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Hi Gents
I'm very interested in purchasing a mid fiftys Desoto. It a 56 Fireflight.
I'd like to know what kinds of things to look for before I buy the car?
It is supposed to be relatively rust free. I have not looked at the car yet, but am in discussion with the owner now. Car runs and drives, he says.
Just looking for more independent opinions of things to evaluate.
I'll try to answer any questions with the info I have.
Thank you.
Jim
Jim,
What to look for depends somewhat on your repair and restoration skills. My best skill in old car repair is writing checks. If you are handy with body work, some rust may not scare you. Or if you can take apart and reassemble an engine blindfolded, mechanical repairs are not a concern.
Generally speaking, here are some areas where the '56 DeSoto is prone to rust:
- Rear bumper ends
- trunk floor. Be sure to inspect under any trunk liner for soft spots.
- front interior floor near accelerator pedal and close to the kick panels. Again, best to inspect under carpet or mats or crawl under the car and inspect from beneath.
- rear frame rails above and to the rear of the rear wheels
- rear wheel arches of the body. An all original car without body work should show evidence of the spot welds that bonded the outer and inner fenders together
Much of the interior fabric for the '56 has now been reproduced so that can be redone. All you need is $.
A good original, non-cracked steering wheel is very hard to find. Restored wheels fetch hundreds.
All the mechanical stuff can be replaced or rebuilt.
Good luck with your search.
Mark
Thank you Mark for the response and information. I have real good mechanical skills, and have done some metal repair.
I'll make an effort to thoroughly check those areas mentioned.
Thanks again
Jim
Welcome, Jim, and good luck with the new car purchase. The 1956 models are quite popular in the club, and although I'm not knowledgeable on them, lots of folks here are. If you're going to become a DeSoto expert, though, you ought to know it's FireFLITE, not FireFLIGHT. Don't know why DeSoto did that, but hey, now you'll sound like an expert!
If you buy the car, post some pictures, please! We all like to see pictures.
Take good large strong magnet with you and then you can test the body panels to see where any bond has been applied. remember this is your money that you are going to spend and also more money to get the car running and restored.
Do not feel bad when pointing out defects that you can and the obvious issues. With that being known then you can factor in rust that you can not see and any missing parts rechome work, paint interior work etc. A good paint job is going to run 4-5 K and maybe more.
Just some input for you.
Rich HArtung
Desoto1939@aol.com
Jim,
By chance is this the car you have an interest in buying?
http://eastidaho.craigslist.org/cto/5142493378.html
