1956 Other Makes Californian

4-Cyl.

CT1540540

Clear

1956 Hillman Californian The Hillman Minx Californian was conceived for the American market. The USA was always a big target for British car firms in the aftermath of WW2 and Hillman had a head start on its competitors thanks to Studebaker-inspired styling by American Raymond Loewy. As its name suggested the Californian coupé was designed to target the 'personal coupe' market with a car that young couples could buy for a very reasonable outlay. In essence, it was a Minx convertible with a permanent hardtop attached. The top half of the car featured a split three-piece rear window that was very eye-catching and with a B-pillar that wound down out of sight along with the rear side window to give an unbroken window line when all windows were fully opened. Over here, this design was called a “Hardtop Convertible” or simply a “Hardtop”. This car sat in storage for decades, owned by a British car collector and mechanic who had a large collection of cars stored waiting the day when he would restore them. As is often the case, he never got to most of them. When I found it he had lost his storage and had dozens of cars sitting in a field which he had just been asked to vacate as it had just been sold to a developer. The fellow assured me it would start and probably drive but wouldn’t have brakes. He told me he drove it into the field. I bought the car after he actually got it running! I brought it home and took it to a storage place that was actually a converted, old, chicken barn. Again it sat on dirt but I put a heavy plastic sheet under it. That was close to 4 years ago. After some serious heath problems and being well into my 70’s, I have to admit that I’ll never get to it either so got to go. My wife, the practical one, points out the waste of paying monthly storage just so I can dream about restoring it, knowing it will never happen. To save the storage cost and to make it easier to show, I brought it home. It now sits outside in my driveway. The tires were all pretty well shot. I will find and put on a set that will be suitable for moving it around and for loading it. I’ve had it running once since I’ve owned it, to move it to another part of the chicken barn. I don’t have a six-volt battery but, if I can, I will try to get it running. I ran it off a can of gas because that’s the way he did it. You can expect the gas tank will be mostly varnish and gunk inside after all these years. You can also expect the underside to have some serious rust issues though I haven’t looked closely.. The rocker panels are toast and there’s rust in parts of the fenders. Amazingly, the trunk floor is fine, as is the doors, the hood and the trunk lid. Even more amazing is the fact that all the stainless trim is virtually excellent and the chrome is generally very good. The doors open and close solidly and all the windows roll up and down. All the glass is virtually perfect and the interior is in such decent shape that it would be fine to use it just the way it is! The dash board, like all the rest of the car, is dirty but looks remarkably well preserved and shiny under the dirt. The parts I’ve tried to clean up have come up “driver quality” or maybe better! With the exception of a broken tail light lens (thank the owner of the chicken barn) and possibly the horn ring which I haven’t found yet, the car is ALL THERE! Including the jack and the crank handle. I have the keys and a clear title to the car. (0) Feedback bidders need to contact me before bidding or their bids will be cancelled. Negative feedback bidder's bids will be blocked. A non-refundable deposit of $100 is required within 24 hours of the sale. PayPal preferred. The balance must be received within 7 days or the buyer will be reported and the vehicle re-listed. The car does not leave its present location until the selling price is paid in full and irreversibly in my bank account. There will be no exceptions! The car is sold as is, where is, with no warranties expressed or implied. Please examine the pictures carefully and ask your questions before you bid. On 04-Nov-15 at 21:41:33 EST, seller added the following information: *** 6 NEW PICTURES ADDED *** Unfortunately, the last few days have been a difficult time for me physically, I did manage to take a few shots of the underside and get some 12 volt power to the car. As expected, with a little juice from a battery charger, the electrics came to life! The starter relay clicked when I tried the starter button but there didn't seem enough juice to motivate the starter. I did have someone turn the engine over with the cranking handle and it turns over fine. I'm thinking that the oil should probably be changed before I start the car again. It's been in there for years and I think it's the safe and smart thing to do. I've added a picture of the front and rear of the car with the headlights on. Underside pictures were really difficult for me to get. The car sits very low and I'm unable to get down on the ground to reach under the car. With the camera on the ground and aimed back up under the car, and using the flash, I tried from both ends and from side. I had a friend tap around on the fuel tank using a hammer and it seemed surprisingly solid. In all honesty, the pictures look better that I expected but I'd caution you to expect more rust than seems to show in the photos. The condition of the rocker panels and some lower parts of the fenders seem to tell a different story. On 06-Nov-15 at 18:44:24 EST, seller added the following information: I just wanted to clear up a couple frequently asked questions. The car is 12-Volt positive earth. The engine is a 1390cc ovh. The transmission is a 4-speed with the shifter on the steering column. Austin Alfa Romeo Aston Martin Audi Bentley BMW Buick Cadillac Chevrolet Chrysler Dodge Ferrari Fiat Ford Honda Hyundai Isuzu Jaguar Jeep Kia Lamborghini Lancia Land Rover Lexus Lotus Maserati Mazda Mercedes-Benz MG Mitsubishi Nissan Peugeot Pontiac Porsche Renault Rolls-Royce Saab Subaru Suzuki Toyota Triumph Volkswagen Volvo Acura GMC Oldsmobile Saturn AMC Austin Healey Bugatti Datsun DeLorean DeSoto Edsel Geo Infiniti Lincoln Mercury Mini Nash Packard Plymouth Shelby Studebaker Willys International Harvester Hummer Scion Other Makes Smart Maybach Tesla Koenigsegg Ram Fisker