Hot Rods Help! I've been offered (maybe) a hell of a trade for my 55 Chevy Gasser.....

Bigger problems to have, I know. This sort of thing never happens to me, so I'm looking for any constructive input or advice.

Buddy of mine got one look at my car and decided he needed it. He's 75 years old and this car he's offering is too much for him, he says. I've know this guy a good long while and he's always been super cool to me. Gave me parts for my car and all. This guy has 4 55 Chevys,. a 55 Chevy pickup witha 572, 33 Dodge, nasty jet boat, etc. He's basically a collector of really cool stuff. All his stuff is nice and well built. He does (did) most of the work himself.

Here's the deal: my car straight up for his 55 210 with a 6-71 blown SBC. Caged, tubbed, built TCI trans with a forward manual valve body, Narrowed Currie 9" with a spool and 4.11 gears. It's a Big Al's Toybox turnkey engine that I'm pretty sure is the 550hp 350 deal they have, but this engine has iron heads instead of aluminum (maybe because it's older?). Huge Be Cool radiator with electric fan, huge trans cooler with dual fans, everything you'd want to see on a car like this. Power steering. Nicer body and frame than my car, but the interior needs finishing and it's got racing buckets that will have to go and I'm not a fan of the huge tires and narrowed rear, looks like a real pain in the ass to take the rear wheels off (anybody have any input there?). I have initially turned the deal down, but I'm struggling with it. I trust this guy and what he says about the car, but I'm also aware that he doesn't really consider how long things sit and what that can do to them. I feel like he's doing me a solid with this deal since he's getting older.

What's the catch? Of course there's a catch. Car was built over 10 years ago and hasn't really been driven apart from up and down his road several times and from the back of his property to the front (he likes to line all his cars up on Sundays to wow the locals). It needs finishing. It was painted, but never buffed out. Still looks pretty damn good. Interior needs finished, mostly trim pieces. There is no heat or heater controls (my car does have heat, I drive it year round). Has front disc brakes but they're not power, so that would need correcting. The gas that was in it was OLD, but it did fire and run on it. It fired right up with a little starting fluid on the old gas, but was popping through the exhaust. Took it for a quick spin and the popping continued until it warmed up a bit. Once I drained the old gas and put in fresh 93, the popping has subsided and it revs nice and smooth. As an aside to how long it's been sitting, the gasket on the drain on the fuel filter was all eaten up and we had to put a new seal on it. This concerns me for the internals of the carbs (Carter AFBs) but it does seem to run pretty decent now. My worry is I put a few miles on it and shit really hits the fan. It also has a header leak on the driver's side. He also thinks it needs an electric fuel pump since he says it can be hard to get started. I think that's because it sits for so long between running.

Anyway, the car appears to be very solid. It fires right up and seems to run pretty well now with fresh gas in it. It goes down the road nice, but I didn't push it since I really didn't want to end up in a hedge in his car. His car is almost exactly what I wanted my car to be for a long time until I decided I could never afford it. I'd change a few things on it, but it is what it is. My car I've had for 15 years and have a lot of time and memories with, the most meaningful of which were with my dad (who died in 2015) wrenching on it with me. It's MY car and is a direct reflection of me and my tastes. It's also just a car and I realize that.

So what do you guys think? I'm not looking for someone to make a decision for me, I'm just looking for advice or input, particularly on his car. I feel this could either be the deal of a lifetime or one of the worst decisions I've ever made.

Here's my car:
https://i.imgur.com/Wnd7VLt.jpg

Here's his car:
https://i.imgur.com/tYibCOt.jpg

 

I do realize that, and the changes I would make would put it more in line with a traditional hot rod.
Appreciate the input.

 

His car looks too street rod for me.

 

I have to agree with @Moriarity
I love your current car. If I were in your shoes, I would never sell it, especially with the connection to your dad. You can't replace that.
The other car harkens back to the unfortunate "pro-street" era of a couple of decades ago.

 

I like your gasser so much better. But that's the opinion of a guy who drives an old beater p/u. But like @Moriarity posted the car you are considering isn't HAMB friendly.

 

I would at least ditch the spooled narrowed rear and huge tires, and likely do the same setup I have on my current 55 (Quick 9", eaton trutrac, 3.70 gear, towel city cheater slicks). Removing the tubs would likely be future plans. It is a much nicer body and the floors are clean. The underside of my car is rough but serviceable and the poorly done rocker job on the driver's side from the PO is starting to show.
I do love that engine. My current setup would not allow for a blower, too much compression. I could replace the rotating assembly and make it boost friendly however.

 

I’m thinking it would be one of those things you regretted trading for later. At least that has been my own experience.

