In the Dutch town of Bodegraven, the bodywork atelier JB Classic & Bespoke has created a true art object – the Packard Excellence. The development and manufacture of this car took 17,000 hours of manual labor, all of it commissioned individually by an anonymous client.
The American brand Packard disappeared from the market back in 1962, so today any attempt at its “reincarnation” is more of a tribute to memory than a business project. JB Classic & Bespoke decided to combine history with modern technology and used the second-generation Bentley Flying Spur (2013-2019) with the top-end 6.0-liter W12 engine producing 635 hp as a base.
However, the “donor” is only recognizable by its silhouette: the front and rear ends are completely redesigned, the door handles are integrated into a single line, and the rear doors now open against the direction of travel – like classic “suicide doors”. The interior remains close to the original Bentley, but the steering wheel now features the Packard logo.
The name Excellence is another historical hint: this was what the sedan from the French Facel Vega was supposed to be called, which Packard planned to sell under its own brand in the late 50s. Now this idea has been realized, at least symbolically – in the form of a modern one-off, which debuted at the Wheels Mariënwaerdt festival in the Netherlands.
The Packard Excellence is not just a car, it’s an emotion for those who long for the era when cars were created not en masse, but for a specific individual.