One other thing Bob's noticed about his Fury: The attention it draws. "There's no 'Plymouth' marking on the back of the car-all it says is 'Fury' and 'PowerFlite,' and that's it," he says. "So, you can see people when they pass you, they're turning around and looking at the front of it, because they don't know what kind of a car it is." He adds that, on the show field, a lot of people come up at car shows and say, "You know, I've never seen one of these cars-I've only seen pictures of it."
If you're looking to picture any Exner-era Mopar in your collection-like Bob's '56 Fury-he has a word of caution. "One of the biggest problems that you'll have is finding parts," he says. "There's a couple of junkyards around, including one outside Phoenix, and all they handle is old Mopars, and they've got everything in the world. That's where I got my replacement fender. The guys were very nice to work with, and we did everything over the phone. You have to make friends and find out where these places are."
Fast Facts
'56 Plymouth Fury
Owned by: Bob Garman, Oak Hills, California
Mopar Power
- Engine: If the original 240hp 303-cubic-inch Poly was good enough, the 392-inch Chrysler Hemi that's under the hood now is even better.
- Transmission: The original two-speed PowerFlite automatic, which Ma Mopar also used in Hemi-powered '56 Chryslers.
- Rearend: A previous owner swapped the original one for a later 8 3/4-inch one, which Bob updated with a 3.23 rear gear set replacing the 3.94s that were there when he bought it.
Sure Grip
Just like in '56: Front kingpins/coil springs and rear leafs. ('56 was the last year before front torsion bars went in company-wide.)
Brakes: OEM 11-inch drums gave way to modern four-wheel discs.
Wheels and Tires: Instead of the stock 15x5 1/2-inch wheels (and wheel covers shared with the '56 De Soto Adventurer) and bias-ply tires, Bob's Fury wears billet Budnik wheels on each corner, shod with 70-series Nitto radial-ply tires.High Impact
Original '56 Plymouth two-door hardtop body had crash damage repaired before new or better-condition chrome and gold-anodized lauminum trim went on.
Paint: Eggshell White, the same color that all '56-'58 Furys came in.
Interior: "Chair high" seats now wear leather with original-style "Jacquard weave" cloth inserts. Dash features full instrumentation, including 0-6000-rpm tach, plus a Mercury air conditioner under the dash.