[Closed] American excellence update

Isn't the Bel Air actually an Impala?

Technically, yes, David, but don't forget that in '58, and in that year only, the Impala was in the Bel Air series. It's technically a Bel Air Impala Sport
Coupe, and there was also, as you well know, a Bel Air Sport Coupe, but I don't
recall seeing too many of them. The Impalas are shown in the brochures and on
websites as part of the Bel Air series, until '59 when they became their own
distinct series.

All of us call the top of the line Sport Coupes and Convertibles "Impalas," but
they still were Bel Airs in '58. Thankfully Chevy saw the light and spun them
into their own series the following year.

That's true Rick, about the '58's. I just hope they will label it as a Bel Air Impala, as the Bel Air hardtop had an entirely different body from the cowl aft.

Yes, I agree. We'll see how they identify it, I guess.

Do you recall seeing very many of the Bel Air two-door hardtops? I just don't. I
remember that the Impala was such a smash hit that it seems to me most
people would have gone for the Impala if they could, rather than settle for the
Bel Air, nice as it was.

The triple taillights, the "airscoop" on the trailing edge of the roof, the
"pitchfork" on the side, and the way-cool interiors would have certainly done it
for me if I were a Chevy hardtop shopper at the time.

Come to think of it, Rick, I don't. I remember one in my hometown of Lenox, MA that was Regal Turquoise/Snwcrest White. It actually was a sharp looking hardtop, but the Impala certainly stole the show when it came to hardtops in '58 and there probably wasn't all that much difference in sticker price. I know of no Bel Air hardtops in any scale, let alone 1/43rd. Brooklin's #48, in my estimation, is still the gold standard of Impala models, and it's one of their earlier issues.

David, there's a lovely Cay Coral and Arctic White BA two-door hardtop in "Collectible Automobile," which I know you have. Very clean styling, as far as
'58 Chevies go! And, according to CA, there was only $139 difference between a
BA hardtop with I-6 or V8, and the Impala with the same engine. I can
understand why so many buyers went for the Impala. A nice-looking four-door
hardtop was available as a Bel Air, but not as an Impala, so buyers looking for
style and convenience might have gone for that BA if they needed the four door.

Chevy did sell just over twice as many Impala hardtops as they did convertibles,
though. Those production figures we do have.

The 2-door hardtops of the mid and late 50's (mine was a '56 Plymouth Belvedere) had two major problems for some potential buyers. First, power windows were not generally standard equipment and only came through special orders. Second, with the windows down, the wind really whipped around inside the car. I would drive around town with all four windows down, looking cool, but as soon as my wife was in the passenger seat, her window went up, spoiling the effect. And then the dog jumped out of the back seat. Our next car was a sedan with air conditioning.

The 58 Chevy model is an Impala not a Bel Air.