56 Chevy

[RussMS]

Hey Guys:

I may have a contact who know where a non-running 56 Chevy is that the owner may want to part with. I have not seen it yet but I am definately starting to get interested in pursuing this based on what I have heard.

All I know is: It is a 1 owner vehicle that was last run in 1990. The original owner still has it but may be willing to part with it if he can overcome his nostalga.

I have to assume: there is rust (possibly a lot). No tires and possibly wheels. Engine isnt (nor likely would I want to) salvagable. I really had my heart set on a 1st gen Camaro but I am seriously considering pursuing this as a learning car, though as a perfectionist will I likely quit working on it til its perfect.

Questions for you guys. What are the Pros and Cons of this era's vehicles?
What is a good price assuming all the above to be true? Any other thoughts? Thanks for any advice you guys may have.

[XcYZ]

Russ, I think the Tri-5's are equal to the 1st Gen F-bodys - true classics, you just can't go wrong. One of the nice things about the car that you're looking at is that is has a full frame which you can work on separate from the car. It makes it a little easier to work with over a unibody car.

The most knowledgeable person I know when it comes to building and modifying Tri-5's is Brent (Ricochet). I'm sure he'll jump in and help with any questions that you may have. :yes:

Good luck!

[almcbri]

here is my young opinion on this: I think starting a project like a 55-57 is a great car to take on. Very easy cars to work with. Very solid parts to work with. One thing to consider is Bel-airs tend to be a pretty expensive build if a lot of the parts aren't already there. I agree with Scott. It is great to work with a full link chassis where you can seperate them from the car.
It sounds like you expect perfection out of any project and I believe that is a good project to work with. Things to look for when going to see the car:
check the sides on the trunk pan(the areas around the sides and the area closest to the rear bumper in the trunk pan tend to be the first spots to go. Rockers, and door jambs are another area rust/rot tends to be with these cars. Of course floor pans. I am guessing this is probably a coupe. Check areas around the lower quarter section and reach under and in the inside and check to see if the lower quarters had rust at one time or current. I might be missing something? Maybe a few others can chime in on a few important areas to check. a lot of the 4 door bel-air parts will swap. Sometimes even a little modification to the parts will still work with a coupe.
It is kinda hard to tell what the car would be worth: $1,000-4,000 I would say. Depends on interior parts, glass, chrome in good shape?-very important.
Hope this helps:

Andrew

[Stuart Adams]

I agree, great cars to work with. Also the age of people that had these cars once as kids make it very appealing to sell if you need to, these age groups usually are retired with money. JMO.

[trapin]

I think you can buy a full replacement chassis for those cars from Art Morrison. If I'm not mistaken.

I love those Tri-5's.

Hell....who doesn't?

[RussMS]

Well my luck is running true to its course. . .

The guy that has the 1956 Chevy says he isnt interested because "ain't nobody goin give me nothing for it" says his sister. I am still trying to get the guy on the phone to at least let me take a look at it.

His sister told me he has a 1948 Ford Pickup he may be interested in selling, but I really dont think I want a truck. I may see it and change my mind. Who knows?

Still looking for a car and still working on a garage atm. I may be slow in getting there but I refuse to give up til I can take the "wannabe" out of my signature.

[Payton King]

There is a Black 68 for sale not far from my office. Looks like a real clean car from the road. I know of a nice 69 as well. Not sure of the price on the 68, but I think the 69 can be had for maybe 10.5 to 11.5. Everything works and a nice driver. If you are interested let me know.

[CraigMorrison]

Hey Guys:

I may have a contact who know where a non-running 56 Chevy is that the owner may want to part with. I have not seen it yet but I am definately starting to get interested in pursuing this based on what I have heard.

All I know is: It is a 1 owner vehicle that was last run in 1990. The original owner still has it but may be willing to part with it if he can overcome his nostalga.

I have to assume: there is rust (possibly a lot). No tires and possibly wheels. Engine isnt (nor likely would I want to) salvagable. I really had my heart set on a 1st gen Camaro but I am seriously considering pursuing this as a learning car, though as a perfectionist will I likely quit working on it til its perfect.

Questions for you guys. What are the Pros and Cons of this era's vehicles?
What is a good price assuming all the above to be true? Any other thoughts? Thanks for any advice you guys may have.


5,6&7 Chevys are very popular right now, and they are starting to fetch good money as modified cars. The BJ auction had a few that went for over 200K as customs.

There is a lot of room in these cars for wheels & tires. 245 up front and a 295 can fit in the rear w/o mini-tubbing.

There are lots of repop parts. CARS inc, Danchuck, Classic Chevy Int'l etc all makes a ton of parts for these cars, including every patch panel you could think of.

Replacement frames are available! We do a full frame for these cars that have all bumper/body/core/engine/trans mounts already on them. It is literally a weekend job to do a chassis swap. 0.94 G , 60-0 132ft, fastest slalom speed recorded by Primedia.

Great weight balance. Believe it or not, our car's balance was 50.3F/49.7R. Without too much trouble you could get 50/50 or better.....

Lots of interior room. Can actually cruise with 4+ people in the car. Lots of headroom for wide range of seat options.

Con's, the only one that I can think of is that you might have more body work (patch panel installation) than you would if you found a good 1st gen Camaro.

Here's some show&tell: http://www.artmorrison.com/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=GT55testing

Hope this answers some of your questions......If not PM me! :D

[RPO1LE]

I know of two 56 Chevs if that's what you are after. One is here in Ohio (appears to be a fairly clean car but does need to be gone over) the second is in central FL (also a really clean car that's been parked since the late 80's, complete from bumper to bumper and carb to pan) it does need a passenger side quarter as it was tagged fairly hard.

Rob

[trackzonie]

Tri-fives are great cars to build and work on. Alot of different options to go with and quite a few companies that are makning parts. Majority of the sheet metal can be bought or if not you can still find some decent rust free pieces else where. One are of rust to check out is above the headlights, a major area of rust and the bottoms of the doors where the water will run out at.
Kevin