Back in 1963, if you were interested in Chevrolet power, that usually meant a Corvette. Yes, some drag raced them but that was hardly the ‘Vette’s station in life. There was no Camaro or Chevelle yet and the Chevy II/Nova was still stuck with a four or six-cylinder engine – what to do? Well, it was easy, have it your way and order up a full-sizer (Impala/BelAir/Biscayne) the way you wanted it and yes, you could max it out in the go-fast department if you were so inclined. Well, that mix-and-match ability is what’s possessed by this 1963 Biscayne. It’s not the genuine article but it’s a pretty faithful reproduction. Tuscon, Arizona is this Plain Jane looking sedan’s home and it’s available, here on craigslist for $39,900. Two thumbs up to Tony P. for this tip!
Chevrolet’s Biscayne was introduced in ’58 and pegged near the bottom of the line-up, only displaced by the Delray. Well, 1959 ushered in a demotion and that’s where this bottom dweller remained for the next thirteen years. It was fleet car material or the province of those on a tight budget and viewed a car as an appliance more so than anything else. It didn’t take long for the hot-rod set to realize that the Biscayne two-door sedan variant (there was a four-door and a station wagon too) could be optioned with powerful engines, four-speed transmissions, heavy-duty suspension components, and steep rear axle gearing. The price was right, the two-door post arrangement was relatively light and didn’t twist on hard launches, and the entire visual presented a grandma image, yes, a sleeper.
There’s no telling how many ’63 Biscaynes were built with a 425 gross HP, 409 CI, dual quad carburetor fed V8 engine. Chevrolet’s VIN convention didn’t decode specific engine installation in those years, just whether the car was originally built with a six or eight-cylinder engine. As a matter of fact, the seller states, “(this was) an original 6-cylinder teachers car that was in perfect condition for this project“. As for the engine in this tribute, it is a legitimate and correct powerplant but it is a 1964 version. Of note is the NASCAR-style cowl induction air cleaner assembly – a performance nod that was also utilized on the rare Z11 optioned drag cars. The transmission is a four-speed manual from a 1970 Corvette which means it’s a Muncie unit whereas a ’63 full-size Chevy would have likely employed a Borg-Warner T-10. The seller makes no mention of running or driving characteristics but I imagine that it’s memorable.
The interior of this Chevy is Biscayne-grade all the way, including a rubber floor mat. The bright red hue was common, and welcomed, in this era and brightens up an otherwise dull setting. Note the spindly gear shift stalk, it looks like an original style piece. The seller mentions, “Comes with radio and heater delete…” and while that’s the correct term for the heater, it’s not for the radio as they weren’t standard equipment so there was nothing to delete. My father owned both a ’63 and a ’64 Chevy BelAir and neither had radios. He didn’t, in that day and age, see the need for such an item so both cars came from the assembly plant with a block-off plate. The strap-on tach looks more like the one that was available in ’62. For ’63 and ’64, the optional tach was perched, in a housing, front and center on the leading edge of the instrument panel. Full instrumentation was not available in ’63 so the seller has added aftermarket pieces attached below the dash.
Outside is a clean and bright presentation showing a minimum of ornamentation. The seller mentions that doggie-bowl hubcaps are included, this Chevy just decided not to wear them at photo time. Fifteen-inch steel wheels have replaced the original fourteen inchers and all-in-all, this is a very accurate representation of how a ’63 Biscayne would have appeared. The only thing that I can take issue with is the “409” engine badge, the number portion should be attached above the crossed flags, not below. Attached below the flags is the correct location for ’62 but not for ’63.
I find recreations, tributes, clones, whatever you want to call them to be perfectly acceptible as long as they’re advertised as such. And why not, isn’t that approach really at the root of do-it-yourself hot-rodding? Besides, with the price differential vs ‘da real ting, cars like this can be driven and enjoyed; if something happens, you just straighten it out and effect repairs. As for pricing a recreation, that’s a harder one to nail down. What do you think about the $39,900 ask, just right or not quite?
I have no beef with reproduction or “tribute” cars, as long as they are not passed off as “genuine.” For my purposes — driving — this would be perfectly suitable, in fact much more so than the Real Thing, as the fear of breaking something, hitting something (I’d want a disc brake conversion, for sure) or being hit is lessened considerably.
