1956 Ford Customline - Original Engine and Driveline - Four Door Family Fun!

Do you like getting honks and thumbs up while driving? Do you like being unique and different when going to car shows and cruise nights? Do you love it when someone comes up and says "What is that?" or "You don't see many of these. " Then this is the car for you. However. if you prefer to be one of the dozens of 55-57 Chevys at any show. then stay away. If you like to blend in with the crowd. this isn't your ride. If you don't like attention. I'd pass on this one. With the pleasantries out of the way. let me tell you about my 1956 Ford Customline (we call it "The Animal"). I believe I'm the third owner. Originally a Texas car. the vehicle was bought from the original owner and brought to California about six years ago. I purchased from the second owner in 2012. He originally was going to work on it with his son. but lost interest when his son asked for a Scion instead of this classic (kids these days. ugh!). Odometer shows 20. 25. but I'm sure it's 120. 25 (heck. it might be 220. 25 - which would be less than 4. 00 miles/year). Mileage doesn't really matter for classics like this anyway (unless you have something ultra-rare with less than 1. 00 miles on it then you better not drive that car!). I've always been a driver of my classics. That's what they are meant to do and I've driven this baby quite a bit. I've put on just over 2. 00 miles since 2012. I try to commute in it once a week (usually my Friday car) as well as cruising around on the weekends. My commute is 25 miles each way on the freeway and I've never had trouble (well. I ran it out of gas once). The Animal cruises at a steady 65-70 with no problems and I get smiles. honks and waves every time I take it out. I love the way is rolls down the road and can easily cruise with one finger on the wheel and my other arm chilling on the seat back. I'll truly miss it. but know the next owner will love it. I know you're wondering why I'm selling. My oldest is turning 16 soon and he wants a Jeep (I'll say it again. kids these days). I found a killer deal on a project Jeep that I couldn't pass up. Problem is I found it a two years too soon. Can't afford two projects and don't have the space or budget to do both projects. My kid wins every time (that lucky punk). Now let's get into the juicy details. Exterior The Animal is currently painted in a dark blue with mild metal flake that sparkles nicely on sunny days. I've looked all over the car and it appears that this is the second repaint of the car (the first repaint appears to have been a light blue over the entire car. that was a close match to the original Diamond blue color - see more about paint codes down below. The car is a good 20-footer (looks great from 20 feet away). Upon closer inspection. you'll find small scratches and knicks in the paint as well as two places (roof and trunk) where the paint has completely come off (each about the size of your hand). See pics for a closer look at. Given the popularity of rat rods. the paint flaws have not been an issue. It still gets plenty of admiring glances and comments and I haven't had the time to strip it to repaint the car. If you are inclined. you could keep driving it as-is for years. There are two small bubbles on the rear quarter panel (see pic 6) which I would guess indicates a small bit of rust. However. the body as a whole is relatively rust free. There is also a bit of Bondo spidering (pic 7) in between the chrome trim on the rear passenger side. You need to really look for it to see it. The chrome is in great shape and is all there. The only thing missing is one of the carriage bolts that hold the rear bumper (still has three. so no worries of falling off). All stainless trim is there and also in near perfect shape. InteriorThe interior is in very good shape. The only exception being the driver's side door. The door panel developed a rip that was held closed with ugly duct tape. I removed the cover and found the original door panel underneath. I decided to keep it as-is with the intention of uncovering the rest of the panels and using the original as a template for my interior guy to replicate the original pattern and material. Never got around to it. I'm not sure if the rest of the panels are in as bad shape. I would imagine the driver's door takes the most abuse. so other panels are probably in better condition. Since I found original panels under the door cover. I decided to peel back the rear seat cover to take a peek. What a find! The original interior is under the seat panels as well (see pic of rear seat back). A bit of sun fading on the very top. but otherwise great shape. No rips or tears and color is fantastic. Lower rear bench as well as the front bench have original interior as well. My interior guy says that he could feel two tears in the front bench. which is probably what prompted the recovering. However. he felt no other tears in the two other as-yet-uncovered portions. Again. my intention was to repair any of the portions back to the original material. keeping as much original interior as possible. Headliner is also original and in great shape. The only tear is at the very bottom by the rear window where the seat and package tray meet. New carpet kit was installed by the previous owner. This car has seat belts! Yep. you read that right. While cars of this vintage had no belts. this one does. Two shoulder belts and a lap in the front seat. Three lap belts in the back. That'll let you haul six individuals safely and was a requirement set down by the wife if I was going to take the kids to car shows. Floor panels were replaced at some point in the past decade (probably just before the new carpet kit). They are rust and hole free and solid as a rock. GlassAll glass is in great shape with no cracks or pits. The front passenger and driver windows and wings were replaced with all new weatherstripping and frames. I have new flat glass and frames for the rear and small triangle windows. just never got around to installing. The windshield and rear are great wraparound style and look sooo cool. It really shows off the style of these '50s cars. Engine. Transmission & DrivelineThe engine is the original 223 inline six linked with a manual three-speed transmission with