The latest trend with baby boomers and dot-com crash survivors is taking the body of a car that has been abused for half a century, and changing nothing. Patina - the years of characterful wear on the car - is worth its rusty weight in gold, and this '49 Chevy Deluxe is the best I've seen in a long while.
This 1949 Chevy Deluxe is old enough to be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award, and yet this shapely coupe is still making rounds down modern streets, highways, and byways (wherever those still exist). This car was originally found in an Indiana shop, where it had been serenely rusting in peace. After the seller's acquisition, it was fitted with a custom air suspension, a worn-looking interior, and given a thorough enough tune-up to make it driveable.
With the reserve still on, the bidding is at $4,100 at the time of writing, but I'd wager that you could pick up this awesome example of automotive character for around the five figure mark.
The car, although portraying some signs of surface rust, is rot-free and running, according to the seller. Here's an excerpt from the description:
We pretty much got it back to the shop and stripped all the interior out and started to get it running has been all tuned up has new starter, new fuel pump, new fuel tank, and sending unit, radiator has been flushed out, has been totally converted to 12 volt and has a new battery . has had the hood release cable replaced as well as all the bulbs for lights.all gauges seam to work as well as wipers. just had oil changed. and has been converted to alternator as its 12 volt now. took it and had all new exhaust replaced and sounds good quiet not loud engine compartment left as found other than the new parts thought it looked cool leaving it patina to match outside. carb has been gone through. The air ride is slamspecialtie bags in the front and airhouse 2 bags in rear airlines are 3/8 from newmatics and is all quick connect fittings rear has been custom built 2 link in rear with new shocks and front has been notched and plated for the airbags and it has little larrys four play switch setup. has a aluminum air tank and dual viair 444c chrome compressors mounted in the trunk. The inside has been totally been replaced with carpet headliner seats door panels and all the wind lace and was done very nice in a dark brown weathered looking vinyl and tan tweed dash top was sprayed brown as all the window frames.
Not only is this one of the coolest looking cars that you can buy today, but these sorts of "new guts, old body" cars are getting more and more popular, with no signs of stopping or being relegated to the passing fad archives. It's a daily driver that you can mod any way you want, but have the confidence that you can leave it in any parking lot of street corner without fear of damage, because any ding or scratch would just add to the car's appeal. Get it before Jonathan Ward does and charges you $150k for the privilege of buying it back.
Tavarish is the founder of APiDA Online and writes about buying and selling cool cars on the internet. He owns the world's cheapest Mercedes S-Class, a graffiti-bombed Lexus, and he's the only Jalopnik author that has never driven a Miata. He also has a real name that he didn't feel was journalist-y enough so he used a pen name and this was the best he could do.
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