@DoubleDingo . Ah a fellow 56 lover!! Have had 5 over the years. Started out with a 56 210 4 door hardtop, 265 3 spd,when I was a sophomore, then 210 2 door wagon 301 3spd. NOT my girlfriend's parents favorite car. Sold that and got a nova, sold the Nova and got the wagon back and 1/4 miled it awhile. Then a 56 210 2 door sedan, best, tightest bodied 56 I ever had. Somewhere in there was a 56 short box 235 4spd pu. Now my Bride and I are building a Nomad, hope to get it done before I croak!!!!!
The bad stepdad bought the '56 210 2 door for mom when I was around 7. I always loved being dropped off at school in that car. Felt like royalty. He modified the rear wheel-wells by flaring them out. It looked cool, and made the car unique. He put the engine from a '76 K10 in it, and it had a 4 speed Saginaw with a short throw shifter. The gas pedal would hang-up at a certain spot and the car would launch once the pedal broke free from that spot.
In '84, mom was out of town and my brother threw a party. Of course I didn't mind, hanging out with upperclassmen and the older hot girls. By that point mom had made it clear the '56 was mine, which pissed off my brother. Mom had the keys, but at that point the ignition was so worn that it didn't need a key. Well, brother and friends took it out after getting good and drunk. They were going around the lake and he was dumping the clutch at the speed bumps. On the second speed bump he did that and the right rear lug studs all sheared, and the car slammed to the ground, ruining that quarter panel.
The way the bad stepdad did the flares, he added metal, and all the auto body guys said it couldn't just be cut out and welded in. Let's just say that the tow truck driver left the car on the flat bed, with the mangled side facing out, and parked the tow truck as close to the highway as possible. Mom saw the car before she even got to the house. Brother was in big trouble!
In '85 mom would let me drive it to auto shop night classes. Well my drunk classmate talked me into ditching class and drinking beer. Hey Shane, let's take off like we're in a race and keep going like we're racing. Okay! Let's do it! I have no idea how fast we were going, but I heard a loud bang, and saw sparks out the back in the rear view. Ruined the 4 speed. Cracked the case. By the time the car got drug to the house, most of the school was outside and mom yelled, "You can all leave, I'm not going to kill him!" She told me to go inside, took the keys, and that was it. She was pissed, but I was safe. I got to look at that car every day, broken.
When we got the rebuilt engine ready, I acquired a TH400, and we converted it to an automatic. Then in '87, right before Grandpa passed away, we swapped in a Nova rear end that had 2.89 gears or something like that. That made the car HAUL ASS!!! Driving that car could be compared to a blind person walking down a street with their cane swiping side-to-side. The stay straight you had to continually turn the wheel back and forth. And mountain roads, you had to make sure you were already set for that direction or you'd end up off the road. Good times!
Brother almost ruined the engine in '88, but we were able to save it. I had developed internal bleeding from a tonsillectomy, and I asked him to drive it home, while mom drove me to the hospital for emergency surgery. He did, but not until he took it for another joy ride.