a column-mounted shifter (three on the tree). It runs great and shifts easily through all gears. It's a non-synchro first. so you need to pretty much be at a total stop to put into first. It features a rebuilt. period-correct 1-barrel Holley carb with the glass-bowl front. which looks bitchin'. It currently has a classic rodder-style chrome air cleaner on top. but I was going to eventually put back the period-correct oil bath air cleaner (see pics). which is in near-mint condition and included in the sale of the vehicle. I had the distributor rebuilt about 18 months ago and upgraded to a Flamethrower coil. I also kept the original 12-v battery tray with the oversized battery. A lot of these have disappeared and the tray alone is a hard-to-find component. Battery is less than a year old. I pulled the driveshaft and had it re-balanced and new u-joints installed by a race shop about two years ago. Really reduced vibration and noise when at freeway speeds. New gas tank. fuel lines. brake lines and brakes about three years ago. The Animal rolls on fantastic looking. custom powder coated 15" steel rims wrapped with top-of-the-line Goodyear wide whitewalls (over $300/tire). Chrome hubcaps are nearly perfect and the powder coating on the wheels will last decades. I get more compliments on the orange rims and wide whites than anything else. The combination looks awesome! Less than 3. 00 miles on brakes and tires. Extra Parts & StuffI have a couple boxes of parts. manuals and memorabilia that are in the trunk and will be included in the sale of the vehicle. Included are:Full seal kit (all seals required for a complete engine rebuild). I replaced the valve cover and side cover seals. but nothing else. All others are still new in the box. 1956 Ford Maintenance & Repair ManualIllustrated and Text Parts Guide for Ford vehicles from 1949-1959 (collectible)Parts interchange book (helps you cross check for parts that were common across multiple models/years of vehicles. great for the swap)Original owners manualOriginal dealer pamphlet and brochure for 1956 FordsDriving guide from Ford for 1956Original specification sheet for 1956 FordsA Bit Of HistoryThe Ford Customline was introduced in 1952 as a mid-range offering between the entry-level Mainline and the top-of-the-line Crestline (replaced by the Fairlane in 1955). 1956 was the final model year (and most desirable) for the Customline. The 1956 Customline's major development was the introduction of a 12-volt electrical system. Collectors usually seek out the 1956 models due to their 12-volt systems and the power options they can support. The car also received more of the Thunderbird’s styling. and air conditioning became optional. You can find a lot of T-bird parts that can easily swap into this car (and vice versa). The I6 223 cu in engine (knows as the "Mileage Maker") was introduced in 1954. Output was up to 137 hp (102 kW) in 1956. The 223 cu in (3. 7 L) I-6 was also used in 1963-1964 Ford Trucks which also used the Autolite 1100 Carburetor with stamping C4TF-E and produced 145 hp (108 kW) with 206 ft-lbs of torque. For those that dig all the specs. here's your treasure trove. VIN - A6DG215377 A = 223 cubic inch Mileage Maker Six engine6 = 1956D = Dallas. Texas assembly plantG = Ford Mainline and Customline series215377 = the 115. 77th Ford scheduled for production at Dallas for the 1956 model year. the first was 100001Data Plate - 73B - ED2 - B - 9G - 751B73B = Ford Customline Fordor SedanED2 = Colonial White (E) and Diamond Blue (D) 2 = (see more about paint codes below)B = blue cloth interior9G = scheduled for production on July 9. 1956751B = order numberMore on the original paint code: In 1956. there were two type of 2-tone paint application --- one was called "Tutone" and one was called "StyleTone". Tutone was offered on Customline sedans. while StyleTone was only offered on Fairlane sedans. The Tutone paint was a simple. one-color on the roof (above the drip rail) and a second color that started with the drip rail and worked down. StyleTone paint was two colors. but the color #1 was on the roof as mentioned. and below the chrome side trim. Color #2 was from the drip rail down. and including the hood/trunk/upper body above the chrome trim. A situation exists in that in 1956 the assembly plants. of which there were 14. did not do everything exactly alike when it came to putting information the data plates. Tutone was sometimes marked on the plate as ED or ED1. And StyleTone was marked as ED2 or EDS. Supposedly. StyleTone was not available on the Customline series. and the brochures show these models only in a sold color or TuTone. However. this particular Customline is a very late production '56 Ford. and it would not surprise me that the "rules" changed later in the year because for 1957 production (just a few short weeks away). StyleTone was available on the lower-priced Fords. I have searched in spots that are commonly missed when repainting a vehicle (underside of wheel wells and doors. as well as under the gas cap) and found evidence of Colonial White. There is also Colonial White above the drip rail. Diamond Blue is clearly visible on the firewall and inner trunk. All of this leads me to believe that this car originally was painted in StyleTone (#1 Colonial White roof and lower & #2 Diamond Blue through the center). I would surmise that this color combination is extremely rare for any 1956 Customline. It was my intention to take this car back to the original paint scheme since it is so rare. Maybe you would like to as well?NoticeseBay members with less than 10 feedback must contact me prior to bidding to ensure an honest and fair auction. I will cancel any bids placed by low-feedback bidders that have not contacted me. Pressing the Buy-It-Now button is not a mistake. it is a purchase. If the Buy-It-Now is used and the buyer does not want the vehicle there will be a non-refundable $250 charge. Please be careful when bidding as the Buy-It-Now costs the buyer and seller money. time and potential eBay customers. I have this vehicle listed locally as well and reserve the right to end this auction if I sell the vehicle. If you are in the area and would prefer to see the vehicle in person. I will be taking it to the Pomona Fairgrounds this Sunday (weather permitting).