Packard was an independent carmaker, choosing to weather the storm by introducing mid-price cars beginning in 1935. This was good because it preserved the brand for another 23 years, but bad because it cheapened the marque's luxury image. Controversy over this move continues amongst Packard fans to this day.
So far as styling is concerned, Packard began to experience strain in the late '30s due to grille design fashions changing from vertical orientation to horizontal. Packards had vertical grilles with distinctive trim and sculpting that carried over onto hoods. That was an important recognition and selling point, yet defying fashion can lead to the buying public to regard the brand as being out-of-date.
Today's post deals with the 1941 model year where Packard made serious (within a limited budget) changes to the car's front ends as well as window and trunk profiles.
Context is added by showing comparable General Motors cars. GM was the market and styling leader in those days, having a substantially larger production tooling and metal stamping budget than Packard. That was what Packard was up against and somehow had to deal with.
Unless noted, photos are of for-sale cars.
An example of 1941 Packard styling. The general impression is that it's old-fashioned. Yet Packard made a serious effort to modernize its details while at the same time readying a new body design.
Buick's passenger compartment greenhouse has a flatter roof and airy windows, a crisper appearance than Packard, whose body was more rounded, more 1936 or 1937. Note the Buick's detached headlight housings. This was old-fashioned in 1939 compared to Ford and Chrysler Corporation designs that had headlights integrated into the front fenders. (That probably helped Packard: see the '39 Packard below.) But the grille here is more horizontal than vertical, in keeping with the industry trend.
LaSalle, like Packard, had a vertical grille theme that GM elected to retain. Air intakes on with side to the vertical element provided a horizontal touch. GM cars' headlights are now mostly faired into the fenders.
Headlights are now part of an integrated fender ensemble. General Motors' 1941 stying was outstanding for its time.
Now for Packard, 1939 through 1941. Packards got new bodies for 1938. Unfortunately, the rounded greenhouse style was about to be abandoned by GM and Chrysler, giving Packard a dated feeling in 1939. Note the traditional Packard grille-hood theme. At least the headlight assemblies are similar to what was found on 1939 GM cars.
Very little change for 1940, making Packards old-fashioned compared to competing brands. Dedicated Packard buyers still liked the Packard appearance, fortunately.
For 1941, Packard created a facelift that partly modernized the design. Front fenders were restyled so as to blend into the hood. Headlights were buried in the fenders, in line with 1941 fashion.
Other changes had to do with window and trunk profiles. Compare to the car in the following image.
The front fender profile was also changed to the GM "suitcase" style. The trunk is less bulged, better integrated, but likely having less carrying capacity. Window profiles have tighter-radius curves, giving the greenhouse a crisper, more modern appearance. 1941 Hudsons looked similar.
The most important event for Packard was the mid- model year introduction of a completely new design: the classic Packard Clipper. Packards were no longer old-fashioned.
2 comments:
I was a teenager in 1958 and reading Motor Trend and Popular Mechanics magazines. I recall how they bemoaned Packard's fall from grace with the "Packardbakers". One question I have is this: The 1935(?) 120 was supposed to have ruined Packard's aura as a luxury brand. Yet, Buick came out with the Series 40, and a couple of years later, the brass at GM were forcing Buick to tone down the luxury end of the line because it was getting into Cadillac territory. These are contradictory ideas. I have to research some more how Packard, which must have made a lot of money during WWII making aircraft and marine engines, could have declined as it did. part, I know is the retention of the straight 8 engine for too long, and the 1954 sales "Blitz" by Ford and GM.
Anonymous -- Nothing is rock-solid here, but here's my two-bits for what it's worth. Buick was never a top-level luxury brand, being half a notch below that at best. So introduction of a lesser model would likely have less impact on reputation. Plus, there were 3 levels above the Special (model 40) in 1936, for example -- the 60, 80 and 90. Specials were about 73% of Buick sales that year. As for Packard in 1936, the lower-priced 120 and Six series made up 93% of Packard sales. In 1950, the line-topper Packard 400's sales share was 3.6%.
So yes, the One-Twenty and Six probably saved the company during the Depression. But the most luxurious Packards did not sell well then or later. Postwar, the main styling cues for the most expensive models were minimal, which did not help. The '49 facelifted senior Packard's grille was egg-crate, the others having horizontal bars, so there was some distinction. Otherwise there were variations in side chrome trim and an egg-crate motif at the rear. Much the same might be said for Cadillacs of that era, but by then Caddy had won the luxury mindshare sweepstakes.
Setting aside corporate capitalization and marketing costs-per-vehicle, I think Packard management's biggest mistake was not redesigning for 1949 -- its '51s came too late. And in the long run the firm would probably have failed or been merged out of existence, as was American Motors.
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