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Gold 1955 Chevy Bel Air Hardtop Headed To Indy Mecum Auction

In November of 1954, Chevrolet built the fifty millionth GM car, a 1955 Chevy Bel Air that would be featured in a mile-long parade through Detroit. The parade was called the Golden CARnival, and featured the first GM production car (a 1908 Cadillac), the one millionth car (a 1919 Oldsmobile), the five millionth (a 1926 Pontiac), the ten millionth (a 1929 Buick), the twenty-five millionth (a 1940 Chevrolet), and the 1955 Bel Air two-door Sport Coupe. A crowd of 200,000 was in attendance.

Side view of the gold 1955 Chevy Bel Air heading to auction.

To mark the occasion, General Motors built three gold 1955 Chevy Bel Airs painted a gleaming shade of gold, with gold plated bumpers, exterior and interior trim. One of those was used for promotional and advertising photography, and eventually sold to a Chevy customer. It wound up in the hands of a gentleman in North Carolina who could not be convinced to sell the car. It was unfortunately in the gentleman’s garage when it burned in 1996, destroying the car. For some reason, the owner chopped the car into sections and scattered them about his property.

Last year, Joe Whitaker of restorer Real Deal Steel, located some of the 1955 Chevy Bel Air parts and was able to purchase them. Using them as inspiration, Joe, Snodgrass Chevy Restoration, and Steve Blades began creating a most accurate replica of that fifty millionth Bel Air, using as many original and NOS parts as possible. A 265 cubic-inch Small Block was married to a two-speed Powerglide automatic transmission. The drivetrain, finished in gold paint of course, was placed in a gold-painted 1955 Bel Air frame. New body panels were married to the chassis, all finished in custom Axalta Tribute Gold. Interior and exterior trim and the bumpers were all gold plated at an expense of over $100,000. The interior was assembled using numerous NOS materials. The front shocks are dated October 1954, radiator is dated September 1954, and the voltage regulator has a November 1954 date code. The fuel filler neck, door striker plates, horn ring, heater control, trunk floor wiring tabs, headlights, and battery tray all came from October/November 1954 production. The dash, steering column, and steering wheel are all from one of the 5,000 1955 Bel Air sedans built to mark the milestone.

This 1955 Chevy Bel Air fifty millionth tribute hit the show and magazine circuit soon after completion. It has been featured in GM Scene, Hemmings, Old Cars, My City Flint Michigan magazine, and Chevy Hardcore. It was shown at the 71st Annual Detroit Autorama, and won Best in Class – Restored, Top Twenty, Outstanding Display, and Best Restored Overall at the 61st Annual Chicago World of Wheels.

This unique tribute to General Motors and Chevrolet history will cross the Mecum Auctions block May 18th at their 37th Indy Spring Classic taking place at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.

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Comments

  1. It’s ugly!!

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  2. Custom made for T-rump

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    1. Ray – Rent free.

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    2. TDS much??? TRUMP 2024 !!! Time to save America !

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      1. Are you serious? Don’t wish for something may not want.

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    3. If you haven’t seen the car, then you don’t know. It is breathtaking in its execution.

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  3. I think it’s kind of cool. Something different. I definitely would not turn it down.

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  4. I bet the insurance is reasonable.
    One of those “Cool to see, but not for me”.

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  5. Just think what it could look like if all that hard work and money would have been spent making it as original as possible. To each his own. Definitely not for me.

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    1. I’m guessing you didn’t read the article.

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      1. I’m guessing gold wouldn’t be original.

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  6. Some people have more $ than sense. Will loss big on investment at the auction is my guess.

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  7. To me, that car is like an elephant: it’s OK to look at, but I wouldn’t want to own it.

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  8. Nice. Lots of work and money.
    But, it is not THE car

    Reply

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