Hard decisions have been made, score sheets have been tallied and a new car now reigns over the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. The 2013 Best In Show winner here at Pebble is the 1934 Packard 1108 Twelve Dietrich Convertible Victoria owned by Joseph and Margie Cassini of West Orange, NJ. We'll give you a second to memorize that name.
The vehicle that beat out a huge field of worthy competitors is special indeed, despite being relatively unknown outside of the concours set. A giant open touring car â€" typical of the American metal of this social strata and era â€" the very scale of Packard is massive by modern standards. Well-known coachbuilder Dietrich stretched elegant flowing fenders, closed in the rear, to encompass the Packard's 140-plus-inch wheelbase. Powered by a pristine, L-head V12 engine, probably pushing something in the neighborhood of 150 horsepower, the pre-war coupe is more of a stroller than a sprinter. But the judges aren't bound to take performance into consideration when it comes to the utterly patrician field of competitors.
A similar 1934 Packard Victoria Convertible by Dietrich received a high bid of $2.2 million at an RM Auction in Amelia Island last year, but it seems as though the car went unsold. Chances are good that this very rare breed of Packard is due a slight bump in value after today.
Congratulations to The Cassinis, to the officials at Pebble Beach and to all the attendees lucky enough to catch a glimpse of yet another champion automobile.
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