The Packard Executive was introduced on 5 March 1956 to fill the gap between the Clipper, which had just become a separate marque, and the expensive Patrician. It combined a Clipper body with senior Packard front sheet metal and a 352 cu in V8, sold well while it was on offer, and lasted only until the Detroit factory closed in June 1956.
Packard Executive at a glance
| Maker | Packard-Clipper Division, Studebaker-Packard Corporation |
|---|---|
| Introduced | 5 March 1956 |
| Production ended | 25 June 1956, with the Conner Avenue plant |
| Bodies | two-door hardtop (model 5677) and four-door Touring Sedan (model 5672) |
| Series | 5670 |
| Body source | Clipper Custom, with senior Packard front wings, bonnet and grille |
| Wheelbase | 122 in (3,100 mm) |
| Engine | 352 cu in (5.8 L) overhead-valve V8, 275 hp |
| Price sedan | US$3,465 |
| Price coupé | US$3,560 |
| Built | 2,779 (1,031 hardtops, 1,748 sedans) |
Based on one source, the English Wikipedia article on the Packard Executive.
History of the Packard Executive
Why the Executive existed
For 1956 the Clipper became a separate marque, and Packard suddenly had a hole in its range. The dearest Clipper, the Clipper Custom four-door sedan, listed at US$3,065, while the top Packard Patrician sedan cost US$4,160. The Executive was created to sit between them: the sedan retailed at US$3,465 and the two-door coupé at US$3,560. Packard advertised it with the invitation to “enter the luxury car class now — at a modest investment”, aimed at “the young man on the way up”.
How it was built
The Executive combined the Clipper Custom body, complete with its distinctive tail light design, with the front wings, bonnet and radiator grille of the senior Packards. It used the Clipper Custom’s 122 in (3,100 mm) wheelbase and its 352 cu in (5.8 L) 275 hp overhead-valve V8, the new Packard-designed engine, rather than the 374 cu in (6.1 L) unit of the 1956 Patrician, which made 295 hp and 310 hp in the Caribbean. Beyond the senior grille and front sheet metal, Executives were set apart from the Clipper by a unique side trim design that echoed the senior Packards and allowed two-tone paint; inside, however, the appointments and instruments were pure Clipper.
Four months of production
The Executive sold as fast as it was built, but that was not enough to change the division’s finances. Even as the car was being announced, the press was reporting the troubles of the Studebaker-Packard Corporation and speculating that the Packard marque might be dropped, and buyers were reluctant to take on an orphan whose parts and resale value were in doubt. In the shortened model year from March to June 1956 Packard built 2,779 Executives: 1,031 two-door hardtops and 1,748 four-door sedans. All Detroit production of Packard and Clipper cars stopped on 25 June 1956 when the Conner Avenue assembly plant closed, and the Packard name continued for 1957 and 1958 on Studebaker-based cars built in South Bend, Indiana. Prototypes for the planned all-new 1957 Packard and Clipper lines showed an Executive that would have become the baseline Packard.
Design and features
- Mixed parentage: Clipper body and interior with senior Packard front end.
- 352 cu in V8: 275 hp, the smaller of the two 1956 Packard engines.
- Two bodies: two-door hardtop and four-door Touring Sedan.
- Short life: on sale from March to June 1956 only.
Packard Executive versions
- Executive hardtop (5677): the two-door, US$3,560.
- Executive Touring Sedan (5672): the four-door, US$3,465.
- Clipper Custom: the cheaper car whose body and chassis the Executive used.
- Patrician: the senior Packard that sat above it.
The Executive sat between the Clipper and the Patrician, and shared its market with the Four Hundred. More Packards are in the Packard collection.
Sources
- Packard Executive, English Wikipedia: launch, specification, prices, production, plant closure
