The Packard Caribbean was the car Packard used to shake off its old-fashioned image. Launched for 1953 as a convertible based on the Cavalier, it was hand-finished, expensive and built in tiny numbers, and it competed directly with the Cadillac Eldorado and the Chrysler Imperial.
Packard Caribbean at a glance
| Maker | Packard Motor Car Company, Detroit |
|---|---|
| Production | model years 1953–1956 |
| Bodies | convertible 1953–1955, hardtop added 1956 |
| Shown first as | Packard Pan-American show car, 1952 |
| Bodies by | Mitchell-Bentley, Ionia, Michigan (1953) |
| Engine 1953–1954 | 359 cu in (5,880 cc) senior straight-eight (1954) |
| Engine 1955 | new Packard overhead-valve V8 |
| Engine 1956 | 374 cu in (6.1 L) V8, 310 hp, 405 lb·ft |
| Price 1953 | US$5,210 |
| Built 1953 | 750 |
| Built 1954 | 400 |
| Built 1956 | 263 hardtops and 276 convertibles |
Based on one source, the English Wikipedia article on the Packard Caribbean.
History of the Packard Caribbean
Why the Caribbean existed
In the early 1950s Packard’s image was, in the words of the period, “stodgy and old-fashioned”, and the company needed a halo car to cast a modern glow on the marque. The answer was the Packard Pan-American show car, well received at the 1952 motor shows, and the production Caribbean that followed for 1953: Packard’s sportiest car, based on the standard Cavalier convertible with custom touches.
1953
The first Caribbean was easy to recognise: a full cut-out over the rear wheel housings, a single chrome band running the length of the car along its bottom edge, concealed door handles set into the beltline and a steel continental spare wheel as standard. A broad, low hood scoop was leaded into the bonnet, and the bodies were modified by Mitchell-Bentley of Ionia, Michigan instead of Briggs, Packard’s usual supplier since 1941. Colours were limited to Polaris Blue, Gulf Green Metallic, Maroon Metallic and Sahara Sand, with a handful of special orders in Ivory or Black. The interior was leather, and almost everything was standard, including heater and defroster, power windows, a power-adjustable front seat, power steering and Easamatic power drum brakes; only the Ultramatic automatic, at US$199, the signal-seeking radio and Solex tinted glass cost extra. At US$5,210 the car undercut nothing: it was priced against the Cadillac Eldorado and the Chrysler Imperial, and just 750 were built.
1954 and 1955
For 1954 the Caribbean moved into the senior Packard range, related to the Pacific hardtop. The cut-out rear wheel housings went, chrome trim became more generous and two-tone paint was offered, along with a four-way power seat and the finned headlight housings that marked out senior Packards. Power came from the 359 cu in senior straight-eight, the last version of an engine introduced in the Packard Eight of 1924. Only 400 were built, at US$6,100, making 1954 the rarest year. In 1955 the car received Packard’s new overhead-valve V8, the senior styling in full, two- and three-tone paint, a hood scoop split into two units and Packard’s Torsion-Level torsion bar suspension at all four wheels, restyled by Dick Teague. Production rose to 500 at US$5,932.
1956
For its last year the Caribbean became a separate luxury series and gained a hardtop alongside the convertible. Trim changes were small — new tri-tone colour combinations, the Patrician grille texture, the cathedral-style tail lights and slightly heavier brows over the headlights — but the interior was new, with reversible cushions cloth on one side and leather on the other, foam rubber thick enough to do without coil springs and covers that could be removed for cleaning. The 374 cu in V8 had dual four-barrel carburettors and a 10:1 compression ratio for 310 hp and 405 lb·ft, the highest rating of any American car that year. A 12-volt electrical system, electrically operated door locks and a limited-slip differential were new across the range. Packard built 263 hardtops and 276 convertibles, the convertible listing at US$5,995 as the most expensive Packard.
Design and features
- Halo car: created to modernise Packard’s image, descended from the Pan-American show car.
- Hand-finished bodies: modified by Mitchell-Bentley in the first year.
- Leather and power everything: windows, seat, steering and brakes were standard from 1953.
- 310 hp in 1956: dual four-barrels gave the most powerful engine in America that year.
Packard Caribbean versions
- 1953 convertible: cut-out rear wheel housings, four colours, 750 built.
- 1954 convertible: senior trim, 359 straight-eight, 400 built.
- 1955 convertible: overhead-valve V8, Torsion-Level suspension, 500 built.
- 1956 convertible and hardtop: separate series, 310 hp, 539 cars in all.
The Caribbean was the most expensive member of the 1953 Cavalier sub-series, which also included the Mayfair, and it stood above the 300 in the range. More Packards are in the Packard collection.
Sources
- Packard Caribbean, English Wikipedia: development, year-by-year specification, prices, production
