One of the saddest aspects of our hobby is the preponderance of trailers and antique automobiles being shipped to events. While I understand the inner desire to win a trophy, those who are insulated from experiencing what it is like to drive a car from back in the day are missing out on a lot of fun. When I saw this 1956 Buick Special two-door hardtop for sale on Craigslist in Maple, Lake Minnesota submitted by T.J. (thanks T.J.!), it brought back memories of trips as a teenager to antique car events in a prewar car. While I went to too many shows to remember, it was motoring down the road in the car that continues to last as a memory. If you are looking to make some vintage motoring memories for you and your family, then this very presentable Buick Century hardtop could be yours for a reasonable $21,950. Is a fifties Buick a great candidate for someone looking for a car to drive? Or, with 89,000 documented miles on the odometer, would it be more prudent to preserve it?
My grandfather was the one responsible for getting me into the antique car hobby. He had long been a member of the Antique Automobile Club of America, and both Model A Ford clubs and was active in his local regions and at surrounding shows for decades. Back then the hobby was a social event, but with automobiles. Just as we find kinship today over the internet, they did it live and in-person and helped each other along the way. One of the things they did back then was drive their cars to meets and club meetings. While some still went the trailer route, the folks in his area saw it as a matter of pride to drive to meets and help each other if there was a problem.
Many who were serious about the hobby drove Buicks. From straight-eight powered beauties to their Nailhead successors, the build quality, subtle luxury, and performance of Buicks made them fine cars to motor down the highway in. This 1956 Buick Special two-door hardtop would have fit in perfectly. The Special was traditionally a Buick entry-level car. However, entry-level for a Buick still represented a higher level of automobile. Specials were equipped with a 322 cubic inch V-8 that produced 255 horsepower and it was backed by the smooth Dynaflow transmission. Casual car buffs had an easy way to spot a Special. Just count the ventiports (some called them portholes) on the front fender. Senior Buicks had four. Specials had just three.
The car you see here is described as a long-time Oregon survivor car with just 89,000 miles on the odometer. The seller maintains that the mileage can be documented, and that the car has always been garage-kept, maintained, and pampered. Fresh out of an estate, the seller has detailed the car, changed the vital fluids, and installed a new carburetor and gas tank. We are also told that the fuel gauge works, alluding to some recently repaired issues there.
The seller also informs us that this two-tone black and ivory Buick comes with its original spare and jack and that the car is equipped with an AM radio and much-needed power steering. There is no rust evident, and the chrome and stainless are described as “nice” by the seller. The car drives straight, and the engine/transmission combo is sufficient to keep up with modern traffic.
While there are signs of age evident if you look at the pictures closely, this is a very presentable car. It may need some sorting before taking off on a long trip if the work done by the seller is any indication. Once sorted, this Buick would be a marvelous car to enjoy and tour with. While I would have some trepidation at adding a lot of miles to the car, vehicles are meant to be driven and enjoyed. Hopefully whoever purchases this car will enjoy it to the fullest.
Do you think collector cars should be driven sparingly or used to their fullest? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
Talking about bringing back memories! As a kid I rode in a great uncle’s car identical to this one! The ribbon speedometer was of particular interest to me!
GLWTS!! :-)
Buy it and drive it while you can! There’s an ICE Age beginning in the states with a lot of big cities and It does no good to a machine to be a static display unless it’s so rare it’d be too risky to take out in public.
Seriously doubt this’ll be a daily driver so the incremental increase in mileage vs the age of the car won’t amount to anything significant.
Just look at this beauty! It says 2 things; Drive and Pamper!
What a beauty. A nice original.
I wonder if this inspired the body lines of the 1957 Chevy.
Look at the 55, 56 Chevy that’s what inspired the 57’ Chevy.
Look at the 56 Plymouth, I always thought Chevy copied the rear fins from that car!
So the special is the base model?
Wow I should have been in the 30’s, not the 60’s, lol.
Beautiful designed, inside and out, love the colour scheme.
I’m a die hard ford man, but this beauty, could temp me to change.
I would use it as my weekend car, and maintain it like it is.
I used to know every 50s model car year. However, the 55-56 Buicks and Oldsmobiles always confounded me to differentiate. Just checked some images for the subtle visual differences.
55 Buick rounder upper lip of grille and a round projection in the middle of the taillight. 56 with thin upper grille lip and nothing interfering with the V of the tallight.
The 55 Olds had a lot more stuff in the middle of the grille, while the 56 presaged the 57 oval opening. Thanks, I feel better now. Good therapy. So good in fact, that I have to admit that I can’t tell the 50-52 Chevys apart. I feel cleansed.
Easy Id for early Chevys:
1949 Chevy – Grill teeth
1950 Chevy – No teeth
1951 Chevy – No teeth
1952 Chevy – Grill teeth
’49 and ’50 share the same body style.
’51 and ’52 share the same body style
And ’53 had teeth and a completely different boxy body style.
I always had trouble with the ’51s & ’52s. Finally figured out the ’51s had small parking lights and the ’52s had larger lights. Always thought it was the other way around.
Yes Jeff that is the conundrum. To drive or not to drive. Driving puts said vehicle at risk but also displays its prowess. On the other hand sitting idle allows rigidity to overcome intended motion.
Where is the balance?
I’d be proud to be seen meandering about in this machine.
Thanks for the virtual conversion.
Conversation, oops
“Casual car buffs had an easy way to spot a Special. Just count the ventiports (some called them portholes) on the front fender. Senior Buicks had four. Specials had just three.”
Not until the mid ’50s. Before that, Specials AND Supers had three ventiports and the Roadmaster had four.
Wasn’t the lineup Special, Century, Super, then Roadmaster? And the Century also had 3?
