1956 Packard Caribbean | Jay Leno's Garage 

Jay: "Being an old man, I love driving an old man's car!". To us, you're not old Jay. You're just "unrestored"!

As a 60 year old Australian, that Packard is so amazing to me! What a fabulous looking vehicle, absolutely capturing the essence of 1950's America. What a time to be alive!

Leave it to Jay to find a way to take all over 3 million of us cruising in such incredibly cool cars every week and teach us some real history. I think this fact speaks to the character of Mr. Leno.

It's like having a neighbor who's a cool old guy with lots of neat cars and he loves to show them off and tell you all about them. What a treat.

As a 73 years old man I just want to say thanks for your way of helping one’s like me to understand how cars work. I enjoy your program so very much. Keep up the good work and may you have many more years of sharing your knowledge with all of us, young and old. God bless.

This is why I love Jay Leno! He has real understanding, knowledge, and respect for the motorcar. These Packards were outstanding!!!!!

Mr Jay Leno is not just collecting cars and motorcycles he's preserving automobile living history, it's a living museum everyone in the world should be very greatfal Jay is doing this for future generations.

In 1969, a great year for car styling, I was 14 and could identify any car on the road, even going back to Nash, Willys, Hudson et al. Today it's a world of beige that looks like a sea of logo. Thanks for showing us what cars used to look like

The "Caribbean" script on the fenders is so cool. It looks like someone just wrote it out, and they cast it, instead of CAD and CNC. That car, overall, is such a brilliant example of post-war technology and styling, and a excellent example of Packard's swan song. And the tuxedo paint is just the icing on the cake. Thanks, Jay and crew for yet another excellently done episode! I'd love this one as a daily! ✌️❤️🙂🇨🇦

Jay Leno and his cars. Damn. A complete video history of the most interesting and important vehicles ever built. That is a hell of a legacy. His garage will be one of the most famous and visited museums in the world some day. People will make pilgrimages from all over the world. NYC. Miami. Grand Canyon. Las Vegas. Hollywood. Jay Lenos Garage.

Jay is the best car enthusiast/collector ever. Some people have larger collections and some have more exotic collections but no one has such a wildly diverse collection. Jay's collection has to be my favorite.

Prolly the greatest looking of all the late 50s luxo-barges: truly magnificent, especially in those colors. FABULOUS!

I hope you didn't lose your one rear seat cushion. It was moving around. What a fantastic car . I like the hooded headlights. They had more overhang than the '55's. Thank you for taking her out.

Absolutely love Packard. Sorry to see them go in 1959. My uncle had a burgundy 1939 touring sedan. Rode flawlessly.

How beautiful. So subdued by 50's standard. Its like a tuxedo on wheels in this color.

I was never a fan of late night shows so I did not pay much attention to Jay’s show. I however never miss a episode of Jays garage . I love his passion for automobiles and the way he is willing to share his knowledge ,perspective and his collection for all to see. He is a first class gentleman to share his prized possessions with us. Thank you sir.

Jay, if you do nothing more than show us each and every vehicle in you collection you will be Golden. Everything else is above and beyond!

"Gas was between.19 and .25 cents per gallon. ". Sigh. I'm 73 and remember that. Pardon me while I go lay down and have a good 😢.

My father had a 1956 Packard Clipper 4 door hardtop in Turquoise Blue and White and chrome everywhere! It also had the torsion bar suspension which always leveled the car when people got in and when they got out. In 1965 the son of the Chief of Police was driving at night without lights and with myself and my older brother and my father driving, Dad pulled away from our Country Village side street and into 25A, right into his path and he hit us hard. The Packard was a stoutly constructed automobile but the drivers side front fender got destroyed. My father kept the Packard for many many years in hopes of finding the replacement fender. His Packard had Power Steering and a Push button transmission and a strong engine with dual exhausts and power windows. It also has a wonderful hood ornament that really dressed up the car as did the valances/mud guards over the rear wheels. White wall tires too! My aunt purchased the 1955 version in brown and it also had a push button transmission. and my Grandfather also purchased a 1956 version that was not fully loaded. Also in Turquoise Blue and white. What I remember most about Dad's car was how eloquent and beautiful it was.- Peter age 72

The side profile with the slight curve along the top of fenders and doors is beautiful. Gosh Jay standing next to the car makes the Packard look huge.

