The ad for this beautiful 1955 Chevrolet simply lists it as a “Classic.” Well, it certainly is a classic! In fact, it is a Nomad and according to automobilemag.com, there were less than 8,400 Nomads produced in 1955! The ad can be found here on Facebook Marketplace. With an asking price of $15,000, this car seems like a pretty big bargain given what is included in the sale. Located in Emmett, Idaho, there is no information regarding how long the car has been stored or the back story, but it looks like a fantastic find. Keep reading for more details!
Here you can see the frame and independent rear suspension that came out of a Corvette. The seller also included several photos of other components including the coil-over shocks and 4-wheel disc brakes.
The current engine in the car is 327 cubic inch V8, which the seller planned on swapping for this 383 Stroker. There is a new radiator, pulleys, electronic fuel injection and HEI distributor. The transmission included is a 700R4 and everything looks clean and tidy.
I’m guessing the car is still sitting on the original chassis in this photo. As mentioned before, there isn’t a lot of information in the ad other than the seller is letting the project go due to illness. It looks like the car has been washed and some bodywork has been done. Overall, this looks like an amazing car and should make a great project for someone. What do you think?
I love the Nomads. But when I look at the bodystyle, I wonder what the intended audience was in ’55.
With only 2 doors, you wouldn’t think it’d be a Mom/Dad/2 kids kinda vehicle, or even a Mom/Dad with no kids car. I know there were a number of Handyman models made, but this car looks too nice for a tradesman-type vehicle. Just wondering….
The market was post WWII car guys. The prototype on a Corvette chassis was a big hit on the show circuit so the bean counters thought there was a market. They definitely got it right for both Chevrolet and Pontiac. I heard a rumor about a Olds but have never seen one.
Two door wagons were popular for growing families. The kids were secured in the back and could not accidentally fall out of a door. In addition, hauling bags of groceries, blankets, and picnic baskets were easy to load and unload in a cleaner holding area, accessible from the passenger area. We had a 49 Ford woodie two door and it was similar in use as other two door wagons. Two door wagons had style, especially the Nomad.
My understanding is that Ford was cleaning GM’s clock with the Country Squire. The Nomad was GM’s answer, practical or not!
My dad bought a new 2 door, 55,150 and there were 6 kids at the time. Some how it worked.
if its all they say it is, you have 15k in aftermarket parts alone. Would have been nice to see the floors and gut. Shame the owner has to sell, bless him.
Good luck and stay safe. This one wont last long!
Cheers
GPC
It must be pretty rusty judging by the pic of the door. Also it has been on Market Place for 41 weeks. That’s a long time for a Nomad to be advertised anywhere. Wonder what happened to the chrome “eyebrows” over the headlights? Hope they are still there and in good condition because if not they are really pricey and hard to find. If it was a ’56, I would be on my way….
Good catch. I’m guessing a lazy seller that just hasn’t removed the ad yet
Wonder why there are no pictures of the passenger side of car
My parents had a 2 door ’55 wagon, same colors as this Nomad. 2 doors were far easier to control from the front seat-there were no child locks for the back doors. It was bought new and in the 12 years of owning it, it required nothing but irregular maintenance. Six cylinders and 3 speed w/overdrive. Pop sold it to a local hot rodder.
Incredibly, they made three different styles of station wagon then.
A “regular” 2 door, the Nomad and the 4 door.
We had a ’57 4 door wagon, three seats.
Blue Flame six, “Three on the Tree”. “Sierra Gold”
No radio!
Dad kept it floored down a long hill and got it up to 80mph!
It was flooded in the Fall of 1960, Hurricane Donna.
Replaced with a ’61. Four door, rear facing third seat.
283 and a radio! Dad was beginning to open his wallet
I was growing up in Miami when hurricane Donna came through.
I lived in Connecticut when Hurricane Donna went thru.
Was safe in Ohio when Hurricane Donna rolled the S. and East.
Dad was still into the straight six, in the copper color ’60 wagon with that rear facing seat. The luxury was the power window in the back. The better rides started with the ’64 Impala, 283/powerglide and a positraction rear diff. Hand crank windows, though….
