Hot Rods another whats it worth ? 56 t-bird

this car is for sale here locally. 56 bird. numbers say 312. its a single 4v with a 3spd and hard top
has very poor paint and shoddy body work. have not looked under it but can tell it will need floor work.
A friend of mine is interested in the car but not interested in a resto, wants to build a hotrod.
the asking price is $9500.
I really dont know what to tell him as far as its value.

 

That's a reasonable price for that car, I think. If he can do all the repair work himself, then it's probably a reasonable way to get into a classic Bird. If he has to farm it out, he'd probably be better off waiting until he can find a nice solid car that was neglected.

 

thats what I think

 

Asking 9.5 - as always offer less ! I"d insult him with a 3.5 starting offer.
Great deal at 7.5

Oldmics

 

Imagine if that was a 55 vette!

That seems reasonable for what looks like a complete car. As long as there is not a ton of rot hiding. Remember these are one piece bodies. But...lotta fun for under 10K

 

Definitely worth it. I’d try starting low too. Those cars in good shape are usually found in the 30-40 range.

 

I had one like That 56 T-Bird a Great Car, Drove it all over the East Coast
when I wasen't Riding my Bike
Looks like it has the Telescoping Steering wheel which is a Plus
It might have the Wonder Bar Radio.? if it does another Plus
mine was a Conv & it was the Same Color

Just my 3.5 cents

Live Learn & Die a Fool

 

Buy it!


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I think they all had the telescoping column, didn't they?

They are fun cars. and so many of them got so rusty....

 

I feel that it is a bit more than it is worth at that price. There seems to be a few parts missing and it is a bit rough. When you start shopping little Birds the prices are all over the place. You can find nice running and driving 56 Birds for about $15k - $18k, but you seldom see a barn find car like that one for less than $10k. Most average "restored" ones are less that $30. I would rather spend about $15k for a car that is better than that one. You can spend over $1000 to recover that seat alone. Power brake stuff for them is near that too.

 

If your buddy gets it,and wants something other then the old Y-block that is in it,I collet Y-blocks,it's what I run in my own old hotrod,point being,if he wants to trade the Y-block off? I have v8's,all w/4bbl intakes,a Ford 5.o or a FE big block Ford Thunder bird/plus a extra for parts EF,or Chevy 350v8,anyone of those for the y-block,but he'd have to bring "Y",come an get one in Miami Fla.
Even if "Y" is frozen,its still good for parts for me if not blown up,but all motors I have turn an no holes
.

 

A closer look reveals that the radio is missing.

 

Yep, radio deleted (now) - worth even less

You can bet your ass that telescoping steering collum is frozen in place.

Oldmics

 

Squrrel Not all had that, I have a Friend that has one in White
and His Doen't have it
My Car also had the Foot Control which was a Great option
I bought the Car in 1958 from a Pilot in Chicago
and My Brother Drove it back to NY
and Sold it in 78
I wished I never sold it, but thats was Live all about

 

Is it a southern car? If it came from up north it may have a weak frame and other rust. I once had a 57 from Michigan that I gave up on. So much rust that the body was about to channel itself. It had more bondo than metal on many places.
If it isn't rusty I think it well worth that price. They don't get much cheaper than that unless they are really rough or incomplete.

 

haven't looked under it, they do have a lift where it is at
I do not know where it came from but it has shoddy work everywhere these thing can rust
it was purchased on E-bay and the current owner got scared.
Im not scared of any possible metal work just wondering what it may be worth.
Its not any special dual quad or supercharged car but could be a good start on a cool rod

 

I tried to drive one once, looked a little like this

 

It looks like it has a manual trans,I think they made way more with automatics and the stick parts for them can get expensive and hard to find.

 

I lowballed a guy on a car offer once...offered him half his asking price (got turned down). Walked away, decided his original price was fair, but I got tossed out on my ear when I went back and offered to pay him what he asked for. Some folks don't like to be insulted. Definitely offer a lower price, but be careful....

 

Wouldn't even attempt to guess the value without knowing about rust. Huge difference.
SPark

 

It's got 3 pedals. Would make a great hot rod . High winding small block 5 speed. I would sell off the stuff the collectors want and build a one of a kind.

 

If the frame is solid and all the trim and interior is there I'll call it an $7000-8000 car. Fortunately lots of used and repro parts exist for them. A car like that warrants taking it apart and doing what's right for it. A 1/2 assed resto and you may wind up with a car worth less than what he paid for it.

 

all kinds of possibilities

I think he is gonna pass on the car
anyway, thanks for all the advice

 

I bought a 55' PAINTED, with rebuilt drive train. Everything was in boxes,paid about what your asking and still got the 30k into it.
If you just GOT to have it, only you can answer that. I haven't finished mine, but the love is there and I won't let it go.

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If I owned the car I would counter your offer with $15,500 and walk away.

 

I thought I read the other day that you just bought one?

 

To build a custom or hot rod out of the price is fair, offer 7500 to 8 for starters

If your buddy was doing a full Resto I would pass , as yes there are tons of repop stuff for ‘birds but just like vettes it costs money to restore one right!

 

If your friend is wanting a T-Bird to hot-rod Johnny up at Reno Rod Shop has one with solid floors, no engine or transmission, radiused rear wheel openings, ect. (405) 813-1932.

 

Assuming it isn't rusted out underneath, that is a good price. It also has a solid hard top (non-port hole). I have found this is more desirable, as most were port-hole and many were converted to port-hole. Plus my dad has had a '57 Bird since 1965 without a port-hole top, so for me, it is what I expect these cars to look like.

Also, check the VIN for an "E" or "F".

 

I have had '57's with and without the port holes. Not having port holes leaves a terrible blind spot, almost nailed a VW bug once. Back to the topic of the post. I sold a '57 in similar condition about a year ago for $10K.

Charlie Stephens