Did Touring's 1939 Alfa 6C SS Influence 1941 Packard Clipper Styling?

The short answer to the question posed in this post's title is: Probably not, but the similarity is there.

That could be said regarding quite a few paired designs that had no direct influence on one another because some styling themes are "in the air" to be grabbed by more than one stylist at about the same time.  This was probably the case with the Alfa Romeo and Packard.

Background on the Alfa 6C 2500 series is here (scroll down), and the Packard Clipper here.

The Alfa Romero 6C 2500 SS Coupé design in question was by Carrozzeria Touring, first appearing in 1939 and continuing with post-war detail changes until 1951.

Design work on the Packard Clipper started in 1938, and was probably finalized in 1939 or early 1940.  It was announced in April 1941, well into the 1941 model year.  For that reason, some sources call it a 1942 model.  Packard model policies in those days complicated matters because its cars were not given model year designations, being referred to as Series XX or Series XX+1 (insert sequence numbers for the X's) and model type numbers (the first Clippers were model number 1951, not to be confused with the year 1951).

Design of the Clipper was, as usual, a committee effort complicated by the fact that outside consultants offered ideas as well as members of Packard's small styling staff.  A detailed account can be found in the classic book A Century of Automotive Style: 100 Years of American Car Design by Michal Lamm and David Holls.

Some of the stylists involved with the Clipper design must have kept current with both production and custom European designs, and therefore could have been aware of Touring's new Alfa styling.  On the other hand, the Alfa probably appeared around the time most Clipper features had been settled.  This is why, until more information appears, I think the similarities were a case of being "in the 1938-1939 air."

Here are images of both cars.

Gallery

Photo of perhaps the original Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS Coupé by Touring.  Not very good image quality, as I scanned it from this book, page 209.  Items to note are the grille / front bumper theme, the fadeaway front fender and the separate rear fender.  This is the earliest example of front fenders fading away on doors that I am aware of.  If any reader knows of earlier cases, please let us know in a comment.

A 1941 publicity photo of the Clipper.  Compare its grille / front bumper theme, fadeaway front fender and separate rear fender to the Alfa in the previous photo.  Nothing is identical, but the differences are not large.

A 1948 Touring 6C 2500 SS offered for sale.  The grille, headlight positioning and front fender side sculpting are different from the 1939 version, but not greatly.  I'm including this and another photo of the car because they are better quality than the image at the top.

A 1941 Packard Clipper for sale.  This offers a better view of the frontal design.

Rear three-quarter view of the Alfa.

Rear three-quarter view of a for-sale 1942 Packard Clipper.