Getting my car after 5 years of fanagaling....

[ARTEMIS1759]

So after 5 years my Dad is finally bringing this gem home:

1958 Chevy Delray 4 door. Got some plans for this bad boy.

[JasonFL]

Nice find or should I say save. What are the plans for it? Post some photos when you get it pulled outa there and start tearing into it.

[RodneyBad]

I Love those 58s.. Soo much chrome..

Best looking Impala .. Ever.. IMO..

[58 Impala]

I've loved 58's since my dad had one when I was a little kid. Never had one myself. Good luck with your plans to to fix her up. Show us some pictures of your progress.

[W-409]

That is a beautiful car. Great to see another one saved. This is great body for Old School Style Custom or Race Car look.

[crazyjim]

My folks had a black '58 Chevy Delray that I learned to drive on.

[Kris Morgan]

Great score. My grandfather had a 58 Del Ray when I was growing up.

[Harry P.]

My folks had a black '58 Chevy Delray that I learned to drive on.

What did you drive on it with? Did you have a monster truck?

[crazyjim]

Naw. It was a stock 6 cylinder, auto trans, 4 door. The first time they let me take it out on my own was to a pool party with a date. We went to a taillight place to play kissy face. Parking lights had to stay on and heads above door level. The battery died and we were late getting home.

[blackandwhite]

looks like a great find, im curious about the frame rails and floor

[Deathgoblin]

Sweet! Totally envious of you. I hope you can bring her back to life. Good Luck!

[mademan]

more door

[charlie8575]

A six-cylinder four-door. Very much like I would like for a daily driver in nice weather.

Make it nice. in stock form, I think a '58 Chevy is a nice-looking car.

Charlie Larkin

[ARTEMIS1759]

Well, my fellow forum members, the plans are KISS but it will still have the needed kustom touches to make it a late 50s early 60s kustom. First things first is to see if I can get the blue flame to fire, not sure if it is stuck, but it did run when parked in '79. If the pistons are stuck I am going to use ATF in the boores since my uncle just did that on an old ford 6 recently. Then all mechanicals will be replaced or restored initially and replace the back window and maybe a blanket over the seats and run it like that for a while. But that is where it takes it's turn into the kustom field. The car is as follows 235 Blueflame; 3 speed with 3:55s; radio delete; dog dish caps; coral and white paint and the floors and rockers look good. Not sure on the trunk yet. SO plans are building a 261 I6 with twin super 97s; kustom built 2x2 intake and headers; finned accessories; B52 Jet Pipes exhaust tips.

This is a stock 58 Delray:

This was the original design in Kandy Jade Green and Ivory White and called it "Playin' for Keeps". These next to were done on MS Paint:

It then evolved into the "Phenix" which is Kandy Tangerine Orange and Ivory White:

Engine will be similar to this but with the Tangerine accents and Hudson Hornet Twin H Air Cleaners:

Only real damage other then surface rust and a rust hole in the headlight brow:

[ARTEMIS1759]

OK more pics of it:

[Longbox55]

Check out Patrick's Antique Cars for hop up parts for that old Chevy 6. http://patricksantiquecars.com/

[ARTEMIS1759]

Oh trust me, I have. I got this whole car built on paper. Every part. The wheels will be painted caddy wires with chrome spokes and kustom caps.

Edited September 16, 2012 by ARTEMIS1759

[Ramfins59]

Are you gonna upgrade the brakes on this beast to discs, or, at least go with a dual bowl master cyl....??? The only reason I'm asking is...... I had a '59 Dodge Coronet about 10 years ago and the rear brake line broke while i was doing 60 MPH and heading into a traffic circle... Fortunately I didn't hit anyone or anything and I got the car up on the grass and coasted to a stop... Lost ALL brakes because I had a single bowl master cyl.... That was the absolute scariest minute of my life...!!!

[1930fordpickup]

Richard you have made the best point on this thread , Safety for you and your car. It is a must to have a dual master cylinder . The body looks good enough for now .

[Longbox55]

I disagree. I run my '55 Chevy with stock type rebuilt drum brakes as my daily driver, with an original style master cylinder. While the dual circuit does give a bit of extra safety (you will still loose the pedal if a line goes), it is not a "must have". Sock brkae serve just fine, even in todays traffic. Rebuild/repclace the master/wheel cylinder, install new friction, recondition/replace the drums, and replace all the stell and rubber lines, it'll be just fine.

[Tom Setzer]

Great find. what are your plans for it?

My Father had a forest green Impala Wagon 283 with a Power Glide that he bought new. It had every option they had. Later I bought a pre-owned Impala hard top with a 348 Tri Carbs with a blown out Gyro Glide, with only 9000 miles on it for only $200.00, because the Lady that owned it had already replaced three transmissions and considered it a lemon. I put a four speed in it for about $400 and drove it for three years without any problems. It was midnight blue with blue interior and had power everything.

Edited September 17, 2012 by Tom Setzer

[ARTEMIS1759]

Yes a dual mastercylinder is in the works for my car and my Dad's 59 Bel Ar 4 door I built for him on a 10k budget. The brakes work awesome from the factory but safety is the factor when it comes to a single pot MC. But on that note also I did loose a r\brake line on a 76 Toronado and it wouldn't stop so how much an advantage I am not sure. The 4 wheel drums will stop it good enough but either way I want to add power brakes.

Link to the rest of the pics on this car:

http://s275.photobucket.com/albums/jj291/ARTEMIS1759/1959%20Chevrolet%20Bel%20Air%204%20door/

Edited September 17, 2012 by ARTEMIS1759

[ARTEMIS1759]

Read this on MCs:

http://www.carnut.com/ramblin/skip.html

[CorvairJim]

The Del Ray looks like a great project. having seen what you did with your dad's '59, I have no doubts that the '58 will turn out at least as well. As it is, you just showed me pics of two of my favorite years of full-size Chevy. Love 'em both!

Here'a my '58 Chevy story: My dad had a turquoise over white over turquoise 348/Turboglide '58 Bel Air Sport Sedan (4-door pillarless hardtop) when he and my mom were first married. My mom was used to driving the straight-6/3-on-the-tree '57 Chevy 150 4-door sedan that she co-owned with her mother. That car was actually more powerful than any car that she had owned up to that point, having had a pair of Willys Jeep station wagons while she was serving in the Women's Army Corps band in the early 50's. According to my dad, when she tried to drive the Bel Air, she couldn't get it off the line without leaving twin lines of rubber at least 20' long! After a couple of months of this, he traded his baby in on a brand-spanking-new-for 1960 Corvair 700-Series sedan... And no, that's NOT where my love of Corvairs came from. Turns out they both disliked the car and traded it in on a '62 Biscayne 2-door sedan before I was born!

[ARTEMIS1759]

God I love these stories. My first 58 I aquired from my uncle in 1996 who bought it from the original owner. It was a 4 door Biscayne with the Blueflame with the 3 speed and OD. It was Forrest Green and all stock. When I first saw the car, never really seeing a 58 I thought it was ugly and then it grew on me. But as fate would have it and being I was young and dumb, the deal for the car was if I kept my job I kept my car. Well, I did not keep my job and my uncle came and got it when I was gone one day with his 57 Chevy wrecker. He towed it home and proceeded o build it into a derby car and sell it. Well, it now sits in a junkyard in a half a million pieces. Hard lesson learned. So I was happy to find this one in thee shape it is in.