Jay, that sir, is one beautiful car. America really had their act together.

I hope that rear cushion didn't go flying out of the car, I hope you realized in time that it was coming loose and about to fly away. Truly beautiful car from an era when manufacturers actually concerned themselves with beauty and well as getting you from point A to point B.

Mr Leno, I really enjoy all your vedios. I'm 72 and i love the cars from the 50's & 60 's they have so much character. I have a 56 Chevy 210 Sport Sedan that I recently purchased. Your Packard is such a beautiful car. I love all the chrome.

My father was a "traveling salesman" at that time. He serviced New Mexico and the five surrounding states, running up 80,000 miles a year. He preferred the Lincoln to the Cadillac. He had a standing deal with the Lincoln dealer to trade in his car with 80,000 miles for the new one every fall. The world was a different place back then.

What a knowlegeable and yet humble Man....Good for you Jay: our best wishes of health and long life!

The Packard 374 was the largest engine from any manufacturer in 1956.

Is Jay Leno walking like an old man? I love Jay he's a national treasure, it's sad to see him get old. 😢 All my heroes are getting old or dying.

So nice seeing a Studebaker and Citroen Ds on the background. Topcars of my father who admired all Germans passing the frontier to Aachen and being admired with his wunder. Right now I follow in the aspiration of my father with my Peugeot 406 coupe . Just making a trip Netherlands to Portugal in my Pininfarina for the poor folks.

The perfect land yacht. What a great car! It is a shame this was the end of the road for Packard. They had such beautiful cars.

Gorgeous! I miss cars that don't look like every other car. I stopped watching the late show when you left. You had the warmth and humor that made the Show.

"This is an era that hopefully we will never see again, big giant cars that eat gas". This is an era we all wish to see it again, big beautiful cars with grace and style and liveful colors.

Wow, never saw it before but that is one of the most beautiful cars I have ever seen The dash like a Patek Philippe watch, the engine like a piece of art, really something special ! Jay keeps surprising with rare amazing stunningly beautiful cars!

This is absolutely my favorite car of all time. My father had a 56 Packard. I remember vividly when he first explained to me how the torsion bar suspension worked. I could look at that car for hours. It was my fascination with the Packard that led me to becoming a mechanical engineer. Thank you so much for sharing this video.

That is a gorgeous Packard! The Caribbean especially was a stunningly beautiful model and certainly not common. Also, the Studebaker Hawk that year had a 350 Packard engine stuffed under the hood, making it a real factory-produced hot rod.

Thanks Jay, what a gorgeous ride. I was born in 57 and it's an amazing thing to go back to the gentler times and see something as Grand as your Packard keep up the good work.

Thank you Jay, for preserving these wonderful machines, and for taking the time, trouble, and expense to make these videos to share them with us.

Sweet lines & TONS of chrome! What a fine color scheme. As you said, they were late to the race, but they had some gimmicks. Reversible cushions + torsion bar suspension. I always found the innovations in suspension a fascinating one. Thanks Jay! Your videos ALWAYS make me smile wistfully!

We had a '56 Packard in 2 tone blue. I remember us doing 100 mph + plus on the highways of Mexico the next year. It had a light blue interior with raised gold "filigree" and a foldout armrest in the back which evidently was considered a luxury back then. A great car.

Jay, without you, these cars would be almost forgotten. Thank you so much

This is the most amazing car I have seen in a while! Thank you Jay for your continual motivation in showing us the glories of a bygone era. I think if they had just gotten better three speed transmissions and air conditioning they would possibly still be in business. A '49 Packard limo sat at our house for years left by a man named Sid who was a friend of my Dad's and a continually inebriated house painter. My Dad said it needed something fixed with the valves or something (and not worth fixing). I as an 8 year old kid I wanted to get it running and drive it, but there it continued to sit on our 8 acre property. It had a massive straight eight engine and jump seats in the rear for third-row seating. What a cavernous place to play with my friends as a kid!

Sitting here with a smile on my face for all 18 minutes. I am lucky to be a recipient of your many talents Jay. Thank you for continuing to share your love of automobiles so we may all enjoy it as well!!

