Everyone has heard repeatedly the old admonition that one should not judge a book by its cover. Judging from the exterior styling of the 1956 Ford models, one could conclude that everyone at Ford had taken a year-long sabbatical before gearing up for the entirely new 1957s.
Au contraire.
On the outside, this Customline still looks quite 1955, with exterior changes limited mostly to oval instead of round turn signals, a revised grille and bigger taillights. Yet cars are like women, in a sense; the outside grabs your attention, but what’s inside sets the hook–and inside, a 1956 Ford was utterly different from a ’55 model.
For starters, all 1956 Fords now featured 12-volt electrical systems–something quite useful for handling the ever-increasing electrical burdens that radios, power windows and seats, and brighter lighting were placing on contemporary cars.
Another distinction of the ’56 Fords could be called revolutionary, visionary–or perhaps even inevitable. It just couldn’t be called popular.
Except for one year, U.S. traffic fatalities had increased annually during the period from 1944 to 1955. What’s more, there had been 36,688 deaths due to vehicle crashes in 1955, vs. 37,965 in 1956.
To put that into perspective, 37,965 persons is very nearly the population of Jefferson City, Missouri, in the United States; Wanganui, in New Zealand; the County of Rutland, in England; Nevers, in France; or Altenburg, in Germany. Hopefully, that figure now seems a bit less abstract.
In the 1950s, traffic deaths were like the proverbial elephant in the living room; everybody knew it was there, and nobody wanted to talk about it–with the notable exception of Robert McNamara.
Say what you will about Robert McNamara, who was one of the original “Whiz Kids” hired by Henry Ford II at the end of World War II. At Ford, he was a prime motivator behind the development of both the Falcon and the downsized 1961 Lincoln Continental. McNamara would go on to become the U.S. Secretary of Defense in the administrations of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.
In 1955, both Ford Motor Company and Cornell University had conducted extensive crash-testing of vehicles. The results played to a relatively small audience of followers, but among them was one Robert McNamara.
Perhaps inspired by the results of the studies, Ford made a deep-center steering wheel and “double grip” door latches standard on all its 1956 models.
Ford buyers could go a step further by adding a “Lifeguard” package, which included seat belts, dashboard and sunvisor padding and a “safety” rear view mirror designed to minimize the shattering of glass. Because (Ford’s) sudden demand for seat belts apparently overextended their supplier, only 20% of 1956 Ford cars wound up being equipped with them.
At the time, many people considered car-safety features a novelty. Even Henry Ford II (who certainly wasn’t on board with the program) observed that “McNamara is selling safety, but Chevrolet is selling cars.” Clearly, old Hank did not realize the degree to which safety would drive automotive design in the future.
The number of traffic deaths declined in both 1957 and 1958. We can only guess at to what degree Ford contributed to the reduction in fatalities.
I recently found this particular ’56 Customline while making the four-hour trek to visit family. It appeared to be mostly original shape, with the original dogdish hubcaps, patina galore, and worn interior. Best of all, it was for sale.
This car is equipped a lot like I’d have equipped it had I been checking off the option sheet. Radio (a $100 option)? Check. Heater? It’s there, an $85 option. Air-conditioning? Can’t miss it. The optional three-speed with overdrive, for $110? Yes, indeed, although the overdrive switch is nearly blocked by the air conditioning unit in this picture. Lastly, and of utmost importance to me, is the V8 emblem on the front fenders – there are many steep hills where I live, so I want to minimize downshifting!
This Ford was the mid-range Customline. The basic Ford was the Mainline, and the top trim level was the Fairlane. Available engines were the 137 hp, 223 cu in (3.7-liter) straight-six, and V8s of 173 hp/272 cu in (4.5-liters); 200 hp/292 cu in (4.8-liters); and 215 hp/312 cu in (5.1 liters), rated at gross horsepower. Buyers could choose either a standard three-speed manual transmission, optional three-speed manual with overdrive, or Ford-o-Matic automatic.
This is one of the 170,695 Customline four-door sedans Ford built for 1956–their third-most popular model that year. After giving it some thought, I had a strong suspicion about the 1956 Ford.
I’ve read many accounts of how popular the Chevrolet Chevelle was in the 1960s because it was the same size as the 1955 Chevrolet. I suspected there might just be a parallel here to our Customline. Let’s think about it…
This 1956 model Ford had a wheelbase of 115.5″ and an overall length of 198.5″. The 1963 Ford Galaxie parked beside it has a 119″ wheelbase and an overall length of 209.9″.
