Boyd Coddington

[Guest]

Last night on tv I watch a car show featuring a 56 Chevy street rod being built by the Coddington crew. The car they are building is called the Junk Yard Dog. Seeing the work Coddington's crew perform is realy something they are real artists. During the scenes shot in the shop of other hotrods being built one realy caught my attention. There sat a 48 to 50 Packard bathtub convertible under primer being converted into a street rod. I would certainly like to see pictures of that car when completed.

I know this might upset some of the purists in the crowd, but Coddington doesn't do butcher work and I would think it should be a fine machine when done. I bet it cost the owner of that Packard more to get it turned into a streetrod than to restore it.

[WCraigH]

Agree that Boyd Coddington is a real master. I saw only part of the same show but when I saw it was a 56 Chebbie they were working on, I lost interest. How many zillions of those have been "done"? I am sorry I missed the Packard in the background, though.

[Guest Randy Berger]

I agree with Craig. If you want a 56 Chevy, just go buy one and join the "me too" crowd. Don't get me wrong - Chevy built good dependable cheap transportation. They also sell more hamburger than New York strip at the butcher shop.

YFAM, Randy Berger

[RO]

I saw that Packard in the background three or four times during the show; would be nice for them to feature that on a subsequent show.

[John N. Packard]

More's the pity that another original Packard is lost to the street rod crowd.

jnp

[Guest]

I couldn't agree with you more, John. There are plenty of Chevies and Fords out there, why pick on a very limited supply of orphan cars. And you know something, I'm tired of the agument that it's their car and their money and they can do pretty much whatever they want with it. Anyone ever heard of being a responsible steward and passing the car, unadulterated, on to the next generation? Here in America it seems that money is always the "bottom line". I refer to the comment that it will probably cost the owner more to bastardize that packard than to restore it. And THAT makes it okay? I don't think so. All that demonstrates is that some people have more money than brains. Okay, I'm climbing down off of that soap box now.

[Guest]

TFred: While I like to see all Packards preserved in thier stock form that came from the factory, sometimes people choose otherwise.What we don't know about the Packard in question is what kind of shape it was in when it came to Coddington. There are two fates that could have happened to the car that could have been worse. The car could have sit and rusted it self to pieces or could have ended up in shedder never to exist again. These people are being good stewards they are passing along a car to the next generation. They have taken the time and money to fix up the car to thier own tastes, the same as you have choosen to do with your Packard which is in stock form.

I think it's time for the purists like yourself to broaden thier outlook and knowlege about the hobby and get down of thier high horses.

[Guest]

I find your comments insulting. I'm certainly not on a "high horse". And trust me turning a Packard convertible into a hot rod is not acting as a responsible steward of the marque. It is a selfish, ego driven exercise in excess.

[Pontiac59]

Hmm. I know where a '33 or so Packard coupe shell sits, and I can sure picture it rebuilt as a highboy style hot rod, with a Packard V8 stuffed into the front. I can round up a whole, rusty '55-'56 parts car for the motor cheap enough if I dig a little, and sell what I don't need to a Packard guy who has like a dozen or more V8 cars already. He can take the suspension, too, or someone else who needs the parts. We'll put late stuff on, using a kit - no frame hack jobs - and be ready to roll. Run either a manual trans or adapt a Chev 700R4 to the Packard motor...

The only thing that slows me down is finding a grille shell for it... since it has nothing right now.

But that has to be better than letting it rot to oblivion where it sits now, doesn't it? And it exposes the Packard car and style to a whole new crowd of people who might see an old restored car and think 'thats neat' and not pay much attention or think of it twice.

[Guest JT]

While I agree that building a rod out of a car that needs a lot of work or saving it from the crusher, rust, etc. is a better alternative than losing it, I do not agree with destroying a good original car. The worst case, which still happens and is a crime, is taking a well maintained and complete original 50 + year old car and rodding it. Wish I knew the solution to that one, maybe a brain transplant rather than the small block chevy. <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

[John N. Packard]

The point being missed here is that Packard never was a performance car in the "hot rod" sense. The long stroke, in-line eight engine produced plenty of torque; but for smooth acceleration and high speed. The Packard cars are big, heavy and not conducive to 'jack rabbit' starts. They were designed for elegant and comfortable motoring by well-to-do owners. In the 30s and 40s it was the V-8 Fords that appealed to those who wanted fast starts and rapid manueverability. In the early 50s Hudson joined that class along with the Oldsmobile Rocket 88s. The cast iron six that propelled Chevrolet from the thirties into the fifties was no match for the Ford V-8s. It wasn't until the mid-fifties when Chevy got their own V-8 that they joined the fray. No self respecting hot rodder would want a Packard, for heavens sake!

In 1954 I drove my father's brand new Packard Super Clipper to Florida for a fraternity convention. The event closed with a dinner-dance and I got a date from one of the girl's schools in the local Miami area. She was driving a brand new '54 Ford with the Y-block V-8. That car ran circles around my father's Packard. So being historically minded, when someone today takes an old Packard and makes a custom rod out of it; to me it just doesn't make sense!

Now maybe the V-8 Packards of '55 and '56 can compete in that market. I have never owned one. I do remember seeing a brand new Golden Hawk with the Packard V-8 totalled in a dealer's yard after a serious accident. It had the power; but it didn't have the manueverability or stability. I'm sorry, but to me a street rodded Packard is no longer a Packard. It's a disgrace to the memory of a fine luxury automobile.

jnp

[Mr.Pushbutton]

I am an original-as-built guy, but I think that our Packard orthodoxy will be in for quite a shock in the next decade. The street rod boys are looking for new mountains to climb. They have done about anything and everything that can be done with a 30's Ford body and are constantly looking for new summits to ascend. A factor that will push this along is the inevitable supply/demand point that is reached when the men who collect Packards (especially 30's models--who are mostly retirement aged) begin to pass away, and there is no new blood (or interested heirs) to take their place. In the local CCCA chapter there are two famlies where the sons have the same interests that the father has, and will continue on. The rest (it's a big group) have grown children who don't like the cars, and will liquidate them post haste, post mortem.

I once stood in a chow line at one of their events and remarked to my co-worker that we would live to see some of the classics street rodded (starting with the 8 cyl factory bodied cars) and got evil looks, and a statement of denial from a blue haired lady that "that's impossible, the classics are the most VALUABLE cars". I responded that while that is true now, there is no large group of younger people who will desire, and maintain the stronger demand than supply status. I was 43 and the "kid" in that line. Lots of seniors, a few middle aged.

The street rod boys do some great work, even if you don't agree with it. Most all antique car owners could learn much about body work and paint from them. Only the huge money classics get anywhere near that quality of work.

I'm 45, love original Packards and would love to own a 32-33-34 car, even a super 8 closed car. I will do my best to restore my '56 to original condition, but I think change is coming. John

[Guest AlK]

anybody who does not know me can view my opinions on this subject in the thread "51 horror story". those that know me know where i stand 99% of the time. I have a different sort of comment. I to saw the mentioned show. In fact I watched several different segments that featured other cars besides the 56 chebbie. If the filming was all put on, staged, and scripted then they did a good job of acting. But if what I saw was for real then i'm afraid I would have to seriously damage Coddington and some of his crew if I worked for them. They may be good at their craft but as decent human beings they suck and IMHO are no credit to the hobby.

[Guest Albert]

alk yor right, some of the welding and other things leave a little to be desired. I have also notice the gray 49-50 packard convertable in the backround, sorta wonder whats in store for it??