This is a very early Packard Victoria Convertible by Darrin of 1938( body style 700) .The very first Packard Darrin Victoria prototype was built on a Packard 120 chassis in Darrin's Hollywood workshop in 1937. The first regular 15 bodies on the Super Eight chassis of the seventeenth series commissioned by Packard were also built in the Hollywood shop during 1938 and 1939.where hand-built production continued in 1940. In 1941 Darrin Packard production was transferred to Packard's Connersville factory in Indiana on a low production basis.The car was first officially listed as a factory Packard model starting from the eighteenth series Custom Super Eight One Eighty chassis bodied cars ( september 1939)
1938 Packard Darrin Victoria built late in 1937 on the 1601 chassis (127 inch wheelbase). The first 3 to 4 cars had running boards this might be one of the first without boards. Darrin built ~ 7 1938`s all on the 1601 chassis (120). Darrin built ~ 10 cars in late 1938 and during 1939, 6 on the 1701 chassis (120) and ~ 4 on the 1703 chassis (super 8) both 127 inch wheelbase.Several cars were built which had the 1939 chassis but 1940 appearance (Grills,bumpers&guards,instrument panels & gauges etc.) This was probably due to the fact that Packard introduced the 1940 models on Aug.8 1939 which was earlier than the normal mid to late sept. intro. ~5 cars built this way. Production than moved to Darrins shop in Connersville Ind. where ~53 1940 models were produced,15 120's on the 1801 chassis and 38 180's on the 1806 chassis. Production than moved to Hess and Eisenhardts fsctory located in Cincinnati Ohio. (Connersville was converted to war work.) where 6 more 1940 180 victoria's were completed. The 1941 Darrin Victoria (chassis 1906 body 1429) 35 cars built, and the 1942 Darrin Victoria (chassis 2006special body 1529) 15 cars built werealso completed in Cincinnati.