How Many 1957 Chevrolet Model 210 Station Wagons Are Registered In The United States

Make of US automobile

Motor vehicle

1957 Chevrolet
1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Sport Coupé
Overview
Manufacturer	Chevrolet (General Motors)
Production	1956–1957
Designer	Clare M. Mackichan (1954)^[i]
Body and chassis
Torso style	2-door sedan ii-door hardtop iv-door sedan 4-door hardtop 2-door convertible 2-door station wagon 4-door station wagon 2-door sedan delivery
Powertrain
Engine	235.5 cu in (three,859 cc) Blue Flame I6 265 cu in (four,340 cc) V8 283 cu in (4,640 cc) V8
Transmission	3-speed transmission Powerglide auto Turboglide auto

The 1957 Chevrolet is a auto that was introduced by Chevrolet in September 1956 for the 1957 model yr. Information technology was bachelor in iii serial models: the upscale Bel Air, the mid-range Two-10, and the One-50. A two-door station wagon, the Nomad, was produced equally a Bel Air model. An upscale trim pick called the Delray was bachelor for Two-Ten 2-door sedans. Information technology is a popular and sought afterwards classic car. These vehicles are often restored to their original condition and sometimes modified. The motorcar'south image has been frequently used in toys, graphics, music, movies, and boob tube. The '57 Chevy, as it is often known, is an auto icon.^[2]

History [edit]

Initially, General Motors executives wanted an entirely new motorcar for 1957, but product delays necessitated the 1955–56 design for i more year.^[3] Ed Cole, chief engineer for Chevrolet, dictated a series of changes that significantly increased the cost of the car. These changes included a new dashboard, sealed cowl, and the relocation of air ducts to the headlight pods, which resulted in the distinctive chrome headlight that helped make the '57 Chevrolet a archetype. Xiv-inch wheels replaced the fifteen-inch wheels from previous years to give the car a lower stance, and a wide grille was used to requite the car a wider look from the front end. The now famous '57 Chevrolet tailfins were designed to duplicate the wide look in the rear. Bel Air models, though maintaining the same chassis, powertrains, and body, were given upscale gilt trim: the mesh grille insert and front fender chevrons, as well as the "Chevrolet" script on the hood and body, were all rendered in anodized gilt. The 1957 Chevrolets did not have an oil pressure gauge or a voltmeter.^[four] The base engine was an inline half-dozen-cylinder called the Blue Flame Six. The engine was smoother running than the Five-viii. Carburetion came from a single 1-barrel carburetor.

"Tri-Five" 1955–1957 V8 [edit]

The 1955 model twelvemonth Chevrolet introduced its now-famous small-cake V-8 — the first Five-8 bachelor in a Chevrolet since 1918.^[5] It has a displacement of 265 cu in (iv,340 cc). Prior to 1955, Chevrolet offered a 235 cu in (3,850 cc) deportation in-line half-dozen-cylinder engine only. The 1955 model, like its engine, was all new. The "shoebox" blueprint, so named because it was the beginning Chevrolet to feature streamlined rear fenders, was a watershed for Chevrolet. The lightweight car, coupled with a powerful overhead valve Five-8, became a showroom draw, simply also thrust the company into the arena of competitive motorsports. 1955 Chevrolets went on to dominate drag racing and became a formidable force in circle track racing. In 1956, the blueprint was lengthened somewhat in front end and given a more squarish treatment; under the hood, engine power increased and a Chevrolet Corvette engine was available for the outset time in a full-size rider car. In 1957, the V-shaped trim on the tail fins was filled with a ribbed aluminum insert exclusive to the Bel Air's upgraded trim level. The fuel-injected engine represented the first fourth dimension that an internal combustion gasoline engine in a passenger car reached an advertised ane horsepower for each cubic inch benchmark, although the Chrysler 300B trounce that past a twelvemonth in its 355-horsepower, 354 c.i.d dual-carburetored engine, and the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint was introduced a year before than that (1954), with a 79 cubic inch (1290cc) engine that produced 80 hp. In NASCAR racing the 283 with its increased horsepower gave the '57 a dramatic advantage over the smaller 265 V8 the '55 and '56 had. NASCAR held the competition, especially the '55–'57 Chevrolet to a cubic inch brake considering of all the races the '57s were winning. This restriction stayed with the '55–'57 until they were grandfathered out of the lower NASCAR divisions in the 1970s every bit the '57 was all the same chirapsia most all in their course.

