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By crenwelge - 15 Years Ago
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Has anyone had experience with the padded dash on 56 Ford passenger cars? I bought another 56 Ford on eBay last night which is identical to the Ford I was driving when I dated my wife over 40 years ago except that it has a padded dash that appears to have seen better days due to Oregon high desert heat. Can the padding merely be removed and the dash painted or was the dash different sheet metal to accept the padding? I am having the car shipped from Bend OR to central Texas and probably won't actually see it for a month or so. I have 3 other 56 Fords and a half a dozen parts cars and none of them came with a padded dash.
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By Nick Brann - 15 Years Ago
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Hi, The sheet metal of the dash is the same. Yes, you can remove the padding and sand and paint the dash. A replacement pad kit may be available from some of the T-Bird suppliers, since the '56 Ford dash and the '57 T-Bird dash are very similar. But they are expensive, around $400 at most places. Good luck, Nick Brann - K.C., MO
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By crenwelge - 15 Years Ago
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Thanks for the info. I would have been hesitant to rip the padding off and find the sheet metal different. My wife and I are trying to recreate a car like we dated in and used for a family car the first 8 years of our marriage.
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By Timbo from Mempho - 15 Years Ago
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My 56 also came with the padded dash. It was sanded and repainted years ago and you would never know. Also, I believe if it has the padded dash it also came with padded sun visors and seat belts. Later, Timbo
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By Jeff - 15 Years Ago
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There is an outfit that is reproducing the padded dashes for the 1956 Fords. I believe that it's Dearborn Classics. It would need to be painted to the appropriate color for your vehicle. I believe the dashes are all the same but with a padded dash there is piece of trim on either end to hold down the covering. So there are probably some holes that would need to be filled if you decided not to run the pad.
Jeff
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By PWH42 - 15 Years Ago
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As the others have said the dash is the same under the pad.You can strip it off and maybe not even have to paint it.I removed mine and put the chrome strips back on that go all the way across the dash.Looks pretty good.
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By MoonShadow - 15 Years Ago
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I'm looking for one of the short pieces to complete my dash if anyone has one.  Chuck in NH
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By marvh - 15 Years Ago
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The ash tray is different on a padded dash car in being longer to cover the padding. The glue that the factory used to hold the padding in place can be a real bear to remove sometimes and takes some elbow grease.
Just Dashes reproduces the dash for the 56 and it is very nice but expensive.
http://justdashes.com/
marv
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By kevink1955 - 15 Years Ago
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I removed my pad on my 56 and as I remember it I had to bondo the holes that the stainless trim clips went thru at the gauge cluster(it is aluminum so you cannot weld them up), the holes on the top side are at the defroster area and I just left them alone and they cannot be seen unless you look down thru the windsheld. I had no problem with the ashtray. Painted the dash top blue metalic BC/CC the only problem I have is the BC/CC has to much shine and the refelctions of streetlights off it are sometimes distracting.
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By marvh - 15 Years Ago
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If you remove your padded dash you won't have a problem installing the ash tray.
What I was referring to is the ash tray on a padded dash car is longer in length than an ash tray for a non padded dash car, so when you remove the dash padding the ash tray now will not push in far enough to be covered. It will look like it it partially open as about 1/2 inch will be exposed.
marv
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By crenwelge - 15 Years Ago
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Thanks for all the responses. I have a parts car with a blue ash tray that hasn't faded because they are protected from the sun. In fact I will probably use it as a paint chip to match. Originally I used a metallic lacquer and I may still have the DuPont number somewhere. I use a MBX blaster to remove glue and undercoating. Dashes come out, but I sure wasn't looking forward to that. My wife and I want to drive it.
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By PWH42 - 15 Years Ago
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As a bit of an aside,that is an unusual car.I've had several 56s and been around dozens of them and I don't believe I've ever seen any thing except Fairlanes with a padded dash.Apparently most Customline and Mainline buyers didn't want to spend the money for the dash.
