Lot # S127 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible; S/N VC57K152085; Engine # F215FC; Matador Red/Red, Silver vinyl; White vinyl roof; Older restoration, 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $71,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $78,100 — 283/220hp, automatic, P/S, P/B, Vintage Air A/C, electric wipers, P/W, skirts, dual rear antennas, spinner wheel covers, whitewalls, pushbutton radio, continental kit. Decent paint, interior and top. Good major chrome but scuffed trim. Doors don’t close flush. Underbody is clean but engine is a bit oily. A shiny driver. This ’57 ticked most of the buttons including power steering and power brakes to make it an enjoyable driver for today’s collectors who don’t expect to have to muscle their Bel Air into a parking spot, and modern A/C for comfort on a hot, humid day. The weather in North Little Rock for the Salmon brothers’ auction (90+ degrees and 80%+ humidity) may have heightened the bidders awareness of A/C’s desirability and contributed to this handsome driver’s handsome price.
Lot # S110 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible; S/N VC57L130029; Engine # F1203FC; Colonial Cream/Yellow, Silver vinyl; Black vinyl top; Older restoration, 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $62,500 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $68,750 — 283/220hp, Powerglide, P/S, P/B, heater, pushbutton radio, spinner wheel covers, whitewalls, continental kit, skirts. Good older paint, chrome and interior. Slightly uneven door gaps, filled door bottoms. Was restored nearly like new but has plenty of subsequent use. A sound driver with potential. Chevy’s Colonial Cream must have been loaded with butterfat, because their paint color is very yellow. Out of 13 colors Chevy offered that year there were eight ’57 Chevy Bel Air convertibles in the Salmon brothers’ collection, each in a different paint color. It was quite a display but even with such a heavy representation they all brought strong prices.
Lot # S107 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible; S/N VC57K131275; Engine # F328GC; Tropical Turquoise/Turquoise, White vinyl; White vinyl top; Older restoration, 2- condition; Hammered Sold at $68,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $74,800 — 283/220hp, Powerglide, P/S, P/B, electric wipers, spinner wheel covers, whitewalls, skirts, continental kit. Good paint but filled, puffy doors. Driver’s door fits badly. Good upholstery, top, chrome and glass. Some weak trim chrome. Underbody and chassis are done nearly like new but engine shows age and some use. A nice car, except for that door. This is a full price for this car’s unimpressive bodywork.
Lot # S034 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air FI Convertible; S/N VC57B186830; Engine # F111FJ; Matador Red/Red, Silver vinyl; White vinyl top; Older restoration, 2- condition; Hammered Sold at $90,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $99,000 — 283/250hp block now described as a 283/283, Powerglide, spinner wheel covers, whitewalls, P/S, no P/B, WonderBar radio, electric wipers, skirts, dual rear antennas, continental kit, remote spotlight-mirror, one piece California front bumper. Excellent paint, chrome and interior. Top is a little soiled at bows. Underhood shows some age and a little paint damage from a brake fluid leak. Otherwise hard to fault. Has received some cosmetic attention since it sold for $108,000 at Branson Spring three years ago. The confusion over the engine’s specs is regrettable and should have been obvious to the Mecum (“Muscle Cars and More”) catalogers. Even at that, however, it brought a relatively modest price for its configuration and genuinely solid and attractive condition.
Lot # S076 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Nomad FI 2-Dr. Station Wagon; S/N VC57S227317; Engine # F1224FJ; Black/Red vinyl, Black cloth; Older restoration, 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $100,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $110,000 — 283/250hp fuel injection (not the 283/283hp as it was cataloged), Powerglide, P/S, P/B, spinner wheel covers, whitewalls, one piece California bumper. Restored thirty years ago and starting to look like it. Some weak chrome and paint chips, good interior, dusty and aged underhood. A mighty nice Nomad that will be better after some attention. So many of these were cannibalized to make street rods it’s good to see one preserved in stock form. No representation was made, however, about the correctness of its configuration and there’s little to tell from the car itself although the cold air intake for the FI unit was crudely stapled to the inner fender well. Chevy’s factories in 1957 didn’t have much opportunity to perfect the assembly of FI-engined Bel Airs, though, so some expediency is to be expected. One of the most anticipated (and promoted) of the Salmon Brothers’ cars, this price appropriately balances condition with innate desirability.
Lot # S096 1957 Chevrolet Corvette FI Convertible; S/N E57S104596; Engine # F410EH; Venetian Red, Beige coves/Red vinyl; Beige cloth top; Cosmetic restoration, 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $91,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $100,100 — 283/245hp dual quad hydraulic lifter block with fuel injection, 4-speed, hubcaps, bias ply blackwall tires, no radio or heater. Good major chrome and interior. Shiny but flawed paint with 3 inch crack on hood. Good dash and instruments. Underbody and chassis superficially squirted with chassis black. Bottom of the engine compartment is road grimy. Window frame and sill chrome scratched. A shiny but seriously flawed driver. No documentation at all was offered or described, a serious oversight shared by most of the Salmon brothers’ collection. The bidders handicapped the value for the car’s needs as well as for the empty documentation folder although in my opinion they should have handicapped it a bit more.
