Packard Highlights and New Year's Resolutions

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Is anyone making a new year’s resolution to do anything major you care to post on? How’s about highlights from 2009?

We enjoyed a good season with our car despite losing a few weeks due to a failed head gasket and then some minor fuel delivery issues. The head gasket failure was not a highlight but dealing with the AAA staff to get the flatbed out was funny. “Who makes Packard?”… Then there was the hubcap that came off and rolled into the middle of the town green in Litchfield... Attending some shows a bit further away than we used to in the old Model A was a highlight and later in the season we actually won a couple of trophies with the car, unexpected and fun. A final highlight was finding a mint accessory catalog for 1939 from a literature dealer at Hershey, expensive, but kind of rare. Met a lot of nice Packard people this year, also.

Now it is time to get some more sorting done. Shackle and shock bushings and new tires top the list – have the stuff, need to do it. I probably need to replace the intake/exhaust gaskets as exhaust is a little leaky where the manifold is in two parts, and it really will need to come off in order to replace that gasket. Also, I rebuilt the fuel pump and carburetor but I am still planning to install an auxiliary fuel pump, which is sitting on the shelf now. Otherwise it is minor spring get-ready - lube & oil and cleaning, etc. Anyone doing anything more exciting?

Edited December 31, 2009 by Steve_Mack_CT (see edit history)

[tbirdman]

Well my 32 limped through the summer as I refused to give up the limited driving season we have here in Oregon. I'm rebuilding the engine and the transmission. Looking forward to a Packard engine and transmission that should run like new. I'm am surprised how well it ran before since the final verdict is that the engine was crap.

[Rusty_OToole]

Those old flatheads are foolers. They will continue to run without protest in an advanced state of decay and wear. They just lose power, burn oil, and finally won't start at all.

In the case of a Packard the engine is big enough you have to lose a large percentage of power before it becomes obvious.

A lot of people have been surprised, after a rebuild, how powerful the engine is. They thought it was running pretty good before but in fact it was way down on power.

[1935Packard]

The only thing I have in mind is a new paint job for my '41. But I'm not totally committed to it; the old paint is fine at 20 feet, and there's something to be said for not worrying about dings and scratches. Other than that, I'm hoping for just a lot of driving...