Back in 1958, when Chevrolet launched the Impala, it more or less turned the Bel Air into a second-class citizen of its lineup.
It was fairly clear from the very beginning that the Impala was set to become the company’s new superstar, despite originally launching as the top-of-the-line Bel Air version. But the rapid success turned the Impala into the model that everybody loved, with the Bel Air legacy more or less fading away and making room for a new cool kid on the block.
The Impala and the Bel Air, however, continued to share many parts and engines, and the restyling they received was synchronized. In other words, the two models were offered side by side with nearly the same upgrades and refinements, and this is the reason many people out there get a Bel Air specifically to turn it into an Impala clone.
This could also be the case of the 1960 example that eBay seller b-ransom has recently posted online.The car is as mysterious as possible, as it comes without any specifics, but it’s pretty clear from the pics that its condition isn’t necessarily the best. In fact, this Bel Air has nearly turned into a rust bucket, so this is a sign the car has most likely spent decades under the clear sky.
Given no information has been shared, we should just assume that it needs everything, including an engine – there’s nothing but fresh air under the hood right now, so if you want to restore this Bel Air to factory specifications, just know that you need to find the correct engine as well.
Clearly, this 1960 Bel Air could be an intriguing find for some people in the restoration business, but there’s no doubt that bringing it back to the road is going to be an insanely difficult job.