1940 Packard Custom Super-8 One-Eighty Club Sedan

With the demise of Packard's 12-cylinder engine at the end of 1939, the Super Eight line with its newly revamped straight-eight engine remained the only Senior series on the books for 1940. To keep up its inventory of styles, Packard management dictated that the Super Eight line be divided into two: the One-Sixty and the Custom Super Eight One-Eighty (the flagship in place of the discontinued V-12). Both featured the new 356 cubic-inch / 160 horsepower straight eight engine, making Packard the most powerful car in the world at the time. An industry first, Packards offered air conditioning for all of their models, all the way down to the Six, at a cost of roughly $400.

Just 1,900 Custom Super Eights were built for 1940 including 223 club sedans. This Packard was first purchased by James W. McGrath on May 29, 1940, from the Berry Motor Car Company in St. Louis, Missouri, and given to his wife Mary. The car maintains much of its originality and was purchased by the current owners in the spring of 2013.