But, if you did trade, you might also find that the manual disks actually stop better than making them power with that engine. I have swapped from power to non-power disks for that reason before.

 

Do you plan to go racing, or just drive around? I get the feeling your car is built how you want your car to be, and his car is built to be a badass car, that isn't really useful at all.

If his car was really a great car, he'd be driving it, eh?

 

Keep yours.
It’s way nicer than a pro street 55.
And yes those rear tires would be a bitch to get on or off.

Yours is the nicer car.

Plus you built it for yourself and if you had wanted it built the way he did his then you probably would have built it that way to begin with.

Go with your initial feeling and don’t trade.

 

As a guy who has amazing memories of my dad and I working on my truck, I can tell you I wouldn’t part with it no matter what the deal was. Keep your car.


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I like your car A LOT more than his. Also, I bet yours drives a lot better on the street than his pro-streeter.

 

Keep your current car - she's a beaut AND she's done the way you like it! You can go down a rabbit hole in expense, time, and hassle doing interior work and there is going to be a bunch of cost in redoing the rear suspension and getting rid of the tubs.

If you really want a nastier engine, take all of those costs your going to have to spend to change your buddy's car to suit you and put them into a new engine.

Finally, I'm sentimental. You are blessed to have a car that you spent quality time with your dad working on. I would kill to have that - my dad passed away in 2009 and I sure do miss him...

...my 2 cents.

 

Mostly just drive it, maybe a few trips down the track. It is properly set up for it with a dialed 4 link setup. I had intentions of running my local track's nostalgia drags with my car this year, until this whole Covid thing.
My car is pretty much dialed mechanically. It's right with lots of new or newer quality stuff. The only thing it needs is to have a good tune put on it by someone who really knows what they're doing. Floors and paint and body at some point as well, along with the new wiring harness I have that needs installed. But I can hop in and drive it whenever I want.
I think for one he's a little scared of it since he won't drive that 55 pickup with the 850hp 572 either, and two he can't climb over the cage anymore.

 

I would keep yours. You could always change your motor. My 2 cents. Ron

 

I agree with the most....keep yours....it is a one helluva car and as you mentioned, it is YOUR car, had it for long time and have plenty memories with it = irreplaceable in my book

 

Another thought. You say "this car he's offering is too much for him". In what way? Engine or whole car. If because of engine, maybe offer to swap engines with him and to even out the deal some, you do the engine swap and pick up any costs.

 

I like your car better, but it's your car and ultimately you have to make the decision . HRP

 

Your 55 is everything we Love, Period...
His in 1984 Was, The $hit!
Anything his has, You can do to Yours imo
Whole lot easier... Cheer's

 

I agree with the sentiment of working on it with your dad being a strong reason to hold onto it but I also look at the fact, that most seem to be glossing over, that you say yours needs what sounds like some pretty extensive body work. That can decommission a car for a pretty long time especially if you need to have it done by someone else where as mechanical changes can be done a bit at a time as time allows and can usually keep the car operational as you tackle them.

 

Since he doesn't drive the pro-streeted one, he wouldn't drive your 55 either. Just park it & show it off on the weekends .

 

The whole car. Too much engine, can't climb over the cage, and he doesn't want to have to tune on it. The guy is 75.
The engine swap thing did occur to me, but it doesn't solve the rest of his issues. I think I just need a blower!!

 

Ahh, the operative words here are rockers and floors. It sounds like your car has some unresolved rust issues that need to be dealt with if you want to move forward with it. I can totally see your point. De-streetrod his car or rust repair, body and repaint yours. Since I hate rust repair and bodywork I would look real hard at trading too. If you like the color and quality of the paint and the overall workmanship of the car I would trade and immediately ditch the narrow rear end and huge rear tires.


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Floors and the driver's rocker. I'd like all the paint stripped off and have the body gone over then repainted, but it's not full of holes or anything like that. It presents fairly well still. I think it's just how you get when you own a vehicle for a decent while honestly. Picking all the nits.

 

If there both runners why not just trade cars for the weekend every once,and a while? In the end I think you will be happier owning yours.

 

I doubt he would too. He's got a super nice chop top 55 with ac, power steering, etc that is a much nicer car to drive than mine. I feel like he looks as it as doing me a solid because he's getting older and knows I like that car of his.

 

That's an interesting thought. Or just offer to run it around for him occasionally with a for sale sign on it.

 

I like your car better.
That said, in my eyes your car has more value, pro street cars are a tuff sell nowadays.
Just my $.02 KK

 

To summarize, he's offering an unfinished toy with limited utility even after it's finished
in return for your car, which suits you, is usable and has all the bugs worked out.

Hmmmm.