 until WWII. It certainly does all that on Shane’s car.

WHY IS THIS PARTICULAR EXAMPLE RARE?

This 1937 coupe model is known as the 115-C six. According to one set of statistics, there were 41,882 of these built out of a total of 109,518 units that year. However, the recorded production records are a bit iffy, as elsewhere production of the 115-C is given as being 65,400 out of a total of 122,593. But we can be assured that reportedly only six of these Junior coupes came to New Zealand as factory right hand drives. Two had rumble seats, and four were businessman coupes – as far as Dave and Shane have been able to ascertain. Shane and Dave are quite certain that this is the last remaining survivor of those six Junior coupes. It is unknown exactly how many Junior coupes were manufactured in right-hand drive configuration, but there cannot have been many which may be why lots of American Packard enthusiasts want to buy Shane’s one. The previous owner’s condition of sale to Shane was that he was never to on-sell it in his lifetime. While the previous owner has since moved on to that highway in the sky, Shane currently has no plans to take up any of the many offers to buy and it is not hard to comprehend why.

OTHER ODDITIES

Not being a Packard aficionado but otherwise a fan of the marque, I can still remember the handful of sightings of other 1935-1937 examples in my travels. For instance, there was an unregistered green sedan, with side-mounted spares, and rear view mirrors atop the guards, in the front yard of a house opposite a Takapuna high school in the 1980s. Also the famous Craw Packard Museum on Waitakere Drive in Titirangi had several examples. This museum is now located near Whangarei and is owned by his son, I believe.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Engine: 6-cylinder in line, L-Head, 4 main bearings Bore & Stroke: 3 7/16 inches x 4¼ inches Displacement: 237.0 cubic inches (3.88 litre) Max. bhp @ rpm: 100 @ 3600 Comp ratio: 6.3:1 Induction system: Chandler-Groves AOC-2 single bbl (1¼ inch) downdraft carburettor; AC camshaft-driven fuel pump, automatic choke. Electrical system: Delco-Remy, 6 volt (now 12 volt, with alternator) Clutch: Semi-centrifugal, single dry plate, 9 ½ inches,

Transmission: Differential: Steering:

mechanical foot pedal. Selective sliding gear, Hypoid. 4.36:1 semi-floating Worm & double tooth roller, centre point linkage Brakes: 4-wheel hydraulic Chassis & Body: Welded I-beam, X-type, composite steel & wood. Body type: 4-passenger sport coupe. Suspension: Front: independent coil springs Rear: semi-elliptical leaf springs.

Tyres:

6.50 x 16 (should be white walls, Shane!) Performance: Top speed 78-80mph Cruising speed 60-65mph Acceleration, 0-50mph 14.4 seconds Standing quarter mile: 22 seconds (not allowed to test on this occasion) Fuel consumption: 18 mpg. Overall rating: PDGR (Pretty Damn Good, Really!)

From time to time, I come across examples of father and son co-interest and ownership of vintage and classic vehicles, and Shane and Dave fall neatly into this category. I’m sure that there are a lot more out there, and there needs to be if there is to be any future for classic car ownership. Hopefully Shane’s resoluteness about no whitewalls on his car will be as forceful as his reaction should any bureaucratic noddy try to restrict or otherwise prohibit his ability to drive this classic 1930s coupe.

At the commencement of this write up, I asked the question “Why a Packard?” In this case the answer is pretty obvious, to me anyway. Hopefully you’ve reached the same conclusion.