Just for giggles, I reviewed the 1963 Ford Fairlane. The ’63 Fairlane rides a wheelbase of 115.5″ and measures 197.6″ in overall length. My hunch was right; the Chevrolet was not unique. Apparently, both Ford and Chevrolet introduced a mid-size that only seven years earlier was considered full-size. Only in Detroit…
Incidentally, full-size Fords would once again have a wheelbase (here, 114.3″) close to that of the ’56 Ford.
After two hours of driving and fantasizing about this ’56 Ford, I arrived with my family at the home of my 91- year-old paternal grandmother. Although not naturally talkative, she was that day. In the course of our conversation she mentioned a car that she and my grandfather purchased in 1960. It was a 1956 Ford.
How ironic to have found this ’56 Customline just a few hours earlier.
Ford has always held a respectable share of the fleet-sales market. The 1956 Ford my grandparents purchased had been a fleet vehicle used by the Tennessee Valley Authority. It was equipped with the straight-six, the three speed manual, and little else. It had been fitted with a governor that limited top speed to 60 miles per hour. My father, who was 16 years old in 1960, has said that his many attempts at going down a steep hill at wide-open throttle never topped about 62 miles per hour.
They drove it until 1966, when the engine seized subsequent to a monumentally overdue oil change. It was dragged down into the woods, where it remained until just a few years ago.
One true testament to a car is how well it endures its ownership. My grandparents’ 1956 Ford (a fleet car, and thus likely a Mainline) had endured four years of fleet service before taking on another six years of family transport, pulling dead vehicles, hauling lumber and hogs, and minimal maintenance.
For them, as well as countless other owners, the ’56 Ford was a highly durable and rugged machine that provided a modicum of safety not found in any other automobile at the time.
Each of us has our own bucket list of cars to own at some point. Seeing this one reminded me unmistakably that a ’56 Ford is on mine. A little rubbing compound and touch-up paint would work wonders on this particular ’56!
Interesting comparison to the ’63 Fairlane, but we need to look at some more numbers. Both cars ride a 115.5″ wb. The ’56 is, as you point out, less than an inch longer. However, the ’56 is 3.6″ higher, and 4.6″ wider. So the ’56 is a taller and wider car, making it roomier. I’d imagine the trunk space was a good deal better too.
Mid size may simply have been the upper limit of what many could afford, so I don’t know if people were looking to size, or price, primarily.
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But I have a hunch you are correct that the size was appealing. The Fairlane of ’63 was a foot shorter than the Galaxie, but 16 inches longer than the falcon. It seems there was some sense to the term “mid sized”.
Interesting car. In the hardtop era, how much nicer they looked compared to their post cousins. It seems long after pillarless cars disappeared did sedans beging to look much nicer – they had better!
I have very little experience with Fords in my life, except after I married, because my father-in-law traditionally drove Fords and I almost fell in love with the 1978 Fairmont he bought from Hertz.
An interesting chapter in Lee Iacocca’s book about Ford’s safety program concerning seat belts and padded dashes and the difficulty Ford had in selling safety.
I also remember the 30K deaths a year from accidents that was kept under the radar, so to speak. Yes, it was there and you hoped you wouldn’t be the next statistic…
Just for comparison (because I find it interesting, not because I’m trying to make a ‘statement’), there were 32,885 traffic fatalities in 2011; 45,300 in 2005. Of course, those are apples and oranges comparisons with 1956 numbers (more cars on the road, etc.). The recent drop is thought to be somewhat related to the down economy (fewer miles driven, etc.).
Illinois alone has had over traffic-related 600 deaths this year (2012).
I have always found the issue of traffic deaths perplexing; in Canuckistan anyway, car crashes are the leading cause of death for those under the age of forty. Yet, since traffic accidents are relatively isolated events, they do not register in the collective psyche like a mass shooting, for example.
We are infinitely safer on the roads now than even twenty years ago. Doing something to get the drunks off the road has been an enormous help but there is no doubt in my mind that modern cars are hugely safer than old cars. This is the reason I drive a modern car, not an old one. While I love old iron, I don’t feel a sixties car is safe enough to transport my family.
Yup, that and the fact that we can’t wait a week for mail order parts when Canadian Tire doesn’t have brakes for our 56 Ford.
Neat article, but I still like the 63 Galaxie better… How much were they? Could be a good excuse for a trip to SEMO.
BTW, that was some creepy music in the 2nd half of that crash test video…
I talked briefly to the owner. The ’63 wasn’t for sale as he is going to paint it black & white and put “Mayberry” on the doors. I wasn’t taking pictures of the ’56 at that point.
These were in Farmington at the intersection of Route 32 and OO.
