1956 FORD COUNTRY SEDAN.
The Ford Country Sedan is a full-size station wagon that was built by Ford from 1952 until 1974.
It was based on the Ford full-size car line available in each year. The Country Sedan was the mid-trim station wagon in the Ford range. Unlike the Country Squire, the Country Sedan featured plain body sides. As a full-size wagon, it could carry up to 9 passengers, if so equipped.
The Country Sedan was based on the Customline from 1952 to 1954. Beginning in 1955, Ford spun their station wagons into their own series and the Country Sedan continued to represent the mid-trim level station wagon. During the 1960s and 1970s, the Country Sedan was approximate to the Galaxie and Galaxie 500 in trim elements. For 1972, 1973 and 1974 the model was marketed as the Galaxie 500 Country Sedan and from 1975 it was rebranded "LTD wagon". By this time the trim level was identical to the Country Squire apart from the absence of simulated wood exterior paneling.
Prior to 1961, all Ford wagons utilized a two-piece tailgate assembly that required the operator to lift the rear window and lock it into place via a mechanical support, and then drop the tail gate down to fully access the rear compartment.
Despite Ford being the nation’s acknowledged wagon master, building more wood-bodied station wagons than any other automaker to 1948, Ford Motor Company was late in coming to all-steel construction. Eclipsed by Willys Overland in 1946 and Plymouth’s Suburban in 1949, Ford struggled through 1951 with a series of “half-timbered” two-door wagons. Finally, for 1952 the company introduced a two-door, all-steel six-passenger Ranch Wagon and four-door, eight-passenger Country Sedan, the latter in upscale Customline trim. Unwilling to abandon wood entirely, they paid homage to heritage with a faux woodgrain four-door Country Squire, albeit outlined in genuine ash. In so doing, of course, Ford laid the groundwork for generations of simulated woodies from all automakers.
A Customline Ranch Wagon became available in 1954, and in 1955 the wagons were moved to a series of their own, with Country Sedans for both six and eight passengers. For 1956, the up-scaling continued, with a new two-door wagon, called Parklane, in Fairlane trim, complemented by a similarly decorated eight-passenger Country Sedan. The six-passenger four-door wagon remained with Customline trim. The prestige Country Squire notwithstanding, the eight-passenger Country Sedan was the most popular Ford wagon, selling 85,374 units.
This 1956 eight-passenger Country Sedan is quite unusual, having the 225 bhp, 312 ci Thunderbird Special engine seldom installed in wagons.
CC rating: 5,113cc 312 ci (5.1L) V8
NZ First Registration: 26-Apr-2008
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