1951 Chevrolet Bel Air/150/210

deluxe Other

6 - Cyl.

Manual

9JKK97950

Gasoline

Okay, please bare with me while I go through history of this cruizer. A couple years ago, I sold a '47 Chevy bus/camper on Ebay. The new owner opted to drive it to Southern Utah, pulling a car. I made sure he realized that a 216 babbit motor must NOT get low on oil. You know the rest of that story. He called from Wells, Nevada looking for a motor. I searched around, and heard about this 235 mill that had been built for a larger flatbed truck. The truck owner drove the restored truck for a couple days and said it wouldn't go fast enough, and to install a smallblock. Well, duhhhh......That truck probably had 5.38 gears. So out came the 6 and in went to V8, which later self destructed. Now this 6 cyl sat for a couple years in the restoration shop, 'till I came along and bought it. Turns out, the engine builder that I use, built this wonderful 6 banger. All told, nearly $5K was spent before it was installed. It is a 1961 truck 235, and now I had to figure out how to not let it go to Wells. Luck was on my side. The fellow called as I was leaving the shop to tell me he had found a motor, which left me with a spare mill. Oh darn!!! Now I had this bitch'n motor and nothing to put it in. Kinda like all dressed up and nowhere to go. I looked for a while, and came up with this sloper. It was basically a one owner car, and had been parked in the 70's, in a garage, along side a '49 4dr Chev. The mileage is more than likely 115K. The fellow and his wife lived in Montana, and used this critter to commute to Washington state for Vet school. The long trips are evident, as the pedal pads are not worn bad, as are the rubber mats. The glass is all good, and original. There is a rock chip in the passenger side, but not all the way through. The body has the usual dents and dings, as you can see, but no rust. Underneath there are not rotted out places. There is surface rust, but the pans are fine as are the sill areas. The dash is very presentable, and the gauges all work. The interior is all original, and very worn, but I didn't have the heart to tear it out. Fact is, I love driving it just as it is. The door panels are tattered, but the backing is in very good shape. It has a great old Chevy smell. Soooo, I started tearing out the old six banger, but figured I try to start it. Damned if it didn't just start right up, and run fine. Turns out it was a later 235. I put it on Ebay, and it was bought by a young lady in France. I shipped it out, then my curiosity got all worked up. I had to ask what it was going into. Well, listen up my friends. This lady owns a fully restored WW2 deuce and a half truck, complete with white stars on the doors. She needed a new mill, and it was a Chev. She told me that every year on VE day, she and a group of friends, all of whom own restored US military vehicles, tour the coast of France to commemorate the allied victory in Europe. She says that without the United States, France and it's people would not be free today. Needless to say, she's a hero in my book. Sorry, I kinda got off topic there for a minute. Now, the motor in this sloper has had lots of machine work, and is fully balanced. All of the inards are new. The builder thought the new cam was a Crower. It has Fenton headers, with new exhaust to the rear. Short smitties and pencil tips. The ignition is a late six electronic, adapted to work properly. The intake is an Offenhauser with 2 stock carbs and air cleaners. The Hot Rod Works in Nampa did the fuel lines and linkage. Man, do they do good work!!! The radiator is new, as are all the brakes. The tork tube and rear came out of Ken's (HRW half-owner) personal '51 coupe, and has been gone through. The diff ratio is 3.55, so this bugger cruizes down the freeway with ease. I also installed a new gas tank. I can't begin to tell you how nice this cruizer drives. It is tight, solid, and sounds absolutely wonderful. It sounds different than any Chev 6 I have owned, and seems to have a personality of it's own. If you have not driven one of the early Chevs, you're missing something. Even the stock steering wheel has a different feeling. The rim is extremely smooth, almost sensual. Don't let your lady friend drive it unless you're near a good place to park. The tranny works great, as do the new clutch and brakes. Without hesitation, I would drive this puppy anywhere, glady, and with a smile. Also, this mill was built to run good, not look good, hense, the lack of chrome goodies. This motor has less than 500 miles on it since the rebuild.... Please feel free to call with any questions or requests....... Bruce (208) 453-8606 If I'm not available, leave a message. I will call back prontomundo!!!!! Video with sound link to be addedOn Mar-14-11 at 10:17:19 PDT, seller added the following information: Okay, please bare with me.............go to "Daily Motion", Click on "Videos", in the search box type in "cabong". There are three videos shown. The camera used is extremely sensative, so it picked up and amplified every single noise, including the wind, and amplified it. As to the new mill installation, I called on the Hot Rod Works in Nampa for their expertise in early Chevy work. They modified and installed new front motor mounts, as the truck aplication is different than passenger cars. I opted to keep the original wiring in place, since it is in very good shape. The lights all work, and the system had been changed to 12V by the original owner. An aftermarket signal system had been installed, and even the cancelation wheels work. (only us old farts know what that means) This critter had 4-wheel mud flaps way back when. The rear 2 were still in place when I got the car, and after much browbeating and namecalling to remove them, I left'em on. Everyone thought I was out of my mind. So be it!!!!!!!! Unfortunately, one of the those broke off, as they're very stiff. (kinda like me). If anyone wants other pictures or videos, feel free to ask, as it only takes a minute.On Mar-14-11 at 16:21:37 PDT, seller added the following information: I've had people urge me to lose the headrests. Not a chance!!! They are accessory units installed many years ago, again, by the original owners. So they must stay.....I went through several sets of wheels, trying to get the right match for set of '56 Olds, non flipper, hubcaps. None would work, so I put on a pair of '56 flippers on the front, and '55 non-spinner on the rear. One of the latter came off, but I have it. The buyer can have either the set that is on the car, or the set of '56 standards. Personally, I like the '56 non-flipper, 'cause nobody else runs them. Dare to be different!!On Mar-15-11 at 11:01:04 PDT, seller added the following information: Howdy.....In response to a question, I have added a few pictures. Concerning the body, the ONLY rust bubbles are below the deck lid on the passenger side. Check the picture, this is a body seam, and it could be the lead reaction. I do not want to dig in to find out. The area between the panel and the stone guard has surface rust only. The stone guards, front and rear, are in nearly perfect shape, no "rust out", no rot, nice paint.......Concerning the floor pans, there is a small rust line near the master cylinder fill hole, as pictured. One of the body braces, not the mounts, has lost a surface layer to rust. The rest are fine. I have included a picture of the bad one. Note in this picture that the area beneath the sills is fine. The bottoms of the fenders are fine, no rust. The battery box is solid. The doors are rust free, both the skins and the bottoms. There is no rust around the windows. Now, please go outside and look at your 2 year old new car. It has surface rust on the underside, both the structural conponents and the suspension. Please do not look at the surface rust on the underside of the fine critter and hold it to a different standard, really.