Features JOHN D'AGOSTINO'S NEWEST: '58 PACKARD SPORTSTER..."RITA"

John called me Saturday night from Vegas...he was excited about bringing his newest creation "Rita" to the 50th Annual SEMA Show ! "Rita" has been kept at the Petersen for the last few months, and will go on display there after SEMA.

If you're at SEMA this week, you can visit with John and see the car on display at the SONAX Carcare Of Germany Booth #12161."Rita's" first competition event will be the GNRS in Jan., followed by Sacramento. NOW HERE'S THE REST OF THE CURRENT INFO:

THE STORY BEGAN IN 2008 as a Concept-Project on one of the rarest cars ever produced: a 1958 Packard Starlight 2Dr. Hardtop...only 675 were built !

But, Hall Of Famer John D'Agostino, had a vision to turn this truly one-of-a-kind Concept Car/Dream Car...into a chopped, massaged, lengthend, completely re-worked, 2 Seater "Sportster"...and in 2016 that dream had finally come true !

IN A CONVERSATION WE HAD awhile back, John told me he wanted to send me some never-before-seen photos of this fantastic kustom so we could give you a first-look, a "Sneak Peek", of this beautiful piece of rolling sculpture to Feature on the Hall Of Fame Legends Series.

YOU'LL SEE EVERTHING...from the early build stages to the finished project that became the beautiful '58 Packard 2 Seater "Sportster" Concept Car...fittingly, dedicated to one of Hollywood's most-beautiful stars: RITA HAYWORTH, and called..."RITA" !

IN ADDITION, I found the Original 2008 Interview that John & I did with our dear friend, the late-George Barris, and I've added that early-info Interview to this Special Page so you could hear that too ! SO, simply CLICK-ON-HERE and be one of the first to see all of "RITA" ! PLUS...you'll see the superb before & after pix with Oz Welch & Bob Devine as they work their magic on this o-so-rare '58 Packard Starlight Hardtop !

Many thanks to all...
Jonnie
www.legends.thewwbc.net

 

Thanks for posting. Very nice creation.

 

That sure is pretty.
Steering wheel made in Australia, carpet made from New Zealand sheep wool, hall of famer paint, interior, bit of a global effort.
I like it, it's very clean and refreshing.
Thanks for the sneak peek Johnny and John.

 

Interesting, I like the old school mindset thinking with the use of the 55/56 chevy dash swap but more so the way the way the roadster looking contours behind the headrest follow the humps of the 55/56 dash. I also like the way the top of the door swoops down on the inside of the car to reveal part of the outside on the inside. The color, the 56 chevyish swooping down trim, the colors in the interior and its design, the caps and tires look good too.

 

Cool - Thanks for sharing - takes a guy with a real vision to follow through and have such a unique beauty built - will look for it Friday while at SEMA

 

It's amazing how he can do so much to a car and not make it look over done.

 

Cool stuff.
I've been helping a buddy customize a 58 Packard Starlight coupe and this provides a bit of inspiration

 

Neat car, met John here in Australia this year when he visited, nice guy

 

kiwijeff...
You're welcome ! Thought you'd appreciate that New Zealand sheep wool carpet ! You are so right ! John wanted this to encompass all of the best quality materials/products that could be used..."class" all the way, and truly a global effort. That's why we wanted to share the "before-and-after" pix so that when it's viewed & photographed magazine-wise, you'll see how much went into it from the start.
http://www.legends.thewwbc.net/gpage62.html

Thanks !
Jonnie
www.legends.thewwbc.net

 

I dunno... He cut up what looked to be a cherry and rare 2 dr hardtop to get what he got.... The Packard 'flavor' got lost in translation. What's next, pull the fenders off of a SJ Duesenberg to build a highboy?...

 

I love D'Agostino's creations, but I'll be honest, I'm just not feeling this one.

 

Stu D Baker, low budget, Jalopy Joker, Mr48chev...
Many thanks ! All perfect comments ! John's vision always amazes me. And in addition, his ability to find cars that are "ripe" for customizing is always on-target. It's like he has a 6th sense at unearthing the "right car, at the right time"...and knows exactly what he wants to do with it.
Jonnie
www.legends.thewwbc.net

 

be sure to take a look at links Jonnie King provides above

 

Great builder, great build and a great job. I can't get enough of this one,it's just so brilliant.


Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

it's different ! on the fence if I like it or not ? It's Kustom ...sometimes you need to think outside the box ...
Keep the people scratching their heads... well done !

 

I'm on the fence also, looks like that could have been built out of any junker 57 chevy and look just as it does.
The Packard didn't hurt anyone to deserve that fate.

 

It's a nice clean treatment of the rear fins. I always thought the original styling was clumsy in that area with that "step" at the end.

 

Here's a few pics of @John D'Agostino's "RITA" at SEMA:

​

 

If you are referring to the red car at the start of the article in this link;
http://www.legends.thewwbc.net/gpage62.html
I don't think that's the car he started with, I think that is just a representative picture of what a 58 Packard Starlight is. The first picture of the customization process is of a car that is a light blue in color.

Bobby

 

'llbobbytnm said: "If you are referring to the red car at the start of the article in this link;
http://www.legends.thewwbc.net/gpage62.html
I don't think that's the car he started with, I think that is just a representative picture of what a 58 Packard Starlight is. The first picture of the customization process is of a car that is a light blue in color.
Bobby"

NOTE TO ALL: Bobby IS correct. The photo I used on the "Before & After" Build Page is a stock photo of an original Packard Starlight Hardtop and was used as an example of what they looked like in 1958. With only 675 built many never knew they existed when they were new ! That's what you'll hear John & I talk about in the Interview. http://www.legends.thewwbc.net/gpage62.html

Thanks, Bobby, for viewing it and knowing that was the case.
Jonnie
www.legends.thewwbc.net

 

I agree on the comparison to the 57 Chevy. The overall shape of the fins and obviously the trim is very reminiscent of the '57 Bel Air or 210. I personally have no issue with chopping up a low production Packard. The car was ugly to start with and this is a significant improvement. Though I'm not a huge fan of the prominent hood scoop, I think the styling on the nose is actually very attractive.

