S & S Classic Cars, LLC.

With fewer than 300 miles put on since the completion of a body-off restoration focused heavily on factory correctness, this 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible took 1st Place and Best of Show at the Classic Chevy Club International 33rd Annual Convention and has a Platinum Certificate with 996 out of 1,000 points. It’s finished in two-tone Harbor Blue and Nassau Blue, the original color combination, per the cowl tag, and many date-correct original or NOS parts were used during the restoration of this Bel Air, including the date-correct glass.

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It’s powered by a rare, matching-numbers GT-suffix 265/240 HP Super Power Pack V-8 engine with the Duntov high-lift camshaft, one of just 111 of the engines produced in 1956. The dual 4-barrel carburetors are topped by the Batwing air cleaner, and a three-on-the-tree manual transmission channels the power to the rear wheels. Despite the racy nature of the powertrain, this Chevrolet is beautifully equipped with an electro-hydraulically operated light blue convertible top and frame, a pushbutton radio, courtesy lights and an analog in-dash clock. Rolling on Goodyear wide whitewall tires with optional factory wire-spoke wheel covers, the Bel Air was recently upgraded with factory-correct power steering and power brakes to provide an even more enjoyable driving experience.

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The Tri-Five Chevrolets of 1955-57 were some of the most successful the division had ever seen. The extensive styling revision and new V-8 engine introduced for 1955 wowed the press and public alike, and Chevrolet advertised heavily through print, television and radio to keep the brand in the public eye. For 1956, Chevrolet had a multitude of print ads dedicated just to the Bel Air convertible, a new kind of approach, as the safer tactic was to promote sedans since they were normally the top sellers. However, the campaign worked well at selling the lifestyle angle, and for 1956, just over 1.5 million full-size Chevrolets were sold, and of those, just over 40,000 of them were Bel Air convertibles.

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