DLynskey Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Here's a photo I took at an AACA meet in Tennessee in 1962. What body is this? Is it still with us?Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Here's a photo I took at an AACA meet in Tennessee in 1962. What body is this? Is it still with us?DonVery cool - I hope it's still around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 21, 2011 Author Share Posted March 21, 2011 Here's a photo I took at an AACA meet in Tennessee in 1962. What body is this? Is it still with us?DonThat is an interesting car and undoubtedly very expensive when new and certainly custom. The landaulet town car was usually the most expensive body you could get, and was reserved for the very rich. I have only seen a few Packards with this body. One was either an 840 or 845 in Huntsville, AL in a big collection and needed a total restoration. I hope someone is doing that car. There are a handful of the 38/39 12 Brunns with this basic style body too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 21, 2011 Author Share Posted March 21, 2011 Derham roadster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Packardbarry Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 (edited) Great looking Derham Edited March 21, 2011 by Packardbarry (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 There are a handful of the 38/39 12 Brunns with this basic style body too.Johnny Pasccuci has this one for sale. He says Brunn made 12 in 1938. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K8096 Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 I believe Brunn built 25 of those bodies for the 1938/39 Packards. 12 one year & 13 the other. This body was also placed on Lincoln K chassis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 21, 2011 Author Share Posted March 21, 2011 There was also an open front version of this, and I don't know if those are included in that count. There were fewer done than the ones with just the open back. I don't know what his price is, but it is an interesting car that I would love to have. The problem is that no matter what his price is, the fact that two have sold for $240K proves that you will be upsidedown in this car in no time. On a side note - did someone let their teenage daughter pick a color? Wow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 There was also an open front version of this, and I don't know if those are included in that count. There were fewer done than the ones with just the open back. I don't know what his price is, but it is an interesting car that I would love to have. The problem is that no matter what his price is, the fact that two have sold for $240K proves that you will be upsidedown in this car in no time. On a side note - did someone let their teenage daughter pick a color? Wow.I agree - very cool car but expensive restoration.If you follow the link he has a bunch more pictures. If I recall correctly this car was a barn find that RM auctioned off a few years ago. Believe it or not I think John has cleaned it up quite a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K8096 Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 I know of one of these where the car is completely closed - not a towncar & not a laundelette. It has an all cloth interior. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twin6 Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 Here's a photo I took at an AACA meet in Tennessee in 1962. What body is this? Is it still with us? DonBrunn body, on a 3-43 chassis. Rare car, rare photo - thanks for sharing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 I know of one of these where the car is completely closed - not a towncar & not a laundelette. It has an all cloth interior.I didn't realize they built a fully closed car - does it have a division window? I would guess not if it has an all cloth interior. Super 8 or 12? What shape is it in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 I agree - very cool car but expensive restoration.If you follow the link he has a bunch more pictures. If I recall correctly this car was a barn find that RM auctioned off a few years ago. Believe it or not I think John has cleaned it up quite a bit.It looked familiar, I didn't know if John had purchased it then or if it didn't sell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sport Model Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 Here's a photo I took at an AACA meet in Tennessee in 1962. What body is this? Is it still with us?DonThis is a Brunn body on a Third Series Packard Eight 3-43 chassis. The story of the car and its restoration was written up in the "Antique Automobile" some years ago. The owner is a long-time member of AACA in Tennessee. At the present time, so far as anyone knows, this is the sole remaining example of a Brunn body on a Third Series Eight Packard chassis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 It looked familiar, I didn't know if John had purchased it then or if it didn't sell.He bought it at the auction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K8096 Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 (edited) I didn't realize they built a fully closed car - does it have a division window? I would guess not if it has an all cloth interior. Super 8 or 12? What shape is it in?I don't remember if it had a division or not. I think they're all Twelves. No such thing as a Super Eight Brunn Touring Cabriolet. It's in average original condition, similar shape to the green one posted above. It's been in the same family over 50 years and won't be for sale anytime soon. Edited March 22, 2011 by K8096 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 They are very nice looking cars. I think Kruse sold one at Hershey during their last auction a couple of years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twin6 Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Anyone want to take a stab at whose creations these were? Each appears to be a first series twin. The front fender on the car at right has that Fleetwood look, but I am not convinced the body is Fleetwood. The whole treatment of bonnet, cowl and windshield on each car makes me think these are of European origin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 28, 2011 Author Share Posted March 28, 2011 Brunn cabriolets Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 30, 2011 Author Share Posted March 30, 2011 38 Derham phaeton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 30, 2011 Author Share Posted March 30, 2011 41 Bohman & Schwartz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 30, 2011 Author Share Posted March 30, 2011 Sorry I haven't been posting as much on here, but my father had a stroke and I have been spending more time with him. This has been a fun and interesting thread and I am glad so many of you have posted both photos and comments. Please keep them coming! Thanks, Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 Dave, I'm so sorry to hear about your dad. I hope he fully recovers. The car forums are a nice diversion but life gets in the way sometimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
West Peterson Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 I also pray for a full recovery, Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 30, 2011 Author Share Posted March 30, 2011 Thanks AJ and West, I appreciate your thoughts and will pass them on to dad. He does a little better every day and has speech and physical therapy 3 days a week and I try to help him get his skills back. It is really scary to know how quickly you can lose abilities that you have had most of your life, but the doctors tell us that he should almost everything back. He is working hard and it sounds like he will continue to improve for a year. Hopefully he will be able to come to Hershey with me again this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earl B. Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 Dave, I'm sorry to hear about your father. I hope all goes well, and he makes a good recovery. My regards to him, Earl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edinmass Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Dave, All my best to you and your father. Ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 31, 2011 Author Share Posted March 31, 2011 Thanks Gentleman. I appreciate your kind words and I will pass them on to my father. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 31, 2011 Author Share Posted March 31, 2011 Sorry to hear about your dad, Dave. The B-S you posted looks like it has an earlier body on it. Thoughts?No, it was all built in 1941, and is the last complete body built by B & S. This car was mine for 20 years and I restored it in my shop, and I was lucky to uncover the whole history. It was built for a very, very wealthy woman in Pasadena who had owned big Packards and Rolls Royces from the turn of the century on. She founded the Hollywood bowl and funded Claremont colleges etc. She wanted a limo that was totally comfortable and you could see well out of (perhaps also be seen in) that had a great ride. The back seat sits about 8 inches higher than the front seat so you can see over the drivers head and pretty much feel like you are in charge of the whole world when you ride in the back. I miss the car - it was a dream to drive and fun to show. I cut no corners when we did it and did the whole chassis and driveline with NOS parts. We won a lot of awards with it including our class at Pebble Beach and BOS at the PAC nationals and in 10 years of showing it never failed to get a perfect score.I met Chris Bohman who worked on the car at his dad's shop and he told me great stories about cars and the famous people that they built them for, which was something totally amazing and fed my enthusiasm for coachbuilt cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
West Peterson Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Looks aside, I'll have to concur with all the judges who scored that car. I have known 1941-42 Packards all my life (brought home in one after I was born, in fact). Dave's car is the finest restored example I have ever seen. It set the bar, and in my opinion, has not been topped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted April 1, 2011 Author Share Posted April 1, 2011 Thanks West, I appreciate your comments, especially given your knowledge of Packards. One thing I like about custom cars is that some were built to a purpose, or for an owner's particular tastes, which may or may not be deemed attractive today, but back then, if someone had the money, they could build anything they wanted. The auto companies could only build something that would be (hopefully at least) popular with the buying public, even in small series, but an individual could build regardless of current style. Some cars like the Phantom Corsair were so wild and modern that only one would be built, others so expensive that only one would be built, or so particular to a certain person's taste or desire to be different, that no one else would copy it. Some cars were built only for beauty - to win at a European concours for instance, and they are so uncomfortable that you wouldn't really want to drive it very far. There isn't really any "new" car equivilent of that sort of one of a kind car today.I feel like the Bohman limo is in that special group - an exotic one off, built not for looks, but for function and the luxury of the occupants, and maybe a little bit for its striking presence. Even in 1941, you would have noticed it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted April 7, 2011 Author Share Posted April 7, 2011 I think there was a Pierce 66 with a