The 28th annual Wings, Wheels and Keels (WW&K) is set for 8 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28, at Hummel Field airport on Grey’s Point Road in Topping.
- WW&K will have more than 100 antique, street rods, customs, exotics, vintage race cars and restored vehicles. Cars and trucks from just about every era will be on display, numerous aircraft and more than a dozen boats.
One of the finest examples of luxury automobiles is the 1935 Packard Super Eight convertible sedan of Glenn and Lona Trebour of Gloucester. Read below. - A special display of military helicopters is planned. The helicopters will be open for visitors to board and view the interior, said event chair Rusty Gill.
- No Limits Skydiving of West Point will put on an exhibition at 11 a.m. A skydiver will parachute in flying the American flag.
- There will be a free children’s carnival with unlimited rides.
- Food will be available for purchase, and craft vendors and educational information booths will abound.
Rare ‘classic’ Packard featured at Saturday’s WW&K
Gravity is a strong force. Mountains stopped settlers. Horses pulling wagons were not enough. Even oxen, the ultimate muscle power, had limits.
With the advent of “road locomotives,” automobiles conquered hills and distances as never before.
While most early “horseless carriages” were utilitarian, some were built to a higher standard — performance meant reliablilty.
With long frames with large tires to smooth rough roads, they had engines that could move 2.5 tons at highway speeds of today.
Packard Super Eight
One of the finest examples of luxury automobiles is the 1935 Packard Super Eight convertible sedan of Glenn and Lona Trebour of Gloucester. This true “classic” is the featured vehicle of the Memory Lane Car Club, organizers of the “Wheels” at the 28th Wings, Wheels and Keels (WW&K) to be offered at Hummel Field airport on Grey’s Point Road (Route 3) in Topping on Saturday, Sept. 28, from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. WW&K will have more than 100 antique, classic and exotic cars and vehicles, numerous aircraft and more than a dozen boats. (See related story.)
A driver
The Trebours’ Packard is not just a show car. It’s driven often. In 2013, the previous owner drove this fully restored automobile from New York City to San Francisco without a mechanical failure in the 3,000-mile trip.
This Packard is one of only 51 “Dietrich” designed models, blending art with technology. The frame is robust steel while the body’s steel panels are attached to ash or oak frames. It cost $4,000 in 1935, about $92,000 in today’s money.
It’s 19.5 feet long, riding on a 144-inch wheelbase.
The 385 cubic inch flathead straight eight cylinder engine makes 150 horsepower fed through a three-speed transmission. But horsepower is only part of the way it battles gravity. Torque, the ability to turn the drive shaft, is important in moving this 5,100-pound vehicle at 55 miles per hour. Its brakes are not hydraulic. Instead its brakes are actuated by a lever and rods and are vacuum assisted, helping the driver apply force to slow the car.
Caretakers
Since March 2022, the Trebours have been the “caretakers” of one of America’s finest automobiles. “Along with that honor comes the responsibility my wife and I feel to not let it sit hidden in a garage but to get it out on the street and to shows where folks can see it and enjoy it as an example of the beauty of design and mechanical advances of the luxury cars of the 1930s,” Glen said. “Sometimes, I wander over to our garage, grab a seat and just sit and look at our cars, particularly the Packard. At those times, it is no longer just a nice looking car to me but a work of art that can be appreciated for its beauty of design and hand-built craftsmanship.”
On the road
Driving this Packard is a pleasure and the Trebours will be participating in a four-day Packard Club of Virginia tour from Smithfield in late October. About 20 other Packards will travel about 300 miles or so visiting various places of interest around Smithfield and Virginia Beach, ending in an exhibit of their cars in downtown Smithfield. “Many consider our car to be a pristine example of how a restored car should look but, believe me, our car does not hold a candle to some of the other cars in the club. They are truly a sight to behold,” said Glen.
Advancement
The Trebours also own a 1931 Model A Ford roadster and a replica of a 1936 Auburn boattail Speedster, which will be at WW&K. “These three cars really point out the enormous advances the auto industry enjoyed in the 1930s.”
The Model A is a simple machine, powered by a 40 horse power four cylinder engine. Ford’s roadster is a primitive two seater car with a rumble seat, no windows, no heater and a three speed manual transmission that needs to be double clutched to shift properly, puttering along at 45 mph. Priced at $550 ($11,000 today) it was a car for the people, Glen explained. Ford built an astonishing 4.8 million of them from December 1927 through March of 1932 and their production facilities were located in America and 11 other countries.
Dating
Glen and the future Mrs. Trebour started dating in his 1930 Model A coupe when they were in high school, she a 15-year-old sophomore and he was a 17-year-old senior. “We are now in our 80s and married for 61 years.” Immediately after college, Glen was a member of the first Peace Corps group in training, spending two years in Chile at a school teaching repair and maintenance of old farm tractors and engines. “I still do all the work on our antique cars,” he said.
Luxury
The Auburn Cord Duesenberg company introduced their sleek Auburn boattail Speedster only three years after the Model A ended production. Its 150 hp supercharged straight eight engine with a two speed rear end was guaranteed to do 100 mph, and, at that time, was the fastest production car in the world, holding 70 speed records, Glen explained.
But, the Packard cars were the “creme de la creme” along with the luxury icons of the 1930s—Duesenbergs, Pierce Arrows and Cadillacs.
True “classic”
The term “Classic car” as originally coined by the Classic Car Club of America (CCCA) had a specific meaning, said Glen. “The car had to be a fine or distinctive automobile, American or foreign built, and produced between 1915 and 1948.
“Generally, a Classic was a high priced, top-end vehicle when new. They were built in limited quantities and were often hand built by the manufacturer or shipped to carriage companies as chassis consisting of frame, engine and drive train, grill, hood and cowl with bodies done by custom shops. No mass produced assembly line vehicles are considered Classics.”
Today, the term “Classic car” is used by most folks to mean any car older than 25 years. In response, the CCCA modified the term to “Full Classic.” Our “senior” Packard and the original Auburn speedster are Full Classics but the less expensive models of these same manufacturers are not considered as such. Two full classic cars that regularly go to Wings, Wheels & Keels, the Trebours’ Packard and Alan Merkle’s white 1930 Cadillac convertible sedan.”
