The 56 Bel Air: Refining Legend

Several changes set the 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air apart from its predecessors. A full-width grille, redesigned front and rear fenders, and a gas cap hidden behind the left taillight were just a few obvious differences that continued the Bel Air party that began with the 1955 model.

Chevy continued to offer the lower-end 150 and 210 models in several bodies, including a pair of pillar-less 210 hardtops -- the two-door Sport Coupe and the new four-door Sport Coupe. The nine-passenger, four-door Beauville station wagon joined the line-up, with the Delray coupe returning for a complete 210 offering.

The performance-minded customer got a choice of three 256 CID Turbo-Fire V-8 engines: the base 170 hp, 205 hp with a 4-barrel carburetor, and the 225 hp with 4-barrel carbs. Even the tame-looking 210 was offered with the 225 hp engine, the same powerplant available in the Corvette.

Distinctive two-tone body treatments on Bel Airs gave it a look of motion even when standing still. Single housings now incorporated the taillight, brake light and backup light. The hidden gas cap – behind the left taillight assembly – had been previously popularized on Cadillacs. The new full-width front grill seemed to please more conservative customers who hadn’t been impressed with the Ferrari-styled grill of the 1955 model.

The Bel Air with the base V-8 cost a whopping $2,443. But, shoppers could load their new Chevys with a wide variety of factory options and accessories and still keep the price under $3,000. The two-door Nomad wagons topped the price chart at $2,608, but shared much of the same sheet metal as other Bel Airs instead of the unique Nomad trim of the previous year.

Seatbelts, shoulder harnesses and a padded dashboard were among the options available.

Chevy built more than 1.5 million Bel Airs in the 1956 model year. More than 41,000 of those were convertibles.

America's First Classic Comes of Age

The first American classic came of age in late 1954 with unveiling of the 1955 Chevy Bel Air. With the newly-styled, newly-powered Bel Air, Chevrolet’s image was transformed practically overnight. The new “Motoramic” models gained a reputation as “The Hot Ones.” It ushered the short era of Chevy “Tri-Fives,” the ’55, ’56 and ’57 Bel Airs.

The almost all-new body featured a sharp beltline dip and a Ferrari-inspired grille. Styling was considered crisp and clean by the automotive press, a far cry from Ford’s and Chrysler’s offerings that year. Other head-turning features not included on lesser models included interior carpet, chrome headliner bands on hardtops, chrome spears on front fenders, chrome window moldings and full wheel coverings. Bel Airs were further distinguished by the name appearing in gold script on the fenders.

Advertising copy invited customers to try the new color-coordinated interior on “for sighs.” The model offered a dozen body styles, including a convertible and Sport Coupe. The four-door sedan led sales with more than 345,000. A new Bel Air Beauville four-door station wagon ended the season with three times the sales of a comparable ’54 wagon.

Chevy’s first V8 engine appeared in the Bel Air in answer to Ford’s V8 the previous year. The new 265 CID powerplant featured a modern overhead valve high-compression, short stroke design that proved so strong it remained in production in one form or another for decades. Simple and economical to build, the Turbo-Fire was a model of efficiency.

The base version of the engine had a two-barrel carburetor and was rated at 162-horsepower. The “Power Pack” option gave customers a four-barrel carb and other upgrades worth 180-horsepower. Later in the model year the “Super Power Pack” added high compression and another 15-horsepower. Instead of common rocker shafts, the short stroke V8 used independent rocker arms, meaning less reciprocating weight and greater rev potential.

A long list of options included Touch-Down overdrive, Air Temp air conditioning, power steering and brakes, electric windows, Continental kit and a power seat. A convertible paced the Indy 500 that year, driven by general manager Thomas H. Keating, and a gold-trimmed hardtop rolled off the assembly line as the 50-millionth car built by General Motors.

Enter Nomad

The ’55 Bel Air Nomad practically created a new class for itself. While the four-door Beauville sold well, the two-door Nomad is the only wagon to achieve classic status. Even the Pontiac Safari, who shared the Nomad’s body, hasn’t claimed the high regard afforded the Chevy.

The Nomad began as one of Harley Earl’s Corvette-based dream cars at the 1954 GM Motorama. It blended the airiness and sophistication of a hardtop with the practicality of a wagon. The production model debuted in February 1955 and was considered a halo model during the “Tri-Five” years.

“Rakish” is the word most often used to describe the Nomad body today, with its hardtop door-glass framing and sloping hind quarters that paralleled the angle of the wider-than-usual B-pillars. Other styling touches included fluted roof, wraparound rear side glass, and rear-wheel cutouts.

All that extra glass, though, made the car a greenhouse on sunny days, and air circulation left something to be desired. And, with its unusual slope, the tailgate leaked rain.

While considered to be a milestone vehicle design, General Motors discontinued the original Nomad at the end of the 1957 model year due to low sales and the introduction of a new body for 1958.

Chevy Bel Air: Birth of a Legend

The Bel Air name made its debut in the Chevrolet line-up in 1950 on the Styleline Deluxe Bel Air. This car actually was the height of Chevy’s offerings that year.

Chevy’s 1950 offerings carried only mild styling changes from a successful 1949 sales year. 1950 was a record sales year with nearly 1.5 million units sold.

