1953 Packard Clipper Deluxe

This highly original 1953 Packard Clipper Sedan looks great in Polaris Blue. Apart from new tires, this car sits with the configuration it left the factory with.

The Clipper name was reintroduced in 1953 replacing the 200 models. It was Packard’s cheaper line targeting the mid-price field. It very nearly became its own marque but remained with the Packard name after protests from the dealer network. They didn’t want to lose their best seller by losing the Packard name. After all, customers saw it was a great way to enjoy the style of a Packard without the higher price tag of the other models.

The Deluxe offered more features than the standard Clipper models and featured a nicer interior full body side molding, rear fender tip molding and wheel trim rings were standard (although the full wheel covers you see here were a factory option).

rear view of a 1953 Packard Clipper
Rear / side vi​​​​​ew

Inside, the Clipper still wears the original gray interior it left the factory with and is amazing considering 68 years have passed.

rear seat of a 53 Packard Clipper
Rear seat

The dash is original and you can see in the center that the car was ordered with a push-button radio, costing a further $97 on the purchase price.

Original  and well preserved dash of a 1953 Packard Clipper
Original dash

Under the hood is the original (but rebuilt) 327 cubic inch straight eight engine. It outputs 160 horsepower and was standard in the Deluxe – the standard Clipper has a 150 horsepower 288 cubic inch straight eight.

Original 1953 Packard 327 cubic inch inline eight engine
327 cubic inch inline eight

The original owner of this car opted to have a Ultramatic Drive automatic transmission rather than the standard 3-speed manual, costing them a further $199.

The Clipper Deluxe 4-door sedan was the most popular of Clipper Series with 26,037 of them being sold during the 1953 model year. It had a base price of $2,681

This 1953 Packard Clipper is currently for sale on eBay. (follow the link for more photos)

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