Body styles [edit]

Trunk choices for 1957 included:

2- and 4-door sedans (identified by the "posts" betwixt door windows)
2-door "Sport Coupe" (a ii-door hardtop - the car has no mail between the front and dorsum window when the windows are lowered)
"Sport Sedan" (a 4-door hardtop)
two-door Utility Sedan, a two-door sedan with a package shelf instead of a rear seat
Delray "Club Coupe", which was a Two-Ten model 2-door sedan with a palatial interior
The top-of-the-line 2-door Bel Air Nomad station railroad vehicle with a sloped pillar behind the hardtop door and sliding windows at the rear seat
The bones 2-door Handyman station wagon with an upright sedan B-pillar and a C-pillar, where the iv-door wagons accept one, available only in One-L and Two-Ten trims.
4-door, six-passenger station wagon
four-door, nine-rider station wagon (both chosen Townsman in the One-50 serial and Beauville for the Bel Air version)
Convertible

Different nigh competitors, the Chevrolet 4-door hardtop featured a reinforced rear roof structure that gave the car added rigidity and a unique appearance in silhouette. The 1957 Chevrolet was chosen by some a "Baby Cadillac", because of many styling cues like to Cadillacs of the time. V8-optioned cars got a big "Five" under the Chevrolet script on the hood and torso lid; the "V: was aureate for the Bel Air trim level, and silver-colored chrome for the 210 and 150 trim levels.

The 2-door Bel Air Nomad station wagon had its own distinctive styling, mainly in the roof line and rear deck.

1957 Chevrolet I-Fifty ii-door Sedan
1957 Chevrolet Bel Air 4-door Sedan
1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Sport Coupe
1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Sport Sedan
1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible
1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Nomad two-door 6-passenger Station Railroad vehicle
1957 Chevrolet 2-Ten Townsman iv-door half-dozen-passenger Station Wagon
1957 Chevrolet One-Fifty Sedan Commitment (non-standard wheels)

Engines [edit]

For 1957 in that location were four standard engine options, a 235.5 cu in (three,859 cc) inline six-cylinder producing 140 hp (104 kW), a 265 cu in (4,340 cc) V8 "Turbo-Burn" producing 162 hp (121 kW), and two 283 cu in (4,640 cc) V8s: a "Turbo-Burn" twin-barrel carburetor producing 185 hp (138 kW) and a "Super "Turbo-Fire" four-barrel carburetor developing 220 hp (164 kW).^[6] To help mechanics distinguish the 265 cu in V8 engine from the red 1956 and 1955 265 cu in V8 engines and the orange 1957 283 cu in V8s, the early 1957 265 cu in V8 engines with manual transmissions were painted a bright yellow-green chartreuse. After November 1956, the 1957 265 cu in V8 engines were painted the same orange as the 1957 283 cu in V8s.

Some other optional engine was offered with two four barrel carburetors, the legendary "Duntov" cam and solid lifters. This engine produced 270 hp. 1957 was the first year that Chevrolet ever offered fuel injection as an option. A 283 cu in (four,640 cc) engine fitted with solid lifters, the "Duntov" cam and fuel injection was rated at 283 hp (211 kW) and cost $500.^[7] ^[eight] This was the first time in history that a General Motors vehicle achieved 1-hp-per-cu-in in a production vehicle. Fuel injection continued every bit an selection throughout the early on 1960s. However, well-nigh mechanics of the time didn't have the experience to go along the units running properly. This prompted about buyers to opt for conventional carburetion.

In a 1957 survey of owners, Popular Mechanics reported that xvi.9% of owners complained about the fuel economy, while 34.4% wanted fuel injection.^[9]

Options [edit]

There were many options available, most of which were designed to brand the machine more than comfortable and luxurious. Air conditioning was offered though rarely ordered, as was a padded nuance. Power steering and ability brakes were available, also as a signal-seeking AM^[8] radio and ability antenna. Power windows and power seats were also available. A rear speaker could be purchased which required a split up volume knob to exist installed in the dashboard, beside the radio — this rear speaker was touted every bit providing "surround" sound. An "Autronic center" was offered; it was a device that bolted onto the dashboard and sensed the light from oncoming traffic, dimming the headlights automatically.^[10] ^[11] 1 unique option was an electronic shaver, connected to the dashboard.^[12] The '57 radio used tubes that required only 12 volts of plate voltage and a transistor for the output stage. This lowered the power bleed on the battery to an insignificant amount when the engine was off. Playing the radio with conventional tubes for extended periods occasionally drained the battery to the extent that information technology could not start the car. The clock was electrically self-wound and moving the hands to correct the fourth dimension resulted in actually regulating the going rate. After a few corrections, the clock was remarkably accurate.

