1957 Chevrolet Bel Air/150/210

Station Wagon - 4 Door, 6- Passenger

6 Cylinder

Automatic - 2 speed Powerglide

B57B250014

Clear

Gasoline; regular

Exterior: The vehicle was repainted, in its original silver color, in about 2005. The overall appearance is good with a good gloss and minimal orange peel. When repainted the donor stated that the only bodywork that had been done was rust repair in the lower doors and rocker panels and that the vehicle had never been in an accident. Currently, there are some small, mostly sub-surface, rust bubbles in the passenger side quarter panel wheel arch, lower rear corner of the driver’s door, and lower front corner of the passenger’s door. All the chrome pieces are original to the vehicle and generally in good condition. There is some weathering and wear, to include pitting of the hood ornaments, door handles, side mirror and the grill surround. Side chrome trim is in very good condition but does display some small “parking lot” type dings and the emblems showing some stress cracks, weathering and fading. Rear bumper has some surface rust in the area where the license plate would be mounted as well as at both ends--with some rust through on the left bumper end. Exterior lamp lenses are all intact. There are no cracks in the vehicle’s glass and all windows are clear and in good condition; however the windshield does show some effect of years of “sand blasting” from highway driving. Hubcaps are all present but all are dented to some degree. Two - piece tail gate opens and closes without issue. Frame and Underside of Body: Floor pans are solid as is the well for the spare tire. There is surface rust on the topside of the floor pans and the spare tire well, but this can easily be addressed since the pans themselves are solid with no rust-through. The frame is also solid; however, while the body mounts are in good condition, 3 of the body supports on the passenger side and 2 on the driver side have rust issues—a not uncommon problem with Chevrolets of this vintage. There is also evidence of rust forming underneath the rocker panel on the passenger side—primarily in the area where plastic filler was used to fix the previous rust issues prior to the vehicle’s repaint. There is also rust in the passenger side quarter panel. (See pictures of body supports, rocker panel, and fiberglass/plastic filler repair that is now deteriorating.) Interior and Cargo Area: The seats are covered in the original black and white vinyl which is largely intact other than some splits in the front seat cushion vinyl on the passenger’s side. Door panels are in generally good condition but the vinyl covering on the armrests is cracked and peeling. Weather stripping is intact but dry, and the woven material surrounding the door openings is shredding. The headliner is not sagging and is in good overall condition with the exception of a large (approximately 12”) taped-over tear over the right rear passenger window, and a small (approximately 1”) taped-over tear over the driver’s seat. In addition, the stitching on the passenger side sun visor is separating. The vehicle retains its original rubber floor covering but it is brittle and breaking apart -- with some large pieces missing—exposing the metal where surface rust can now be seen. Cargo area appearance is largely intact and is what one would expect of a “daily driver” in terms of condition. However, the rear seatback vinyl covering in the cargo area is partially separated from the backing and there is a rip in the side panel on the passenger side. The cargo area contains a non-matching spare tire (fiberglass belted) but does include the original jack and lug wrench; however, the base to the jack is missing. Serviceability of the spare tire is suspect. The well in which the tire resides has surface rust, but as noted above, the metal itself is solid with no rust through. Tires: The wagon is equipped with P205/75R14 narrow WSW tires which look almost new with very good tread depth remaining. Engine and transmission: The donor of this vehicle states that in addition to the repaint in 2005, the vehicle was also mechanically re-conditioned to ensure safe and reliable operation—but no level of detail was provided. The engine starts easily and runs smoothly. Transmission, cooling and other mechanical and electrical systems appear to be in equally good operating condition. However, the heater core leaks and will need replacement. Fortunately, the heater core can be easily removed and replaced since it is accessed directly through the engine compartment firewall. At present hoses have been routed to bypass the heater core to avoid loss of coolant and damage to the vehicle interior. Options and Options Packages: The only options evident on this vehicle are the AM radio and automatic transmission. At some point, the original vacuum operated wipers were converted to electrically operated ones. Interior and comfort features: See above. Ownership and History: The vehicle was donated to the AACA Museum in 2010 by the daughter of the second owner—who, according to the invoice that comes with the car, purchased it in March of 1959. In addition to the invoice, also included is the “OK Used Car” warranty. The vehicle remained with the second owner until passed to her daughter in 2004. We believe we have represented this Chevrolet wagon as accurately as possible by virtue of the many photographs as well as the descriptive listing, but interested parties are encouraged to ask questions and/or schedule a personal inspection—which may be accomplished by calling at AACA Museum at (717) 566-7100. In addition, since it has been part of a collection and run infrequently over the past three years, the buyer is advised that it may require some degree of re-commissioning before placing it into routine service. This vehicle is offered as is, where is, with no warranty expressed or implied. It has a valid Pennsylvania title which will be transferred to the new owner upon successful completion of the transaction. Shipping and transportation of the car are the responsibility of the new owner. We will gladly work with you or the shipper/transporter of your choice to coordinate the move. The new owner will have two weeks from the completion of the auction to pick up the vehicle unless other arrangements are made in advance. If the car is not picked up within this time frame (and other satisfactory arrangements are not made), then we reserve the right to charge a storage fee for the vehicle based on the local going rate. Payment may be in the form of cash, money order or cashier’s/bank check.