YES, the headlamp visor-type chrome plated trim and front fender strips known as “Eyebrows and spears” were originally made from Die-Cast pot metal. Time, moisture, and inevitable swelling of Zinc in the alloy make these a time bomb that require very special attention–if they have not already fallen off! I was FORTUNEATE to do deep research and find a sage craftsman and enthusiast remaking these in Stainless steel, and they now are worn on a locally restored Nomad. Don’t even ask what they cost! Supply and demand!
Una pagina excelente, la admiro todos los días!!!! Felicitaciones, congratulations!
I am looking for a 1940 Pontiac torpedo, if posible convertible, if you ever know from one….
To me the lamest place in the world to try & sell a car is on FB market place. Its something in the make up, the pictures, description, what ever it is it needs help designing something better. I understand free is good, but is it ? I hope this Nomad finds a nice home, seems decent.
Looks like a good deal.
I’ve always wondered why the ‘55 nomad had the ugly rear wheel wells that it did instead of the regular ones the other 55 chevys did. If I had one of these I’d graft the 55 bel air wheel wells onto it.
Well personally, I like the rear wheel well openings just as they are. GM got it right. More balanced to the size of the front ones. Never really liked the 56 and 57 styling of those rear wheel well openings on the Nomad.
This is one of those cars that needs to left completely stock and restored right down to the last nut and bolt. How often do you see one, let alone a largely unmolested one? As for the extra parts, they should be easy to find new homes for. The 700r4 IMO, needs to either go to scrap or be beefed up as in stock form will strand you miles from home. Well, me at least, ugh.
For all the purists that love to tell future owners what to do. Go and buy these cars before guys like me get them and drop the top.
He’s not a very talkative guy. Hard to get any information from him. I asked him if there was a reason it was on FB for 41 weeks and all he said was ”
no” LOL. Maybe that’s why it hasn’t sold. He wouldn’t even tell me where he lives. Not a very cooperative seller.
Oh.
Doesn’t really want to sell then…
Or he is looking for someone to beg him for the car?
Back in that day people had no problem pulling the back of the fromt seat forward and climbing in the back two doors was the only way to go back then
Why couldn’t they have left it stock?
On FB for 41 weeks and nary a nibble. What goes here?
Two door wagons had been around a few years before the Nomad but Chevy had a looker with theirs. Took for a year to come out with the Parklane but it just didn’t have the looks.
And crap can be on FB for a long time without being deleted.
What do I have to do to buy It? Need more info.
Lots of nice parts to go with it, but after seeing what’s left of the right door skin, there is a very good chance it will need major rust repair with floor and panel replacement. I’ve seen a lot of tri-fives that looked pretty good with decent looking paint (in pictures), especially a rare Nomad like this one, but underneath there is a ton of rust and bondo, when you see them up close. I think that’s a good reason it’s still for sale after 41 weeks, and an evasive seller doesn’t help either. In my experience, a nice car, that’s rare and in good condition, that’s fairly priced, will sell within a week or two to someone local, once the word gets out. I’ve learned the hard way and taken a lot of long trips to look at cars that looked like a “good deal” like this one that weren’t.
I owned a 1957 Nomad that I bought in 1995 and I sold in 2012. It was a California car that had been taken to Sudbury, Canada some years earlier. It was absolutely straight and rust free, but needed a complete restoration, like new paint, interior, chrome, trim and rubber. Add all those parts up alone and you’ll spend $30K or more, plus the labor on top of that. I sold it for $20K and bought a 1956 Handyman two door wagon that needed some work, but not a total restoration for the same money. So far I’ve put in new glass all around, weatherstripping, rear bumper, a Rain Gear wiper system, Vintage Air, ignition switch, dash trim, knobs and a hood bird. Just that is over $5K so far and next I’m swapping the 283/Powerglide for a 400/Turbo 400 with a Gear Vendors overdrive.
My ’57 Nomad looked great in the pictures, but it needed to be restored. https://photos.app.goo.gl/e3CB6DVv81oSXsh28
My ’56 Handyman wagon I have now. https://photos.app.goo.gl/Q5crouTMqdputdMe7