Another dashboard-mounted item was the traffic-lite viewer, a ribbed plastic visor that was installed just above the speedometer. Because the roof extends so far forrard of the driver, information technology is hard to encounter overhead traffic lights. The traffic light viewer captured the reflection of overhead traffic lights so that the driver didn't have to lean frontwards to encounter past the border of the roof. A/C was also an option.^[thirteen]

In 1957, Chevrolet started to add condom features such as "crash proof door locks^[14] "(commencement added in 1956), padded dash boards, prophylactic-styled steering cycle with a recessed hub^[fifteen] (though non as much as Ford'south), seat belts(also first in 1956^[sixteen]) and shoulder harnesses.^[17] ^[18] All the same, dissimilar Ford, Chevrolet did non promote these safety features heavily.

1957 was also Chevrolet's first offering of a turbine transmission, known equally the Turboglide. It was a design concept that Buick had developed with their Dynaflow transmission. However, due to a reliability reputation acquired by its complication, most automatic manual buyers shunned the Turboglide in favor of the two-speed Powerglide that had been offered since 1950. At the time the Turboglide casing was the largest cast aluminum component ever put into mass production, simply it never recovered from the reputation in 1957 and the pick was discontinued in 1961. Manual transmissions were limited to iii-speed, column shifted units (with synchromesh in 2nd and third gear only). The Powerglide's shifter went P N D L R while the Turboglide'south was P R N D Hour (although the 'Hour' was changed early in the production serial to 'Gr'-Form Retarder considering of drivers' mistaken conventionalities that '60 minutes' meant High Range instead of the right Hill Retarder.) .^[19] ^[20] An overdrive unit was available as an option on the three speed manually shifted transmission cars. Starting at the cease of May 1957, a four speed manual transmission was too offered at an over-the-counter price of $188.00 only no installation kit (shifter and linkage) was ever offered by Chevrolet and, while an owner may have jury-rigged an installation in their own car, there is no show that whatsoever dealer ever really installed the manual in whatsoever auto in 1957. A '57 equipped with this transmission mated to the 270 horsepower engine and express slip differential was the one to beat on the drag strip and street into the early 1960s.

Post-production popularity [edit]

1957 Chevrolet Two-Ten 4-door Sedan

1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Townsman 4-door Station Wagon

From a numbers standpoint, the '57 Chevrolet wasn't as popular as General Motors had hoped. Despite its popularity, rival Ford outsold Chevrolet for the 1957 model year for the commencement time since 1935. The main cause of the sales shift to Ford was that the '57 Chevrolet had tubeless tires, the first car to have them. This scared away sales to Ford as many people did non initially trust the new tubeless design. As well Ford's introduction of an all-new torso styling that was longer, lower, and wider than the previous year's offerings helped Ford sales.^[21]

However, the 1957 Ford — with the exception of the rare retractable hardtop model — is non nearly every bit prized past collectors today as the 1957 Chevrolet.^{[ commendation needed ]} Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the '57 Chevrolet was a popular used car and highly prized "street machine" or hot rod in 1957 terms. It was the last twelvemonth of the "shoebox" Chevrolet, every bit 1958 saw the introduction of a much larger and heavier "X" framed Chevrolet. The ideal size of the '57, combined with its relatively light weight compared to newer total-sized cars, made it a favorite among elevate racers. The engine bay was big plenty to fit GM's big-block engines, first introduced in 1958 and popularized in the 1960s by the Beach Boys in the song "409". The relatively uncomplicated mechanical attributes of the auto made information technology easy to maintain, customize, and upgrade with components such as disc brakes and air-conditioning.

The big block, yet, was not what put the '57 on the map on the street scene; it was the introduction of the depression-priced small-block, 365-horsepower 327 in 1962 that was the blockbuster that made both the '55 and '57 Chevrolet able to crush the Ford hotrods with their flathead V8s.^{[ citation needed ]} This was a major turning point in American hot rodding: Chevrolet had claimed the street scene from Ford. The '57 Chevrolet as well won 49 1000 National "cup" NASCAR races (the well-nigh of any car in NASCAR history), won the Southern 500 (in 1957, 1958, and 1959); condign the merely car to win the 500 three times. The primeval victory for a '57 Chevrolet in a titled NASCAR Grand National Series race was the 1957 Virginia 500.

The '57 also won 26 NASCAR "convertible races," more than than whatsoever make, and won all three possible driver'southward championships. The beginning in convertible class and winning car in the 1959 Daytona 500 was a '57 driven past Joe Lee Johnson. The convertibles started on the exterior row and were approximately 10 miles an hour slower than the hardtops and sedans because of their aerodynamics. No one figured that a convertible would win the race and they didn't but wonder who was driving the meridian finishing convertible.

