Were they Really this way?

Jwawhite

Jwawhite

Well-known member
Moving between cars, this old 56 is a challenge, how so? Did they all squeak, ride like this? Stopping? Have a power booster on 4 wheel drum but you have to apply some pressure to it. How about navigating corners? The ride floats and absorbs the bumps well, so cushiony...what about speed? 60 seems to be the end of a safe? limit..body lines? Fit?.. my, cars have come a long way!
 
Jwawhite said:
Did they all squeak, ride like this?
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as far as the squeaking, these cars were designed to be used for ten years, then traded-in for a new Ford. My '55 was 17 years old when I got it. Everything squeaked. Thru the years, I replaced window anti-rattlers, door seals, hood & door rubber bumpers, trunk lid seal, rear leaf spring anti-squeak pads, bushings & rubber in the clamps as well as all the front suspension rubber parts. It ended up being as quiet as a new car (except for my dual glass-pack mufflers) hehe.
As far as the ride....these cars are narrow and have a high center of gravity in conjunction with weighing about 4400 lbs, they are not going to be the best ride. The best you can do is get good shock absorbers, decent tires and good front end alignment. I have overload springs on my rear shocks and they really help a lot since those old leaf springs lost their arch long ago.

Jwawhite said:
Stopping? Have a power booster on 4 wheel drum but you have to apply some pressure to it.
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Once upon a time, my '55 had the old power booster also. Even after working out the bugs, I still didn't believe that it was any kind of substantial improvement in braking ease, so I eventually just removed it.
As far as having ability to STOP, I suggest checking brake shoe adjustment and inspect pads on the shoes to make sure they are not coated with bearing grease.

Jwawhite said:
How about navigating corners? The ride floats and absorbs the bumps well, so cushiony...
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Depends upon tires. I have used 670-15's, 710-15's (lousy ride and cornering), G78-15's (a little better), P205-75R15 (best so far as these are radial construction, but you suffer some loss on your outer circumference and difficult to install on the rear).

Jwawhite said:
what about speed? 60 seems to be the end of a safe? limit..
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I'm inclined to agree that around 60-70 is a pretty comfortable cruising speed on the highway. I had my '55 going 112 mph one time and was scared out of my wits. Never went that fast again.

Jwawhite said:
body lines? Fit?.
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There's a number of people here that will agree...the '55-56 Ford car body doors, front fenders, etc are not the greatest fit. I have been struggling to get my '55 doors adjusted properly for many years, same for hood & front fenders. It's very difficult to get the gaps even all around while simultaneously achieving proper open/close/latch operation.
 
Having owned a stock restored 55 bird, and a stock restored 67 Camaro (could just as well have been a Mustang) it's amazing to see how far cars came in 10-12 years. You can chase down a lot of rattles (start with the side windows and door weatherstripping) and the squeaks (if it's the brakes find a shop that can still fit shoes to drums). But it's part of the old car charm. It's also the reason people like Art Morrison sell rolling frames set up for modern engines. Guys who want a new modern car that looks old. And why big shops get $50K for a paint job, after the metal work to make panels fit to "perfect" gaps. So find an AM station playing oldies and enjoy the ride.

Dobie, I need those part numbers, my squeaks and rattles sound out of tune and I need them back to original pitch.

Dave, you typed faster than me.
 
I bought a low mileage 53 2 door sedan in the late 90's. A Flathead that I put a 78 Granada 3+1 four speed overdrive behind. The fit on the fender, door, trunk and hood seams were extremely good. I removed the nose for engine compartment detailing and everything lined up well on reassembly. I don't recall rattling or squeaking before or after. I have to admit that I removed the dashboard before I drove it much as the wiring was in terrible condition and need complete replacement so maybe that helped.
I did have a 55 sedan before that and the sheet metal fit was not as good.
 
Drum wear will affect braking. +.090" wear is far enough. The brake shoes on these cars can be centered but it takes one person to apply braking pressure while another loosens & retightens the anchor nut. Auto adjusters can be installed on cars that don't have them. This requires the car to be reversed with good braking action now and then. At each oil change is a good time to do that. If you manually adjust, they should be done at at least 10,000 mile intervals.

