ITEM E501

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By Patrick R. Foster

In the long and exciting history of the American automobile business one name stands out above others: Packard! For many years, the cars produced by the Packard Motor Car Co. were considered the best; a line of sedans, coupes, convertibles and limousines in a wide variety of factory body styles and a seemingly endless array of custom coachwork. It wasn’t because they were the most costly; a Duesenberg cost more. And it wasn’t because they were the fastest; Stutz usually took that honor. The reason why Packard was so universally admired was because it built an entire range of luxury cars that were fast, sleek, luxurious, stylish, tasteful, wonderfully quiet, durable, and reliable and rode well. Packard combined the finest attributes luxury buyers wanted in one beautiful package, and built them with pride. Packard quality was legendary, its engineering considered among the best in the world. And they were built by a company that was known as one of the best-run businesses in the world, solid, profitable, conservative and dependable. Packard stock was the envy of the market, its management was widely admired. Packards, it was sometimes said, were built by gentlemen for gentlemen. From the 1920s to the early 1950s, Packard cars were among the most coveted in the world and was the luxury car market sales leader by a wide margin. Cadillac and Lincoln struggled to compete. In this new book, author Patrick Foster details the history of a great marque, from its triumphant rise to its sad ending, detailing the tremendous cars it produced and the legend it created.

One of America’s best-known automotive writers, Foster spent 20 years studying various aspects of automotive industry and at one time almost started his own car company. An authority figure on AMC and its various branches, Foster has written a number of books on that subject and many others including Jeep and Studebaker. His magazine articles appear in about every car magazine out there, and he has won awards for his books and articles from the AACA (Antique Automobile Club of America) and SAH (Society of Automotive Historians), and even helped found the SAH Press.

Softbound, 128 pages, 150 photos, 8.5'' x 10.25''