The 283 engine placed from the manufacturing plant behind the centerline of the forepart wheels made the '57 a superior treatment car on the short tracks and the dirt tracks as well. This mechanical reward, coupled with the high revving and reliable 283, earned the '57 the nickname "king of the short tracks"^{[ citation needed ]} With the fuel injected 283, the I-Fifty model 2 door sedan version, called the "black widow," was the starting time car outlawed (and quickly so) by NASCAR as it proved almost unbeatable on most all the NASCAR tracks in early 1957. After the '57 was grandfathered out from the now "cup" partitioning in 1960 and relegated to the lower local track sportsman divisions, they were all the same the car to beat for years. The '57s afterwards were used up in stock car racing at a very high charge per unit. Surprisingly enough, the '57 Chevrolet besides won a disproportionate amount of sabotage derbies equally well: With the radiator set back from the grille, the car was hard to disable. The additional reward of having the concluding double lined trunk, coupled with a strong frame, fabricated it a surprisingly common winner in the demolition derbies during the late 1960s and early 1970s. By the 1970s, the '57 Chevrolet became a collector car.

Companies such every bit Danchuk Manufacturing, Inc. and Archetype Chevy Club International began selling reproduction and restoration parts. In the early 1990s, the value of a meticulously restored '57 Chevrolet convertible was as high equally $100,000.^{[ commendation needed ]} Although those peaks gave way significantly after 1992, the '57 Chevrolet has held its value and is now poised to exceed the previous tiptop.

Although restored original examples are increasingly rare, modern customizers and restorers are creating fast, powerful, ultra-modern hot rods that are winning the '57 Chevy a whole new generation of fans. Every bit original cars become harder to find, fiberglass and all-steel reproductions (EMI in Detroit, Michigan was the first to build restoration bodies using original firewalls with VIN numbers - the steel reproduction bodyshells are manufactured by Existent Deal Steel in Sanford, Florida, using reproduction sheetmetal) are making it possible for future generations to enjoy the '57 Chevrolet.

Run across as well [edit]

Chevrolet Bel Air

References [edit]

^ "Automobile". Retrieved September xx, 2016.
^ Epp, Peter (February 25, 2014). "'57 Chevy'south iconic popularity has endured". The Petrolia Topic. Archived from the original on May 29, 2014. Retrieved June 6, 2014.
^ Trotta, Mark. "1957 Chevy History". www.classic-car-history.com.
^ "Directory Alphabetize: Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet_Owners_Manual". Oldcarbrochures.com. Retrieved February xiv, 2012.
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^ "Old Machine Brochures". Retrieved December 16, 2011.
^ "1955, 1956, 1957 Chevrolet Nomad". November 27, 2007.
^ ^a ^b Flory, Jr., J. "Kelly" (2008). American Cars, 1946–1959 Every Model Every Yr. McFarland & Visitor, Inc., Publishers. ISBN978-0-7864-3229-5.
^ "Popular Mechanics - Google Books". Pop Mechanics. Apr 1957.
^ "Directory Index: Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet_Accessories". Oldcarbrochures.com. Retrieved February 14, 2012.
^ Gunnell, John (November 18, 2011). Standard Catalog of Chevrolet, 1912-2003: 90 Years of History, Photos, Technical Data and Pricing. Krause Publications. ISBN9781440230516 – via Google Books.
^ "Directory Alphabetize: Chevrolet/1956_Chevrolet/1956_Chevrolet_Accessories". Oldcarbrochures.com. Retrieved Feb 14, 2012.
^ "Directory Index: Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet_Owners_Manual". Oldcarbrochures.com. Retrieved February 14, 2012.
^ "Directory Alphabetize: Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet_Brochure-Cdn". Oldcarbrochures.com. Retrieved February fourteen, 2012.
^ "Directory Index: Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet_Brochure_2". Oldcarbrochures.com. Retrieved Feb 14, 2012.
^ "1956 Classic Chevrolet – Accessories". 56classicchevy.com. Retrieved February 14, 2012.
^ "1957 Archetype Chevrolet – Accessories". 57classicchevy.com. Retrieved February xiv, 2012.
^ Gunnell, John A., ed. (1982). Standard Catalog of American Cars 1946–1975. krause publications. ISBN0-87341-027-0.
^ "Directory Index: Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet_Owners_Manual". Oldcarbrochures.com. Retrieved Feb 14, 2012.
^ "Directory Index: Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet/1957_Chevrolet_Owners_Manual". Oldcarbrochures.com. Retrieved February 14, 2012.
^ "1957Ford.com – History". 1957Ford.com. Archived from the original on Feb 23, 2011.