Cheers or Jeers: Shortened 1956 Chevrolet Wagon

[wildmanjoe]

Cheers or Jeers: Shortened 1956 Chevrolet Wagon

Link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/...=item2c6520d5eb

i got a 1956 custom shorty wagon it has a big block 454 in it mild built with a turbo 400 trans the car also has headders and duel exhaust and flow masters mufflers that run all the way to the back this car also has been sub framed with a camero front end so it has powerd disc brakes and power steering this thing has a custom paint job burgandy and champaign. it has a custom has a set of coke bottle chrome wheels and the tires are in good shape. the car needs interior i have 2 gray bucket seats in it but it needs carpet and door panels this car is a super car to drive and it a great attention.

[G. David Felt]

Cheers, this lovely style would be a big hit for GM now. They need a stylish 2 person small car and this could have led GM to better small cars long ago.

[balthazar]

hmmm:

[SAmadei]

Yeah, I remember when this mini-fad happened the first time... guess it was mid-90s. Seems like a waste of good sedans and wagons to me.

[balthazar]

I couldn't find a pic of the shorty '56 custom I see @ Lead East frequently.

[vonVeezelsnider]

I like that shortened '57 sedan, the shortened wagons don't do it for me though.

[Carguy]

I guess I missed this strange fad somehow! That little 57 coupe is kinda SWEET though!!

[Robert Hall]

Yeah, I remember when this mini-fad happened the first time... guess it was mid-90s. Seems like a waste of good sedans and wagons to me.

I think it was a '70s fad also...I remember seeing cars like these in Hot Rod magazine as kid..

[G. David Felt]

Yeah, I remember when this mini-fad happened the first time... guess it was mid-90s. Seems like a waste of good sedans and wagons to me.

I think it was a '70s fad also...I remember seeing cars like these in Hot Rod magazine as kid..

I totally agree, my hot rod mags show this was a 70's thing. Very big as I do remember seeing a few of them around Seattle then. Always loved them. American Mini's

[G. David Felt]

Would you pay $129,000 for this mini????

http://www.americanhotrods.com/iauto/listing_details/2516/1948_CHEVROLET_Custom___RatRod___RetroRod___Other.html

Amazing, but I think not.

[Robert Hall]

In a similar vein, I've wondered what a Lincoln Town Car would look like as a 2 seat coupe...instead of stretch limo shortened into a 2dr...

[G. David Felt]

Here ya go

http://www.flickr.com/photos/greggjerdingen/5581956431/

[Robert Hall]

Here ya go

I meant late model..

[Camino LS6]

I've always hated this modification, looked like crap in the 70s - still does today.

Wastes a good car IMO.

[Drew Dowdell]

I bet a 2.0T Ecotec would move it around quite nicely and still get decent (or relatively better) fuel economy.

[balthazar]

>>"I've always hated this modification, looked like crap in the 70s - still does today."<<

It works for me on the wagons, because the squareness is retained.

The '57 is a fail because the flow of the roof is too truncated & forced.

This is the issue with trying to get true fluidity & grace on modern designs- they are too homogenized and too short. You end up with a sonata.

[G. David Felt]

>>"I've always hated this modification, looked like crap in the 70s - still does today."<<

It works for me on the wagons, because the squareness is retained.

The '57 is a fail because the flow of the roof is too truncated & forced.

This is the issue with trying to get true fluidity & grace on modern designs- they are too homogenized and too short. You end up with a sonata.

Too true, a jelly bean has no way to be shortened as it is still a jellybean.

[Drew Dowdell]

But....why should you want to do this?

[balthazar]

^ Good base question; I guess to be 'neat' & different ??

Puzzling that it seems to center around Tri-5 Chevys tho. I've never seen a '50s Ford or Plymouth shortened like this.

EDIT :: Seek & ye shall find ~

Edited May 13, 2012 by balthazar

[Robert Hall]

That Plymouth looks rediculous..they shortened it too much, have to be skinny and anorexic to fit through the door opening..

[Drew Dowdell]

First person to post the shortened 70s Seville, 80s Seville, or 80s Eldorados gets banned.

[balthazar]

They all also tend to place the rear wheels a bit too far forward.

What these radically shortened jobs miss is the parallel line of the roof; they all slope immediately from the windshield header in a alien manner.

They need a slightly longer greenhouse and a more upright backlight- in the case of the Plymouth, more in line with an early '50s roof/backlight.

- - -

Most of those '70s shortened Sevilles were poorly done IMO, and they should've been easy due to the sharp/straight edges of the design.

Edited May 14, 2012 by balthazar

[Camino LS6]

They all turn my stomach...

[balthazar]

Trucks get shortened far more often than cars, but still :