Included in the Deluxe offerings was Chevy’s new Powerglide transmission, the first automatic in the “low-priced” GM divisions. A $159 option, the Powerglide operated in a single speed only unless the driver selected “Low” range manually. The torque converter’s variable ratios were meant to meet all driving needs. In addition, Powerglide models came with a stronger and larger six-cylinder engine, a 235.5 CID plant with 105 horsepower.

The Deluxe Bel Air was Chevy’s first hardtop. Cadillac, Buick, and Oldsmobile had released “hardtop convertibles” in 1949, but neither Ford or Chrysler had one on the market yet. The Bel Air, so advertising copy said, was “open to the summer breeze” yet “snug against the wintry wind.” From the beltline down, a Bel Air was indistinguishable from other Stylelines.

Chevy offered just one hardtop – the Styleline Deluxe Bel Air – versus four versions of Pontiac’s similar Catalina. But the Bel Air greatly outsold the Catalina with 76,662 units on the road at a sale price of $1,741.

The 1951 Styleline and Fleetline looked softer and rounder, though very little actually changed beyond a smoother front grille and integrated taillights.

DeLuxe Bel Airs now wore neat fender skirts and carried extras such as stainless steel moldings on front fenders and doors, and a 39-hour wind-up clock inside.

Bel-Air production rose dramatically to 103,356 cars in spite of new competition from Ford and Chrysler’s new hardtops. DinahShore got Americans to whistle and hum the tune “See the USA in your Chevrolet” on TV and radio with a corresponding print ad campaign.

Nearly half of all DeLuxes came with Powerglide. Obviously, Chevy customers weren’t concerned with its reputation for slippage and slowness.

The 1952 models showed even fewer styling changes over the 1951 than the ’51 had made from the ’50. The grille was touched up slightly with a row of “teeth” along the formerly smooth bar. The body style line-up remained identical to the previous year, as well.

In reaction to the Korean War, civilian auto production was cut this year. But, even with only 818,142 cars built company-wide, Chevrolet scored well ahead of Ford.

Everything began to change the following year. Structurally, Chevy’s 1953 offerings were little different from the 1949-1952 design, but new squared-off, rounded-edge bodies changed the outer appearance and gave a hint to the direction the body would take over the next few years.

A one-piece curved windshield replaced the previous twin-pane glass and the new front-end styling accentuated “the appearance of power and fleetness,” according to ad copy.

Chevy offered a total of 16 models in three series: the bare-bones 150, mid-range 210, and upscale Bel Air. Two-Tens could compete cosmetically with the Bel Air, especially when two-toned. The 150 was strictly bargain-basement in it looks, including the bare rubber windshield moldings and near-complete lack of body trim.

The Powerglide was brought up to speed with a new automatic starting range for true two-speed operation. Both 210s and Bel Airs could get Powerglide for $178 extra. And, power steering was a new option offered on all models.

As the middle class in America began to grow, their tastes began to change. City dwellers gravitated from cramped apartments to houses in the suburbs and their tastes in cars also moved from mere transportation to cars that reflected their new affluence. Stripped-down base models just didn’t fit in the suburbs.

Enter the 1953 Chevrolet 240 Bel Air, which now became a full four-model topline series of its own, identified by the unique two-toned spear on the rear fenders. This spear included chrome “Bel Air” scripts. Lesser models had no model designation anywhere on the car, only a Chevy crest on the hood and trunk.

In addition to the two-door hardtop, now called the Sport Coupe, Bel Airs came in convertible and two- and four-door sedans. The relatively luxurious Bel Air was only $113 more than its 210 equivalent, and just $204 more than the basic 150.

All three models had a clean new dashboard, but the Bel Air had much more lavish trim and heavy chrome, including a massive expanse of chrome across the lower part of the dash. A Bel Air interior also featured a full chrome horn ring on the steering wheel and full carpeting. Chrome wheel covers also accentuated exterior styling.

At more than half a million units, Bel Airs accounted for more than 38 percent of Chevy’s total sales.

In 1954 Chevy added the Del Ray club coupe to the line-up between the 210 DeLuxe and the Bel Air. All Chevy’s models featured only modest touch-ups, equaling a slightly sharper edge.

New bumpers extended farther around the fenders, taillights wore surrounding chrome and new vertical-tooth grille flared neatly into oval parking lights. The 210 series lost its hardtop coupe and convertible to make room for the Del Ray.

The new Blue Flame 125 engine delivered 125-horsepower in Powerglide-equipped cars. And, Powerglide was now available in all models, even the bargain 150 series.

Vinyl and fabric interiors matched external “fashion fiesta” colors. Green-tinted E-Z-Eye glass was optional on all Chevys. Electric-powered front-window and front-seat controls were optional on 210s and Bel Air. The price for the power steering option was reduced and power brakes were offered for the first time.

The Bel Air remained a styling stand-out with the contrasting color panel on the rear fenders matching the roof colors on two-tone models. The interior was greatly upgraded in two-tone blends of cloth and vinyl. The Bel Air line now included an eight-passenger Townsman wagon with a few vestiges of woodgrain on its steel body.

Sport Coupes and convertibles were offered only in the Bel Air package, but convertible production dropped below 20,000.

Chevy rolled its 30-millionth car off the line on December 28, 1953. Production, however, dropped slightly below Ford’s for the year. The biggest problem: Ford now had an overhead-valve V-8 engine. Chevy engineers were busy working on an answer to Ford’s challenge that would become a legend.