I happen to own this car right now in August of 2018 and it is for sale. The 272 Y block runs like a sewing machine and the car drives quite nice. The overdrive isn’t functional and after research apparently solenoids are a common failure. The engine was rebuilt prior to my acquiring the car as well as the entire brake system being overhauled and new tires were put on before I drove it home. It does need a windshield. I’m asking $3,500 or best cash offer for the car as-is. I’m told that the 24,xxx miles are original and that a little old lady in Texas owned it. By the lack of pedal and steering wheel wear I tend to believe it. The original tube am radio still works as well. It needs a fuel level sensor that’s available for $35.00 on Amazon. Anyone interested feel free to contact me. I reside in Southeast Missouri.
I like the instrument layout on the ’56 Ford. All round gauges, grouped in a binnacle within easy view. No glitz or gleam, but attractive and functional. The Mileage Maker six is nice and torquey, too.
“Even Henry Ford II (who certainly wasn’t on board with the program) observed that ‘McNamara is selling safety, but Chevrolet is selling cars.'”
This attitude never entirely goes away, which is why we shouldn’t whine too much about safety regs. I bet most of us have survived accidents in modern cars, or know others who have, that would have been fatal in a ’50s box. Yet we still see little kids riding in older CRVs and RAV4s that have no rear bumper, and an outboard spare that will crumple the tailgate and blow out the back window in a crash. But it’s ok, because those things are “trucks,” for hauling freight, doncha know, wink wink.
That blue interior on the ’63 is just nuts! Seems like a cheap ’80s retrim, almost. Just because it’s *that* offensively blue.
Quite like the dash of the ’56, too
My family had a 1956 Ford Ranch Wagon, 3 speed V-8 bought new and I learned to drive in it. We owned it from 1956 to 1963 when it was traded for a new Corvair Monza. The Ford was a great performer on the road and had virtually indestructible leather like fabric on the seats with ranch brands all over it. Great memories of that car!
I owned a 55 just before I enlisted in the Navy (61). 272 with 3 speed on column. I had forgotten that it was a 6 volt. Chev went to 12 volt in 55 and I thought Ford did too. I had always thought that except for the Crown Vic (looks only) that the 56 was a rehash of the 55. I only remember the 312 as available in Tbirds till 57. I think I will just reread the story and forget what I thought I knew.
Btw, the 55 was a good car with that 272. The 54 not so good with a smaller Y block (if my memory is back). Between 53 and 57 models Ford and Chevy traveled about the same distance I own a 57 chev now and owned a 57 Ford back then. I do think the Ford was better looking but am glad (I think) that it’s the chev I own now. You can rebuild one from ebay (the modern JC Whitney).
Good story.
From today’s perspective, the ’55-’56 Ford really doesn’t look that different from the contemporary Chevy, including the ’55 to ’56 refreshes for both brands. But when I was a kid in the early/mid-’60’s, the Chevy was cool and the Ford was just an old car. Quite a few of our friends and neighbors had GM cars of that era but I honestly can’t remember knowing anyone with a Ford until the late ’60’s.. Not saying there weren’t any … just not memorable.
My parents bought a Volvo 544 in 1960 and a 122S in 1964. The 544 had lap belts and the 122S had 3-point harnesses (front only, nothing in the back). Those were selling points for my mom, who had been in an accident a few years earlier, in Italy as a passenger in a Fiat 500 Topolino. Didn’t Rambler also offer seatbelts by the late ’50’s?
The PV544 had three-point belts, at least my buddy’s ’61 does. He once had a ’59, but I don’t recall if it just had lap belts or not.
If I remember correctly, Volvo introduced three-point belts around ’59, but they weren’t initially available in the U.S., at least in some states.
Nice write-up on a great find. I love old original cars like this. CC is the place to go for 1956 FoMoCo cars – I did the 56 Fairlane Town Sedan and the 56 Mercury Medalist last year. Now we just need a 56 Lincoln.
I will echo others – the 56 Ford dashboard was one of the best of the era. Attractive and functional. Outside, I always considered the 56 Ford a better looking car than the 56 Chevy. With 55s I go the other way. Not many changes to the 56, but the details were enough to make the difference.
When I was a kid, we had a neighbor who was a Ford guy. His daughter was our babysitter, and she said that her dad liked blue Fords with Overdrive. He had a pair of navy blue 56s, and eventually switched to either 2 or 3 different robin’s egg blue 66s. He took good care of his cars, but every other 55-56 Ford I ever saw were really rusty. I think that the 56 may be my favorite 1950s Ford.
This car is for sale. See the comments.
