It always amazes me how many of the ’55, ’56, ’57 ‘Birds seem to still exist of the number originally produced.
Late Fall, I accompanied a friend to a stash of cars housed in a three story barn off in the boonies. It was like a junk yard under a roof! The number of ’56 and ’57 ‘Bird carcasses inside amazed me. These cars had rust-through in places that I’d never seen before. IF they had been other ’55, ’56, or ’57 Ford models in the same condition, I believe that they would have been crushed years ago. While impractical to ‘restore’, these rust buckets qualified as being possible donors for more structurally sound hulks with ‘potential’ that might lack ‘Bird specific mechanical parts.
IF you are looking for a little ‘Bird, and you’re thinking ’55, I’d recommend your doing a thorough comparison of the ’55 and ’56 before setting out. Like many, if not most new product offerings, significant tweaks, changes, and improvements are made in subsequent years of model production.
IF building a hot rod, the most significant improvements between the ’55 and ’56 that come to my mind that might influence your selection are:
- ’55 has no front fender to passenger compartment outside 'cowl' air vents, ’56 does… Know that the vents were not added for looks…
- ’55 frame is thinner than what Ford moved to for most of the ’56 and all of the ’57 model years… Bad ’55 frames here in the Northeast are very common. Rust through can occur on the later ’56 and ’57 frames, but is not common in my experience.
There are NUMEROUS other differences between the ’55 and ’56, but these are ‘tweaks’ in my view compared to the two I’ve identified. The book, THUNDERBIRD! an illustrated history of the Ford T-Bird by Ray Miller covers the years ’55 through ’66. Pictorially, it identifies the many differences and changes between the 5, 6, and 7 ‘Birds. The book is still available perhaps through some of the little ‘Bird parts suppliers or used in places like Amazon. My copy was published in 1973. I don’t know if there were later editions.
Comments:
- Personally, I don’t like the looks of the continental kit on the back of the ’56. Additionally, it does affect the handling of the car. IMO, many ’56 ‘Birds have been tastefully modified by eliminating the continental kit and substituting the ’55 ‘Bird rear bumper assembly, many times without using the bumper guards that also were the rear exit for the engine exhaust.
- In following Ford's revival of the ‘Bird in 2002, I was absolutely AMAZED at the significant changes Ford made between the 2002 ‘Bird and the 2003 offering. These changes were in spite of the supposed EXTENSIVE real world testing that was done before the ’02 went into production. Major engineering changes were made to the engine, transmission, suspension, and steering system for the ’03 model.
Hope this helps. 
NoShortcuts
a.k.a. Charlie Brown
near Syracuse, New York