Out of the Future (1954)

[Music] e suspension is the secret of a good ride there's nothing mysterious about it a spring is as simple as a rubber band stretch it and it Springs back we TOS are suspended independently to give a soft ride coil or leaf springs are usually used on cars and they do a good job of suspending any one wheel that's where the catch comes the frame rides on the spring when a wheel moves up over a bump or down into a hole the frame moves with it not as hard or as far but it moves the result is is that the entire car tends to pitch and roll to reduce pitching the front and rear springs on each side would have to be connected leaf springs connected them in early days but this isn't practical for Motorcars neither could a coil spring do the job but here's another type of spring the torsion bar Spring this special steel bar is elastic and works just like a piece of rubber hose turn it then release it and it returns to its original position up to now torsion bar Springs have been used only on certain foreign cars and even then only on individual Wheels to replace conventional coil or leaf springs about 7 years ago Packard Engineers began to dream they knew that conventional Springs gave reasonably smooth action to individual Wheels but let the car seesaw over rough ground this is what they wanted to stop it took daring and determination to attempt such a revolution in suspension but they went ahead undaunted and they succeeded after years of hard work Packard Engineers have connected front and rear wheels on each side to one torsion bar Spring so the bar Spring flexes when the front end goes over a bump and its elastic action makes the rear of the frame rise at the same instant the wheels work as a team to keep the frame level the result is an unbelievably level ride instead of pitching like this there is a smooth Floating Action like this with the passenger compartment always remaining level you ride straight up like this instead of tilting back and forth this dream made real through the daring and determination of Packard Engineers has paid off with a Packard engineering first for 1955 that will rock the industry to see the difference between conventional suspension and the new Packard torsion level suspension let's watch a car with conventional suspension travel over a stretch of rough road notice how the front and back bounce up and down with a teeter totter motion now watch the car with conventional suspension followed by the new Packard with torsion level suspension you can see the Striking results for yourself notice how the Packard rides on the level the dream has come true at last here is a car that combines a soft ride with front to rear stability a combination never before possible torsion bar suspension with revolutionary refinements by Packard Engineers gives the new Packard a ride that has never been achieved in any production car not only does the new Packard stay on an even K but the ride is twice as soft as conventional springing try it yourself first drive the high pric car you saw bouncing around a minute ago as you travel over the test Road notice how violently the reter and the Horizon Jump Around now step into the new Packer drive over the same stretch of road and see how smooth the reter is and how steady The Horizon compare the two and let the ride decide let's look at the torsion level suspension on the new Packard here you see the torsion bar Spring it's mounted on the frame attached to the front wheel through a lever and to the rear wheel through a system of levers there's an ident system on the other side this system counteracts the tendency to pitch by connecting front and rear wheels so they work as a team in addition stabilizers or sway bars at the rear counteract swaying from side to side there is also a roll bar between the front wheels to reduce rolling the system of sway bars roll bar and torsion bar Springs is what reduces rolling and keeps the new Packard from pitching this torsion level suspension by itself gives the new Packard a fantastically level ride that beats riding on air but there's a plus benefit built into this new suspension by Packard Engineers you may have noticed a short torsion bar running parallel to the main torsion bar this and one on the other side are part of a secondary spring system these secondary torsion springs are connected to the rear wheels and to an electric motor as soon as an extra load is put on the rear end the electric motor automatically flexes the bars thus lifting the rear end back up to level position to see it work watch the pointer and you'll see the body settle under a load there's a slight time lapse while the motor makes up its mind this is a steady load not just a bump then the motor kicks in and raises the rear end to level position in effect the new Packard has educated Springs which automatically adjust themselves to meet load conditions and keep the body level Springs that give a soft ride yet smooth out pitching and let the new Packard Glide Along on an evener Keel than any production car ever built and if anyone is wondering if torsion bar Springs are strong just remember that they are used on some tanks in fact the new Packard torsion level suspension increases the life of the entire car because Road distortions are absorbed by the Springs instead of the frame this is the kind of car you'll be selling in 55 the car with the torsion level ride a new system of unitized torsion suspension that levels the load and Smooths the road this is your product the car of the future with a suspension that will rock the [Music] industry you

Channel: Detroit Historical Society

Views: 65,610

Keywords: Detroit, Society, Historical

Id: 8Sz0RZUySk0

Length: 9min 46sec (586 seconds)

Published: Wed Nov 23 2016