Lot # S130 1958 Chevrolet Bel Air Impala 2-Dr. Hardtop; S/N F58B169275; Engine # T203G; Black/Red, Black, Silver vinyl; Visually maintained, largely original, 3 condition; Hammered Sold at $55,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $60,500 — 348/250hp Turbo Thrust, Powerglide, P/S, P/B, pushbutton radio, bench seat, dual rear antennas, continental kit, skirts, spinner wheel covers, dual remote spotlight mirrors. Poorly done and now failing old repaint, sound chrome, cracked old body seals. Grungy chassis, scuffed trim chrome. A presentable but deficient driver quality car. The bidders accurately gauged the pros and cons of this Impala and arrived at a reasonable price. Many of its shortcomings can be remedied with minimal effort, but others — like the paint — will require more comprehensive and expensive work. This is reasonable money for a flawed but reasonable Impala.
Lot # S134 1958 Chevrolet Bel Air Impala Convertible; S/N 8176727657; Engine # None; White/Red, Black, Silver vinyl; Black vinyl top; Cosmetic restoration, 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $62,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $68,200 — 348 4-barrel, Powerglide, P/S, WonderBar radio, dual rear antennas, spinner wheel covers, whitewalls, continental kit. Good paint and major chrome, good interior and top. Top of engine is clean but the depths of the engine compartment are grungy and the underbody is painted assembled. Delaminating driver’s window. Incorrect VIN on non-original plate. Thin window trim chrome. A good car to avoid. No one seemed put off by the numerous inconsistencies of this Impala, if the price it brought is any guide. It is not a good buy at this price.
Lot # S122 1959 Chevrolet El Camino; S/N H59L167513; Engine # T1115H; Light Yellow/Black vinyl; Older restoration, 2- condition; Hammered Sold at $41,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $45,100 — 348/250hp 4-barrel with Tri-Power added, 4-speed, P/S, P/B, heater, pushbutton radio, skirts, dual outside mirrors, spinner wheel covers, whitewalls. Restored like new. Sills and door bottoms filled, but well. Good paint, chrome, upholstery, underhood and chassis. Coolant outlet has leaked and is covered in residue crystals. Engine is a little oily from use but could be detailed back to nearly showroom condition. It is hard to imagine a much better El Camino than this, with its flying saucer roof and seagull fins not to mention the thumping great truck motor under the hood. Purists might scoff at the Tri-Power intake, until they open the hood and are captivated by the sight, or dusted at a stoplight. It is one of the few bargains at the Salmon brothers collection sale.
Lot # S147 1961 Chevrolet Corvair 95 Rampside Pickup; S/N 1R124S118302; White, Red/Red vinyl, cloth; Truck restoration, 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $24,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $26,400 — 4-speed, radio, heater, wheel covers, whitewalls. Decent repaint, good upholstery. Underbody cleaned up but not restored. Better than most and looks good even up close, but still a quick truck restoration. Last week’s Leake Tulsa auction had a Corvair Rampside, now there’s another (and somewhat better) one in the Salmon brothers’ collection. Tulsa’s sold for $12,528 and even though the Salmons’ is better it’s not this much better.
Lot # S106 1962 Chevrolet Corvette FI Convertible; S/N 20867S114334; Engine # S114334 F0618RF; Roman Red/Red vinyl; Black vinyl top; Cosmetic restoration, 3 condition; Hammered Sold at $62,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $68,200 — 327/360hp FI car with a Edelbrock 4-barrel, 4-speed, 3.70 Positraction, P/W, heater, WonderBar radio, spinner wheel covers, narrow whitewalls. Block is appropriately coded for the 360hp fuel injection engine and this chassis number. Shiny but flawed older repaint, good upholstery and major chrome, weak trim chrome. Engine compartment is aged and oil misted. Old undercoat on body. Needs a full restoration to reach its potential, but is more than good enough to drive and enjoy as is. Cataloged as a 327/340hp 4-barrel with a Carter carb, which it definitely isn’t. Beyond that it’s anyone’s guess without getting in touch with NCRS, a simple step that could have added value to this car if it turns out to be an original Fuelie, particularly a 360hp. Replacing the complicated FI unit with a 4-barrel was fairly common in the years when these were just used cars. At this price the new owner is somewhat at risk of discovering nothing matches, but also has the potential of a windfall if it does match up and a suitable FI unit can be found.
About Rick Carey
