Packard 200
The Packard 200 (pronounced Two-Hundred ) was a passenger car manufactured by the Packard Motor Car Company in Detroit in the 1951 and 1952 model years. The 200 models were the cheapest from Packard with the shortest wheelbase and the weakest engine, an in-line eight-cylinder with 4719 cm³ displacement.
At the same time, the company also manufactured the Packard 250 (read: Two-Fifty ), which had the same wheelbase and body as the 200, but was equipped with the larger engine with a displacement of 5358 cm³.
1951 and 1952
The 1951 models of the Packard 200 and 250 were presented as the cheapest Packard model series on August 24, 1950 and replaced the standard models that were phased out in 1950. The 200 was the first of the new model series designed by John Reinhart . They replaced the pompous Packards of the 22nd and 23rd series, which were produced from 1948 to 1950. Reinhart's "high pocket" design was more formal than that of its predecessors and was followed by Packard until late 1956 when actual Packard production ceased.
Both models, the 200 and the 250, were considered "junior" models and differed from the larger Packard 300 and Packard Patrician 400 by their shorter wheelbase (3099 mm compared to 3226 mm) and fewer features. The Packard 200 Standard was available as a 4-door sedan, 2-door coupé and three-seater business coupé (without a rear seat). The "junior" models looked similar to the larger Packard models, but did not have the eye-catching Pelikan hood ornament and had vertical taillights instead of the horizontal ones on the larger models. They also had no panoramic rear windows .
The 250 model series was introduced in March 1951 and was intended to fill the corresponding gaps in the Packard model range with hardtop models and convertibles. In addition to these specific body types, these cars were recognized by their three jet stripes on the rear fenders. The wagons also had better exteriors and better upholstery.
All Packard 200 had a two-tone fanfare, two sun visors, rear and front bumper riders, spare wheel and tool kit. In addition to the spartan standard equipment, the DeLuxe equipment included chrome trim rings on the wheels and indicators (instead of indicators). They also had whitewall tires and hubcaps.
Equipment details that have been standard in the auto industry since the late 1960s, such as heating, radio, tinted windows, carpets, etc., were only available as optional extras at Packard, as was the case with all other automakers at the time. Packard was also the first automaker to offer a brake booster in 1951. It was called "Easamatic" and was manufactured by Bendix especially for Packard.
In 1952 there were only a few changes to the chrome equipment. As with other US automakers, the business coupe was no longer available.
Production figures 1951 and 1952
Lt. According to the source cited, the production figures are not known by body shape, but only by equipment.
- 1951, 200 standard: 24,310 pieces
- 1951, 200 DeLuxe: 47,052 pieces
- 1951, 250: 4640 pieces *
- 1952, 200 standard: 39,720 pieces
- 1952, 200 DeLuxe: 7000 pieces
- 1952, 250: 5201 pieces
* only available from March 1951.
The damage the 200 and 250 models did to Packard
Packard sold over 100,000 cars in 1951, but too many of them were small 200 and 250 series models. The big Packards - the traditional niche Packard served before World War II , in the 1920s and 1930s - were just in two model lines - the 300 and the Patrician 400 - were available, and both were only available in one version, the 4-door sedan. Dealers who were on the ball sold the chrome equipment of the 300 and Patrician 400 models for the smaller 200 and 250 models, diluting the visual difference between the expensive, large models and the smaller, cheaper ones.
To remedy this situation, Packard was able to win over James J. Nance , the boss of Hotpoint , who was to re-establish Packard as a leading automaker. One of his first measures was the abandonment of numerical model names in favor of real names. Nance also made the large Packards look wider and have more chrome to differentiate them from the smaller models. Nance also had special show cars designed to get a stir in the motor press and make Packard look less sickly.
The 200 and 250 models were renamed the Packard Clipper Special / DeLuxe , part of Nance's plan to turn it into a car brand of its own in 1956 and to give Packard the name of an exclusive luxury car manufacturer.
swell
- Gunnell, John (editor): The Standard Catalog of American Cars 1946-1975 , Kraus Publications (1987), ISBN 978-0-87341-096-0 .
- Hamlin, George L. '1951-1954 Packard, American New Choice in Fine Cars.' Collectible Automobile , February 1992, Issue 8, Number 5, pp. 56-69.