1956 T-Bird

[botzman]

Hey all,

A friend of mine who rents an apartment from an elderly man who now suffers from Alzheimer's made a startling discovery while helping this gentlemans children clean out the house. Piled under mounds of debris in the garage is a 1956 T-Bird in original condition. I havent seen it yet but hear it is in great shape. Interior is "like new" and the body is dentless with no rust visible. Removable hard top and all the other cool stuff. My buddy mentioned I would be interested in it and was promised first dibs on it. Would be a nice project. Hoping they do offer it to me first. I was hoping maybe a nice old HD or Indian stuffed in the corner of the garage but no luck. Anyone familiar with these cars and know what I should be looking for besides the obvious before making an offer? Botz

[Hammerhead Pat]

Sorry I can't help you on the T-Bird, I was a early year Mustang guy. But I hope you get it if you want it, someone who will appreciate it for what it is and enjoy it. Seems like the folks at Barrett Jackson have really ruined it for Joe Schmo who just wants the kind of car we had growing up

[TylerG]

Textbook barn find, that's incredible. Even a Corvette guy like me can appreciate the early T-Birds. Does it have the 3 speed manual or the 3 speed automatic? I think it's also one of only a couple years that had the single headlight. Try typing in the RPO codes in google and see what you get, no idea where you can find those on a Ford though. That's a really amazing car though. The monetary value isn't staggering because they were so mass-produced, but the sentimental value on them is generally through the roof. A good quality T-Bird would fall between $45-60,000. A perfect '56 with the automatic and 312 engine went in the low $60's at Barrett Jackson.
Also, what kind of documentation does it have with it? Full doc is worth 10-15%.

[Bigincher]

Wow, the car is almost the Holy Grail of the classic American automobile industry....! 1955 was the first year of the Thunderbird, 1956 was first year for the 'porthole' in the hardtop. Restored copies can go for 6 figures.

[botzman]

Tyler G,

Thanks for the info. Still waiting to hear from them. Gonna check it out soon. Mike

[aceharleywrench]

Hey Botz,don't rule out the old H-D or Indian just yet.Have you seen the size of the trunk on those old T-Birds?

[Haulen Ass]

That would be an awesome project. I remember when I was in high school (about 10yrs ago now) I went to my buddies grandpas farm and in a barn he had old prop planes, an old cadilac, and there was an old skool Indian sitting in there among the other piles of junk.