QuestionI have a 1956 hudson hollywood hornet 2 door, the car is actually in very good shape, but i guess my question would be, is the car worth putting back to all original or street rod it. I havent seen much on these cars on the net or any place else. your opinion is much needed... thank you
AnswerWell, you happened to ask the right person, as I have had 6 of these cars over the years, and still have 2 of them, plus a parts car. If your car is a Hornet Custom (with the Packard engine and transmission), it is an excellent car to drive - we have driven ours all over the west in the 21 years we've had it. Unfortunately, the cars are not worth much money, because no one even knows what it is - most people think they are something else, and have really no interest in them. If it were a similar 56 Chevy, it would be worth about 4 times as much, and be a whole lot easier to fix up. There are just about no trim parts available for these cars.
As for street rodding it, I am very much opposed to modifying a rare car, but that is a matter of personal choice, it's your car - you can do whatever you want with it. It would probably be worth more, I guess.
One caution - these are unit body/frame cars - the structure is very easily damaged and weakened by rust, so if your car spent any time east of the Rockies, I'd inspect the underside and both the upper and lower floor panels very carefully for rust. Also, check carefully where the front suspension and steering box is mounted - these cars often have seriously weakened structure in that area.
Good luck with it, whatever you decide.
Dick
