Car pics too cool not to share
- Thread starter Squatch
- Start date
To me the pro stock hood scoop is a GIANT take away. Lose the braided hose covers and hood scoop and this would be a perfect W-motor coupe !
Aesthetically, I agree, but that guy actually races that car. It's a full coil over and 4-link car now.
OP
I'm struggling here, boys. Most of you know by now that I have an affinity for the '56 Ford. I have on numerous occasions announced that it is my favorite car ever, especially the 2-door hardtop version. I've owned several through the years, driving one from Washington state across country to New York back in '81. Anyways, I attended a large swap meet here a week back, and an elderly gentleman approached the booth where I was hanging with some buddies of mine, and asked me if I knew anyone who might be interested in buying his '56 Ford Fairlane 2-door sedan? Okay, now that he has my attention, he proceeds to pull out a stack of pictures of the car. It's nice. It's really nice. It's even the same colors as my hardtop project '56. I recognized the car, and asked him if he had bought it here (at the swap meet)? He had...last year. Paid $14,500 for it. Unfortunately, he suffered a mini-stroke, and now finds it difficult to deal with the manual steering and brakes. It's got an "allegedly" rebuilt 312 Y-block in it, backed by the Ford-O-Matic. He said it needs a headliner, but otherwise, the interior is very clean.
The gentleman said he'd like to get $10,000 for it. Said he just can't drive it anymore, and he hates to have it just sit. We talked about our love of the '56 Fords, swapping stories, and then he says to me that it's obvious that I know the cars, and that he would take a "reasonable offer" from me, instead.
Whooh.
I can afford to pick it up (meaning that I have the money, not that it's a smart thing to do). I could buy it now, thereby securing the car, and sell some other stuff off to replenish the bank account, or I could sell stuff off, and hope that he still has it when I eventually acquire the needed funds. Or I could just forget the whole thing. What pains me is the knowledge that I could sink $10K into my hardtop project, and still be nowhere near the condition of this car. Then again, I love working on cars, and generally prefer a shitter-car to a nice one. So many things to consider!
Here's a "pic of a pic" of the car. Opinions?
The gentleman said he'd like to get $10,000 for it. Said he just can't drive it anymore, and he hates to have it just sit. We talked about our love of the '56 Fords, swapping stories, and then he says to me that it's obvious that I know the cars, and that he would take a "reasonable offer" from me, instead.
Whooh.
I can afford to pick it up (meaning that I have the money, not that it's a smart thing to do). I could buy it now, thereby securing the car, and sell some other stuff off to replenish the bank account, or I could sell stuff off, and hope that he still has it when I eventually acquire the needed funds. Or I could just forget the whole thing. What pains me is the knowledge that I could sink $10K into my hardtop project, and still be nowhere near the condition of this car. Then again, I love working on cars, and generally prefer a shitter-car to a nice one. So many things to consider!
Here's a "pic of a pic" of the car. Opinions?
Last edited:
I'm struggling here, boys. Most of you know by now that I have an affinity for the '56 Ford. I have on numerous occasions announced that it is my favorite car ever, especially the 2-door hardtop version. I've owned several through the years, driving one from Washington state across country to New York back in '81. Anyways, I attended a large swap meet here a week back, and an elderly gentleman approached the booth where I was hanging with some buddies of mine, and asked me if I knew anyone who might be interested in buying his '56 Ford Fairlane 2-door sedan. Okay, now that he has my attention, he proceeds to pull out a stack of pictures of the car. It's nice. It's really nice. It's even the same colors as my hardtop project '56. I recognized the car, and asked him if he had bought it here (at the swap meet)? He had...last year. Paid $14,500 for it. Unfortunately, he suffered a mini-stroke, and now finds it difficult to deal with the manual steering and brakes. It's got an "allegedly" rebuilt 312 Y-block in it, backed by the Ford-O-Matic. He said it needs a headliner, but otherwise, the interior is very clean.
The gentleman said he's like to get $10,000 for it. Said he just can't drive it anymore, and he hates to have it just sit. We talked about our love of the '56 Fords, swapping stories, and then he says to me that it's obvious that I know the cars, and that he would take a "reasonable offer" from me, instead.
Whooh.
I can afford to pick it up (meaning that I have the money, not that it's a smart thing to do). I could buy it now, thereby securing the car, and sell some other stuff off to replenish the bank account, or I could sell stuff off, and hope that he still has it when I eventually acquire the needed funds. Or I could just forget the whole thing. What pains me is the knowledge that I could sink $10K into my hardtop project, and still be nowhere near the condition of this car. Then again, I love working on cars, and generally prefer a shitter-car to a nice one. So many things to consider!
Here's a "pic of a pic" of the car. Opinions?
View attachment 529458
Wow , That's nice ! Here is my 2 Cents worth . Buy it now .... , please hear me out Squatch !
Back fill the accounts with selling off the fleet of other projects ( even at penny's per dollar ) and enjoy tinkering around with a nice run able 56.
Car guys have one thing in common , we all know what it takes to make a nice car , but can't admit that we don't have the time , money , shop , physical ability ,or loving wife to pull it off . Slight tweaks to a nice Ford is better than trying built a ground up , rusty project car. Please don't try to spend the next 15 years with a major project car ! Additionally this 56 is nice and presentable , but you won't have to worry about it like it was a 69 Boss 429 Mustang .
Since your young like me , ( you know , the twin thing
) Enjoy driving it and tweaking it ! ,This car is penny's on the dollar for what it would cost to duplicate! Finally , Mrs Squatch is much more likely to love a 95% car like this rather than a project car. Wishing you the best in this decision .
