This frame is currently at the Packard Proving grounds all completely redone and working like new.

Packard is way ahead of is time

The truth now for anyone interested : William D. Allison, a brilliant engineer on his own, and out of his own mind, designed and developed that suspension, over the years following World War II, in his basement, in a vehicle known as a "cycle car" ; (frame, engine transmission, seats, NO body), as a test bed in the winter of 1949-50, as he was then employed by Hudson Motor Car Company, down the road from Packard. Hudson did not have the cash to develop this new device, which had been built and tested in an earlier form, in a 1941 Hudson. So, when he had the cyclecar, they granted him the ability to shop it to the industry with the minding proviso that in the future, they could use it if they wanted. Packard was the only company, who gave him the green light to further refine, and develop to fruition the Torsion Bar device HE created. The Packard guys at BEST, helped the refining, but the system was already devised, and was superior to a design they had monkeyed with back in the 1930's. and dropped as they couldn't figure it out well enough. Packard always bragged about their engineers, but had Allison not come along with this design, the 1955 and 56 Packards would have been as wallowy as any other car of the day. So there's history Lesson for you. P.S. Any of this information is available to read in many versions online. Its not this grandoise puffery piece out of East Grands Pr Devpartment. ( Packards home until 1954 was on East Grand Boulevard in Detroit).

Unrewarded genius is a proverb. People continued to buy coil/leaf spring cars. '55-'56 had a lockup torque converter almost 20 years before the rest.

Dig that necktie! I wish I had one.

This system was ripe with problems the 1955 had all the electical componets on frame which were subject torain snow causing problems the 1956 packardchange it tothefender well on top dont remember exactly i had 1955and my dad had 1956s❤😮

Too much dreaming andtoo much poor managment over the years

Had a 1955 packard in the eighies

Packard was innovative. It's too bad they went out of business.

Didn't beat Citroen's DS though :)

And also in 1955 the Citroen DS19 was released which made this entire car seem like the outdated horse cart that it was and help usher in truly Modern cars, but not in America.

I was a Dudley Randall Ballad of BirmingHam Dancer in the 80’s 👸🏽 kzbin.info/www/bejne/hKjNfoyVZrWIibssi=mkByh6kjnL56m69W

Chrysler Corporation had the same thing. Torsion bar suspensions.

Speaking of "foreign cars", the 1949 Citroën 2CV had interlinked front and rear suspension. Although Citroën routinely used torsion bars, they did this one with coils and pull-rods.

Lexus LX470 with torsion bar suspension and automatic height control.

That suspension sure is amazing in effect, it's such a strange feeling the first time you experience it. I got my '56 Packard 400 not long ago and it took me a bit to get used to it.

1:56 the narrator has a black dot on his hand but is gone by 2:03 !

Porsche created torsion bar suspension in the 1930s for their race cars. Citroen patented it for use on passenger cars some time later.

They should have called Citroen. They already did that in the 30's.

How the fuck does this show up right after jay said go look for it?

Best part was his mustache. You got to love the 1950s.

Krushchev's Packard is on display in a car museum somewhere in this country. Russians knew a good deal when they saw it. Packard was probably best designed car for the interstates in the 1950's

Funny how old days luxury cars chase softness and ride comfort and now the German luxury cars all boast firm suspension & sharp handling even for SUVs. It’s just some U.S. roads now look more like plowed fields than autobahn…

Me!

Hahaha the scientific, finely calibrated, truth revealing, Ride-o-meter!

I've never seen such a weird mustache

If this suspension works so great, why isn't used on modern day cars, or was it too exspensive to manufacture today

Detroit Michigan Made America Great. Unions Made Detroit Great.

It reminds me of the Citroën Traction 15-Six H unveiled in may 1954 with self-leveling Hydropneumatic suspension later standardized on the DS

Watching this in 2022. and I am wondering why there is nothing like that today?

I was one of the people who you photographed on the ice. Glad to see you were able to do something with this story.

Chrysler took the Torsion Bar concept for their cars in the late 50s.

It's curious I get a 1956 packard patrician and now I'm always recommended these videos

Looks like the Packard Proving Grounds in Shelby Township, MI. Wonderful, historic place.

I WANT ONE.

Well the Citroën 2CV did this much earlier and much better.

My dad and his two brothers; born between 1926 and 1930; were poor farm boys, but in their teens and early 20's, all three had fast Packards. They even raced them some; including on a frozen lake.

This is a brilliant commercial. Encourages scientific and technical literacy. Today, every idiot thinks that a 2.5 ton SUV is cool for some magical reason.

He kept quiet about Citroen's DS model of the same year.

The low cost French Citroen 2CV achieved pitch control in 1948. It did that only using helical springs. kzbin.info/www/bejne/oGjTd6udedKNjrM

Correct, hundreds of dollars per car, in an industry where dimes matter! What few realize about the system, is the car feels "glued" to the ground, for (besides the incomparable ride), the front wheel is pushing down on the rear wheel and vice-versa. It doesn't depend on the shocks to do the best that they can. As rather-weak shocks are utilized, there's minimal impact to the chassis & body. Also, the torsion bars last forever. Even the electrical portion of the system is incredibly simple.I only wish that Bill Allison's Son, could have an opportunity to ride in my 56 someday. (I'm "dreamin' here) Zero bangs, knocks, rattles and groans, and it rides like a train. All the cars but Jay's, that I've seen on you tube, are an insult to the highly-gifted designers, their legacies and their families. (You can tell I'm frustrated) Remains one of the two most elegant-vs-results (designs), that I've ever witnessed. The other has nothing to do with cars. Lastly: The last time we brought our car back to the original owner's family, we drove 690 miles in one day. Got home at 1 AM. The disappointment was, that the drive was over, for that day. My Wife and I were as refreshed as if the trip didn't begin yet. See: 56 Packard 400 Car-of-the-Week, Old Cars Weekly.

My 56 (400) is one of the last left to ride and sound exactly as intended and is incredible. Unlike any of the Torsion-Level Packards shown on you-tube, which (except for Jay Leno's) ride and sound like cement-mixers. Heavy shocks prevent the interaction from working. Dual exhaust are rubbing somewhere on every one of them, including the rear bumper. Few things will make a car sound worse. Decades-old suspension bushings create all sorts of knocks, creeks and friction. Loose jack, spare and all sorts of other annoying noises, in the trunk, ashtray and glove box, accentuate every bump in the road. I could go on.and on. It's no wonder these cars have very little value. From what I see of them, and if I didn't know better, I wouldn't take one of these cars for free. Another annoying thing with ALL old cars is the speedometer will be on its second or third trip around, with exceedingly-rare exception. One should look for worn or glazed finish on the steering wheel. Glazed and worn armrest as well.

And what happened to that suspension?

The '55-'56 Packmules were still using the dowdy 1951 body, cleverly refreshed by future AMC styling whiz Dick Teague. Packard had been going down the dumper since WWII, and George Romney finished them off by balking at the four marque AMC deal proposed by George Mason, thus forcing Packard to merge with another loser, Studebaker. The Packard V8 was a good (if heavy) engine, but that Ultramatic transmission was pretty much the Packard's Achilles heel. The torsion bar suspension came from Hudson.

If only that merger happened

You guys are too fun to watch! Thanks for making history entertaining!

A great documentary. I rode and worked on the Bob Lo boat when I was in High School

Jay Leno brought me here

Packard, the only true American luxury car. I love the 1955 Patrician the best out of all of the models Packard made.

When this car's a rockin' don't come a knockin'! Oh wait, it can't rock thanks to the magic of Torsion-Level ride. Great video. It answers some questions I've had for a while.