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By carl - 15 Years Ago
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Chuck i might have an extra one,i will check the barn tomorrow and see if i have Carl
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By kevink1955 - 15 Years Ago
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marvh (9/22/2009)
If you remove your padded dash you won't have a problem installing the ash tray.
What I was referring to is the ash tray on a padded dash car is longer in length than an ash tray for a non padded dash car, so when you remove the dash padding the ash tray now will not push in far enough to be covered. It will look like it it partially open as about 1/2 inch will be exposed.
marvMy ash tray fits flush after removing the pad, I have no way of knowing if it is the original ash tray or if the dash pad was dealer installed and they kept the non padded ash tray. Never can tell what went on with previous owners of a 50+ year old car.
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By morgus - 15 Years Ago
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seems i remember ford was on a 'safety kick' in 56 and changed a few things about their cars to be more safe---such as a 'deep dish' steering wheel, improved door latches (that did not 'pop open' as easily in a collision),seat belts available for the first time, and padded dashes,(so you didn't get so hurt hitting it)...i used to have a photo ( i can't find it now)somewhere that shows lee ioccoca in 1956 on a step ladder letting go of a egg down to a padded dash to show it would not break.--i had no text with the photo so i do not know if the egg broke or not..(anyone out there know if it did????).......later....ed in toledo
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By crenwelge - 15 Years Ago
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I lived through those days when a padded dash was considered a big safety feature. They compared Chevy steering wheel to a harpoon. I might be wrong, but it seems like 57 was the ad with the doors that wouldn't fly open and the hood that wouldn't fly open and wrap around the windshield. The first time in my life I ever saw a seat belt was in 1962 in a DC3. I still haven't seen the car I bought in Oregon. I spent 3 weeks screwing around with the carrier that eBay linked to and never got the car moved. I then spent another week with another company for another 2 weeks. I never realized that there are hundreds of brokers that just post cars on a load board and hope for a miracle. I finally found a carrier in Dallas that actually owns trucks. They will have a wrecker service move it to Portland, then haul it to a storage lot in San Antonio where I will pick it up. I have been tempted to fly to Oregon just to look at the darn thing. I still am amazed that a 4 door Customline had a padded dash. I have 3 runners and a half a dozen parts cars and none have a padded dash. I spent hours on end in the 60's in salvage yards looking for OD transmissions. A padded dash usually meant lotsa chrome/. and a Fordo transmission.
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By rgrove - 15 Years Ago
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Padded dash was part of an optional safety package on the 56 fords. Was a padded dash & padded sunvisors, and the mounting arm for the rear view mirror was different (or so ive been told about the mirror - im skeptical but folks wiser tham me have insisted). Padded dash is the same as regular except that there is stainless trim around the edge of the padding over the instrument binnacle visor. I believe that there will be screw holes from the stainless trim (assuming that it was OE) that will have to be filled/painted as well.
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By PWH42 - 15 Years Ago
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The stainless trim went all the way across the dash just below the padding.I removed the pad and painted the dash and put the trim pieces back on.I think it looks good We have 6 56s,2 with padded dashes,4 without.The rear view mirrors are all the same.
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By rgrove - 15 Years Ago
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PWH42 (10/25/2009)
The stainless trim went all the way across the dash just below the padding.I removed the pad and painted the dash and put the trim pieces back on.I think it looks good We have 6 56s,2 with padded dashes,4 without.The rear view mirrors are all the same. Yup, sorry - forgot to mention the trim went all the way across. About the mirror, i always thought they were the same. However, when we first got our car, the rearview mirror arm was a sculpted/molded piece. The replacements available have just a bent tube for the arm. I always thought that the sculpted arm was for the fairlanes. However, ive had 2 different people (who should be knowledgeable) tell me that the sculpted one is from the "safety package" cars (not sure why they would be - no safety advantage) and that the repro type (bent tube) are for non safety cars. Can anyone clarify? Are yours sculpted or bent tube arms?
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By PWH42 - 15 Years Ago
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Mine are all sculpted.The only difference is the ones from Fairlanes are chrome and the Customlines are all painted.
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