Sold For: $3,300
There is something incredibly cool about Chevy’s Tri-Five Wagons. Sure, the Nomad has long been the favorite with collectors, but the fact that Sedan Delivery wagons like this one were built to be work vehicles makes them so much cooler in my book. The fact also means that most of these were driven into the ground. The seller of this example has had it parked in their garage for the past 34 years, with plans of restoring and modifying it. They’ve realized that its time to move it along, so they have listed it here as a Barn Finds Auction! It’s located in Lanexa, Virginia, and comes with a clean title that was issued to the seller in 1986.
The 1955 Chevrolet was offered in a number of body styles, ranging from a Sport Coupe to a 4-door family wagon. While you could option most of the body styles in 150, 210, or Bel-Air trim, all Sedan Deliveries came in 150 trim. This made sense for a barebones and cheap work vehicle, it also made these into perfect hot rod candidates. And it appears that this one was given a bit of the hot rod treatment at some point in its life. The lack of stainless steel trim didn’t just reduce weight, but also gave the car a cleaner look.
Many of these wagons received the standard Blue Flame inline-six, you could option them with the 265 V8. There’s no word on what engine originally came in this wagon, but the seller has a 283 V8 and Hydramatic transmission out of a 1964 Chevy. There’s no word on their condition, but they currently aren’t installed in the car, which should allow for easy inspection and a rebuild if necessary. A 350 V8 would provide more power, but the 283 is a good engine and could definitely make this one fun wagon to drive!
The interior of these utility wagons was quite spartan from the factory, but it appears some additional weight reduction may have been performed to this. This does give us a good look at the condition of the floors and structure. While there is definitely some rust, the floors don’t look too bad. I would assume the large hole in the transmission tunnel is for a floor-mounted shifter and that appears to be the only spot that gives us a good view of the ground. And thankfully all the major components appear to be present. Being so spartan to begin with, means restoring the interior shouldn’t be overly difficult.
There’s plenty of work to be done here, but overall, this wagon looks to be a solid place to start. A look at valuation guides shows a drastic spike in value for Sedan Delivery Wagons. We encourage people to restore a vehicle because they want to save and enjoy it, but at the same time, it’s always nice to know that you won’t be upside down before you even start! So, if you’d love to tackle this project, be sure to register and bid. And, if you have any questions for the seller, please leave them in the comments below.
- Location: Lanexa, Virginia
- Mileage: Unknown
- Title: Clean
Sold For: $3,300!
Unless body emblems have been removed this car was a 6 cylinder. A V8 supplied 55 would have had a V8 emblem below the tail lights
This car screams for a 351W and a top loader….eye for an eye….
Yeah, if I were this car I’d scream too. But if you were going to go blue oval, might as well make it worthwhile and put in a 427 side oiler.
I’d like to look at this in real life and see how bad the rust really is!!! The rust around the rain gutter on the top of the car is concerning cause that’s not a reproduction piece!! Media blast might be creating more holes!! I’m not driving to Virginia this weekend so I think I’ll pass on this one!!
I want to see it How?
Pass on it for sure. Always something out there in better shape to get a hold of.
Definately a 6 cylinder based on core support. The radiator mount on this support is in front V8s were to the rear of core support.
I also had the windowed ’55 with 327 and a built Hydramatic from an NOS source who drilled it somehow so it would only shift manually. Auto trans have always been alchemy to me. The 4.11 posi allowed it to jerk the wheels six inches in the air at launch. After all that work, I sold it in 1970 for $2500 and thought I was overpaid. If I still had all the cars I’ve owned………
How can I see the car ?
Could’ve been a really cool band vehicle in the 1960s, looks like some orange shag carpet was ripped out from under those Thunderbird seats. You can tell there was adhesive applied in the back floor, walls and ceiling too…shaggadelic! It has a tow receiver so I can imaging this being a hip way to haul your rock and roll combo from gig to gig.
I wish I could see it
Hey Karl, you know if you win you have to pay, right? You’re not bidding just for the chance to go see the car in person??
Paid for and picked up already
Just curious, is it set up as a gasser?
It doesn’t have a straight axle but most likely has heavy duty front springs installed. Curious what his price on the car. It’s only one state away from me!
I believe if you bid $1501 the car is yours at least until another bidder jumps in. Two days left. I don’t believe there is a reserve, Jerry.
Yes there is a reserve but so tempting!
If you have any questions for the seller, just let us know jerry and we will put you in touch with him!
I’d just put it in my front yard to have a place to eat my lunch with my dogs. Just like they do at Martins Texas speed shop of that Ford truck.
There was no Hydramatic Transmission for Chevrolet in 1964.