First South Bend Packard

[56H-Y6]

Hi 8E45E

I too would love to see what the rejected designs for the '57 Clipper were, though I doubt if too many were made as it was such a hurried job and the designers had a limited framework i.e. just to retrim the Y body with current Packard styling details.

As for the poor sales response due somewhat to the all new '57 Imperial attracting Packard sales prospects, recall that at factory prices, the Clipper Town Sedan was $3212 and the least expensive Imperial was $4838. The cars were not in the same price class with a $1600 price gap.

The '57 Clipper was in the highly competitive segment with car such as the Olds Super 88, Buick Century, Chrysler Windsor, Desoto Firedome, Mercury Montclair and others. This was an extremely tough market for the Clipper to succeed in.

Unhappily, most people recognized the car was a retrimed Studebaker President and couldn't convince themselves that the car was worth the approximately $800 more than the President cost.

I do think that many senior Packard owners ready to trade in '57 went for the new Imperial, having already dismissed Lincoln and not wanting to justify a Cadillac purchase at the 19 hole. Very likely few to none even considered the '57 Clipper as a worthy Packard.

Steve

[56H-Y6]

Hi 8E45E

I too would love to see what the rejected designs for the '57 Clipper were, though I doubt if too many were made as it was such a hurried job and the designers had a limited framework i.e. just to retrim the Y body with current Packard styling details.

As for the poor sales response due somewhat to the all new '57 Imperial attracting Packard sales prospects, recall that at factory prices, the Clipper Town Sedan was $3212 and the least expensive Imperial was $4838. The cars were not in the same price class with a $1600 price gap.

The '57 Clipper was in the highly competitive segment with car such as the Olds Super 88, Buick Century, Chrysler Windsor, Desoto Firedome, Mercury Montclair and others. This was an extremely tough market for the Clipper to succeed in.

Unhappily, most people recognized the car was a retrimed Studebaker President and couldn't convince themselves that the car was worth the approximately $800 more than the President cost.

I do think that many senior Packard owners ready to trade in '57 went for the new Imperial, having already dismissed Lincoln and not wanting to justify a Cadillac purchase at the 19 hole. Very likely few to none even considered the '57 Clipper as a worthy Packard.

Steve

[8E45E]

I do think that many senior Packard owners ready to trade in '57 went for the new Imperial, having already dismissed Lincoln and not wanting to justify a Cadillac purchase at the 19 hole. Very likely few to none even considered the '57 Clipper as a worthy Packard.

By 1957, Packard did demote itself to the medium price class, but they WERE at the luxury price class. Therefore someone with two or three year old Packard 400 wanting to trade in the old one for the new would be moving downmarket if he chose a '57 Packard, unfortunately. That would only leave Cadillac, Lincoln, or Imperial for choices. Another hinderence was the lack of a four door hardtop.
The four door hardtop probably sold as well or better than it's sedan counterpart in those years. And of course, that hardtop body style was also available in station wagons as well in the medium price lines, though Chrysler didn't introduce a hardtop wagon until 1960.


Craig

[8E45E]

I do think that many senior Packard owners ready to trade in '57 went for the new Imperial, having already dismissed Lincoln and not wanting to justify a Cadillac purchase at the 19 hole. Very likely few to none even considered the '57 Clipper as a worthy Packard.

By 1957, Packard did demote itself to the medium price class, but they WERE at the luxury price class. Therefore someone with two or three year old Packard 400 wanting to trade in the old one for the new would be moving downmarket if he chose a '57 Packard, unfortunately. That would only leave Cadillac, Lincoln, or Imperial for choices. Another hinderence was the lack of a four door hardtop.
The four door hardtop probably sold as well or better than it's sedan counterpart in those years. And of course, that hardtop body style was also available in station wagons as well in the medium price lines, though Chrysler didn't introduce a hardtop wagon until 1960.


Craig

[lstude]

quote:I too would love to see what the rejected designs for the '57 Clipper were, though I doubt if too many were made as it was such a hurried job and the designers had a limited framework i.e. just to retrim the Y body with current Packard styling details.

