1935Packard

Can't say I have plans to put chains on my '34 convertible sedan, but then I live in California.

Best wishes for a speedy recovery, Steve!

Could be that a small number of collectors are gobbling up a lot of cars, or that cars are being inherited by family members that aren't very interested in car club membership. Both explanations are consistent with the same number of cars logging fewer miles per car; they are around, but not as often on the road. But I think it's also the reasons noted above; younger people today aren't as interested in the "club model" of paying dues and getting a newsletter.

When I was a kid, I used to laugh that my parents didn't know how to program the VCR. It was so easy, how could they not figure that out? If they wanted a show recorded, they woud ask me to do it. And now, when I want to find a channel on the TV, I usually ask my kids how to do it....

I would be a whole lotta leery at this point.

That's my personal view, too. In the case of my '35, it was originally the beige color and was repainted in the 70s with a cheap paint 70s-color job; as the cheap paint flakes off and rubs off, you can see the original beige on all of the body panels, the wheels, etc. The way I see it, there's a beige car underneath trying to come out! Add to that the 1970s vinyl upholstery, which is begging to be replaced with the original dark brown leather per early photos. I would have done it ages ago if it weren't so damn expensive. But, well, it's all so damn expensive. Also agree as to data plates.

Thanks, Walt, and Ed. The NY Times had a very interesting article about the PMMCO and its building back in 2006, in response to a request from Jim Pearsall, titled "When Packards and Other Dinosaurs Roamed Broadway" https://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/01/realestate/01scap.html

Looking for my own, I found the curiosity below -- me before I had created the "1935Packard" name. And I can across a few others from "1935Packard" from later the same year, 2007, which was the year I came into possession of my '35. I remember getting the car back from the shop that got it running again around October, so that was around the ame time I created the Packard account. Exciting period. Tempus fugit.

Fender skirts look fantastic on cars that are part of the 1940s-to-1960s aerodynamic movement, when they were trying to make cars look (to varying degrees) like teardrops or other aerodynamic shapes. The fender skirt ensures the consistency of the teardrop look. For example, I think an XK120 coupe looks much better with than without:

Cool! Great to hear about the discounted memberships; I'm a longtime AACA life member, so I haven't followed that. The geography problem around here is an understandably big challenge; it takes a lot of perseverance to bring a pre-war car to an event that is 50 miles away and requires driving on a freeway most of the way. I know I tend to stick with events that are closer by. But then there are a lot of old cars around here. so hopefully something will work out.

Two thoughts: 1) I joined the Horseless Carriage Club last year because they offered 1/2 price membership to new members. I don't have a brass era car, but I figured it would be an inexpensive way to see a different part of the hobby. So I joined, went to some local club chapter events, and really enjoyed it and the people. I decided to renew this year at the full price, and have become a semi-regular attendee at the local chapter monthly meetings. So that 1/2 price membership trick worked, at least on me! 2) Here in northern california, the AACA seems pretty quiet. I wonder if there's a way to get it active. Lots of antique cars around here, but not a lot of local club activity.

AJ, I told Jeff how impressed you were, and he was very flattered. He's a great guy, I'll be sure to introduce you to him. That color tan/beige Jeff used for his '37 was the original color on my '35 1207. Some day I'll get it back to that color, with the same dark brown leather as it originally had. I think it was bedford tan/bronson beige (I bought a paint chip sheet and matched the color to my door jambs where you can see the original paint).

Quite a read.

I hope he enjoys it in good health.

Most definitely blackwalls. And I agree with others above that painting other parts of the car a dark color would look right.

Current: AACA, life member Packard Club -- plus PAC region (officer) CCCA -- plus local CCCA region Cadillac & LaSalle Club Horseless Carriage Club -- plus local region (suckered in by 1/2 price 1st year, liked the group, then renewed at full price) Porsche Club of America Past: Packards International (I liked it, but they're not active where I now live); Pierce Arrow Society (was interested in buying one, but bought another Packard instead), Studebaker Club (was interested in buying a 1950-51, never did), Volvo Owners of America (wanted to buy a p1800 way back when they were cheap as dirt, but never found one I liked), the Kaiser Frasier Club (was interested in buying a Kaiser-Darrin, never did), probably some others I have forgotten. I will probably drop the Porsche Club for next year (I have a daily driver, but I don't do club stuff), and might drop the CLC, too (as most CLC stuff these days is 1960s and later, and I like the pre-1950 era that is more or less covered by the CCCA already).

A "slow but steady decline" in membership is certainly common to a lot of car clubs. All the more for clubs focused on antique cars, and especially hard for those clubs (not the CLC, as the "L" part is small) for orphan cars that haven't been produced in a long time. On the other hand, electronic member directories are a lot more useful than paper ones, so that doesn't seem a big loss. It's easier to run text searches for places and years and models than to leaf through the paper version. And getting annual books when the changes are modest year-to-year seems a bit extravagant even in the best of times.

Geez, Ed, if a car can drive both in forward and in reverse, why can't the battery go in either way, too? Seriously, though, that's amazing.

I've had Hagerty for 20 years, with an excellent experience when I had a claim 15 years ago, but I do worry about how things may be changing with that company having merged and then gone public. I have heard at least one story of the company not being what it once was, but I don't know if that is representative. We will see.

From 2012, back when I lived where there was fall foliage.

Good video of a very nice Delahaye, although I'm not sure I like the rear-mounted spare.

JamesR, great minds think alike! We posted the same thought at the same time....

The topic of daily driving an antique car comes up from time to time at the forum. Seems to me that, if you really want those things, buy a 10 year old Toyota sedan. It will likely last forever and need almost no maintenance. Anyway, some of the old threads:

I have a mint condition 3rd edition (2011) of the Cadillac LaSalle Club's authenticity manual for 1930-33 Cadillac V12 and V16 cars. I bought it around 2016, when I was interested to buy a 1931 V12 car, but I ended up getting a Packard instead so I never used it. The CLC website looks to be only have the 2nd edition from 2005 for sale; this is the updated 3rd edition from 2011. Asking $90 plus actual shipping. DM me for more info.