I just watched the videos. Amazing – this was back when Ford was still trying to push the Y block’s performance cred. “Hey everybody, look at how our 312 can edge out Chevy’s 265.”
As I remember Robert McNamara was directly involved in the killing of more than 37,ooo American troops in Vietnam. The Vietnamese themselves was considerably higher. I am sure there is a special place in heaven for him. Hope it is napalmed regularly and dusted with a little agent orange. Only can say damn him. Forever.
The driver of this 50’s Ford survived his crash…..
….the other guy, not so lucky though….!!
Customlines were the only sedan NZ assembled here, Mainlines were utes good old cars though they withstood the poor gravel roads that abounded back then and there are lots of survivors though mostly restored to better than new
I never had a ’56 but developed an appreciation for them through my days as a youth, building model cars. I always thought they were among the most visually appealing cars that came out of FOMOCO.
A film trivia nugget: watched Hitchcock’s Psycho a few weeks ago. Vivian Leigh’s character drives a black ’56 Customliner 4-door sedan – or may have been Mainliner – on her fateful journey from Phoenix to the Bates Motel. Along the way, she fears the police are tailing her and trades it for a ’57. Love those shots of those car lots with all of that 50’s iron parked around!
Can anyone tell me what make/model this car is?
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10200998908323534&set=a.2481903295554.2107263.1491728256&type=3&theater
1954 Ford V8.
Mainline?
No; the Customline. Mainline had no chrome side trim.
When my father was stationed at Patrick AFB, FL, we lived in quarters right across a tiny road (now the mighty A1A) from the beach. The salt air was so corrosive that chrome became quickly pitted, so those in the know avoided it when making new-car purchases.
When it came time to ditch the ’47 Studebaker of my toddlerhood, Dad bought a ’56 Ford that I always thought was a Fairlane, though I’m learning it was probably a Mainline because it had no chrome at all. It was a very no-frills, basic car. The body was Diamond Blue all over, except for the white top, which was supposed to deflect heat and make the car a tiny bit cooler in Florida’s ghastly heat, there being no air conditioning in the car. Naturally, we drove it with all the windows cranked fully open! It was an ugly car (the Spring Mist Green would have been prettier than that harsh Diamond Blue), but I have a soft spot in my heart for it today.
“It had been fitted with a governor that limited top speed to 60 miles per hour. ”
Was it common for fleet cars of this era to be fitted to governors? Were they fitted to stop excessive engine wear?
I have no clue on the commonality of governors at that time; all I know is that particular one had been blessed (cursed?) with one.
The ’55-’56 Ford is one of the best looking cars ever built. An absolute stunner. I had a ’55 Fairlane 2 door post sedan that I was going to restore but a storm blew a tree limb down and caved the roof in. Made me sick. I find it interesting that the roofline on the 2 door “Victoria” hardtop was different for each year. The ’55 roofline appears to be a bit taller and the rear window wrapped around more on the ’55. The ’56 roofline appears to be lower and the rear side window is longer. The roof of the ’56 Victoria resembles the roof of the ’55-’56 Crown Victoria 2 door sedan that was the top of the line Ford coupe for those years. I think I prefer the ’55 Victoria hardtop because of the taller looking roof and shorter looking greenhouse. Here is a picture for comparison.
I never understood why the ’55-’56 (and the ’57 on for that matter) Fords aren’t as popular as the contemporary Chevrolets. They’re every bit as good looking and they were well-built, comfortable, reliable, rugged cars. The Ford Y block V8 doesn’t have the sterling reputation that the small block Chevy engine does, but a freshly rebuilt 272, 292 or 312 lubricated with modern oil is a reliable, good running engine. And the Y block V8 has a unique sound because of its odd firing order. These engines had siamesed intake ports and they weren’t great breathers, and didn’t take to upgrades like the free breathing Chevy 265 did, but the engine was rugged and dependable. There were some oiling problems when they were new but the oils of that time were of poor quality, causing passages to clog. That is no longer an issue with modern oils. I’d take a ’55 Fairlane just as soon as I’d take a ’55 Bel Air. I love both cars and I couldn’t pick between the two. If I had to, I’d take the Ford simply because they are less common than the Chevy today and would stand out better at a car show or on the road. I love love love love love the ’55 Chevy but I love the ’55 Ford just as much. These were great cars that were just the right size. Perfection.
That 56 Ford hardtop roof seems to have been borrowed from the 55 Mercury Montclair hardtops. Oddly, the 55 Monterey used a hardtop roof similar to the 55 Ford. Why Mercury would have used both that year is a mystery.
My 56 Customline. Love it!