1957 Bel Air

1957 Bel Air a Beauty Among Classics

No car in the world is appreciated on the spot like the 1957 Bel Air made by Chevrolet. Chevy was striving for something special for that year and something that would be totally new. So as the story goes the engineers run into complications with manufacturing and the tri fives prevailed for 1957 once again. Of course this did not happen without some very impressive modifications to bring about the 1957 Bel Air.

1957 Bel Air by Chevy is an American Icon

You would be hard pressed to find someone that would not agree that the 57 Chevy Bel Air in not The American Icon. Some even referred to the Bel Air as The Baby Cadillac of the year and as the sales team put it “Sweet, Smooth and Sassy”. It is common knowledge the 57 Bel Air out sold Fords by leaps and bounds the year of its birth.

In 1957 Chevrolet is credited with creating a true American Dream that has made it to one of the only original global dreams and still has the fan fair to prove it.

1957 Bel Air Fins

There were only 47,566 Bel Air’s that made it out the GM factories the famous year. Still prized collectibles to this very day, was it because it was the car of choice for young high school drivers from around the globe. Some think it was the deep seated love for the new Chevy Bel Air Fins.

The prized name Bel Air started out in the early 50s as a nickname. The nickname was so well liked by the public and Chevrolet that 1957 Bel Air line was produced with the name and it stuck like glue.

There were not many differences but the small changes like being just 2 ½” longer and the new tail fins made it the most attractive car of the decade. The 1957 had 14” wheels and the bumper and grille was a big new design. It changed the appearance just enough to make the beauty look wider. And the dual exhaust was said to make the wonderful sound of a purring cat. Even the sales teams jumped on the new sound with “Chevy puts the purr back in performance” with ads in popular magazines of the day.

All the classic car buffs and want-a-be car buffs will marvel at the fact that the 1957 Bel Air starting price was a whopping $1,095. Today it will cost that much for a year’s subscription to many of the less than popular classic car magazines. A post war icon the 1957 Bel Air is still one of the most popular collectibles history has ever seen.

It would have been very easy for American history to have taken a different route but we’re sure that classic car buffs from around the world are really pleased to this day that it didn’t. We could have ended up with baseball, hotdogs, apple pie and Ford and it all would have been long forgotten. But many thanks to the Chevrolet 1957 Bel Air with hooded headlights and classic tail fins the baseball, hotdogs, apple pie and Chevrolet will live forever.

In 1957 the Chevy was made in three different trim packages and some collectors prefer one over the other. But the 1957 Bel Air if preferred by 2 to 1 over the other trim packages because it was indeed the most luxurious of the three. But for sure no matter which trim package all are distinctive classics and loved by all.

One Bel Air option that caught attention was the gold trim added all around added and air of luxury and class that was second to none for that year. The 1957 Bel Air made its appearance in the showrooms with carpeting as standard and ten different cloth and vinyl fabric two tone colors for the interior.

For the middle of the line package there was the 210 package and the product base was the 150 package. Chevrolet even put out three slightly different body designs 2 of which were Sport Coupes and Sedans. Sedans had pillars between the front and rear windows. The Sport Coupes were sometimes called the Hardtop but both styles were available in 2 door and 4 door models. A third package that Chevrolet created just for the salesman of the day was called the Utility Coupe. They were built with a bench in place of the rear seat. This would be perfect for salesman to carry their samples for their sales calls.

The family’s desire for more room was met with station wagons of the day and there were two model types the favorite was the Nomad and the second choice was the Townsman. Station wagons made their appearance on the market as Sport Coupes in 2 door and 4 door sedans.

The luxury package introduction that still takes everyone’s breath away today is the 1957 Bel Air Convertible. Auto collectors crave this model more than any other and not just in the United States either.

It does make a very interesting story for a true American classic car because early 57 Chevy customers just were no impressed. Sales were just not as good as they should have been. You would think things would have been different. In almost any place in the world if you just mention 1957 Bel Air almost everyone knows what you are talking about. Just mention 1957 Ford and often people will ask did Ford even make a car in 1957.