1953 Chevrolet 210

Tri-five cars may get all the press but it was the 1953 Chevrolet that led to what we commonly recognize as the 50s Chevy trim levels. Prior to this in 50-52 you had the Skyline, Fleetline and Bel Air which were all distinct body styles. In 1953 however things were changed up and you now had a standard body style that was distinguished by trim levels 150, 210, and Bel Air.

While sharing a similar frame and mechanics to its predecessors the 53 was advertised as "entirely new through and through" due to the large changes in the body panels and overall look of the car. Looking at the 53 Chevrolet you can really see the transition that automobile design was going through. The separated distinct look of fenders starting being incorporated in the body and the once pointed nose had now widened for a much more squared box look.

This very clean 1953 Chevrolet 210 is a nice solid stock style car. It underwent a complete frame off restoration by Skyline restorations in 2010/2011 where it was totally gone through. It features a two tone Horizon Blue and Regatta Blue combo which works well on a 50s car like this. The body is all rust free and the steel panels all straight. All of the chrome and trim pieces are in good condition with a nice shine. A whopping 30 pieces were rechromed which itself cost right around $5,000. The glass is all new, in good condition and is tinted. It has 70,920 miles on the odometer and based on its condition these are believed to be original. The wide white wall tires are a must on a car like this and they are in good shape and wrapping painted steel wheels with chrome hubcaps.

The inline 6 cylinder motor runs well and still utilizes its original 6 volt system but an 8 volt battery was added for extra starting power. Multiple components were replaced during the rebuild resulting in a very smooth running engine. It is combined with a column shifted 3 speed manual transmission that moves through the gears smoothly. The brakes, hoses, wheel bearings, gas tank, sending unit, exhaust, etc were all replaced during the rebuild. The list of components that were worked on and/or replace just goes on and on. We have a list of invoices totaling over $36,000 for all of the work that was completed.

The interior is done in a two tone to match the body. The upholstery is in excellent condition and it has a bench in front and rear. The dash has the stock layout and keeps with the two tone Blue theme which looks very clean. Even the steering wheel has the two tone look which looks really sharp. Everything is in nice working condition.

One cool thing that comes with the car is a piece of paper from the late 70s. On this piece of paper is a log spanning from '76 to '79 that documents miles from 46,650 to 49,850. This is from the previous owner and every time he changed the oil, put gas in it, or greased it he would log the date and mileage. This is a cool piece of history and speaks to how well the car had been cared for even prior to the restoration.