Peter Gariepy 1,267 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Stumbled on this recently. Not moved in 3+ years. Going back to see it again tomorrow. What should I look for? https://www.nadaguides.com/Cars/1955/ford/country-squire/4-door-station-wagon-8-passenger/Values 1 Link to post Share on other sites
PlymouthPE 35 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Look for the exit and run! 9 3 Link to post Share on other sites
rocketraider 671 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 That's a 53, not a 55. Anything available for 53 passenger car should apply to the Squire except for wagon-specific stuff. The woodgrain outline mouldings may be dicey if they're missing. Driveline present? Flathead is easy as it gets. Keep in mind 53 won't have many creature comforts we take for granted. Fordomatic reasonably common, power steering and brakes not so much though a Squire would be likely to have them. *edit* Looks like a lot of missing or unusable glass that might be hard to source. Is this a Southwest car? As in dry and reasonably clean sheetmetal? Link to post Share on other sites
zepher 845 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Front end is definitely '53. And remember, the '53s were still 6v cars. If it's missing dash pieces the clock for '53 can be hard to find and the V in all the emblems was gold plated for Ford's 50th anniversary. Link to post Share on other sites
vermontboy 267 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 The misalignment of the door trim shown could indicate accident or corrosion damage - not a good sign. Link to post Share on other sites
Rusty_OToole 2,077 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 A better car. 4 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Roger Walling 668 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 The frame on 55's were often rotted. Tap the bottom of the frame under the doors and the front crossmember. The "wood trim is VERY hard to find. ( A 55 front cross member is made of unobtanium.) Link to post Share on other sites
SC38DLS 1,746 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Two of the door handles and the steering wheel look ok. Not so sure about the rest, rust of frame would be biggest worry. Plus a ton of work on the rest. Are they giving it to you or at least very low cost. It’s going to take a good amount of cash for parts. dave s 1 Link to post Share on other sites
58L-Y8 1,889 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 The advice to "look for the best car you can find for the money" should be primary when considering any old car. Unless the specific cars is ultra-rare, low-production or a one-off, there are always good survivors of any make, year and model of production cars available. If the 1953 Ford Country Squire has special meaning for you, pursue one it much better, more complete condition that this car, which looks, at most, to be a parts car. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
playswithbrass 241 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Mice? Erica 1 Link to post Share on other sites
GregLaR 2,551 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 A great looking car when all back together! 3 Link to post Share on other sites
John S. 1,018 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Does it have an engine? See if it is free, or locked up. 3 Speed, or Ford O Matic ? Plenty of Flathead parts available. As far as trim for the Country Squire, I don't know. Interesting project you are looking at. Link to post Share on other sites
46 woodie 795 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 Finding parts can be a nightmare. The restoration on this car may cost more than the car is worth. In the first picture, why does the front wheel look like it's too far back in the wheel well? 1 Link to post Share on other sites
46 woodie 795 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 The car looks like an early '53. In mid year they went from real wood trim applied over Di-Noc simulated wood as the car pictured has. In late '53, wood grained fiberglass trim was used in place of wood. The wood can be fabricated, but finding fiberglass trim is impossible. The glass is mostly flat, so that's not an issue. The lift gate glass will be hard to find if it's un-usable. As others have stated, it's a beautiful car when restored, especially the early, "real wood" cars. Link to post Share on other sites
Peter Gariepy 1,267 Posted January 20 Author Share Posted January 20 FYI: Looked worse in the light. Floors and frame are cheese. Hard pass... But it was fun to consider. 4 Link to post Share on other sites
TexasJohn55 114 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 (edited) 4 minutes ago, Peter Gariepy said: Floors and frame are cheese. As in "Swiss" ?🙂 or cottage or cheddar or blue ...... Edited January 20 by TexasJohn55 (see edit history) Link to post Share on other sites
Peter Gariepy 1,267 Posted January 20 Author Share Posted January 20 47 minutes ago, TexasJohn55 said: As in "Swiss" ?🙂 or cottage or cheddar or blue ...... Yes. The floors are not Gouda. 6 Link to post Share on other sites
padgett 2,262 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 "what should I look for ?" a '57. Link to post Share on other sites
rocketraider 671 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 Any 50s-60s Squire- Falcon, Fairlane or Galaxie-based- is an interesting car to own. Country Sedans and Ranch Wagons too. But I dig longroofs. And the Ranchero trucklet variants too. Link to post Share on other sites
Bill Stoneberg 1,321 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 Dont forget the search is the best part of buying an old car.. After you buy it, its work. 4 Link to post Share on other sites
lump 838 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 I agree with the "pass" decision on this one. And I'll admit that I really enjoy following your threads about your search for a project. Thanks for sharing, Peter. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
Hudsy Wudsy 653 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 Peter, you're a nice person. You deserve better. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
TexasJohn55 114 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 25 minutes ago, Hudsy Wudsy said: Peter, you're a nice person. You deserve better. “That’s a joke, I say that’s a joke son” 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Marty Roth 2,809 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 16 hours ago, Peter Gariepy said: FYI: Looked worse in the light. Floors and frame are cheese. Hard pass... But it was fun to consider. Peter, you made the right decision. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
Hudsy Wudsy 653 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 Also, it's always important to remember the bad when you are envisioning the good. I never knew of a fifties wagon that didn't rattle so much that it would drive a person crazy. Link to post Share on other sites
knee-action 62 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 I enjoyed Mr. Walling's reference to the metal "Unobtanium". True, so true. On 1/19/2021 at 3:58 PM, Roger Walling said: The frame on 55's were often rotted. Tap the bottom of the frame under the doors and the front crossmember. The "wood trim is VERY hard to find. ( A 55 front cross member is made of unobtanium.) Link to post Share on other sites
54vicky 78 Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 not that it matters but it was not a 55 as several mentioned.the front cross member was a problem(rust) from 54-56 but there are replacements available.agree on the choice of letting it rust in peace 1 Link to post Share on other sites
28 Chrysler 552 Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 1969: My first car was the 1954 version, rust 1/3 the way up, rotted wood with matching carpet, good old "BONDO" water jacket sealer on both sides of the block. I got a good deal on it $5 and came with a full tank of gas. Counting for inflation offer $95 and a credit for 20 gallons of gas. Link to post Share on other sites
JamesR 1,087 Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 Quote What should I look for? Sorry the car didn't work out. FYI, however, rear decking is hard to find for Ford wagons of this era. Possibly impossible to find, but let me know if that isn't the case. I know that you can find repops of it for tri-five Chevy wagons. Therefore, I had to refurbish the decking on my '54 Ranch Wagon. It was heavily cracked, with cracked edges distorting significantly, so I had to take the decking off and sand it down and fill in the cracks. Coated it with a "Gravel Gard" product from Britain, and put on an earth tone top coat. Doesn't look factory, but looks pretty presentable, and has held up well for about 14 years (though it gets little use.) The one thing I see that tends look pretty shabby on most "spruced up " Ford wagon interiors of this era is the inner surface of the rear wheel well, which was exposed on these cars and coated at the factory with a hard sound deadener/insulation/whtever that almost always cracks horribly. I scraped all of mine off (hard work) and refinished per the decking. Most people try to save this coating and it generally looks awful. Link to post Share on other sites
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