Packard greatly expanded its catalogue for 1934, from six models on five wheelbases to six wheelbases and a full nine different models. New fender contours graced this Eleventh Series, the fronts curving downward nearly to the front bumper, which themselves were heavier. Other changes were more subtle: hood door handles, radiator caps, running boards, better upholstery, and a fuel filler integrated into the left taillamp. In the engine compartment, there was a new oil cooler and an oil filter was installed. Provision was made for an optional radio, which necessitated a larger generator. The long, 147-in. wheelbase became available in the Super Eight series, and with it a line of catalogued custom bodies from LeBaron and Dietrich.

Among the 13 standard bodies offered on the three different Super Eight chassis was the four-passenger phaeton, as Packard called its touring car. Seating two in the cockpit, it had a rear seat wide enough for three, although it was considered a four-passenger car. The same basic body, with a counterbalanced rear cowl, was called “Sport Phaeton.”

Formerly in the S. Ray Miller collection in Elkhart, Indiana, this car was acquired by the current owner in 2004. The car has a thread of history from new, having been originally purchased from the F.B. Francis dealership by Peter M. Hacket of Foxcroft, Pennsylvania. An importer by profession, Mr. Hacket sold it two years later to Bill Blakeley of the Chester Cambridge Bank in Chester, Pennsylvania. Blakeley kept it until 1941, when it went to Joseph Sacks in Delaware, who sold it to W.W. Portz in 1954. After a few changes of ownership it was purchased by Bruce Robinson of Oil City, Pennsylvania, who kept it for many years. In his ownership, then painted two-tone green, it achieved AACA and CCCA National First awards. It was also designated “Outstanding Vehicle of the Year” by the AACA.

Ray Miller bought it in 1989, having seen it advertised in club publications in 1989. Originally beige with red pinstriping, Miller gave the car a complete restoration by the LaVines in Nappanee, Indiana. Completed in the 1990s, the car was finished in the two-tone red it now wears, and was shown at the Gilmore Concours d’Elegance at which it earned a Best in Class award.

Since acquisition by the current owner in 2004, the car has appeared at the Meadow Brook and St. John’s Concours d’Elegance, and has been maintained in very nice condition. The Packard Super Eight Four-Passenger Phaeton represents a rare crossbreeding of elegance with sport. Ready for road or show field, this one is eager to please a new owner.