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Classic/Antique Car Repair/1935 Packard Super Eight

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Expert: Paul Wilczynski - 7/22/2009


Question
Hello,

My question is.
This car is negative ground as you know. I put a coil on and was not sure if I hooked it up right. Does the + term on the coil get the wire from the ignition? Then does the - wire go the the distributor term? Are all condensers the same 12-6 volt? This car has been in the family for 25 years and I am its care taker now. It only has 46,000 miles on it. Next time I take something apart I will pay more attention.

Thank you for the help!
Scott

Answer
You are correct, Scott--minus to distributor points. All condensors are not the same, but all have the same function. You should be able to get it to run again using a variety of condensers temporarily until you source a proper replacement unit.

--Paul

Classic/Antique Car Repair

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Paul Wilczynski

Expertise

Most questions involving vintage car restoration, mechanical and body, paint and upholstery. Parts sourcing. Extensive experience in wood-bodied station wagons, British and French cars of the '40s through '70s. Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow, Sunbeam Alpine and Tiger, Citroen Maserati, VW Beetle, 1955-65 Chevrolet (especially Nomad station wagons), Corvair.

Experience

Wide-ranging and long-term. I owned a restoration shop in the 1970s, continue to dabble in vintage exotics. At one time, had a seven-car collection of contemporary exotics which I had restored and maintained myself. When I was 18 years old, I designed a woodie kit for the VW Beetle, which I developed into a product which was featured on television and in over 100 magazines and 25 books at last count. I still own and drive one of my creations. I owned a design and fabrication consultancy from 1982-2002, specializing in show car fabrication for manufacturers including Ford, Mazda, GM, Subaru, Mitsubishi, etc. Since 2003, I have been a department manager in Industrial Design, and a full-time instructor in automotive design and fabrication at the university level. My students go on to design automobiles as staff designers for major auto manufacturers worldwide.

Organizations
Western Automotive Journalists, Industrial Design Society of America.

Publications
Long list of magazines and books, including Playboy, VW Trends, VW Greats, Hot VWs, and European automotive magazines.

Education/Credentials
I teach design and fabrication at university level. My education is in Industrial Design, University of Illinois (1966-1970).

Awards and Honors
Many awards for restorations in local concours and shows.

Past/Present Clients
Mazda, Ford, GM, Subaru, Mitsubishi, Honda, Toyota, Chrysler, Mercedes, Porsche.

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