You didn't mention that although this had a 2-speed automatic, it had a lock-up clutch in the torque converter which gave a true 1:1 drive ratio and functioned as a 3rd gear. Also remember that the 1955 Chrysler C300 only had a 2-speed automatic and it wasn't until the middle of 1956 that Chrysler introduced the push-button 3-speed Torq --Flite automatic, which was only available in Imperials and higher end Mopars. Eventhough the 1955 Chrysler C300 only had a 2-speed Power-Flite automatic, that didn't stop it from going over 125 mph.

Love seeing one on the road where it belongs and not stuck in a museum someplace. Way to go Jay!! Only 276 of those beauties were built so it's safe to say probably no more than two to three dozen still exist. With beautiful and very powerful cars like this it's so sad that Packard failed and 1956 was the last true Packards.

Thank you Mr. Leno, for the awesome story of the Packard. That is the first classic car that I fell in love with, my father had two 55 Patrician Packards and I actually used to love the air ride suspension, years later I found out that it was torsion bar as well. In my neighborhood everybody had hydraulics on their cars and having the torsion bar suspension made it look like we had hydraulics as well. Thank you for all you do…

Pretty cool, I worked on one of these when I was tire jockey for Sear's Auto in the 1990's. Seeing those giant starter motors do their thing was very impressive. As a life long gearhead I was also impressed by the the rear sway bar system or Watt linkage?. I'll just say both. The sway bar/Watt Links system is made of three parts: a left and right link and a center pivot bar that is attached to the underside of the frame. The system is designed to keep the rear axle centered under the car at all times regardless of body roll and/or pitch. Pretty awesome stuff for 1956 and still awesome today. There's a pretty good photo of the system at Schmitt & Co. classic car gallery. Or. you could, maybe, add, reedit and talk about it yourself, please. If not, I understand. You and your show are still the best. Keep up the good work.🙂

I hope he didn't lose that cushion that blew loose. :)

Having Jay by himself talking about the cars is the best!

Hello Jay, I was envious after watching the video of your 55 Caribbean, and now I am even more so after watching this one about your 56. Your lack of specific knowledge of the workings of the torsion bar suspension and push button transmission can only mean that you have not had to endlessly work on them to keep them mobile. I have kept a few of these cars going and they can be troublesome. I am envious that your Caribbeans operate apparently without flaw. Congratulations. BTW there should be an unmarked toggle switch on the bottom left corner of the dash board to turn off the suspension for service, and can be used to set the rear at it highest point for driving over steep grades or driveways and not scaping the rear bumper ends. The delay in activation should be about 7 seconds so the motor does not react to every road bump, this delay is adjustable. There is a interrupt connected to the brake switch (most common failure) to shut the system off and stop the motor from reacting to brake dive. The cushions should have a strap with 2 snaps on each side. Sorry to be "that guy" but if info is not shared then it wont get passed down. Thanks for the videos

Thanks Jay. Brought back memories from childhood when my father had, at one time, 17 Packards, some running , some for parts. BTW, the Ultramatic had a lock up torque converter. Also, as you know, a torsion bar works exactly like a coil spring, but smoother due to how the loads are transferred to the frame.

Love this one! Fabulous automobile with the out of the box suspension. More and more I enjoy the oddities more than the mainstream. Thanks Jay for all you do to make these cars come to life. Your everyday man's approach is refreshing. Let me know when you need someone to sweep the garage floor for cheap! Im available.

Packard was one of the early pioneers in V engine building. They supplied the majority of Merlin engines for most of the British Spitfires and and the US Mustang fighter planes in WW 2. Packard also built the engines for the US Navy PT boats. They also built quality marine engines for years. They were also building Jet aircraft engines at the end. So why Packard was so late to the table with their V8 car engines, I will never understand.

I remember when gas was .25 gal! I was driving my mom's '65 Mustang 289 V8 in Twilight Turquoise with pony bucket seats. Sigh... At any rate, your Packard is so beautiful! I remember my dad always wanted a Packard, but it was out of sight price wise. I am glad there is someone like you who is entrusted with caring for such an amazing collection of classic vehicles- cars, motorcycles, trucks et al. & the kindness to share them with the rest of us. Thanks Jay!