The biggest beef I have with this particular car are the overall proportions. The proportional ratio of hood to passenger compartment to trunk doesn't look good IMHO. You can call this car a "sportster" or "Sport Coupe" all you want, but it's not. It's a huge-ass luxury car with the rear passenger compartment welded shut. The trunk in combination with the rear passenger compartment is too much. What I think they were trying to achieve, or at least should have tried to achieve with this build, is to bring the Packard into the proportions of say, a 1956 Lincoln Mark II.


The Lincoln's proportions from a design perspective are much better. The decklid is shorter and the roof defines the space. The Lincoln also has a rear bench seat, and I think "Rita" would have been better as a 2+2.

On the other hand, if the goal was truly to make a "Sport Coupe", then the Packard needed to lose size. Take for example the Kaiser Darrin.


The Kaiser, much like the Packard, has a long nose and a small passenger compartment, but has a smaller rear section. If this was the desired result, the car would need to lose wheelbase and overall length.

Again, I love D'Agostino's designs and I think he's got an unbelievable eye for what makes a great custom. One of my favorite designers/builders for sure. I just think this one is a swing and a miss. My $.02.

 

[QUOTE

Thanks, Bobby, for viewing it and knowing that was the case.
Jonnie
www.legends.thewwbc.net[/QUOTE]

No problem

When I first saw the pic of the red car it looked somewhat familiar to me as I've done many an image search for 58 Packard's. As I mentioned I've been helping a buddy customize a 58 Starlight. Some of the mods we have made so far include replacing the original dash with a 56 Packard dash, adding a late model Cadillac interior, power windows using the 56 Packard ashtray knobs as window switches, reverse tilt the hood, remove fuel filler door and add hidden filler behind tail light, smooth the bumpers, custom grill, make the hood scoop functional with an insert that matches the new grill, smoothing up the engine bay, filling in body seam at upper edge of secondary tail fin, custom side trim, etc. The list goes on.
This has been a fun car to work on

Bobby

 

About 30 yrs ago I saw a 1958 Packard 2 dr Hardtop parked in a north shore suburb of Sydney NSW, Australia.....painted dark blue it was registered and appeared to be in use, not mint but not a basket case either.........would like to think it still exists in Oz.....andyd

 

Great analysis here! I think the car also has too much front and rear overhang, making the wheelbase appear too short, further throwing off the overall proportions of the car. D'Agostino's customs are great when they appear to be refinements of the original design, which this is not.

 

Late to the Party...Having owned two '57 Dodge's, a Royal Lancer from '61 to '65, and my current, naturally-patined, Coronet D-500 shown below & my photo archives here on the H.A.M.B., I always thought '58 Packard designer Duncan McCrae's "theft version" of Exner's '57-'58 Dodge fin was a bit much on the Packards.

But, I know S-P was strapped for cash at that time, with almost a zero budget, so he had to make the best he could with a hurry-up job to do what he could to those bodies which were actually carry-overs from Lowey's '53 design. More Info & Comparisons on the "Rita" Page: http://www.legends.thewwbc.net/gpage62.html

Thanks LttP ! And, btw, I loved the year's I spent in Little Rock at KAAY...when AM Radio was King !!

Jonnie
www.legends.thewwbc.net

 

Beside the secondary tail fin the 58 Packard had a few other "add-on" body parts that were used to try and distinguish the Packard from the Studebakers.

From working on my buddy's 58 the secondary tail fin is just spotwelded onto the original fin. They used the side trim to cover the seam on the body side. On the upper side they just covered the seam with an additional piece of trim. On the red car pictured above it is chrome plated. On the others I've seen its always been body colored. The dual headlight pod on the front fender is and "add-on" piece the converts the standard Studebaker single headlight fender to dual headlamps. There is also and additional "add-on" piece on the lower front quarter behind the bumper. These "add-on" pieces (as well as the hood) are fiberglass.



Sorry for the hijack. You may return to your regularly scheduled thread....

Bobby

 

This is a great post because it highlights just the extent of the ass-ugliness that was the stock version. "Rita" is still a good looking car. Not one of D'Agostino's finest, but a decent car nonetheless, and honestly, that's a tremendous achievement in itself.

 

I surely appreciate all the work that was done, as well as the critiques. This one just misses a bit for me and I can't quite describe why. Not my car, though,so I hope John truly enjoys it and kudos for pushing the envelope out a bit.

 

chryslerfan55, rob-redm, , 57JoFoMoPar, HEMI32, froghawk, andydodge, 5window, and all who've taken the time to Post here ! All comments are always welcome ! Hey, we're all in this together, that's what makes a Custom a Custom, AND, the H.A.M.B. so great !

I've heard from many who were actually at SEMA, saw "Rita" & John at the Sonax display, and were truly impressed by the labor-intensive amount of work that went into it. Said you had to see it "in-person" to know how beautiful it looked up-close, and how cool it was to have seen the "before" pix on the "Rita" page.
http://www.legends.thewwbc.net/gpage62.html
Again, sincere thanks for all your thoughts & opinions,
Jonnie
www.legends.thewwbc.net

 

The fact that it resembles a typical dime-a-1000 chevy doesn't help.