PhilJohnson
Well-known member
The other day I stopped by a guy out in the middle of nowhere. He has his own private stash of pre 60s era vehicles. There are probably at least 50 different cars and trucks. I have bought some OT rides from him in the past but this time I decided to ask if he had any 50s cars he would part with. After talking to him for a while he asked if I had any beaters laying around I wanted to sell. I told him I had an AMC Eagle for 200 bucks with no title. He had no money. I came up with the idea that perhaps we could work out a trade. After walking around his place for a while and looking at about 10 different cars he mentioned he had a 55 Ford Fairlane that would run with a little work. I looked at it, while it isn't one of those cars I always wanted I figured it was neat enough. The guy wanted a little more that just the Eagle. So I told him about my 57 Chevy I had laying around. The 57 is very rough and there was nothing left of the floor boards. I had also striped the drivetrain for parts. He seemed really interested in the 57. He wanted the dash to hang up in his shop. So we closed the deal. I have to wait a couple weeks, the guy works at his own pace and in order to get the 55 out there are a bunch of cars to get out of the way.
From the looks of it I think I could get the Fairlane to run in about half an hour. The car has a swapped in 352 V8 in it. There isn't massive amounts of body cancer, my brief inspection revealed fairly solid floor boards. The rockers have bondo and were poorly redone using flashing and pop rivets. The brakes are shot.
I plan on using the car as a daily driver. I figured it would make a sweet 50s cruiser I could bomb around in while I am fixing my Willys Aero. Being an FE I expect the gas mileage to be horrible but I got a few tricks I want to try to see if I can squeak out 20 mpg.
From the looks of it I think I could get the Fairlane to run in about half an hour. The car has a swapped in 352 V8 in it. There isn't massive amounts of body cancer, my brief inspection revealed fairly solid floor boards. The rockers have bondo and were poorly redone using flashing and pop rivets. The brakes are shot.
I plan on using the car as a daily driver. I figured it would make a sweet 50s cruiser I could bomb around in while I am fixing my Willys Aero. Being an FE I expect the gas mileage to be horrible but I got a few tricks I want to try to see if I can squeak out 20 mpg.
..My 2nd car was a 56 Fairlane. Had more fun with that car cause it was a beater that ran it's tail off with a 312. I kept the local tire company in business that year!!! 