The old cars didn't have much roll control like they do now but they handled better than the earlier models did at higher speeds. 70 mile an hour speeds were pretty normal in the 50s. not so much prior to the war but roads had improved a lot after the war.
 
"As far as the ride....these cars are narrow and have a high center of gravity in conjunction with weighing about 4400 lbs, they are not going to be the best ride."


I think '55 - '56 Fords were more like 3400 lbs.

Sal
 
I believe you can never back, things are not the same. I had a 56 merc when I was young, tried to drive the wheels off of it, I would cruse at 60 mph windows down, radio blaring, pipes screaming. What beautiful memory. Now wind is to noisy to hear radio, too hot to drive in summer without air condition, I do have power steering on current merc, brakes are hard to push, steering wheel is too big. BUT I LOVE THAT MERCURY
 
"Gonna buy me a Mercury....". I love the looks also! My first grade school crushs' mom had one. Same as yours.
 
A lot of guys lower these cars using the progressive rate Ford Aerostar springs with the KYB shocks and it is a big improvement in ride and handling also there are sway bars available in 1 1/8" that help it even more. Spring part # is Moog CC850 around $55 a pair. Articles on adding self adjusters to the drum brakes are in the H.A.M.B. 1952-59 Ford Social Group cheap to do about $35 in parts. The 1967 Mustang dual master cylinder upgrade for drum brake 1952-59's is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXfXKlj2D1I&t=15s
 
My 56 Town Sedan doesn't squeak nor creak. The gaps are as they should be and the doors close with a nice solid thunk. It's ride and handling is good for the type of car it is but sub par if I compare it to my 01 Crown Vic. It takes some effort to stop and steer since it has no power assists. I'm glad the steering wheel is as big as it is because it makes up for the lack of power steering. It rides on 6.70X15's so I won't try to push its cornering limits but they steer fairly well from a stop with the right amount of air in them.
Oh by the way the car has less than 31K miles so in actuality it's only about a three year old car.
 
My first car was a 56 Ford. It was 8 years old when I got it. It was a pretty well kept car. A one owner, owned by the proverbial school teacher. I don't recall any rattles or squeaks until I had had it a while and hot rodded it. I think the doors, hood, trunk, body lines in general fit very nicely. But the brakes? Thats another story. Horrible. I think I even bent the steering wheel by pulling up on it while standing on the brake pedal. It would cruise 60-70-80 well but I didn't like to go that fast except on a wide open highway because it took a mile to stop. Never had it over 104.
I put disc brakes on all my cars now because I think being safe is more important than being original. Keep in mind that these cars are old now and you can't expect them to be as tight as when new because metal fatigues over time with use.
 
I'll agree the brakes are terrible. I live in a hilly area and the brakes fade bad. I drove to a car show at a local park that involved a lot of back roads and more hills. The brakes smelled really bad by the time I got there. Disc brakes are a must.
I swear the 51 Cadillac I had wasn't nearly so bad as this Ford.
 
I don't know about a '55 but my '41 with almost 300,000 miles on the body and frame doesn't have a squeak or rattle in it. Oh if I hit a terrible pot hole I may hear something but normal driving on city streets and interstate highway speeds not a sound.
 
Herman Munster said:
I'll agree the brakes are terrible. I live in a hilly area and the brakes fade bad. ......
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Even the newer drum brakes were awful. I had a little '71 Merc. Comet with drums all around... the brakes were totally worthless over 40mph. I almost spent more time downshifting the 3spd to slow the car than using the brake pedal. Solved the problem by increasing the compression ratio of the 302 and putting in a 4spd. Hardly needed the brakes at all after that. :rolleyes:

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When you compare a 55 or 56 Ford to other cars, what do you compare it too? If you compare it to a car built in the last 10 to 15 years, you do both a dis-service. Compare to other 55 built cars. Our 55 was no place near stock. It had custom wound front springs, lowered reversed eye rears, gas filled KYB shocks, and HD sway bar, and Granada spindles and brakes. When I walked up to the 55, I put my mind back to when it was first built. I bought a 2000 Lincoln LS new. The wife preferred to ride in the 55 because it rode better.
 
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