Consequently there Were Not many 1930 Packard Boattail Speedsters Constructed and Far Less models Still Around
There were times in American automotive history when manufacturers seem to have manufactured far fewer models of a car that would surely have generated more sales than it did, thus having missed the boat. Such cars include 1930 Packard Boattail Speedsters, of which Packard manufactured less than 120 cars.
Production was slow, in part because buyers were given leeway to customize their vehicle’s body style. In addition, Packard knew the economic times it was in. Packard did little, if anything, to generate sales for the Boattail Speedster because the U.S. was engulfed in the grips of a Depression and the car’s price tag of $5,200 was higher than the asking price for most homes.
Brief Packard timeline
- 1954 Hewlitt-Packard merges, becomes Studebaker-Packard
- 1899 Packard Motor Co., Detroit, MI is launched
- 1934 Packard merges, becomes Hewlitt-Packard
- 1930 Packard Speedsters sell for $5,200
- 1958 Last Packard built
- 2011 Packard Speedsters valued at more than $250,000
What set these Boattail Speedsters apart from other cars was their amazing speed. Designed with Packard’s largest engine of the day, a 384 cubic inch Super 8 and a smaller 366 cubic inch engine, these cars were offered with options that produced either 145 horsepower or 125 horsepower. That 384 cubic inch Super 8 Boattail Speedster ran at speeds higher than 100 mph. The standard Boattail Speedster, 455 pounds lighter than average Packards of that year, only could hold two passengers, while the Boattail with the smaller of the two engines included a high compression head, finned manifold, and a 2-barrel carburetor.
The four body styles of the 734 version of the Boattail Speedster—the Sedan, Phaeton, Victoria, and Runabout—each remain among the 24 models still known to exist.
Side-mounted spare tires placed in front of passenger seats and finned cast iron drum brakes were common attributes to the high-priced, luxury Packard sold during the early 20th Century.
Though finding one of the remaining 24 models and buying it might be out of most people’s reach, there’s always the option of purchasing a Precision Die-Cast Replica of one of the Boattail Speedsters and placing it on your mantle or your desk at work. Only 6” long, these 1:32 scale durable replicas reveal what the original 8-cylinder 366 cubic inch engine looked like and include opening rumble seat, doors, and hood.
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