The Ultramatic is a decent trans if babied, but TorqueFlite can take considerable abuse, which dual quads will encourage! Ask the Man who owns a 392 Hemi 300-C... and keep the lovely Packard V8.

Here in Upstate NY the temperate season is about 6 months, so working in the garage with doors open for grinding, welding and painting is limited to that period mostly, pretty nice from May to October, fans are sufficient for hot spells and in winter mechanical & detail work, wiring, and other small projects tend to come to the fore... my smallish 24 x 24 garage is insulated and has a ceiling making the big vented propane heater pretty effective, but expensive to run and as noted by others the concrete floor gets awfully cold!! I found the answer to that to be a big plush carpet remnant, it makes lying on the floor fairly tolerable as long as the heat is on. The space is cramped by a big workbench and loads of wall shelves so moving the smaller car out is necessary to accomplish any significant work. The big car at present is a 58 DeSoto Sportsman project kept company by a finished 70 MG roadster, but we rent several garage spaces for a couple of others and very soon the DeSi will join them and if all goes well a 40s Clipper will assume place of honor. There is plenty of yard space but funds for a long planned garage expansion always seem to get ploughed into yet another car!

I'm not a rodder, but that is a verrry cool car! I'd love one.
Haven't see the mag, but I'm guessing the collection referred to was the "57 Heaven" collection in Branson MO that was recently auctioned off.

The cute factor is critical... she loves our 70 MGB and the TRs and Jags we had years ago, but made me get rid of my '57 300-C convertible 20 yrs ago because it was "ugly"! She says the same thing about '58 DeSoto hardtop I presently have, but I've wised up now and just ignore her...she's only lukewarm about the prospective 47 Clipper that will soon be joining the others if I'm lucky, that one is only "bulbous"... well maybe it is, but it's a beautiful bulbosity!! I've tried nurturing for 38 years, no luck so far as car love goes, for anything other than little sports cars.
PS - MG made a few automatic roadsters and GTs in the late 60s, cute factor is there, and a blast to drive, even with the auto. Women love 'em.

that's a'55/56 Ford Crown Victoria roof ???