1955 Plymouth

Photography: AF Photography Words: Zack Stiling

Plymouth was the fourth best-selling American manufacturer in 1955, but survivors are thin on the ground. Paul McAlpine was lucky to pick this one up at a good price and now, after some light restoration, it’s a scene-stealer at car shows and rock ‘n’ roll events.

Push-button AM radio. Like London buses, it seems ’55 Plymouths come in pairs. Shortly after Martyn and Aedan Butler’s Savoy was featured (CA371 April 2022), along came Paul McAlpine with his beautiful Belvedere. While all Plymouths for ’55 benefited from Virgil Exner’s exciting new ‘Forward Look’ styling, the Belvedere was the one to have. The V8 convertible was the chief object of desire, but a four-door sedan like Paul’s with the 230cu in, 117bhp inline-six still boasted all the top-of-the-line trimmings.

In terms of sedans and club coupes, the Savoy and Belvedere sold equally well, but where Savoy buyers favoured the six, most Belvedere buyers opted for the V8. At $1979, the fourdoor, straight-six Belvedere was $4 less than its V8-powered Savoy equivalent and they sold in almost equal numbers – 69,128 units and 69,025 units respectively. Of course, many owners plumped for some extra-cost options, most obvious of which on Paul’s car are the extra trim mouldings and Sport Tone paint finish.

Built in Detroit in May 1955, Paul’s Belvedere is believed to have originally been a New Jersey car. It came into the country in 2011 and Paul purchased it in October 2013 from the Isle of Wight, after seeing it advertised on Rods ‘n’ Sods. As he says: “From what I can make out, the bloke who brought it over here bought it at Hershey in 2011. We think it had been familyowned from new, but we don’t know. When I bought it, it was red and white.

“For some reason in its past, it had a colour change and while we were restoring it the original colours started to bleed through. We decoded the chassis plate which confirmed red and black as the original colours.”

The Plymouth looks phenomenal in its factory colours. Coming from the same year that Elvis was signed to RCA Victor and Chuck Berry cut his first 45, Maybellene, the Seminole Scarlet and Black screams rock ‘n’ roll. And, like with many people, the mid-century styling and culture is what first drew Paul, himself the singer in a rock ‘n’ roll band called the V8 Rockets, towards Fifties Yanks.

Furry dice? Always nice! ‘Forward Look’ styling made Chryslers appear as if they were in motion, even when stationary.

Tissue dispenser is one ...

“I bought my first American car in 1992 when I was 21 and I’ve had American cars ever since. It had been a year or so since I’d sold my 1959 Mercury and I just fancied another one,” he says. “I looked at several options – 1954-56 Chevrolets and ’53-54 Fords were on my hit list − but this one popped up. What the owner was asking was what it would have cost me to ship a Chevy from America. I hadn’t really seen one before so I looked it up. They’ve got little following over here, but it’s bigger in the States.”

The Belvedere was presentable as bought, but it had a few cosmetic flaws which made the perfectionist in Paul a bit fidgety, so he ended up commencing a restoration. He explains: “I restored it bodily because there was evidence of minor accident damage in one corner, the front fender didn’t sit nicely and the paintwork didn’t look great. It looked like it had been painted with a yard broom.”

Taking it back, Paul discovered the original red and black paint, but fortunately there were no more surprises. “There was nothing sinister. I straightened the front fender slightly, the bonnet hinge was at slightly the wrong angle so the bonnet wouldn’t support itself, but now everything is as it should be. The interior was trimmed some years ago, with new carpets and headlining, but still looks lovely and is extremely comfortable. Mechanically, all it’s ever had is minor servicing and it still runs like a Swiss watch.”

Paul has modernised the Plymouth very slightly with electronic ignition, an alternator and a 12-volt conversion and now, as far he’s concerned, there’s nothing left to improve. “It’s a very, very beautifully made car. I like the styling of it and it just ticks a lot of boxes. The chances of bumping into another ’55 at a show are small, there are only a few in the country. Chrysler Corporation cars were notorious for rust. Survival, unless they went to dry states, is pretty slim, so the ones that are left are highly prized.

“It’s a lovely cruiser, it just bowls along. The straight-six has got such a lovely bellow, a really glorious sound. The two-speed PowerFlite shifts beautifully. If I had to make any criticism, it’s the cross-plies I put on, because they wander a bit. The steering’s lovely; it’s geared for the car and it’s not heavy.”

117bhp 230cu in inline-six engine.

Interior was retrimmed. Plymouth hailed from New Jersey. Antennae accessory.

Apart from the Sport Tone two-tone paint, other extras include reversing lights, full-face hubcaps and the PowerFlite transmission. “But they were too cheap to buy power windows, power steering, power brakes or a radio,” says Paul of its first owners. “It’s a typical rugged American car: no frills, but with a fancy body on top.” He’s since sourced a correct original radio for it.

“We take it to car shows, but we also think nothing of runs to the coast,” he continues. “It’s such a reliable old thing that, if there was such a road, I would happily drive it back to Detroit. We’ve often thought about changing it, but it’s such a good solid car. It’s 67 years old, there’s no rust on it and it’s never been welded. If I sold it, I’d probably end up buying someone else’s rubbish and doing that up, so I’m happy to roll along in it for a few more years.”

Although these cars are a rarity, if a similar one did appear, Paul would recommend snapping it up. “It’s such a bargain. Because it’s a sixcylinder, lots of people wouldn’t touch it. They’d rather have a rotten car with a V8. I’m just about the mid-century styling. It outclasses the Buick and the Mercury I had before in terms of build quality. You can shut the door with your little finger. I’ve Waxoyled the living daylights out of it now, so you could probably park it in the sea and it wouldn’t rust.

“It’s never given any grief. It’s been a good friend to us for the last 12,000 miles. We’ve stayed fairly local; Norfolk’s such a beautiful county. It’s now only covered 73,000 miles and there’s no reason to believe the engine and transmission have ever been out of the car. It’s a great rock ‘n’ roll cruiser. My other car is a 1958 Ford 100E, which is three years newer, but this has carpets and reversing lamps while the Anglia just has rubber mats…”

There, in a nutshell, is everything that’s good about owning a Fifties American car. Apart from just looking nice, if you look after it, it will treat you well in return, and even the low-spec ones were pretty well appointed.

Cruising past the bright lights of Great Yarmouth seafront, the Plymouth looks like it’s been lifted out of American Graffiti, and Paul’s found his Paradise Road.

The perfect wheels for a lead singer in a rock ‘n’ roll band.

Summer is a great time to undertake all those niggling tasks that need fixing on your American vehicle. We have the added bonus that the weather is (should be!) warm and dry, so we can take our cars and trucks out and truly see the nature of any issues, something that’s not always that easy when they’re tucked away for the winter. Maybe that annoying pitted chrome needs removing and sending away to be replated, or those dull headlamps need a brighter replacement bulb.

Not only that, being able to drive them should reveal any other issues that are not necessarily visible from just a cursory inspection. Does it ‘drive right’? Classic American recommends getting your vehicle MoT’d even though it’s not legally necessary, as a simple safety check. Maybe it’s time for some fluid changes? Always advisable after a long lay-up over winter – and that can be anything from transmission fluid to engine oil or brake fluid. Or maybe that carb or starter motor needs replacing. Whatever the case, there’s always time for it in the summer!