The Century was a Special body with a Roadmaster engine. It had better upholstery, so it fit between the Super and the Roadmaster.
The ’54 Century had three portholes, the ’55, ’56 and ’57 Centurys had four.
The 55 Buick had round portholes, and the brake (and clutch, if applicable) pedals came up from the floor. On the 56, the portholes had more of a teardrop shape, and the brake and clutch pedals were suspended like today’s cars. I had a 56 Special convertible back in the early 1960’s with a 3speed stick.
The 56 Buicks gave the impression that the brake pedal was suspended, but the brake pedal also had a hole in the floor with the rod that actually connects to the Master Cylinder. It was done for only one year in Buicks and Oldsmobiles, if I remember correctly.
Drive them vs. store them. Well like most everything it’s a matter of personal opinion. I like to drive my 64 Riviera but also I realize it could leave me stranded on the side of the road and I would NOT like to leave it there to go for help. Cell phones do help but here in Texas there are a lot of dead zones with no towers to pick up the signal. Another thing to consider is insurance, a lot of companies that insure these older than 1981 cars restrict usage. Now that that’s been said I want to take my Riviera out for a long drive around the Texas Farm to Market roads and visit all the wonderful country folks in the small communities. The weather has been nice here with temps reaching the 70’s and sun shining. My front windshield does need resealed as it has started to leak on rainy days if outside, which is not often because I keep my Buick in the nice dry garage when not in use. This 56 seen is a fantastic car. I recall the 55 Super I bought at age 16. Fine automobile, and fun to drive. Of course that was 60 years ago and a lot has changed since then.
God Bless America
With 89k on the clock already, adding mileage on this car will not be an issue as far as value is concerned. It’s already established as a runner that apparently needs nothing…except a caring owner who’s going to enjoy this as Buick intended.
My friend’s dad, who was a traveling salesman, had a Roadmaster hardtop and it was a fantastic car. It would get on down the road and extremely confortable.
I’ve a collectors car if you may, 78 Alfa Spider, red, fairly low mileage, 100K.
I’m the first and the third owner. I’m old and intend to drive it while I’m around. I did not buy my car back as an investment, pure love for the car. If one purchases a collector car for investment, they better be young, once you’re dead you have no idea what the heirs do with your investment.
Not a fan of the quick tidy up in engine bays. Note the overspray on the block and exhaust from the repaired valve covers and manifold. What other things have not been done properly here ?
I love my 1968 El Camino and bought it to DRIVE! If I wanted a showcar, I would have spent $10-15K more, would be afraid to drive it with all the rude crazy and irresponsible drivers around. I bought it for a reasonable price in 2019 (9700 dollars), it runs well, it is a BLAST to drive, and I like getting the “thumbs up” as I motor around, and the occasional compliments and questions. I just do not want to be the guy sitting in my garage with a cold beverage on the lawn chair, admiring my cool vehicle…BORING.
Bought a 1954 century hardtop body off restoration new 322 with dynaflo replacing the 3 speed Beautiful car, rolled and pleated interior. Needs speedo work.
’93 Allante, 135,000 miles, I drive it, at least 20 miles a week, and sometimes 50, too much used for a museum piece (there are plenty of low milage examples around) and if you notice, auto museums are failing, here and there, and the collections, or a big part of them going to auction. Harrah’s Reno collection, after his death, had to sell about half to fund the museum, Seal Cove in Maine had to do the same on the death of the collector. Jay Leno has made no provision for the continuation of his collection so, if you outlive him, a tremendous auction. The Dingman collection of about 100 cars, half Ford motor company of which he was a Director for a time, auctioned on his death. So this, with it milage, and the number of them built, is not a museum piece, and if donated to one, probably will be “deaccessioned” to raise money to pay the rent.
I’d drive her. I had a 58 Roadmaster in the very early 80s (then just an elderly used car, LOL). It could pass anything but a gas station. (Not joking, Dynaflow equipped Buicks are jet smooth, but VERY thirsty..) But one doesn’t buy a big Buick for economy!
They say nice Chrome, the rear bumper chrome appears to be pealing and the rest has a lot of pitting in the chrome. The glove box lock is missing which makes me wonder just how good this car really is.
Cars with miles 75-150,000 miles should be carefully driven, no daily drivers. But please no trailer queens! Only Pre ware gems should be Trailered. Have fun and show it!
In1955 I was 15 years my dad thought I should travel by bus from Ontario to
British Columbia and back on a greyhound bus for a holiday to see my aunt. When I was to return to Ontario my uncle owned a beautiful new Buick like this one and decided he would take me back to Ontario with it. 7 days later we arrived. Money was scarce we slept in the car every night. I had the whole back seat to myself. Woke up one morning with a bear with his nose up to the window we were in. Yellowstone park. A great car on a wonderful trip. Will never forget it. Wish I had that car now it would be an absolute beauty
Love that car. My mother had a 55 Special 2 door just like it but opposite color treatment. Hers was white top and coves with a black body. That was a fast car in it’s day and I remember riding up front in it :o)
@ Moparman
Buick was good at “ribbon” speedometers. My 1961 Invicta convertible had the ribbon speedometer as well as the adjustable mirror instrument cluster.
As for the 1956 Buick, it was great if you owned one in late ’55 or all through ’56 as it had the numbers “1956” right there on that big emblem in the grill. Of course, wasn’t so good once the 1957s came out, now you’re just driving an old car and everyone knew it. 😆
You’re paying 22K for this car, not 122K. That’s less than almost every new car costs, so why not just drive it and enjoy it?
I had a 1955 4 dr HT, bought it in CA, exported to EU, LT1 and Th700R was next. A very fine car it was.This one also looks great, but too nice to restomod it.