The Practice Classic

Recently I got an email from a younger car lover looking for help. "Just wondering if you'd lend a helping hand and push me in the right direction," is what he wrote.

"I have always loved every bit of detail and beauty in the '59 Chevrolet Impala. I'm not much of a car buff or car maniac, but when it comes to the '59 you could talk to me for days and I wouldn't lose interest. ...After a while I would definitely love (and plan to) buy and restore a '59 Though I've still got plenty of time before this happens...In the meantime I'd like to study up on car restoration and anything else that could help. ...I'd like to ask for any words of wisdom, advice, tips, or resources (besides your site haha). I'm somewhat of a beginner when it comes to cars as I have only done minor checks and replacements (brakes pads, rotors...) so any suggestion will be well accepted."

Well I can't blame him for liking the `59. It's one of a kind. His email led me to believe that maybe some folks should consider buying what I call "The Practice Classic." A car from the 1960s would be a good place to start in your training towards restoring a `59. Some are more forgiving than others - six-cylinder cars and four doors - because they're often not totally trashed even at 40+ years old. Having a driver like that gives people the opportunity to polish up on old-school maintenance skills - tune ups, water pump replacement, front end rebuild etc. - and maybe even a bit of body work. It allows people to cut their teeth on an old car for which the parts are plentiful and simple to replace; this can help you later, as the car projects become more complicated (and they will...believe me). Good candidates for a Practice Classic would be any Slant-Six powered Chrysler product from the Sixties, or even a a 1967 Cadillac Sedan Deville.

Searching for a `59 Chevy currently is fairly easy, although with each passing year it becomes tougher to find good ones that aren't expensive or beat up. Craigslist is a good source, as well as Collector Car Trader. Hemmings Motor News also has comprehensive nationally-based classifieds. One of my Biscayne's suspension parts came from Montana, thanks to Hemmings. If a person doesn't have an affinity to four-doors, a Practice Classic like the `59 Chev four-door sedan is also cost-effective and usually in better shape. Biscaynes and Bel Airs can still be found functional in the mid four-digit range, with non-running projects costing quite a bit less (beware of RUST...it's deadly on `59s and took most of them out by the end of the 1960s. It's a miracle there are any left today). Hardtops? They are getting out of the grasp of regular folks in my opinion, even the four-door hardtop "Sports Sedans" are getting pricey. The project cars are out there, and most need a lot of love. And Convertibles? Yes, they exist for a price or a project; scrap ones now start in the five-digits, and I've seen some so rusty that they're falling in on themselves from rot. Funny development for a car one could barely give away in 1980.

My thought is that a `59 four door is a good "way in" to your dream. A person's relationship with a car like that can become lifelong if it proves to be dependable and fun; or it can function as a "filler `59" until such time that the desired model is found. Either way, it's hard to go wrong with a car that is getting more and more popular on the street as the years go on.