I have a very close friend who has a inoperable brain tumor and will be leaving us soon. I will be helping his daughter in dealing with his fortune of iron. He has had a couple of 55 Crown Victoria's since we were in high school, lets say 1972. He bought them as a pair with one title. Neither one was running. The one that has a title is a "Glasstop" Looking to value them, any help would be appreciated. Thanks Ron
Can't give any indication of the value of something unseen and undescribed but I used to have a glasstop 55 Crown Vic and they are quite valuable to the right people.
Yea I know photos will be a problem They are crammed in a small garage side by side for a few years and are 600 miles away. I plan to be over there in a week or so and will try to get some pics. Anyhow the glasstop has been stored inside for 40 years it is black with black/white interior. All stock 292 auto. The engine had one head removed when he bought it so he put the head back on with new gaskets and drove it home, that was the last time it ran that I know of. Mind you that we were just 17 at the time, so his dad suggested that he just put it away until he could afford to do it right. So we fixed up the parts car , a 55 crown Victoria non -glass top put a 352 4-speed in it. He painted it a couple of times over the years and it is now red and white. It still runs but has the front wheels and drums off for a brake job that wasn't finished. The parts care was run with the glasstops registration for 40 years so I'm thinking they should be sold as a pair. Any thoughts?
I would try to get a title for the other car, it makes it much more valuable. Check around the net for similar cars for sale....also Hemmings, OCPG.
I would put the Skyliner's tags back on it and I'd buy a title and tags for the other one, even if I had to spend the money on a junk '55 parts car just to get those pieces. You can be honest with your buyer, most guys don't care, they just want a title they can register that matches a tag on the car. Selling them as a pair is going to be really difficult and will yield a lot less money. Seems like a parts car or a package deal is a great idea at first, but some of us with space out in the country or big empty buildings, we're spoiled on space. A guy with a small garage in the city who wants to fix up one of these cars, to him, the parts car is a huge liability and will cost him money to keep it somewhere. He'll pay just as much for one as he will for a pair. As for price, there's one for sale locally, a Crown Vic but not a Skyliner (so no glass top in it), looks pretty nice from the outside, tuns and drives with a 289 in it, chrome is all pretty nice and good glass/decent original interior, but the inner rockers and all the body mounts are rotted pretty bad. He wants $12K for that. Your prices will vary depending on completeness, originality and how rusty they are underneath.
Just don't part the car with no title. Even if you can't get a title to it you could sell it to someone in a state that does not issue titles for old cars. I know Alabama and Georgia do not and there are others.
Thanks Guys! Headed over there next weekend, will try to get some pics. Any certain places I should look for common rust areas?
You can go to www.hagerty.com and use their price guide for some guidance. I wouldn't strictly rely on it, but at least it's something. Condition means everything, and you haven't given us enough information to offer advice on price. Sorry about your friend.
The Fords had double wall construction in the rear quarters around the wheel so this is a spot prone to accumulate debris and rust. Also right in front of the door at the lower fender. Under the headlights collect debris and rust also.The front crossmember has a tendency to rust out at the bottom also. Lots of places on a Ford prone to rust, thats one reason you don't see as many of those as the Chevys in that era.
Don't part it out, someone down south may be interested. The glass roof is worth some pretty good money.
I was told by several 'old timers' that the '55-56 Fords disappeared from not from rust, but they were bought and exported to Puerto Rico in the late 50s/early 60s.... as taxis. It seems the Ford front suspension would take a much bigger beating without failure than the GM/Mopar offerings would on their poor roads.
Sounds like a nice pair of Fords. Not every state is title crazy, so don't let the lack of one become a big deal. Bob
Probate court sucks by the way....no offense....but a title service is much better. Pretty easy to title a car, if unstolen. Actually extremely easy. Ninety days tops to ensure no liens, usually less. Fees differ, but with age of car, and no appraisal needed...a hundred bucks is the best money spent...to sell TWO cars WITH titles. Those cars are fairly desirable.
Thanks guys. Tried to get some pictures but way too much stuff piled in the way. For now the family just wants to sit there. I guess we will deal with them at a latter date. In the mean time I will look into titling the Crown.
It's going to be difficult for a buyer to purchase a car that has "way too much stuff piled in the way". The buyer must be able to see, feel and look inside and under the car just as you would want to do if you were buying a car. The longer they "sit" like that, the worse they get.
Last year yes. I had a bill of sale parts car, that I unfortunately never titled. Never intended to. Next thing you know, I sold car project, and came up on a drivetrain for former parts car. I had to get a Texas title thru a storage claim. I unfortunately lost the original bill of sale. Luckily, former owner never responded to title service notification letters. Not the way to really do it, but it cost me roughly $130 dollars.
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