THANKS FOR SHARING and caring for this Packard. The double-sided 'pillow' cushions didn't completely stay in place during your drive! I LOVE these with 'Caribbean' pastel color schemes. Black and white doesn't do the 'vibe' justice...unless you are a piano player.

Absolutely beautiful car, Thank you for being a wonderful caretaker of it. I always look forward to seeing what you are going to show up with every week

These videos are very soothing and educational. Thanks Jay. Kinda like listening to my grandpa talk about his 66 Shelby back in the day, nostalgic.

I drove a 1956 Packard 400 in high school ! Still love how that automobile looks. Very classy. Thanks Jay for taking me back 55 yrs!

What an absolutely beautiful masterpiece Thank you for taking us for a ride phenomenal car

Thanks Jay, love it when you go in detail over your own cars! As someone coming from a rainy country (Netherlands), could you perhaps occassionally show the roofs of your convertables? All the best from Amsterdam!

Oh, Jay, you are so fortunate to have this exquisite automobile!! The 56 Caribbean has been my favorite car from when I was 14 when it came out to the present day. No other car has been as beautiful!!

God bless you Jay for keeping the flame of vehicular love and appreciation alive. I learn so much with every episode. The mansion stuff with Donald is also excellent. Please more motorcycles. Thansk Jay!

Yup, at 13:60 one of the back seat reversable cushions cut loose. Needs more velcro. Hope it didn't exit the vehicle.😀

Thanks Jay, I love that old car! I'd daily drive it until the tires fell off and then pass it on to someone to restore! I know everyone was worried about that seat cushion taking off, but I was very distracted by the bent front bumper... on a car like that it would drive me nuts! I'd risk hurting the chrome to get those lines back straight. If I had the choice of any of your cars to drive, I'd pick this one in the top 3.

Thanks Jay! I don’t watch anything on the networks any more, but you are still a huge attraction for me. I hope you continue to enjoy entertaining America because it sure seems we need and appreciate your taking time to talk to us.

I remember exploring the remains of the Packard manufacturing plant-super sad for sure, but it is what it is. Love your car Jay!

Jay what a great phrase you gave us (I realize you didn't come up with it): 'An older man will buy a young mans car, but a young man will not buy an old mans car.' Great video as always and I hope you can do this for many more years.

Thank you for keeping true vintage cars vintage, where practical. The Caribbean is one of the most stylish of the 50's Boulevard Cruisers, but you might have to redo the Velco on the back seats, passenger side came loose, while you were busy driving. Nice, nice ride.

Thanks Jay for bringing out some nostalgia with your 1956 Packard Caribbean. My grandfather had the 1955 Packard Sedan with the straight 8 that you mentioned. It was an impressive car. Unfortunately, he passed in 1956 and his widow sold the car for an insane low price of $1000 in 1960.

1956. I was born, and Packard was done. Love that torsion bar suspension!

Love your channel. Very innovative suspension. Thanks for sharing these amazing cars with us.

I absolutely thank you for this love it please keep it coming

Beautiful piece of history . . . Thanks for sharing with us.

Remarkable engineering and remarkable car, I love the enthusiasm and detail that you show for these fine automobiles. Thanks for taking us along for this ride Jay 👍☮️🇺🇲

Always loved the 55 and 56 Packards. 13:55 Hope he didn't lose the right rear seat!!

Wew, what a classic giant yet incredibly elegant design. At first when I saw the front my thoughts were, “Wait where did I see that..”. The Russian GAZ-13 (Chaika) had triggered this since it is more or less a copy, especially the front. Quintessential for this car is the word. I can imagine big Hollywood names cruising along in these type of Packards at the time… Such a gorgeous car. Thank you Jay. Do keep up this type of content (oops you may have lost a rear cushion I think though, hopefully to be retrieved...)

Jay I have been a fan and follower of you and this channel for a long time. I have always admired your passion for anything automotive and industry related. I’ve been around and loved cars ever since I could remember and your collection and enthusiasm is one in the same with myself and many others. Thank you Jay for everything!!

