55lincoln's video: 1957 CHEVY BEL AIR CONVERTIBLE - THE ICONIC FIFTIES CAR

It might be an overstated cliche' about the 57 Chevy being the forefront of design for the most popular car of the fifties, but then you come upon this example and you realize why it's so famous. Of the Chevy Tri-Five models - 55, 56, 57, the 57 Chevy had the most sales. The Bel Air convertible for 1955 sold 41,292 units while the '56 sold 41,268 units. But this '57 Bel Air sold 47,562 copies ! In fact, all models of the '57 Chevy outsold all of the 55 and 56 models by several hundred thousands. Maybe it's the styling of the 57 that granted this favorite status. A likable front clip, two hood ornaments, a large stainless flash on the quarter panel, a well laid out and convenient dash, plus the upright fins that house the slender taillights. All the styling cues must have brought about the eventual iconic look of a fifties car. The Bel Air models include a two and four door sedan, Townsman four door station wagon, Sport hardtop sedan and coupes, the Nomad two door sport wagon and this convertible. When new, this convertible had a base price of $ 2,511. Engine choices started with a 6 with 235.5 cubes and 140 hp., a 265 V8 with 162 hp., and a 283 V8 with anywhere from 185 to 283 horses. There were 16 paint choices for the 57 and include : Onyx Black, Imperial Ivory, Larkspur Blue, Harbor Blue, Surf Green, Highland Green, Tropical Turquoise, Colonial Cream, Canyon Coral, Coronado Yellow, Inca Silver, Sierra Gold, Adobe Beige, Dusk Pear, and Laurel Green. This Chevy is finished in Matador Red. In addition, there were 15 two tone combos. Oh, to have such colorful paint jobs on today's cars instead of fifty shades of gray, plus black, silver, and white. This like new Chevy has that look of the iconic fifties car and thanks for viewing.