"Red Letter"

This 1937 Packard 120 is covered by the Gallery Guarantee.
With The Gallery Guarantee, you’ll enjoy a 3-month/500-mile vehicle service contract and a multi-point safety inspection for ultimate peace of mind. Plus, explore exclusive warranty extension options and take advantage of our Buy Back Guarantee. It’s not just a purchase, it’s a promise that ensures your journey begins with confidence.

The Packard Motor Car Company was founded on a challenge. When James Ward Packard returned a defective Winton automobile to the factory and complained, Alexander Winton told him that if he thought he could build a better car, he should do it himself. Packard did exactly that, and built a company that went on to define the word luxury in the American automobile market for the better part of four decades. The 120 was introduced in 1935 as Packard’s answer to the Great Depression, a more affordable entry point that still carried the Packard name and Packard engineering. It was named for two things simultaneously: its 120-inch wheelbase and its 120 horsepower output, a coincidence that Packard’s advertising writers were only too happy to exploit. This one is finished in bright red with a tan convertible top, paint-matched wheels, chrome hubcaps, and whitewall tires, and it wears the pre-war Packard look about as well as a car can.

Under the hood is the 282 cubic inch L-head inline eight backed by a three-speed manual transmission. The 120 was the first Packard ever built with hydraulic brakes and independent front suspension, features that were not even available on the senior Packard models above it in the lineup at the time. It cruises with the smooth, unhurried authority that only a pre-war straight-eight can deliver, gliding over road imperfections with a composure that still impresses today.

Inside, the tan leather interior is warm and well appointed with a wood-trimmed dash and crank windows that are correct and expected in a car from this era. The rumble seat is one of the most charming features of the open body style, a detail that disappeared from American automobiles entirely by the early 1940s and exists now only in cars like this one. A luggage rack on the rear rounds out a convertible that is as usable as it is beautiful.

The 1937 model year was notable within the Packard 120 lineup for the introduction of the 120-CD Deluxe specification, which brought whitewall tires, a banjo-spoke steering wheel, Marshall-sprung seats, and a clock as standard equipment, elevating an already refined car further. The 120 convertible body style was the most expensive and most desirable open body in the lineup, and finding one in this color and this condition is the kind of thing that draws a crowd at every show it attends.

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Gr Auto Gallery, LLC and our sister company, Wheelz Sales and Leasing Inc. makes every effort to represent each vehicle accurately and with integrity. We also welcome third party inspections when necessary. Although we try to do our very best to be accurate in our description writing we are human and do make mistakes. Unless noted in our description, we only have one key for the vehicle. It is the responsibility of the buyer to either inspect the vehicle personally or via a 3rd party, to ensure satisfaction to the condition and value, prior to purchase. Unless otherwise noted, All vehicles are sold AS IS, No Warranty Expressed or Implied. All sales final. If you want verification on any items working please ask. GR Auto Gallery and all its affiliates reserve the right to charge a 3.5% processing fee on any credit card sales of over $2,500.