1940 Packard Model 180 Eight Woodie Wagon
The distinctive wooden bodywork on this luxury station wagon represents an unusual combination of Packard’s premium engineering with specialized coachbuilding craftsmanship.
J.T. Cantrell & Company of Huntington, New York created the wooden structure, drawing from their pioneering experience with station wagon bodies dating back to 1915 work on Model T Fords.
Packard’s Model 180 Eight was powered by a 356 cubic-inch side-valve straight-eight engine, paired with a three-speed column-shift transmission with optional overdrive. The overdrive engaged automatically above certain speeds, providing smoother cruising and improved fuel economy for varied driving conditions.
Packard did not list a station wagon body as a factory offering on the substantial 180 chassis for 1940. Surviving examples were typically custom commissions, with some wagons originally built on smaller Packard chassis later adapted to the 180 platform.
This created an aesthetically appealing and mechanically capable combination that merged Cantrell’s renowned woodworking with Packard’s top-tier mechanical components.
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