1929 Packard 640 Victoria – Ask the Man Who Owns One – 234
Chopped apart in the ’50s and used as a milk can-carrying utility, this Packard has been returned to its original form after a truly challenging restoration.
Looking back through automotive history, the Packard had arguably the most legendary beginning of any car. It all started when James Ward Packard, a respected mechanical engineer, purchased a Winton in 1898. Alexander Winton had a 
reputation for quality built, high-speed cars but, as luck would have it, the one he sold to Packard must have been a lemon, because on its first road trip the new car spluttered, stalled, and finally quit altogether.
Packard was not a man to take this lightly and returned his new car to its builder, which consequently led to a furious argument. At the height of the verbal battle, Winton challenged Packard to build a better car. James Ward Packard not only accepted the challenge, but also went to work immediately, and within one year, he and his brother, William Dowd Packard, started a new automobile company based in Warren, Ohio. Their first model was a single-cylinder, buggy-type vehicle, but much larger engines and advanced, stylish body designs followed rapidly. Read the rest of this entry »
