Temp in back of package car

soberups

Pees in the brown Koolaid
When was that 1953???

I started driving in 1988 and at that time we had several P-4's and a P-8 that were made in the early 50's.

My first peak season I was in a P-4 that threw a connecting rod. Back then, all of the cars had the Ford 300-cubic inch straight 6 engine, and we had entire replacement engines sitting on pallets in the shop. They had the car towed back....and I drove the damn thing again the very next day with a new motor in it. They could remove and replace an entire engine block in 4 or 5 hours tops.
 

JustTired

free at last.......
And I thought I was the only one who had problems with the old p-400. It was the first vehicle I drove at UPS and for a few days I couldn't figure out in the shower why my hair was so dirty and greasy.

About the only nice thing was the expansive shelf in front that you could lay out your next several stops on. Oh yeah....what about the defrost. Drove one 40 miles or so to the next center with the windshield icing up. Had to stop every couple of miles and scrape the front windows. Guess I didn't mind seeing the last of them. Then came the GMC P-500s. Death on 4 wheels (Not the Fords...they were great!).
 

satellitedriver

Moderator
I started driving in 1988 and at that time we had several P-4's and a P-8 that were made in the early 50's.

My first peak season I was in a P-4 that threw a connecting rod. Back then, all of the cars had the Ford 300-cubic inch straight 6 engine, and we had entire replacement engines sitting on pallets in the shop. They had the car towed back....and I drove the damn thing again the very next day with a new motor in it. They could remove and replace an entire engine block in 4 or 5 hours tops.
In 1987, I was driving a P-4 ,doing about 45mph, and the road had a 90 degree turn.
I pushed the brake pedal-( heard a snap)- and the brake pedal went to the floor. Thank my lucky stars there was a dirt track going up a hill at the turn and I was able to come to a slow stop, instead of hitting trees.
Those P-4's only had 1 3/8th's #2 grade bolt-(read as a soft shear pin)- as the only connector to the push rod.
I drove 5 miles-(sans brakes)- to a local hardware store and put a #8 grade bolt in it's place.
It was common for the gear shift lever to break at the floor board. The mech's would patch it up and I would go for another 300 mile drive the next day.





 

tarbar66

Well-Known Member
Those were horrid little vehicles. 4-wheel drum brakes that would lock up if you even touched the brake pedal....no back-up lights....port-holes in the roof instead of opaque fiberglass that barely let any light in at all....doors that were scientifically designed to rip your scalp off if you forgot to duck....and the ergonomics of an iron maiden. You couldnt have designed a worse delivery vehicle if you tried.

I like hearing the old war stories. My 1st P 400 did not even have seat belts. The micro brake was always a lot of fun too!
 

PhatAzz

Well-Known Member
Those were horrid little vehicles. 4-wheel drum brakes that would lock up if you even touched the brake pedal....no back-up lights....port-holes in the roof instead of opaque fiberglass that barely let any light in at all....doors that were scientifically designed to rip your scalp off if you forgot to duck....and the ergonomics of an iron maiden. You couldnt have designed a worse delivery vehicle if you tried.

OOHHH!! but they would freakin' haul :censored2:.
Just don't use the brakes on wet pavement.:anxious:
I drove one over 200 miles a day back in '84. 40 miles of it was gravel and 40 miles of chip and tar roads. Chip and tar were the worst when it started to rain. Everything up there is paved now and in a new P57:happy-very:
 

RockdaleEddie

Optimized
Hey every single trailer or camper or attic in your house has vent to let out the heat. How about saving your money on those useless ramair vents that jam more hot air in the back and just put in a good old fashioned heat vent in the back. Not on the side of the truck knee high, heat rises, put it in the clear fiberglass cooker top you hooked us up with back there. The End
 
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