JUST SAY NO TO SOMETHING LIKE THIS !!!
OP
Wow , That's nice ! Here is my 2 Cents worth . Buy it now .... , please hear me out Squatch !
Back fill the accounts with selling off the fleet of other projects ( even at penny's per dollar ) and enjoy tinkering around with a nice run able 56.
Car guys have one thing in common , we all know what it takes to make a nice car , but can't admit that we don't have the time , money , shop , physical ability ,or loving wife to pull it off . Slight tweaks to a nice Ford is better than trying built a ground up , rusty project car. Please don't try to spend the next 15 years with a major project car ! Additionally this 56 is nice and presentable , but you won't have to worry about it like it was a 69 Boss 429 Mustang .
Since your young like me , ( you know , the twin thing
Finally , Mrs Squatch is much more likely to love a 95% car like this rather than a project car. Wishing you the best in this decision .
JUST SAY NO TO SOMETHING LIKE THIS !!!
View attachment 529469
My '56 project isn't that much better than the one you posted, my friend. Well, it is, and it isn't. Everything you said makes perfect sense, but damn, I just bought an expensive (to me) dually pickup, and, and, and...
Aaargh...the struggle is real!
The best laid plans of mice and men = project car.
A bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bush = the driveable, potentially new to you '56
We all know there is no such thing as "done" with project cars. As beautiful as the proposed purchase car is, I'm sure there are things beyond the headliner that you can tinker with to make her your own.
How often do you get to drive and enjoy your project while you contemplate some "final touches"?
Most important question is, what does Mrs. Squatch think?
I think that's supposed to be "a bird in the bush is better than one in the hand"...wait, no that's a different forum...
Sell the dually , your heart didn't seem thrilled with the new to you dually and it's discovered issues. Hopefully the SRW Dodge Cummins is still in the fleet.
Hey , I know it's easy for me to spend your money , but if you have always loved 56 Fords you may not ever be in this good of opportunity again.
OP
Again, that makes sense. As for what the missus thinks, she wants me to get my arse in gear fixing the dually so that we can get a camper for the back of it. I had showed her the pic of the '56 and told her the story, but she really didn't seem all that excited about it. I suspect that the reason is she's afraid it will come home with me as yet another additional car, rather than a replacement for anything. Based on my track record, I have to admit that her fears are not completely unfounded.
Seems like a pretty decent price for a decent car that you know a little something about. The biggest issue I see is that yours is a 2 door hardtop and this is a 2 door seeeeedan....and that might not be a very big issue. The sedan is probably stronger and more rigid, though the hardtop looks a bit cooler with the windows down.
This should probably factor in your decision. Do you have a solid plan for finishing your Fairlane?
I'm sure it's not perfect. It's a 1956 vehicle, it will surely require your attention at some point and I'm betting there's items you can feck with immediately. While it may not be shit enough for you, you can't drive what you have now...but you can drive this one....immediately. Car's that you can't drive aren't really serving their purpose. I'm not all about instant gratification but you can enjoy this today, tomorrow isn't a guarantee and it's possible finishing your project car isn't, either.
Probably what this guy said if you ask her. She likely gets nothing from your project vehicle but can enjoy the one that's decent looking and operational. You can both enjoy it together on road trips.
Maybe sell these. I'm betting the dually is a fairly easy sell and you can probably get your money out of it. The project car, maybe not as much of an easy sell but I'm sure someone would go for it for the right price. Not sure what either are worth but I feel like you'd end up with more than $10k, maybe...
Just my initial thoughts on the matter. I'm sure you'll figure it out.
OP
I appreciate the input, brother. My wife loves that I am so passionate about something (automobiles), but hates that they take up so much real estate. We don't have a back yard, as much as a mini wrecking yard. Yeah, I'm that guy.
I'm also the guy that plans on getting to everything eventually, only to realize that "eventually" keeps moving out on the calendar. There are eleven vehicles on or around the property (street parking), plus a canned-ham travel trailer. It's no wonder she get frustrated when I start talking about another car. I think I may have something of an addiction to the automobile.
Again, that makes sense. As for what the missus thinks, she wants me to get my arse in gear fixing the dually so that we can get a camper for the back of it. I had showed her the pic of the '56 and told her the story, but she really didn't seem all that excited about it. I suspect that the reason is she's afraid it will come home with me as yet another additional car, rather than a replacement for anything. Based on my track record, I have to admit that her fears are not completely unfounded.
What all do you have left to fix on the dually? Is the transmission still out of it? This 7 on 7 off shift work has m skiiping past a lot of the more text filled posts so not sure if I missed some kind of update on it or not...
You're probably right about her fears of an addition to the herd vs bringing one in to replace one or two others... That's might be a hard one to sell, me thinks. IMO, it'd be worth it if you can convince her though... Just don't neglect to follow through with saying goodbye to the old...
Are you planning to cycle one or two out for this new drivable car? 11 is a bit much. I drew the line at nine, I think.
That car looks like it’s in good shape and at a decent price. If it was me, I'd have to decide if I was willing to give up on a stalled project car or two, and that'd be hard for me. On the bright side, this car looks to be ready to go, and I've figured out a drivable project car is much more fun than a basket case car.
OP
Tranny has been rebuilt. Just some relatively minor stuff to deal with, now. The transmission issue was something of a sucker-punch that knocked the wind outta me. I'm trying to get past it, and develop a little history with the rig. Right now, it's been nothing but a large expenditure, which more than somewhat tainted my view of the truck. I'm hoping to turn that around and actually start enjoying it.
OP
^^^This^^^
I absolutely hate giving up on something. Also, when that happens, I tend to lose money on it, which I also despise.