1955 Ford Fairlane Sunliner
"By 1949, the convertible was now the second most expensive body style. Only the wood planked Country Squire cost more. The convertible's climb in the pricing hierarchy was complete in 1955, when the Ford Sunliner finally eclipsed the Country Squire. The 1976 Cadillac Eldorado was to be the end of the line; the last classic American convertible. Proposed federal rollover regulations, (that never fully took effect), also had a role, but car makers couldn't justify spending the money to tool up new models when sales had dried up." Thx curbsideclassic.com
For consignment, a 1955 Ford Fairlane Sunliner with a title verified 44,901 actual miles, is a classic color combination that is quintessentially 50's. This near flawless example probably excited its first owner in 1955 and has been exciting people ever since. And here's the opportunity to own a fine piece of American culture.
Exterior
You can call it pink and black, but Ford gave it more creative names with Raven Black and Tropical Rose, a combination that would become popular in the 50's and adorn everything from dresses to bathrooms to a future king. It's black over pink on this car with the colors being separated by a distinctive trim piece that rides the front fenders before diving down on the body, creating a wide V, then firing back to the edge of the rear fender. This adds visual interest to a shoulder line that is arrow straight, but your eyes are drawn to the rounded pink form in the front and silver point of the V. Fender skirts add some sleekness to this big car and obscure most of the back wheel and its lovely white wall tires, but the wheel openings in front allow us to see the Ford branded wire covers. This car sports a spotlight which was mainly used to locate house numbers at night, especially for travelling salesmen. Its black canvas top is in excellent condition and the plastic window is clear as ice. A Continental kit dresses up the back which is an attractive collection of round tail lights with cone shaped reverse lights above, a full chrome bumper with topper bar, dual exhaust with chrome tips, and grille like ventilation panel. This is a high end restoration and as such, we could not find any imperfections on the exterior.
Interior
The colors flow into the cabin of the car and this time, we add white with the low panel of the door, separated from pink and black with a canted piece of metal trim, is white vinyl. Electric switches are situated on the pink armrest which doubles as a door pull. The split bench seat is White vinyl surrounding Magenta tuck and roll inserts in very good condition and matched by the back seat where that V from the door is reflected in the middle trim piece which the seats contour around. A white steering wheel fronts a two tone dashboard in black and white with a domed speedometer wearing white digits that's a great design cue to pick up on the white mid-dash which houses black knobs and round control panels for vents, radio, and the clock. Black loop carpet is in mint condition and covered with matching mats, all protected by dealer type plastic film covers. The trunk is clean and covered with a plaid mat cut to flow around the upright spare tire.
Drivetrain
If thoughts of Concours level perfection have entered your mind at this point, you won't be disappointed by the engine bay, looking very original and clean and housing a 272ci V8 with a 4-barrel carburetor and rated at 182 horsepower. A Ford-O-Matic 3-speed automatic transmission is hooked to it and sends power to the rear axle with 3.31 gears. Power drum brakes are found at all four wheels.
Undercarriage
The underside is very clean but a bit closer to driver quality rather than showroom fresh. There's some residual oil on the transmission pan and some missing paint there, but the rest of the underside is clean and free of surface rust. There's fresh red grease at the zerk fittings, no harm there. The dual exhaust travels through glasspack style mufflers before finding their way to the chrome tips stretched beyond the extended bumper and Continental kit. Coil springs occupy the front and leaf springs span the back.
Drive-Ability
We were afforded a spectacular fall day to take the car on the loop and did so with the top down. Not many rides are cooler than big convertibles from the 50's and one dressed in rose and black ups the cool factor substantially. The clean machine ran wonderfully and provided limitless visibility of course. Plenty of power is underfoot for the chore at hand and we found all functions on this pampered car to be working as they intend. While Classic Auto Mall represents that these functions were working at the time of our test drive, we cannot guarantee these functions will be working at the time of your purchase.
If you've been waiting for a show ready, near flawless Sunliner to purchase and enjoy, your wait is over. Nearly 50,000 Sunliners were produced in 1955 and to think they all started life with this level of detail is a mind boggling thought. Are there any cars produced today that we'll admire 70 years from now? The 50's was one of the golden ages of car design and this Sunliner is a shining example of everything we love about the era. We look forward to meeting the next owner!
M5PC165859
M-272ci 4bbl V8
5-1955
P-Twin Cities, MN Assy Plant
C-Fairlane Sunliner
165859-Sequential Unit Number
WARRANTY PLATE
BODY 76B-Fairlane Sunnier
COLOR ZAS-Raven Black, Tropical Rose
TRIM AS- White & Magenta Vinyl
PRODUCTION CODE 25E9351A-May 25th
Classic Auto Mall is home to more than 1,000 classic and collectible vehicles for sale via consignment in a climate controlled 336,000-square foot showroom (that's more than 8 acres!). The largest single location consignment dealer of classic and collectible vehicles in the country is located in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, just 1-hour west of Philadelphia off Exit 298 of the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. For more information visit www.classicautomall.com or call us at (888) 227-0914. Contact us anytime for more information or to come see the vehicle in person. There is no guarantee of mileage. A $299 Dealer Administrative fee is not included in the advertised price.
With so many great cars, you know we have a lot to talk about, and we do that each week on the Classic Auto Mall Podcast with host Stewart Howden. Stewart discusses new inventory as well as trends in consignments and car prices, while interviewing celebrities and automotive professionals about amazing cars and their history. Tune in each week to the Classic Auto Mall Podcast wherever you enjoy listening. You can also watch on YouTube!
