1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon
westaus29
Posted 2014-09-19 10:22 AM (#456775)
Subject: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Location: Mandurah, Western Australia
Found this new project not far from here, and couldnt resist it, as it is registered, running and looks fairly original but in need of a good home. The P-27 V8 doesnt blow smoke and the Powerflite shifts ok. Original colour was Peach, as per dash, and the Peach is peeping thru all over the place. The car is RHD from new but not local manufacture, as 1954 P-25 Plymouths continued to be made made here thru 55-56 with few changes.

We already have a 29U tourer on the road and a 38 P-6 7-passenger currently on the rotisserie, so the shed is getting crowded!





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DepsilonD
Posted 2014-09-19 12:06 PM (#456781 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon



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Nice 55. Keep posting pictures!

Edited by DepsilonD 2014-09-19 12:07 PM
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1961plymouthfury
Posted 2014-09-19 12:22 PM (#456784 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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What brand CD player is that ? I had a sony in my last '61 fury it I could hook up sirus or an Ipod to my mine. I did not sell my last '61 it was destroyed by fire . The red and white `1 replaced it. I plan either to convert my original radio or get an pioneer am/fm cd player and have it installed in the glove box.
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58 DESOTOS RULE
Posted 2014-09-19 1:29 PM (#456792 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: RE: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon



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We already have a 29U tourer on the road and a 38 P-6 7-passenger currently on the rotisserie, so the shed is getting crowded! 

Trying to give the Swedes a good run for their money, eh?  Nice score on the wagon! What colour do you intend to paint it when you get around to working on it? Peach as shown on the dashboard would be an attractive colour in my view. 

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d500neil
Posted 2014-09-19 6:24 PM (#456818 - in reply to #456792)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon



Exner Expert 19,174 posts. Neil passed away 18 Sep 2015. You will be missed, Neil!

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Really like the execution of the seat upholstery...and the dashboard!

It will look, even-more outstanding in its field....with the OEM paint finish.


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westaus29
Posted 2014-09-20 11:01 AM (#456887 - in reply to #456781)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Thanks for the feedback, we're pretty stoked with it .. and two of my daughters have laid claim to it already! I've done a quick job on the battery terminals (loose), carby (choke jammed and all the adjustments way out) and starter motor (dry front bushing), so now it starts way easier. Took the front seat out and removed the wet carpet and underlay to uncover a bit of rust on the floor near front door posts. Ground off 95% of it, treated with Fertan and etch primed, waiting till next week to get some training on a mate's mig so I can replace two small patches of the floor, then tackle the removable sections under the pedals which need serious repairs. Meanwhile the other half is cleaning the front cushions of 50 years of grime. They look to be original even tho they dont seem to match pics I've seen of US cars.



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westaus29
Posted 2014-09-20 12:03 PM (#456890 - in reply to #456784)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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The CD unit is a JVC KD-G325, looks a few yrs old. Best I can say is it works! Doesnt have any aux inputs
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westaus29
Posted 2014-09-20 12:06 PM (#456891 - in reply to #456792)
Subject: RE: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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The plan is to paint it the original Peach with white roof, as have seen a couple on this site that look good. The missing chrome is in the back of the wagon.
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westaus29
Posted 2014-11-14 10:46 AM (#461815 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: RE: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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I finished floor repairs a few weeks ago and replaced the worn out pedals, see attached photos. You can see the drivers floor on the right is genuine right hand drive from factory. As part of the floor cleanup I removed the front seat, freed up the runners, derusted painted and reinstalled it. My better half has scrubbed all the seats and they have come up a treat, wouldnt think they were 60 years old.
Since then I have had several goes at the starter motor which is very noisy (I'll post that seperately), and currently I am re-doing the brakes which the previous owner claimed were recently overhauled. I've tidied up the wheels, scrubbed the whitewalls, and obtained a nice set of wheel covers from eBay. I've removed the towbar and sorted out a tangle of wiring to trailer and indicators, and cut out another tangle of wire from under the dash that went to the stereo. I hope to be able to take it for a drive in next couple of weeks, then start on finding out where the water is leaking onto the floor. The drivers side sill also needs rust cut out of it, but doesnt look too bad.



