Re: 1956 Carribbean Convertible 5699-1001
Posted by Leeedy On 2016/7/12 22:45:58
Quote:
Owen_Dyneto wrote:
The hood is thoroughly perforated with rust, as is nearly all the external sheet metal and the upper portion of the cowl, the trunk lid skin might be saved, trunk floor is GONE. Wheel wells are badly rotted, nearly absent in places. There is a question if the frame can be salvaged, currently the frame side rails are only about 3 inches from ground level.
The car is heading for a restoration shop this week for an initial assessment of what is salvageable and what the plan going forward might be, I'll try to keep informed about it and keep you informed.
We couldn't get the hood open far enough (hinges rusted) to see the theft-proof number, I had hoped one of my underhood pictures would capture it, but no such look. However I've been promised the number soon, but given the almost totally random nature of the 55/56 numbers I doubt it will reveal anything. I'm also very interested in the Utica engine and transmission numbers.
Anyway, the first Caribbean I bought looked in almost identical condition and had been left sitting outside (unprotected) near the ocean for perhaps 10-15 years at that point. The seat cushions were so full of water, you could literally press on one and smelly liquid would gush out. Critters were living inside. And there ere scorpions everywhere. Incredibly...never covered, moved or started and wedged under a tree. WHY? How could someone let this beautiful car deteriorate that badly? But there it was. The rear quarters were so bad that they had about the thickness and strength of wet tissue paper. You could actually poke holes through the body with your index finger. The hood had all of the strength and resistance of a couple layers of saltine crackers.
I was deeply disappointed when I flew there and finally saw the russssssty Caribbean close up without the blurry photos. But hey- it was a 1956 Caribbean convertible and maybe it could be saved! I quickly got over that fantasy when I called a truck to move the poor car. Since the vehicle was in such a tight place and under a tree, we had no choice but to lift it from the rear in hopes of moving it out where we could perhaps get it onto a flatbed. No sooner did the tow truck guy get a grip on the rear bumper, than we heard this awful groaning metal sound combined with a crunching that sounded like giant Rice Crispies... snap-crackling-popping. Then the coup de gras... on the first try at lifting the whole body came off of the frame and buckled in a cloud of orange dust! And...that was that. By the way, this car only had just over 30,000 miles on it too!
So my heart goes out along with a big salute for courage to whomever the new owner is on 1001. I notice that it appeared to be sitting down at all four wheels (the skirts are off of the rear, making it appear to be sitting higher). A torsion-level car down on all four corners...tells me there's a lot that must be going on underneath...I wish the new owner good luck! This Post was from: https://packardinfo.com/xoops/html/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?post_id=178988