In '77 my father and I did a ground up restoration of a '55 Chevy convertible. We drove it all the time. He sold it in '00 or '01 for about $30k. At the time we bought it, it was rusted on the quarter panels, above the headlights, etc. I think we bought for about $5k, and I know we spent more than $30k over the years on it, but it was a fun project for us. He had an extra engine, set off chrome bumbers and other body parts thrown in as well.
During that time, we wanted to do the whole Classic Chevy era. We found a bunch of '57's, but not alot of '56's out there. In any case, since we couldn't find what we liked or wanted, we never did get the set done.
Now, I've got a '66 Mustang Convertible, 289, Pony Seats, all original, that I drive alot as well, although I need to do some front end and tranny work on it now. My wife thinks it doesn't need to be taking up space in the garage, and that's how we were able to buy the '55.
