Projects New family hauler- 1955 Ford Fairlane station wagon

My wife has been bugging me to get a station wagon for years. Having two kids and a huge dog we take most everywhere, we could never all fit into whatever cars I had. I started looking pretty seriously a couple years ago for a neat wagon, but I had some criteria. 1) it had to be decent. I didn’t want a huge project. 2) it had to be cool. I mean, duh. 3) it had to be affordable. Number 3 was the killer. Man, station wagon prices are pretty insane. For nearly the same money, I’d rather buy a 2 door hardtop! So I kind of petered out on looking and life goes on.

A few weeks back, I’m on Instagram and a friend of mine here in town list this 55 Fairlane wagon for sale. I knew the car, it was his dads for years, his dad sold it a few years back…that owner decided to sell it and had my friend Brian advertise it for him. It’s a killer color, and even being a 4 door doesn’t really bother me. Has a nice interior, decent paint. Nice running V8…it’s what I was looking for. I show my wife, she like “hell yes let’s go check it out”. So we load the kids up and drive across town. The wagon was restored in the mid 90’s. A nice car, not perfect, but a very nice driver. Has a stock 272/auto, modern PS and PDB. Nothing I’d really do but man it drives nice. So we pile in it, take it for a test drive. We make it about 1/4 mile and “BANG…thud, thud, thud…” Rear U joint came apart and drive line falls out of the rear end yoke. I call Brian, he drives down and is not super happy. He’s supposed to have the car for sale at the Goodguys show the next day. Naturally I ask “alright man, all bullshit aside, what’s the bottom dollar?”. The wagon was already priced fair but it went from a driver to not pretty quick. Brian calls the owner, explained what happened and hands me the phone. The guy was super nice, explained he really wanted to sell it and dropped the price 5K if I bought it as-is. Sold

So I trailer it home (everything I buy comes home on a trailer). Get a U joint ordered and back on the road in a couple days.

It had aftermarket chrome 14” wheels, Ford dog dish caps, and radial whitewalls. I knew instantly what I wanted to run and it wasn’t those. Today I got my 6.70-15’s mounted on stock Ford wheels and opted for a set of Mercury Monterey flipper caps.

So here it is, the new family loser cruiser. The kids love this car, it drives super nice and hopefully brings us some years of fun.

 

Damn! There you go again, Chris, making the whole rest of the HAMB world jealous....That thing is double-sweet. Happy cruising with the Family.

 

I love me some wagons. I've owned 3. Last one was a 57. Been on the hunt myself for another one. Great score.

 

What a great looking wagon!

 

That was a really good score! The hotrod gods were smiling on you that day, even if you did have to trailer it home.

 

What a cool car, you must be pumped. Love the side trim.

 

Been looking for wagon for several years, but have nor found what i want for what i can afford.

 

Don't you love it when the stars align? Congratulations on your two scores....the car and the wife

 

Looks great. Like your choice on the covers and the red wheels. Very normal for its time. Dash looks great too and the 12 volt upgrade is a nice addition. The stock 272 2 barrel was a snappy engine for the most part better for in town driving. If the distributor has not been upgraded to a 57 -up and you do it the carb is not comparable. You need to do both if it’s not already done. Great color combination too.

 

WOW!!!!!
First thing I thought of was...........lose the two 'extra' doors but, Man! it looks great like it is.
Children look real happy in that 'totally unsafe' backseat!!!
6sally6

 

I love opening your Threads @Chris, they always deliver a warm smile...Congratulations...that's a beauty and yes the new caps are the icing on the cake...you have a way with getting the look...

 

Wow, nice car, and you've already got it looking the way you want. Congrats!

 

Need a picture of the dog as well. Wish my '54 Ranch Wagon was as nice as yours. Was the rear u joint a "mechanics/bat wing" one?

 

What a beauty. A few of your very nice pics look like they,re straight out of a 1955 sales brochure . Long time since i,ve seen dust deflectors on a wagon rear window.

 

Gimme!

 

That car is ugly as a mud fence, and you wasted your money. (Sorry, i couldn't help myself, i had to be different than everybody else it's gorgeous man, and yeah the wheel change looks way better)

 

Note to self: break the car when I test drive it...receive 5k discount.

 

Bought a 9 passenger Ranch Wagon back in the mid 60's. The guy who had it just had the entire front end rebuilt, all new dual exhaust, then got it stuck in his driveway (mud) and tore the transmission out. I think I ended up giving $35.00 for it. The engine was tired so I rebuilt it and gave it to my sister to drive. We had that old wagon for 7 or 8 years. At some point I traded for a 56 4bbl intake. I always liked that old wagon.

 

That was way to easy...

 

Super nice!
That looks like it’s brand NEW !

 

We need to get our wives talking…mine refuses to let me buy a wagon…she says no woman thinks station wagons are cool. Maybe yours can help a brother out?

 

@Chris do you know if the frames and suspension are the same with 55/56 compared to 54? I have a good friend who has a 54 with a bad frame and we have found a 56 wagon parts car that has a complete nice frame and suspension in it.

 

Look closer….‍‍‍

 

Radial lookalikes... LOLOL...

 

They look like Cokers.
Radials that is.

 

Yeah they are radials. Which I know sucks. I’ve never bought a set of radials for an old car, ever. But, this car drives like a modern car and I didn’t want to chance ruining that. Plus they don’t look too bad on this thing. Flame on, boys.

@Moriarity the size on them is 6.70-15

 

54 was the first year that Ford used ball joint suspension. My guess is some parts would interchange, but not all? Just a guess

 

yes, the bolts backed out as whoever put that U joint in it didn’t use the little washers with “wings” you peen over the head to keep them from turning. My son found a U joint cap on the road, one bolt was gone, the other had about 2 threads left. Luckily the E brake cables marry under the driveshaft, and caught its fall. No damage aside from U joint

 

The front end parts are the same. You might find some minor body mount differences, and the steering column will be too short because of the '56 dished steering wheel. Don't be quick to throw away the OEM balljoints and some other parts as they are nearly bulletproof. The usual problems are the steering box, rubber bushings and rotted front crossmember.

I cut open a 200K+ miles balljoint once and it hadn't even worn the machining marks off... If it's tight after greasing, it's good.