1959-1960 Impala, Bel Air, Biscayne

Chevy Pushes the Envelope

The end of the 1950s was one of major transition at General Motors, and no division reflected those changes more than Chevrolet. From 1955 to 1957, the "hot ones" had ruled the roost, topping off two of those three years as America's best selling car, and coming so close to first in the third year that many consider the race a virtual tie with Ford. 1958 saw a totally new Chevrolet, new chassis, new sheet metal, new engine choices, and one-year only styling that came and went.

New corporate design standards were set, with most all General Motors full-size passenger cars being placed into two basic envelopes. Chevrolet, Pontiac, and some models of Oldsmobile and Buick, were to share basic body envelopes, which led to some radical and interesting restyling for most GM models.

Plus	Minus
Distinctive Bright, cheery interiors High horsepower available Parts available	That distinctive design is a bit much for some Less of a following compared to models before and after

The 1958 models had smooth rounded lines, but 1959 brought a mix of rounded and sharp lines dominated by the huge, flattened tailfins, wide expanses of aluminum and stainless steel, and decorated at the rear with giant "cat-eye" taillights.

Despite the radical new styling that year, Chevrolet did manage to maintain (barely) its sales leadership over Ford. Even so, Chevy knew the styling was too much and before the new 1959 Chevrolet hit the showroom floor, the studio was busy toning things down a bit while retaining the same basic body shell. The front end with its faux-scoops and a very busy grille and the rear, with its deeply caved in rear quarter panels were lightened up a bit. Two (Biscayne and Bel Air) or four (Impala) taillights and two back-up lights replaced the giant red plastic lenses from 1959 giving the car a somewhat more conservative look.

There were a couple design elements of the 1959-1960 Chevrolet that worked well. The interior, especially on the upscale Impalas, were quite attractive. Patterned after the Corvette, the instrument cluster and passenger side dash pods managed to evoke the sporty look of America's only real sports car. New, airy (vista) rooflines that featured lots of glass looked especially nice on the 2-doors and allowed a commanding view.

In both years, the full-size Chevrolet was offered in three basic trim levels, or series. The base models were assigned to the Biscayne series, marketing two and four door sedans, as well as very rare "utility sedan", a two-door model with no rear seat and fixed quarter windows. In 1960 an even cheaper version of the Biscayne was offered, the Fleetmaster, designed for taxi cabs, police cars, and sales organizations.

Moving up the line was the Bel Air which offered two and four door sedans, and a four- door hardtop in 1959, adding a two-door Sport hardtop for 1960. The Impala line carried a four- door sedan, two and four door hardtops, and a convertible. Station wagons were marketed in all three series with the Brookwood assigned to Biscayne trim level, Kingswood and Parkwood assigned to Bel Air, and Nomad reserved for the Impala.

What to Look For

Chevrolet marketed a long list of factory and dealer installed options and accessories, which were popular during the period and today add to the value of these cars. Most sought after are original factory convenience items like power-windows and seats, factory air conditioning, and deluxe appointments. Exterior trim items like factory issued continental spare tire kits, fender skirts, spotlights, rear deck antennas and other typical add-ons can add to the overall value of a car, as well as to the enjoyment of showing off your car.

Like most any collector car there are a couple areas of to be aware of. Rust-out is a major concern, especially near the windshield posts and cowl areas where water and moisture can become trapped and find its own way through the metal, in effect creating its own drainage system! Also look for this condition around the rear window. Repairing original sheet metal and getting the contours properly aligned can be a difficult job, so check for past collision damage and allow for a lot of labor for body work. While many reproduction and restoration items are available for the top-line Impala series, Bel Air and Biscayne fans, as well as those of the station wagons, will have to look for original new-old-stock parts to make their cars new again.

One of the biggest drawbacks to authenticating a Chevrolet is trying to figure out which engine came in the cars from the factory. The serial numbers in these years only identified the car to the extent that it was either a six or a V8, but did not show the actual engine selections.

For 1959, Chevy used a ten-digit ID that reflected the series and engine class with a single letter, year model with two digits, showed the assembly plant with a single letter, and unit sequence numbers starting with 100001 at each plant. In 1960 Chevrolet switched to a 12-digit ID that reflected the model year with a single number, the engine and series with two numbers, the body style with two more numbers, the assembly plant with a single letter, and the unit sequence as in 1959. If you have an interest in these cars, learning these simple codes is a must.

The Market

These cars survived in good numbers due to their general durability and their early recognition as being somewhat different from Chevy's traditional balanced styling. Convertibles, then 2-door hardtops lead the pecking order, but the occaisional well equipped and nicely restored Nomad wagon can be counted in this group as well. The flat top Sport Sedan is another sleeper. If you find a good one with options, it's certainly worth serious consideration. As expected, when equipped with a big-block 348, values can jump 30% or more over small block equipped cars.

While not considered a muscle car, when equipped with the big-block 348 Turbo Thrust V8 in any dress, these cars had more than enough "go-power". This, coupled with their unique styling, has enabled these models to enjoy a steady increase in value over the past several years and will likely serve it well in the future. While customized or modified versions of these vehicles have been on the rise, the real long term appreciation potential is in the pure-stock cars.

Current Values

(C) Copyright 2000- VMR International, Inc. All rights reserved. This article first appeared in the September 2000 issue of Collector Car & Truck Market Guide.