In 1954, Ronald Mills ordered a 1955 Plymouth Belvedere 4-door sedan and became its first owner.
He used the car as his family sedan for many years and kept it because the ’55 Plymouth remained a reliable mode of transportation for him.
Jim Sutherland
Ronald saw no need to get rid of the car because of its long history with him and his family, so he kept the car until he passed away. It was the last car Ronald ever purchased new, and he was clearly attached to his ’55 Plymouth because of the many fond family memories it gathered over the decades.
The car went into long storage after Ronald passed away and remained that way for about 30 years until Ronald’s great-grandson Gavin initiated a family plan to resurrect the ’55 Plymouth with the help of his father Brett and grandfather Don. Both men had fond memories of the car and its link with Ronald.
Ronald racked up almost 100,000 miles in the Plymouth and took it on many long road trips over the years because he looked after the car and ensured it was in top running condition under his watch. It still has its original Hy-Fire small block V-8 hooked up to a three-speed manual transmission with an overdrive gear.
1955 marked the first year a V-8 engine was available in Plymouth models, so it was a perfect match with an overdrive transmission for higher road speeds during a transitional time when domestic cars got more power. Plymouth celebrated its first V-8 engines with a bold V symbol on its 1955 models, an exterior feature found on the Mills family sedan.
Gavin’s interest in the car was formed by its long history in his family and its legacy with his great-grandparents. His own history with the car may be shorter, but Gavin did learn how to drive in the Plymouth, no mean feat considering it has a column-mounted manual transmission that confuses even experienced drivers in our modern era.
Surprisingly, the 1955 Plymouth only required a minimal amount of work to fire up after all the years in storage. “Some tires, a carburetor, and a battery” was the way Gavin described the easy process behind breathing life back into the family sedan. One can assume his great-grandfather Ronald’s high maintenance standards played a role in the car’s solid mechanical condition after long storage.
Plymouth was known as a practical choice for consumers in 1955, but Ronald added some extra features to the car, including its impressive tube radio. The bright interior of the car was also a factory feature, along with its two-tone factory paint scheme, so the Plymouth is a true survivor from a bygone era.
Gavin described his driving experience with the 1955 Plymouth Belvedere: “She still cruises like the day she was built, the quietest engine I’ve seen, I can hardly tell she’s running. It’s impressive how much more quiet it is than most modern vehicles”.
MyStarCollectorCar will also give the final words to Gavin.
“It’s been in the family for 70 years and I’m planning on keeping her in the family for the next 70 years”.
Gavin Mills
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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