If you read below about the decision to make a Studebaker based 57 Packard, you can surmise that there probably weren't many (or any) rejected designs. The only object was to get a Packard to sell on the market.

This is from the book " The Fall of the Packard Motor Co." by James A. Ward.





Leonard Shepherd, editor, The Commanding Leader, Central Virginia Chapter, http://centralvirginiachapter.org/

[lstude]

quote:I too would love to see what the rejected designs for the '57 Clipper were, though I doubt if too many were made as it was such a hurried job and the designers had a limited framework i.e. just to retrim the Y body with current Packard styling details.

If you read below about the decision to make a Studebaker based 57 Packard, you can surmise that there probably weren't many (or any) rejected designs. The only object was to get a Packard to sell on the market.

This is from the book " The Fall of the Packard Motor Co." by James A. Ward.





Leonard Shepherd, editor, The Commanding Leader, Central Virginia Chapter, http://centralvirginiachapter.org/

[56H-Y6]

Hi
In those unhappy months in '56 for S-P management, faced with developing a '57 Packard of some sort, whatever Duncan McRae and his team were able to design quickly probably was good enough.

As for concentrating on the middle price field, that market was were Packard had it's largest sales volume. I imagine that management was hoping that enough owners of '53-'56 Clippers ready to trade would take the '57 seriously and just that volume would make the car a qualified success. Any Studebaker owners dealers could upgrade would be a plus.
Most senior Packard owners wouldn't even consider the '57 Clipper, recognized it as an upgraded Studebaker, weren't about to buy down market when they replaced their current car.

The lack of two and four door hardtops in the sedan series bodies was just one more strike against the buyer choosing an S-P product. Those models were tremendously popular, many very appealing cars. Checking the prices, a '57 Desoto FireDome four door hardtop Sportsman was $3142 versus '57 Packard Clipper Town Sedan at $3212; had I been in that market at the time, I would have been driving a DeSoto!

The overall poor sales response for all '57 S-P models can also be attributed to the public's awareness of the financial troubles of the corporation that were reported in the mass market news magazines of the day. Not many wanted to buy a car they feared would soon be orphaned.

Steve

[56H-Y6]

Hi
In those unhappy months in '56 for S-P management, faced with developing a '57 Packard of some sort, whatever Duncan McRae and his team were able to design quickly probably was good enough.

As for concentrating on the middle price field, that market was were Packard had it's largest sales volume. I imagine that management was hoping that enough owners of '53-'56 Clippers ready to trade would take the '57 seriously and just that volume would make the car a qualified success. Any Studebaker owners dealers could upgrade would be a plus.
Most senior Packard owners wouldn't even consider the '57 Clipper, recognized it as an upgraded Studebaker, weren't about to buy down market when they replaced their current car.

The lack of two and four door hardtops in the sedan series bodies was just one more strike against the buyer choosing an S-P product. Those models were tremendously popular, many very appealing cars. Checking the prices, a '57 Desoto FireDome four door hardtop Sportsman was $3142 versus '57 Packard Clipper Town Sedan at $3212; had I been in that market at the time, I would have been driving a DeSoto!

The overall poor sales response for all '57 S-P models can also be attributed to the public's awareness of the financial troubles of the corporation that were reported in the mass market news magazines of the day. Not many wanted to buy a car they feared would soon be orphaned.

Steve

[8E45E]

The overall poor sales response for all '57 S-P models can also be attributed to the public's awareness of the financial troubles of the corporation that were reported in the mass market news magazines of the day. Not many wanted to buy a car they feared would soon be orphaned.

Here's what we probably would have got if the bankers were nice to S-P:





Craig

[8E45E]

The overall poor sales response for all '57 S-P models can also be attributed to the public's awareness of the financial troubles of the corporation that were reported in the mass market news magazines of the day. Not many wanted to buy a car they feared would soon be orphaned.

Here's what we probably would have got if the bankers were nice to S-P:





Craig