Jay Leno thank you for these videos they mean more to us than you could believe... We love you and appreciate you keep up the good work as long as possible

Really enjoyed learning about this car. Especially the torsion bar suspension. My first car, a (British) Morris Minor 1000 from 1956, also had (front) torsion bar suspension. However, there the comparison well and truly ends! :) BTW, Hope you did not lose the rear seat back cushion, it looked as if it blew away while you were driving it! Nice one Jay, good on yer mate! As we Brits say......

Jay: "It's kinda interesting.." *Proceeds to show the most interesting looking transmission buttons I've ever seen..what a guy! Haha that interior is incredible, the whole car is incredible.

I have a 56 Packard here in England UK, Jay Leno...... You are a Legend with immense passion and great understanding of these beautiful cars. Thank You for this ans all your so interesting videos

Gotta admire these videos with contrast and saturation to the max. Makes a car like this look even more beautiful.

When the seats fall off in the back. Perfect. What an incredible car. Thank you for sharing this jay!

Thanks Jay! LOVE the hoist episodes! Jay, may I ask you to use a trouble light next time you go under?

What an utterly, painfully, deliciously beautiful machine. A work of art.

Hey Jay...greetings from Greece....Mr leno is a great enthousiast of cars...love him....μπραβο ρε μαγκα.

Hey Jay, Great car!!! Thank you so much for sharing! We love '56 Caribbeans! I was wondering if your snaps are missing to hold your cushions in place? Our Caribbeans both have snaps that attach leather tabs on the side of the seat cushions to a backer panel behind the cushions. Its always cool to see different presentations of color schemes. Great Episode!

Packard also made some great aircraft engines with the Packard-Merlin!

This car was a model for Soviet governmental 'GAZ-13 Chaika' (seagull) car. It had button-click automatic gearbox, and a Soviet-made V8. The tin which it was made of was so thick it could destroy any other car on the road through ramming. There were also armoured versions and 'high speed' versions used by Soviet special forces. The car also had automatic windows deliberately designed to be able to cut human hand's off.

Thank you sir for keeping these vehicles alive and showing them to us to enjoy 😉

Hey Jay, what a fascinating car. Just love that torsion bar suspension, and the style!! Who needs fins. Such an elegant car and due to that suspension it’s ride as you cruise along reminds me of the Riva Aquarama on water. An elegant, powerful glide. Not sure you’d enjoy the £9 per gallon here in the UK right now though.

Packard sure made some great cars. Anyone would love to have this car.

Great video that shows why America Dominated Industrial production! Fantastic cars that were leaps and bounds ahead of everyone else and Jay shows that pride in in every video!!!

I saw one of these at the Volo Auto Museum once in Illinois, and immediately fell in love with it. It was just stunning.

I realize it was a different time - still as important as Packard was to the war effort I am sad and a bit surprised as a nation we did not keep them going. As usual a great informative and entertaining video.

This, in my opinion, is the greatest ever Packard. You have to see one in person to appreciate its beauty and grandeur. The hard-top ones are equally attractive. I don't really like the color scheme of this example; they produced much more attractive color combinations.

I have always had a soft spot for Packard automobiles and thanks for having this one on Jay it is a beauty. You would think that considering all the wartime production that Packard did that they would have emerged after the war as a pretty solid and solvent company and easily able to reboot and get back to automobile production again but for some reason I just never happened and they were gone pretty much a decade later

Thank you for letting us into your hobby! An old car for an old man - that was funny!! I hope to see more of your cars, many years ahead. Keep up the good work. Best regards Lars, from Denmark.

Something of interest to share: In 1942, the Packard Motor Car Company converted to 100% war production. During World War II, Packard again built airplane engines, licensing the Merlin engine from Rolls-Royce as the V-1650, which powered the P-51 Mustang fighter, ironically known as the "Cadillac of the Skies" by GIs in WWII.

I like to guess from the thumbnails whether the featured vehicle is Jay’s car or a guest’s. There was zero chance this wasn’t Jay’s car.

That is a real beat Jay, thankyou for showing it to us. I like the bug eye you showed us because I felt like I could drive it, hit a curb in it and not be bothered too much. this one has class written all over it, a nice piece of art.

I was born in '55, and I've always loved the majority of the early '50's car's and truck's. Owned a few '50's and '60's vehicles. Awesome Ride's!