PART 3-The Silver Anniversary of a classic Chevrolet Bel Air –the 56 Chevy Dave saga

In 1993 the car was slated for more cosmetic and driveline surgery. The bondo on the original fenders was starting to show-the net result of a band-aid solution done by an under-qualified technician.

The firewall was painted after Mechanically the Chevy had a new p acemaker installed in the form of an electronic ignition and better cam. The Powerglide was replaced with a 350 Turbo so the car finally shifted better than it did with the slushy Eisenhower era transmission. He also added 605 power steering, disc brakes, alternator, 600 Holley carb, RV cam to give the 56 a decent chance in today’s “grea t brakes in cars but crappy drivers” world.

During this period Dave put thousands of miles on his classic Chevy-in fact, he put it to work, in typical practical farm boy fashion, by using it to haul a holiday trailer and fishing boat. The car may have looked pretty but even collector cars have to justify the expense in Dave’s world.

Then, like most relationships, things got a little stale and there was a period where the car didn’t see much daylight. Dave was still working the multi-job scene, the hours were longer and the red and white Bel Air went into semi-retirement.

All factors for friction in any relationship.

Dave was approached by a bank manager at this point who made him a significant offer for the classic Chevy. Dave thought about it and for awhile the relationship hung by a thread but after some thought and pressure from his peers in car world- “56 Chevy Dave” stayed “56 Chevy Dave”.

PART 4 NEXT WEEK 25 YEARS AND COUNTING