Used Car of the Day: 1956 Chevrolet 150

Tim Healey
by Tim Healey

Today we go old school for a 1956 Chevrolet 150 that has 100,000 miles on the clock and looks ready to drive.

If you can drive a car without modern power-assist systems, that is. This bad boy is old school.


It has drum brakes all around no power steering, power brakes, or air conditioning. Underhood is a 235 cubic-inch inline-six and the transmission is a three-on-tree automatic.

The carburetor was rebuilt last year, and there is a new fuel tank, sending unit, and fuel pump.

There are some issues, such as taillights that don't work. The brakes might need adjusting, and a rear brake cylinder might be leaking, though the seller says the car does still stop well.

Reading through the listing, the car does seem to need some work, especially if you want it to be as close to original and/or show quality as possible, but most of the work it does needs appears to be relatively minor.

This could be a fun classic for someone who wants to go to local cruise nights or just get some positive attention while driving around town instead of winning awards at uptight car shows. That said, it looks to be in good enough quality for the smaller car shows that are more about fun that awards, and it doesn't seem like it would need a ton of wrenching if you really want to get attention at some poorly lit convention center.

It's in Missouri and the ask is $15,500.

[Image: Seller]

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Tim Healey
Tim Healey

Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.

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5 of 39 comments
  • Pianoboy57 Pianoboy57 on Nov 30, 2023

    Compared to the '56 Studabaker Scotsman this looks like a luxury car. I guess the arm rests were optional in these like in the Studie.

    • Jeff Jeff on Nov 30, 2023

      This is loaded compared to the 57 and 58 Studebaker Scotsman. Chrome bumpers, chrome trim, and chromed hubcaps with the Scotsman having those items painted silver. Two sun visors and two windshield wipers which were not available on the Scotsman. Also more colors available on a 56 Chevy with Scotsman offering basically white, black, and maybe one or two other colors.


  • Jeff_M Jeff_M on Nov 30, 2023

    It's either a three on the tree OR it's an automatic. It ain't both.

  • Theflyersfan Amazon Music HD through Android Auto. It builds a bunch of playlists and I pick one and drive. Found a bunch of new music that way. I can't listen to terrestrial radio any longer. Ever since (mainly) ClearChannel/iHeartMedia gobbled up thousands of stations, it all sounds the same. And there's a Sirius/XM subscription that I pay $18/month for but barely use because actually being successful in canceling it is an accomplishment that deserves a medal.
  • MRF 95 T-Bird Whenever I travel and I’m in my rental car I first peruse the FM radio to look for interesting programming. It used to be before the past few decades of media consolidation that if you traveled to an area the local radio stations had a distinct sound and flavor. Now it’s the homogenized stuff from the corporate behemoths. Classic rock, modern “bro dude” country, pop hits of today, oldies etc. Much of it tolerable but pedestrian. The college radio stations and NPR affiliates are comfortable standbys. But what struck me recently is how much more religious programming there was on the FM stations, stuff that used to be relegated to the AM band. You have the fire and brimstone preachers, obviously with a far right political bend. Others geared towards the Latin community. Then there is the happy talk “family radio” “Jesus loves you” as well as the ones featuring the insipid contemporary Christian music. Artists such as Michael W. Smith who is one of the most influential artists in the genre. I find myself yelling at the dashboard “Where’s the freakin Staple singers? The Edwin Hawkins singers? Gospel Aretha? Gospel Elvis? Early Sam Cooke? Jesus era Dylan?” When I’m in my own vehicle I stick with the local college radio station that plays a diverse mix of music from Americana to rock and folk. I’ll also listen to Sirius/XM: Deep tracks, Little Steven’s underground as well as Willie’s Roadhouse and Outlaw country.
  • The Comedian I owned an assembled-in-Brazil ‘03 Golf GTI from new until ‘09 (traded in on a C30 R-Design).First few years were relatively trouble free, but the last few years are what drove me to buy a scan tool (back when they were expensive) and carry tools and spare parts at all times.Constant electrical problems (sensors & coil packs), ugly shedding “soft” plastic trim, glovebox door fell off, fuel filters oddly lasted only about a year at a time, one-then-the-other window detached from the lift mechanism and crashed inside the door, and the final reason I traded it was the transmission went south.20 years on? This thing should only be owned by someone with good shoes, lots of tools, a lift and a masochistic streak.
  • Terry I like the bigger size and hefty weight of the CX90 and I almost never use even the backseat. The average family is less than 4 people.The vehicle crash safety couldn't be better. The only complaints are the clumsy clutch transmission and the turbocharger.
  • MaintenanceCosts Plug in iPhone with 200 GB of music, choose the desired genre playlist, and hit shuffle.
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