1941 Packard Super-8 One-Eighty Sport Brougham

In the early 1940s, the custom coach-building industry began to fade out of existence. American luxury automakers slowly discontinued the factory-catalogued 'semi-customs' that had been a part of their lines for over a decade. Packard was among the last to offer bodies by coachbuilders LeBaron and Rollson, with the former being a division of Briggs by 1941, but still produce hand-built bodies in limited numbers. Many of LeBaron's final Packard offerings were formal limousines that were intended to be driven by a chauffeur. In 1941 only, an 'owner-driver' variant, the Sport Brougham, could also be had. It was similar to Cadillac's Series 60 Special, and featured a design with narrow chromed window frames and a 'formal' rear window on the shorter 1907 chassis, with a five-passenger interior. In total, just 99 Sport Broughams were built.

This example was sold by the Earle C. Anthony Packard dealership in Los Angeles. The original owner was August Herzeler, who was chauffeured in the car and had it maintained by Anthony's shop before trading it back to the dealer in 1948. One of the salesmen at the dealership became the car's next owner, which for six years was garaged in the dealership's sub-basement.

In 1954, Robert E. Carter, an early CCCA member, purchased the car from Earle C. Anthony and owned it for two decades. Ray Hunter owned it for a brief period of time before selling it to another Southern California enthusiast, Wayne Bemis. Mr. Bemis owned the car until 1980, when it was purchased by Matt Browning, of Utah. Mr. Browning sold the Packard seven years later back to Mr. Bemis. It was later owned by Robert Escalante, and then by Art Astor before being acquired by the present owner.

The car was painted in the 1970s. It has its original factory-fitted Laidlaw wool broadcloth upholstery, Mosstred carpets, wood-grained dashboard, and grey plastic trim. It is equipped with hydraulic window lifts, factory overdrive, a deluxe heater/defroster, an electric winding clock, and a Philco P-1835 eight-tube pushbutton radio with a roof antenna.

The car has recently been driven over the 80,000-mile mark. It has completed both the Glidden and Chrome Glidden Tours, as well as a CCCA CARavan. It has been awarded the Veteran Motor Car Club of America's highest honor, the Golden Award of Excellence, as well as the George L. Weiss Memorial Trophy for the Best Pre-World War II Packard.

By Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2014