The Packard Caribbean only saw production from 1953 to 1956. In that final year, there were only 276 Caribbean Convertibles built, and our feature vehicle is one of those. You will find it listed for sale here on eBay. Located in Isanti, Minnesota, it is offered with a clear title. At the time of writing, bidding had reached $7,600, but the reserve has not been met.
This Caribbean is a project car that may not need as much work as you may first think. While the rust issues are obvious from the outside, the photos provided seem to show a car that has solid floors and a solid frame. The seller has a pair of good rear quarter panels that will also be included in the sale.
In addition to the quarter panels, the seller is including this additional car as part of the deal. He describes the spares car as being a good source for the few parts missing off the convertible. To me, it seems a shame to raid this one for parts, as it also seems to be a solid car that could be restored. Still, I guess that will be a decision for the new owner to contemplate.
The interior of the Caribbean just oozes luxury, and it is almost like the company knew that this would be its last hurrah, so put everything into it. While there is a lot of work required to return the interior to its former luxurious self, there are an awful lot of components that look like they will restore successfully. Some of the more desirable components such as the Wonderbar radio and the reversible seat cushions are present, which is a bonus.
The Caribbean did not skimp on performance. The 374ci V8 is fed by dual 4-barrel carburetors. Power was an impressive 310hp. This is backed by the Ultramatic transmission. The seller gives no indication of the condition of the engine, but hopefully it at least turns freely.
With so few 1956 Caribbean Convertibles being built, values are always going to be market driven. These are a desirable car, and buyers will demonstrate a willingness to pay a premium for rare luxury cars. As a consequence, good examples of the ’56 Convertible are realizing some pretty healthy prices. I found one for sale at present for $85,000, and that is the cheapest one on the market at present. A really nicely restored one will fetch a price in the six-figure region. This one will require some work, but the parts car will assist the new owner to locate some of the more difficult items. I would really be interested to know what the reserve is on this one.
First off it would be a real shame to part out the sedan it would make more sense to contact the Packard club to scrounge up the missing Caribbean parts. If you had the money I say restore them both and paint them to match. It would make for a more interesting show display. When I saw these cars it prompted me to go on a search to find the Packard that had the coat of arms in a chrome circle, because when I was a kid one of my dads freinds was a Packard collectors and had given me a set of them. I still have them. Turns out they are on the side of the 1954 Caribbean just back of the door handle. Mine are only in fair condition so I doubt they’re worth much but they’re as close as I’ll get to owning a Packard.
I own a 1955 Packard Caribbean convertible, although it’s diecast made by the Franklin Mint.(worth a little money) With that being said, these cars are beautiful, and I hope this one gets back on the road soon ! Great looks, styling, power, color, and a rag top.This car will look fantastic cruising down the road with the top down on a nice Summer day. Nice find…
We say this thing on May 14 but he lowered the price quite a bit last time he wanted 25,000. so I bet that is what his reserve is again.
I liked the car then and I will like it now but I think he is asking a bit much
I also hope someone restores that sedan too, looks quite ok and not looking like it’s missing that many parts?
I always liked these 50s Packards, they got great styling.
It has been on E-Bay several times along with other Caribbean convertibles and none of them sell. There one of my favorite cars but out of my price range.
These cars possess so much potential, class and luxury.
But it appears the public’s message hasn’t gotten through to the seller yet. At $25,000, the buyer better have time and money to burn.
Appears to be a lot of unanswered questions. I’ve never tackled one of these but I’ve done several other cars. And years ago my friend told me, who restored cars, guess at the figure to restore a car and multiplied it by a factor of three that will be the true answer.
That formula hasn’t been terribly off.
And I agree with everyone else and mention it’s a shame to cannibalize the spare car.
Hope someone puts them back on the Hwy for the rest of us to enjoy.
Didn’t some of these Packards already have rear air suspension in the 50s? To keep the car level automatically when more weight was added to rear seat or trunk.
