This Chevy tilt cab truck as almost as new as the cars, as these trucks were first sold in 1960. Although the ’61 Chevy is generally held in fairly high regard as to its styling, these rather drab four door sedans, all Biscaynes except for one Bel Air, are not exactly very exciting. Now if there was one of the rare ’61 Impala two-door sedans, that would perk things up.
The Bel Air is the one with the side molding?
I had not taken note of this design feature before – but for the sake of getting curves on the bottom of the doors, in between the front and back doors, is this little curved feature coming up from the chassis. What an extra complexity!
This is an Ontario license plate, on the truck. Could be an Oshawa factory lot?
A Biscayne or a Bel Air would have been good looking cars to have back in their day.
I bet it is at the Oshawa factory lot. The transport company is from Oshawa (as Evan notes below, and seen on the door), so I assume it’s either taken there or at a transfer depot nearby.
I’m curious if anyone knows what the logo is on the front that’s an outline of the US with the letter “M”? The door says “Canada Customs Bonded Carrier” so I assume it has something to with US entry/travel, but I’ve never noticed that logo before.
I think that’s Markel Safety, an insurance carrier. They have (or maybe had) their own safety patrols out in cars watching for trucks being operated in an unsafe manner. Before the days of GPS the logo was on a lot of trucks.
I once spoke with them about doing a patrol. You had to have a car with a calibrated speedometer in it. I didn’t pursue it. I would be happy to be corrected by anyone who knows or remembers more about the subject.
Thanks – that’s it. Appears that Markel’s ads at the time said “Look for this Symbol of Safety on Trucks and Buses Everywhere.”
Maybe these logos are how the safety patrols were able to identify Markel-insured vehicles.
M was for markel insurance
Detroit sent that feature to Australia for the EJ+ EH models 62 till 64 the rounded door corners still rusted out.
I remember seeing that on Dad’s mate’s EJ as a kid, always thought it looked funny.
I remember it on our EH too, now I want to see that area with the doors open, I can’t remember how that looked at the base of the B pillar even though I would have seen it as a kid countless times.
https://macsmotorcitygarage.com/car-carriers-of-yesteryear/
The last entry in the above post states that Charlton Transport was indeed based out of Oshawa, Ontario. The picture in the post shows 4 Chevrolets and an Oldsmobile, but it’s a very similar carrier.
Certain parts of the Canadian population are/were known for their, ahem, parsimony, so Biscayne and Bel Air models make some sense.
I saw at least one ad from that era, I think for the new ’63 models, describing the full-size lineup as “Luxurious Impala”, “Sporty Bel Air”, and “Economical Biscayne”.
You’d have to have been very “economical” to order a Biscayne. Off the top of my head, most years a Biscayne was <$100 cheaper than a Bel Air, and you really did get a lot for your Benjamin.
Yeah, I’d say thrifty, or perhaps frugal. Parsimony seems a bit too -er – cheap?
Paul, I’ve always been the weird guy who generally prefers 4-doors to 2, and feels uneasy with too much bling, and therefore a truckload of 4-door Biscaynes is just about right for me.
That little curved piece between the doors ran from ’59 to 62 and has caught my eye for years. For some reason whenever I see one of those models, my eye is drawn to that feature. It’s like there’s something there that shouldn’t be there.
That little curved piece lasted until 1964 on the Corvair. It was gone for the 1965 restyle.
Wonder how many were base six cylinder / three on the tree…vs Powerglides.
I never saw a Chevy of this era painted the color of that front car that had anything resembling a shine on it. But maybe that’s because I didn’t start paying attention until they were maybe 4 years old. From this picture, that paint almost looks like it came pre-dulled from the factory.
There is a YouTube channel of a guy in Iowa who finds old Chevys and fixes/re-sells them. Says Sweden is a big market for vintage four door Chevys. So, these plain-janes, if found today, would be a big score for Swedish car collectors.
The cars look dull since the photo is so old and worn out.
Bel Air four doors were all we got as CKD from Canada 283 manual or the newfangled auto trans rust loved them few survive as RHD originals.
Here’s one in Daylesford Vic. 9 years ago.
Hadn’t seen one for something like 30 years.
Shame about the mirror.
And, because we’re CC, the rear view.
Looks a very original example and a great original colour combination. It would have had a light blue genuine leather interior. I note also, the correct NASCO accessory chrome wheel trims.
Yes, I agree the mirror is wrong but otherwise a nice survivor. Thanks for the photo.
I recall these cars when they were new. I think only the Impalas looked good. Without the trim certain year Chevies are not attractive. The 55-57 looked pretty good in all trims. The 1958 Impalas and perhaps high level wagons were the only attractive cars. The 1959-60 were crazy but good looking. The ’61s only looked good in Impala trim, but the 1962 to ’64 looked good in all trims. I once saw a picture of a racing 1961 Impala convertible and without the trim, the car was not attractive. Just in my humble opinion of what I saw back in the day.
“I think only the Impalas looked good….The 1958 Impalas and perhaps high level wagons were the only attractive cars.”
The Impala coupe and convertible for 58 were upscale Bel Air Impalas, not a separate model. IMO the top of the line Bel Airs (above the Biscayne and Del Rey), including the four-door hardtop, convertible, and sedans, were nicely trimmed, good looking cars. My grandfather bought a new Bel Air sedan identical to the one below and it had attractive exterior trim and interior appointments.
Well, at least the truck had a 348 in it….
Approximately 1300 of these 1961 full size 4 door Chevrolet bodies arrived in Australia in Completely Knocked Down (CKD) form. They were assembled by General Motors Holden (GMH) as the GMH top of its passenger car range luxury car.
GMH assembled them in Belair trim but added genuine leather upholstery of Cadillac quality, 100% wool carpet and a fully lined trunk (boot). To this ‘baby boomer’ Australian the full size 4 door 1961 Chevrolet will always look like a luxury car and the 1961 Chevrolet Impala Sport Sedan (4 door hardtop) a seriously exotic car.
Great photo.
Neat photo and good comments .
In high school my best mate’s father had a ’62 Biscayne two door with 235CID i6, I forget what tranny, prolly a Power Glide .
It was dog slow yet his dad loved it .
Didn’t even have a radio .
-Nate
Our ’61 Bel Air from back in the day was not on that truck, since we had a 2-door sedan. I wonder if any Chevys from the Oshawa plant were shipped to Pittsburgh?
OK, I’ll take the bait. ” . . . are not exactly very exciting”. Echoing “#35”, it depends on who you ask. For example, I think it would be–I’ll say “interesting” vs. “exciting”–to see in person a 1957-58 Studebaker Scotsman in its original form, just to see how basic it was. Production was low, and few people thought/cared to save/restore such a car.
As for Chevrolet, all models share the same body; it’s just the amount of tinsel and trim that makes them different. There is a certain “purity of line” to the lesser trimmed models. They are cars that many people remember. I think they should be recognized and preserved too.
Basic-ness is often prized–Jeeps and International Scouts (and VWs!) have their many fans.
So bring on the low-priced models–I’d also like to see some ’61 Plymouth Savoys and ’61 Ford Fairlanes. I might have been in Kindergarten the last time I saw one of those!
When I write things like this “are not exactly very exciting”, I’m channeling my 8 year-old self. It’s how I felt about Biscaynes back then.
I do this a lot, and it often gets misinterpreted. Much of my writing at CC reflects my impressions from the time the various cars were new. Of course now I feel differently. If I saw a truckload of Biscaynes today, I would be very excited!
Love the truck, it seems to wear a grimace. Whereas the very similar C Series seems to wear a look of slight surprise. Somehow the GMs didn’t last very long compared to the C series run.