This appears to be all kinds of fun, though I suspect the seller is trying to get all or most of his investment back. I don’t think I’d go for the full $39K. Yes, it would probably cost as much or more to do one up this nicely, but the prospective buyer would have to be far more into the Bowtie mystique than me. Still, it only takes one to get the deal done.
I think this is either a smokin’ deal or a complete scam. It’s impossible to say from a distance. Since the ad gives his phone number, I’d look him up and inspect the car before paying a deposit.
Agree…..have we seen this one before ?
It wants dog dish hub caps.
Were seatbelts required back then?
GM started seatbelts in 1962.
Actually, as I referenced in the post, my father bought new, both ’63 and ’64 Chevrolet BelAirs and neither came from the assembly line with seatbelts. My father had front belts added later, to both cars, but it was a result of his action and expense.
JO
Mandated to start January 1, 1964.
I know the car. It’s legit, beautiful. I think it’s very fairly priced.
Great Sleeper !
Seems a bit high in price though.
Very nice car but the shifter sucks..
I always thought the 64s eere better looking but, I would really like to have this in my garage. At least they didn’t put a Powerglide in it!!
Nice! For me, I prefer cars be listed on eBay because they are easier to follow along.
People list cars (myself included) on Craigslist, because they want to sell locally. They don’t want the hassle of transportation or money transfer scams.
Got that! Chevrolet shifters sucked. I always bought the Hurst Competition Plus shifters, you couldn’t go wrong with them. All this Exactly stock BS makes NO sense to me. Back in the day we modified to the max that we could afford. I never had a ‘63 409 but I had a Bel Aire ‘62 with a 327. From there I bought a ‘66 SS396 with a 4 speed and put a Hurst shifter in that and then I swapped differentials with a guy who had a 4:10 ratio in his. He got my 3:31’s but that’s what he wanted lol. After I came home from Vietnam I bout a ‘68 Nova with the 325 hp 327 and that was a fast car also, it in reality was a 350 hp 327 with all the goodies in it, 11 to 1 compression and high performance heads and a dual feed Holley. I should have kept my Chevelle though, lots of Power!
Beautiful recreation. Ditto on where the 409 numbers belong. My garage would love to have this in it.
That looks like a bunch of fun!
How can I talk to the owner as to where he came up with that original ram air induction air cleaner ,looking in the Chevrolet by the numbers book ( 60-64 ) that s the same set up.I would love to find one of those ,for my 62 Impala as this added an extra 50+ HP. I would settle for a aftermarket one.
The seller has his phone number listed in the Craigslist ad. Pick up your phone and call him.
The seller’s contact info is in the ad. Click the link and reach out to him. I’ve seen the cowl induction air cleaners come up for sale on eBay and enthusiast forums from time to time, but they are very expensive! Not sure if someone reproduces them, maybe? Be worth asking him though. Looks like a very nice, well built Biscayne. Definitely cannot build it like that for the money he is asking.
Whoever converted it sure did a nice job it looks great to me. Shes Real Fine
The 409 numbers and flags should be attached in the middle of the rear of the front fender. It certainly doesn’t take away from a very nice build.
I thought that same thing at one time, but research shows that the middle of the rear of the front fender is the correct location for an Impala; leading edge, such as this car, is correct for the BelAir and Biscayne.
JO
I stand corrected. I should have known better since sold a Bel Air V8 2 door last summer!
No worries Tom, I thought the same thing until recently. A BelAir subject car caused me to research more closely.
JO
My high school history teacher had a ’63 Biscayne 2-door with a 409. I asked her one day why in the world she would buy such a car, and she said “when I go traveling in the mountains, I need enough power to make it up the hills!”. I never doubted ‘ol Miss Chapman.
Great car and reasonably priced IMO. The engine flags are in the right place for a Biscuit.
Regarding seatbelts, speaking of Chevrolet passenger cars only –
– Prior to 1964 model year seatbelts were not standard. They were an available option at by 63 though.
– Early 64’s came with no belts standard, until mid production year. But even then they were not “mandated” (at least not federally) as was stated by someone above, because you could still have them deleted if you wanted to (see below).
– All 64’s built after that change, and all 65’s, came standard with front belts and no rear belts, but you could opt out and have the front belts “deleted” for a credit on the window sticker (RPO A62).
– Starting with the 66 model year front and rear belts were standard equipment, and you could not have them deleted by the factory.
I know this car, and the owner. This car is much better. Looking in person, even though it looks great in the pictures. It’s the real deal.