toilet also, but I have never seen a Packard with one.The Bohman limo had a lot of walnut and burl walnut, plush wool carpet with an even more plush sheepskin overlay, concealed silk shades, a cover that hid the large jumpseats, and lots of high quality bedford cord wool. I also liked the leather trunk with fitted leather cases. It was just nicer than what you got in a standard Packard limo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted April 7, 2011 Author Share Posted April 7, 2011 Twin Six with body by Hofslageri of Stockholm. I have written before about Jan Stroman's book "Swedish Caochbuilders" which shows a good number of American cars, including Packards with Swedish bodies. Here are some photos also to be found in that book, along with the stories of the cars and coachbuilders. Note the modifications done by a later owner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen_Dyneto Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Yes, Stroman's book is a worthwhile purchase if coachbuilding is your interest. But it's copyrighted so I don't know about the wisdom of putting photos from it on here without permission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted April 7, 2011 Author Share Posted April 7, 2011 Yes, Stroman's book is a worthwhile purchase if coachbuilding is your interest. But it's copyrighted so I don't know about the wisdom of putting photos from it on here without permission.You make an assumption here.I have been good friends with Jan for about 20 years and the idea is to show people a couple of the photos that they probably haven't seen of some unusual cars so that they might buy the book. Granted it isn't another coffee table book of big photos of overrestored phaetons and roadsters (often full of errors in the captions) - but I think it documents an area of automotive history that hadn't been dealt with comprehensively anywhere. The Swedish coachbuilders did some really high quality bodies and not much is known about them in the US. American cars have always been popular in Sweden, and a lot of the custom bodies were built on American chassis. I think it is great when someone undertakes the task of doing the research on a topic of automotive history like this and then goes through the process of actually publishing it, given the limited market and knowing it won't be a commercial success. We need more serious scholars to take on these topics lest the history is all lost to time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K8096 Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 I 2nd everything Dave just said. Isn't this supposed to be a fun hobby? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_Mack_CT Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 My guess is Owen was just looking out for Dave. BTW - hope all is well Dave, I believe I met your dad at Hershey last year stopping by to meet you and was told you were off as usual - socializing and parts chasing. Where I grew up Swedes were famous for their fine homebuilding, certain homes are advertised as "built by so and so" to this day. This continues to be a great thread to follow - wondered if slowdown was also due in part to getting out in the garage after a long winter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen_Dyneto Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Dave, of course I agree with everything you say about the book, the effort to do it, and the Swedish coachbuilders. But when you posted the pictures I didn't see a "used with permission" or similar statement and hence my assumption. Really, we are all pretty lax when it comes to copyright issues. Though the chances of enforcement are probably slim, we really should pay proper attention to the rights of authors and publishers. Same goes for crediting the source of photographs which I try to do but can't always remember. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted April 8, 2011 Author Share Posted April 8, 2011 Sorry, that came out stiffer than I meant it. The trials of the last few weeks have me a bit on edge.Jan has been good enough to share his incredible photo collection with me over the years and give me a lot of copies. He has done impressive research, finding photos and info where others gave up. This book gives them a wider audience and that is what I was trying to convey. I have a few other photos that are also in the book that I think others will find interesting, such as the sister car to my cabriolet, built on a Super 8 chassis.What do you think of the Twin Six? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted April 8, 2011 Author Share Posted April 8, 2011 My guess is Owen was just looking out for Dave. BTW - hope all is well Dave, I believe I met your dad at Hershey last year stopping by to meet you and was told you were off as usual - socializing and parts chasing. Where I grew up Swedes were famous for their fine homebuilding, certain homes are advertised as "built by so and so" to this day. This continues to be a great thread to follow - wondered if slowdown was also due in part to getting out in the garage after a long winter. Dad was able to go to Hershey last year again after missing a year due to his hip replacement, and had a great time. I just hope that he can go again, we have a lot of fun together and he has gotten to know a lot of my Packard friends. He has a lot of great stories - my favorites are about flying the P 47 Thunderbolt - and as he is slowly making progress with his speech therapy, I hope he will be telling them again soon.What you say about the quality of Swedish work is true - the same around here. I would definitely say it extends to the body building too. Of the coachbuilt cars that I have worked on, the Norrmalm is the best and most detailed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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