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oldwood
Posted 2014-11-14 11:26 AM (#461818 - in reply to #461815)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Nice, Real Friggin Nice!!!
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Old Ray
Posted 2014-11-14 12:05 PM (#461823 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon



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Nice car, nice work. Thank you for posting.
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FIN ME
Posted 2014-11-18 8:56 AM (#462178 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon



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Gotta love those wagons! And yours looks SO cool in black!

I am especially happy to read that your daughters are so enthusiastic about this grand old car! Good work, dad!




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westaus29
Posted 2016-10-24 11:07 AM (#524227 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: RE: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Its time I added an update or two on my Suburban! I sure am impressed by the quality of posts on these forums and even more by the amount of traffic, but there is not a lot on 55-56 so will add my bit. I may even end up joining Facebook! (chuckle from my wife).

I've done a fair bit where it doesn't show to get the wagon safe and reliable, spent more than I should, and have driven it to several local car shows, including one trip of 200km (120 miles) to Bunbury and back. It behaved itself but the transmission sounded very noisy at speed, and there was an annoying knock in the engine at idle when hot. More about that another time.

When I originally picked up the wagon there were some greenish bits of chrome in the back, also a couple of rusty panels which I couldn't identify and was thinking of putting out on the kerb collection. When I finished the drivers floor repairs I decided to clean up the front seat base and get it sliding again, so the wife can reach the pedals too. The seat locking arm had no knob, so I did some research and ordered one on eBay hoping for the best as mine is RHD. In the process I saw an ad for guess what - front seat side panels for 55 Plymouth - so that's what those rusty bits were. I cleaned them up and discovered that they were originally two tone with Pompano Peach speed stripe and not sure if black or Cypress Brown body. Took the spare tyre cover down to the local paint shop to get a match for Pompano Peach, and came home with a spray can to try it. It looked spot on to me and the results are posted below. Meanwhile the knob arrived and no way would it fit. By this time I had a parts manual and discovered there are three different knobs, two chrome and one black plastic. I had the early chrome, should have had the later chrome unit, so back to ebay and the second knob fit ok when I turned it upside down as you might expect in Down-Under!

Next job was to clean up the chrome, which came up way better than expected, a bit bubbly but matches the rest of the car ok. Then I derusted and painted the air cleaner.

Exhaust fumes were a bit of a problem on long trips, so next job was to plug various holes in the firewall and floor. There was a bad rust patch in the left rear corner of the cargo floor and to get access I had to remove the left rear side panel which covers the jack storage. I renewed the rusty floor, repaired the base of the side panel and a small patch in the wheel arch, then replaced the side panel with self-tappers so it is easy to remove next time. Why, because when I looked up at the inside top of the rear left fin it was obvious that there was a very bodgy rust repair well hidden under bog. That is a job for another day. Any advice on bumper jacks would be welcome as I don't have one and changing a rear tyre with a bottle jack is near impossible.




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westaus29
Posted 2016-10-24 11:15 AM (#524228 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: RE: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Pics of rust repairs to rear floor



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westaus29
Posted 2020-05-26 12:12 AM (#598799 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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This set of photos is to document rust repairs to the drivers side rocker.

Had been driving the 55 for a while to local car shows, going great but whenever it rained we got wet bottoms from water leaking in thru front door seals, so decided to replace them. As always, the job multiplied because the seal surface on bottom of doors was rusted, with a few small holes. Looked like the original seals as had embedded wire clips. Tried to clean it up but ended up taking doors off to replace rusted areas. That gave easy access to sills and lower front guards for much needed repairs. For that the bumper and grille had to come off! Another story in that.

The front half of the rocker did not look good, several holes and guard mounting almost gone. Drilled out spot welding and removed a section to show rust damage to lower half of inner rocker and pitting to inside of outer.

The rear had only a small hole but when cut out it revealed a second layer rusted out so decided to remove all of outer skin, cutting about 5mm inside flat section of sill but leaving a section below the centre pillar. The [plan was to get a replacement lower rocker skin fabricated locally as sourcing parts from USA has become way too expensive. It would be spot welded at top to the flat section of the sill, and at bottom to the inner rocker.

I then cut out and replaced the lower half of the inner rocker with joggled overlap joint and "spot" welded it with mig, including welds to inside rocker support brackets.

It was suggested I try a local trailer place for the rocker repair panel. Measured it up carefully and found there was a slight taper front to rear. Two day turnaround, cost $22, turned out great except the taper was reversed! Supplied the correct item the next day, ended up using the first one later on left side so very pleased.

