55 wagon turned camino, was there ever one that looked good?

Yeah, I was thinking the only ones I ever saw that looked right were made from Nomads. And who would do that to a Nomad?

 

I never really thought about it but you are right it would look much better with the full width pillar.

 

Cool car but still looks like a hacked up station wagon. Something about the roofline, pillar and back window just don't do it for me.

 

There was a thread on this subject back in '07 where I remembered having seen a '55 El Camino made from a Nomad in a mag years ago. This morning, I was looking at an old American Rodder, and they mentioned that car, but didn't have a picture of it.

This one was made by Gene Smith about 20 years ago. I think he was a dealer or manufacturer for tri-5 parts. The car was bright red, kept the full width side profile of the "B" column, and used the bed cap stainless parts (maybe the back window, also) from a '65 or '66 El Camino.

There was nothing half-assed about the way it was done; it looked like a very pro job. I've been banging around the net this morning doing a search for it, but nada so far.


Later, Kinky6

 

I agree I haven't seen one roof/rear pillar/glass combo that looks good yet.

 

I remember that car as well... it was a real high scored car in the CCC judging...he wanted it to look like it was built by GM, and it did!

 

For every one conversion that was pulled off nicely, there seems to be a thousand that was a total waste!

 

There is a local car collector that has a 55 El Camino.restored to 100% stock.

 

A friend of mine, Bob Nordberg from Stromsberg Nebraska Had a very nicely done orange 55 in the mid to late 70's. Don't know where it ended up and I have'nt seen Bob for years. I remember he had it for sale in Streetscene probably in late 70's for 3500 bucks.

 

We have a 100% stock '55 Ranchero...I'd love to see some pictures

 

Keeping the square door posts looks awkward on most of them. The best ones use a Nomad/Safari B-post (C-post?). But I agree with what most have said, it's hard to get a roofline that flows as opposed to looking cut-off.

Someone posted here years ago an old custom they'd found, or maybe it was on eBay? It was a 54-57 Olds that had the same El-Camino conversion done - I think from a 4-door hardtop, with the stock sedan roof shortened and chopped. That one flowed pretty well although I'm sure it suffered from a lack of headroom. I'd try to dig it out but it's been long enough I imagine the photos are gone. I remember it was gold, at any rate. But what made it flow was the roofline curved down to the quarters as opposed to being cut off and going straight down.

The best thing you could do when planning this would be to just photoshop new rooflines on the car. 55-59 or 60-66 Chevy pickup, or maybe 59-60 4-door hardtop (they're a lot easier to find than the El Caminos are), all might work, or follow the Olds example and try a 57 Olds or Buick sedan roof section?

 

Pics or it never happened.

 

Thats probably the one we were discussing above, built by Gene Scott , cause GM never built any before 59! This car was bright red...

 

FINISH THE TRUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! yeah, i said it haha

 

A Guy in Adelaide built one around 1980, looked OK, but did not quite get the proportions of our locally built GMH FE and FC utility.

threw a few pics in to give the perspective proportions.
The FE and FC Holdens were built from about 1957 through to 1960

 

im gettin there. slowly.....verrrry slowly.

 

The black 57 looks "right" to me.

 

finally haha. cant wait to see it

 

Saw this at GG in Scottsdale last year. Not my cup of tea, but good workmanship.

 

I think he nailed the look. Looks about as far from a hack job as it could.

 

Haha! Finally I know about my car! IT is in Germany since the early 80's and I own it for 6 or so years now! Do u know more about it. When did they put on those flames? The old pic is from Popular Hot Rodding '75. The one with the whitewalls is another car, or the same earlier. I don't know. Engine is a 327 Vette from 65 and a Muncie 4 Speed

 

I like it!!

 

The black 57 is what I'm talking about.

 

There was a red 57 at the KKOA show in Salina last year.

 

Were any funerary cars built on the 567 platform? Some flower cars have a very successful look to them and, I assume, were converted from wagons.

Steve

 

The whitewalled one is not my car. Found it. It is very nice. Phantom car that looks like factory stock. Wish they had made these.
http://www.barrett-jackson.com/application/onlinesubmission/lotdetails.aspx?ln=639&aid=45

 

I like the 55 from Germany. Looks like that one as many of the early conversions was made from a Nomad.
I designed my 56 using a 2door 210 Wagon. I did change the angle of my doors and B-pillars to be more like the Nomad. I think it gives it more of the factory look I was going for. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/some-pics-of-my-friends-1956-elcamino.399170/

 

That actually turned out very nice ^^

 

Not to hijack the thread,but these pix makes me want to see all of the truck-let conversions out there. My wifes' first car was a 1964 Buick Skylark made into a truck.We called it the Sky-Lamino. Over built with a steel bed insert,by a farmer in northern Wisconsin out of a post two door.Aluminum V-6 and automatic.The car was so rusty that we had to replace the floors and brake lines every two years. Car was sold to Miller Compressing and they turned into their shop truck.

 

I don't have any pics, but a friend and I did a '55 Nomad way back in 1966. We used a '64 el camino rear window and trim. Lots of fabricated panels to get some rear overhang. It looked ok for the era. It ended up on the E. Coast somewhere after we both went in the service.