I could be wrong but sort of remember seeing an article of couple of mid 50s Packards in a Finnish hot rod magazine in the early 80s and they showed in pics how you could”trick” the car to raise the rear suspension. (Sky high rear suspension was the”thing” in Finland back then…)I remember those were Packards but could be wrong…
Torsion bar system, that connected the front & rear wheels. There was a self levelling feature, a small electric motor with some serious gear reduction that loaded the torsion bars as required.
The combination of what my Dad called “winter treads” and whitewalls on the rear of the Caribbean is an odd mix.
I’d be surprised if there’s that much in the sedan that would be useful in the Caribbean–it’s almost like buying a Nova for Impala parts–but the sedan should probably be worth a couple of grand on its own.
First get in touch with Packard club, save the sedan. It’s amazing to find an unrestored Caribbean around.. It will be saved. These were fabulous cars.
Such a huge loss to America when Packard failed. It was the car of movie stars, Presidents and funeral homes. Mismanagement destroyed Packard. Studebaker was a money pit for Packard. Packard had planned all new cars for 1957 that were space age stunning. It’s all history now. The revival Packard from a decade ago was just plain ugly. Had Packard survived, it definitely would not looked like that incarnation. I do wish Packard could be revived with advanced engineering, possibly electric and with impressive styling. It would take billions of dollars to make that dream happen. My grandparents and parents owned Packards. Their Packard stories prompted me to buy a low mile Patrician. I loved it! It’s all in retrospect now.
Dave Brown [and everyone else here at B F],
In 1952 Packard announced that over 50% of ALL PACKARDS EVER MADE from 1899 onward, were still licensed and being driven on the road. For production cars, no other automobile manufacturer could make that claim. Not only did it say a lot about the cars, it also required a dedicated service and parts supply to keep the cars going, and let’s not forget a dedicated customer base!
How can this classic, low production number Packard be worth one fifth the value of the clapped out VW bus produced in the thousands seen elsewhere in today’s listings? I’ll take the Packards any day.
The windshield, instrument panel and front clip is about all that will go from the sedan to the convertible.
And the sedan is the mid-year Packard Executive – it replaced the Clipper Custom in the line-up. All they changed was the side trim, grille and nameplates.
The Executive was introduced in March, 1956 and in production through June, 1956. Total production for the sedan came to 1,784 and the hardtop 1,031. The Executive sedan was $3,465 while the Custom sedan was $3,069. $400 more for a Packard grille.
Al,
I totally agree, but the interests of the younger “moneyed” crowd is towards the VW bus, not big luxury convertibles of the 50s.
As someone who is very knowledgeable on Packard cars in general, I know that other than small trim items like door handles, there is very little on the Clipper sedan that will fit on the Caribbean. Not even the trunk lid or front fenders are correct.
Buy both cars, then sell the Clipper, put the cash into buying the Caribbean parts needed. BUT BE FOREWARNED; The Caribbean windshield is a compound curved piece of AS-1 laminated safety glass that is about 2″ shorter than the closed Packard & Clipper cars. Replacement 1955/56 Caribbean Convertible windshields have been unavailable since the early 1960s.
There are only a few truly expert people left in the country who know how to cut down a highly curved laminated windshield without breaking it. The process involves scoring & cracking the surface tension on both sides, in exactly the same line, then using burning lighter fluid in the crack, to melt the laminated plastic between the 2 sections of glass. Get the glass too hot, and it’ll crack.
From what I can see in the photos, the hard to find Caribbean only parts like the carbs, intake manifold, air cleaner, top mechanism, vent window assemblies, both rear fender side “upswing” trim pieces, are not missing, and the Caribbean scripts have been reproduced. Probably the hardest parts to find will be the 2 front fenders, they were made for the 1956 Senior cars only. The Clippers had different fenders. Due to a lack of an inner fender shield, these fenders packed the areas above the headlights full of dirt & mud from day one. Even in the late 1960s they were getting hard to find.
They are available my friend sent his to be copied and they made him two and kept the pattern for future sales, but it’s not going to be cheap.
Wow….2/4 set up….must have been a mean un….back in the day !
My friend has a 55 Caribbean conv. he calls number one because it was the first one made in 55 and I got to have in my wedding.
I hope whoever buys these cars saves them both.
The fatal Packard mistake was to buy off Studebaker whom had falsified their books.