There are a number of reasons why this is my favorite classic car or 'hot rod'. Number one, this car is an absolute beauty. Closely followed by the fact that I was born in 1956. Also, if you look closely -- you'll notice that the chrome piece extending down from the band of red behind the door, follows the natural lines of the unique door only the Nomads have. Check the '55 or '57 Nomads and you'll notice that this unique feature is ignored. Unfortunately I have never owned the '56 Nomad. But I did own, for a few short months, a 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air.
While receiving Air Force technical training in Denver at Lowry AFB in 1975, I happened upon a '56 Chevy Bel Air at a small dealership on one of the main drags near the base. I was currently driving a 1962 Chevrolet Impala convertible. It was white with a white top and red interior. It had the 327 cu. in. engine Duntov solid lifter cam version that produced 340 hp with single Carter 4-barrel, a fuel line that was as big around as your thumb and a 2 speed automatic transmission. When you floored this baby and it shifted from first to second... it was like going into Warp drive -- no kidding! I'm amazed to see 6 and 7 speed automatics that are available today.
However, I was growing tired of the '62 Impala especially since the convertible roof was leaking and what 19 year old kid doesn't tire of a car he's had for 2-3 months already?
So I traded in the Impala and got the '56 Bel Air. It didn't look EXACTLY like the one above -- but it was close. The same Bel Air two-tone paint scheme and colors. It was a hard top with a red and white interior. Someone had taken out the two-speed automatic and replace it with a 4-speed Hurst shifter tranny. The engine was the 265 cu. in. V-8 that Chevrolet had introduced the year before. But, mine was the Power Pack option. The engine included a four-barrel Rochester, dual exhaust and was conservatively rated at 180 hp.
But, it had a few problems. The power steering pump leaked... badly. It needed to be filled almost daily. The battery was weak and I had to get my buddies to give me a push so I could pop the clutch and start it in the morning.
Then it had some problems at highway speeds.
One was the transmission would pop out of 4th gear when ever it felt like it. That was fun. Then above 50 mph the front end would shake and you'd have numb hands holding the steering wheel after a few minutes. Checking with a mechanic, the front end needed around $300 of work. I know, not that much for today. But, I was making about $500 - $600 a month in those days.
I SHOULD have kept it and limped it to my next assignment in South Dakota, fixed it up and had a really cool and classic car today. But... I didn't. Hindsight is 20/20.
(Note: I tried to fix the last 5 paragraphs a half dozen times -- damn Blogger sometimes!)
