Impala became Chevrolet’s coolest kid on the block after its promotion to a stand-alone series in 1959, while the Bel Air was relegated to a second-class citizen in the GM brand’s lineup. While Impala received most of Chevrolet’s love, it continues to share many parts and engines with the Bel Air.
For example, the 1964 model year launched with a similar minor facelift and identical engine lineup. The same lazy six-cylinder unit served as the base configuration, while the V8 offering included the famous 283, the 327 with either 250 or 300 horsepower, and the 409 big-block monster that could go up to 425 horsepower.
The Bel Air that you can see in these photos is an original 1964 model that somehow ended up abandoned on the side of the road for too long. The folks at Backyard Classics say they purchased the Bel Air and listed it online, hoping someone sees it and decides to start a restoration project.
The car doesn’t look good, but it doesn’t seem to be a wreck. It’s obvious this Bel Air has been sitting for a long time, but the body isn’t as rusty as expected. I’ve seen plenty of classics turning into rust buckets after years of sleeping outside (such as this 1965 Mustang), but this 1964 Chevy passed the test of time fairly easily.
We’re not getting too many details about its condition, but you shouldn’t expect anything other than a project. The rust is already there, and I’d thoroughly inspect the undersides – this is where I expect the biggest amount of rust, especially if the car has been sitting outside. The sellers claim you’ll find some rot on the body, but the damage is “not too bad.”
The V8 under the hood is a 283, whose condition is unknown. The good news is that it still turns over by hand, so in theory, it’s not locked up from sitting. The bad news is that the hood is no longer there, so the engine has been fully exposed to whatever happened outside.
A good mechanic should be able to tell more about the engine, so I fully recommend a complete inspection before the purchase. The car is not complete, and if you buy this Bel Air for full restoration, check out everything inside and outside to determine how much is missing.