From the last and most developed series of V-12 production, this club sedan was delivered 10 March 1939 by the Bush-Morgan Motor Company of Pasadena, as recorded on its original vehicle number tag on the firewall. It remained in Southern California until 1959, when it was sold to the famed Harrah’s Automobile Collection. After fifteen years at Harrah’s, it was sold in 1974 to Ray Hunn, who enjoyed driving it on many tours until 2003. A year later it was acquired by longtime Packard Twelve enthusiast William B. Ruger Jr. as what was still a solid, largely original, well-maintained and attractive car.

In Mr. Ruger’s ownership, the Packard underwent a full restoration by the noted Fran Roxas, in Iridium Gray with red leather upholstery, painted wire wheels, and wide whitewall tires. The work was very sympathetically done, with details such as the minor trim pieces on the dashboard that were satisfyingly original and thus left untouched. Under the car shows only minor wear from Mr. Ruger’s subsequent enthusiastic road use. Set up for such driving, the car is fitted with digital gauges, a turn indicator, and a GM Turbo-Hydramatic transmission with overdrive, an ingenious “bolt-in” installation custom-engineered by Mr. Ruger that can be digitally adjusted via a device in the car’s glove compartment. Should the new owner prefer a return to “stock” driving experience, the Packard’s original transmission is included with the car.

In a recent conversation, longtime restorer Chris Charlton noted that Mr. Ruger had intended to drive this Packard from coast to coast to “see what she can do.” The new owner should well consider such a journey, in a Packard that was built for adventure.