I am bringing this post back from a month and a half ago but this is a good example that the stance and wheels go along way to the appearance of a car. For me, this one is spot on.
In '55 the 292 was the 'P' motor as the 312 wasn't available yet. The 'bird was only available with the 292, in either manual or automatic tune. In '56 the new 312 got the 'P' designation.
I was 8 years old when the 55 Bird came out. I was already a car guy and thought the T-Bird was the most fantastic car there was. However, I think they really made the car even better with the 57 model. Fast forward to 1996 and I traded a stock 47 and some scratch for this. A set of radials, gas shocks and large front and rear sway bars and it drives quite well with good performance. Still drive it whenever I can.
Laguna Seca historics 2015, I had the opportunity to lap the pits in one of the auction cars. Was owned by TranaAm racer Ken Epsman at the time.......
Just looking at the photos, you can see that 55-57 T-birds can be either feminine or masculine. I have a Raven Black 55. Just doing a wheel-and-tire swap made it look more masculine. Get rid of the skirts and drop the front end, so it doesn't look like a boat riding on the water. When it comes time for a re-paint, my wife would like me to have it painted Peacock Blue, or one of the other sissy pastel colors, but I'll Stick with Raven Black. Driveability? My father was a CTCI member. However, he often left the T-bird at home and drove his 50-years-newer El Dorado to club meetings. Climbing out of the El Dorado and into the T-bird probably was a lot like climbing out of the T-bird and into a Model T. I'm doing improvements that will make the T-bird a better, safer driver, but keeping all original take-off parts, in case anyone ever wants to return it to original. Personally, I don't care to see a dozen cars, all lined up in a row, that are carbon copies of each other, only to scrutinize them for having incorrect hose clamps. I will say that the old cars are easier to work on, but it's not unheard of for new cars to go 300,000 miles without any major work being required, at which point they are simply replaced.
My 55 weighs 3,000 lbs., within 200 lbs. of 1st-gen. Mustang. A new Mustang weighs 3800+ lbs. Although the 55 is a small car, it has a wide turning radius; it's no fun making U-turns with manual steering. My son's 2009 Chevy Cobalt also has a wide turning radius for a small car. If you know how to read a map/have GPS, and know where you're going, you should have to make many U-turns. In my case, U-turns are usually necessary because my wife left something at home.
I like the smooth bumpers. Hopefully the tips of the rear bumper don't stick out like the stock bumper on my 55. I don't know how many times I've bumped into them, while moving about in my garage. Other than the exposed bumper bolts, I have no problem with the original front bumper.
Would love to have one but the last one I sat in I did not fit very well,I normally like bench seats but if I were to get one it would get first generation Mustang buckets. I did fit better in it then a first generation Corvette.
The Jalopy Journal