Next spot welded outer skin top and bottom, and fabricated and welded in new ends, which was the slow part.

Very happy with the result.


Edited by westaus29 2020-05-26 12:28 AM




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samstrader
Posted 2020-05-27 1:57 AM (#598829 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Great job and great paint job on the air cleaner. Where did you get the decals? Really looks great
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westaus29
Posted 2020-05-28 1:21 AM (#598877 - in reply to #598829)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Location: Mandurah, Western Australia
The hy fire and V8 decals came from Vintage Auto Literature and they still advertise on ebay, quite cheap if you happen to be in US of A. I wouldnt be able to afford them at todays exchange rate and international postage costs. A bit hard to put on the curved surface, I recall I trimmed them a bit. They are labelled 1956 but most of pics online show same white decals for 55. I have that common sales brochure for the 55 with the lady at door of a red Plymouth. It shows black decals. I doubt many people would know the difference.

Not sure about the other maintenance decals, will look further.
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westaus29
Posted 2020-05-28 1:26 AM (#598878 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Checked their store and they have the rest of the air cleaner and breather decals also. Prices have gone up a bit I think, cant check as daughter has commandeered the office to "work from home" a la covid
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samstrader
Posted 2020-05-29 12:03 PM (#598951 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Thanks. I'll look into the decals. Your air cleaner looks fantastic. Mine air cleaner is not rusty but the painted on decals, so to speak, are rubbed off mostly. Yours really looks great.. Your whole car looks fantastic. It's going to be beautiful.
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westaus29
Posted 2020-05-29 8:20 PM (#598972 - in reply to #598951)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Thanks for the thumbs up! But as they say, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder! It has cleaned up well but is 65 years old and there are still significant issues, in particular rust in the "beaver" panel and body filler which I think is hiding rust in the roof gutters which may be spreading past the rear window into the right fin. Too busy on my 38 body off rebuild to spend time on the 55, and I really dont want to take it offline that long. In the meantime, we are planning a morning tea run next Monday up to a picnic site in the hills with a bunch of car club friends, max 20 and keeping social distancing, first time out in months. Things have greatly improved here with the only new cases coming from crew of a live sheep export vessel. We are very lucky to live so far from the action.
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samstrader
Posted 2020-05-31 12:48 AM (#599022 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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I'm glad you will get out and about and that the Corona mess is staying away from you. It is everywhere here and we are not going out much yet. But have sure completed a lot of work around the house that I've not had much interest in doing before.
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westaus29
Posted 2020-06-02 9:06 AM (#599104 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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Well we had our outing on Monday, a public holiday here in WA. Topped up the auto transmission fluid as it leaks badly, topped up the tyres, and everything else checked out ok. I keep the battery charged up regularly so that wasnt an issue. Hit the button on the dash to prime with fuel with the electric booster pump, turned the key and after a few pumps she fired up for first time since November. Gave it a quick wash and we headed off to South Dandalup Dam picnic area in the hills about 30 km from home. Ran like a Plymouth. Had a good chat and cup of tea, then off home. My wife insisted we stop off at a friend's for some quilting material. I scored a bottle of Suntori whisky for my troubles.

All I have to do now is clean up the mess of auto transmission fluid on the shed floor, caused when the plastic tube I was using flipped out of the filler neck while I was pumping a litre of fluid in. Why was I doing that? Well my RHD has been fitted with the short stubby filler tube that was a feature of the early auto Dodges. There is a removable cover in the floor to allow inspection or top-up, but to get at it you have to pull back the carpet, which means you first have to remove the accelerator pedal, being very careful not to drop the nut into the nether world under the floor. Too hard, I thought. I have a plan to install a long filler tube and dipstick, kindly supplied by Big M. But there is not much room and it may have to be bent so have been putting that job off. Just got raised in priority!





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samstrader
Posted 2020-06-02 1:29 PM (#599121 - in reply to #456775)
Subject: Re: 1955 Plymouth Aussie(?) wagon


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That's a great looking car and it looks like you guys are having a great time. The body is in great shape but it looks like someone put the steering wheel on the wrong side. Your chrome is sure in great condition.

I'm glad you had a fun trip and get away. This lockdown mess has gone on long enough...
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