After two years of finned wonders, the full-size Chevrolets were restyled and less “space age” in their shape. The Bel Air continued as the middle-of-the-road offering, sandwiched between the Biscayne and Impala. The Super Sport and the 409 cubic inch V8 were also new that year. The seller’s 2-door post Bel Air has a 409 but there’s no mention of if it’s original to the car (only 142 were produced and most went into the Impala SS). From Cape Coral, Florida, this Chevy runs well but could be a solid restoration candidate. It’s available here on eBay where $10,600 is the ante thus far.
As the story goes, the seller bought this from a collection several years ago. He/she didn’t get a lot of details about the machine when acquired and doesn’t offer a VIN or cowl tag to help validate things. It has less than 77,000 miles and may continue to grow as the seller uses the Chevy regularly. But with triple 2-barrel carburetors, this would not be the most economical car to run errands with.
The seller seems uncertain as to whether it’s a real 409 (as opposed to a 396?), referring to the decals on the valve covers as proof. No mention is made of attempting to match numbers. The machine has been treated to a new generator and brakes so it shouldn’t need any immediate attention to be used for outings to Cars & Coffee or Chevy rallies.
There is no mention of the body and paint other than everything is nice and clean. We’re told it needs someone to “fix it up” but that might be limited to the interior (could use new seat covers). I’d probably be inclined to just lean it up and soldier on rather than go to the expense of a restoration. I’ll defer to our expert Chevy readers to see if they think this Bel Air had a 409 in it when new.
This car looks familiar 🧐
He was here less than 30 days.
That’s a 348 motor.Why? The oil drip stick is on the driver’s side of the motor. 409s it’s the passenger side of the motor.Also tri power was a option on the 348 not 409s.
Here’s the tell all…….”I don’t know, much about cars….”
Well could be also a 348. Even if it is, with the triple carbs it should move out smartly enough. I guessing Powerglide. I see manual brakes and steering, could it have been born with a 283 or even a 230. Even with all the question marks this could be a nice week end car. If originality aint the final question i’ d probably splurge to get better brakes with power assist to whoa the progress of the motor if things get to exiting.
I know Chevy didn’t make a 408
61 there was no option for a 3x2bl carb setup for a 409. It came with a 4 barrel. It’s either the 348 which had the 3x2bl or added to the 409 aftermarket
Not too keen on the fuel filter resting on the valve cover. A situation like that can cause vapor lock and worst case scenario fuel leak.
Know your motors… 408,348 have same shape. A 396 does not.
He was here less than 30 days.
What’s a 408??? That would totally change the lyrics to the song..
“She’s real great, my 408”
A 408 what?
408????
Yep, and this could be a factory 348, as the decklid emblem implies. There were numerous 348 options in ’61, from 250 hp to 350hp. The 335 & 350 hp versions were tri-power, and the 350hp had solid lifters.
The 409 came with(optional of course and not until 1962) 2x4bbl carbs where as the 348 came with triple deuces.The manifolds are not interchangable..So one could guess if this is a stock engine(which is appears to be)it’s a 348…Of course you could purchase custom 3×2 manifolds for a 409,but that looks like a bone stock 348 3×2 setup which will not fit on the 409.
$14,900 with 4 days to go. Beautiful old Chevy. Seller is not doing himself any favors with the engine mystery.
Wouldn’t it have 409 badging if it was real?
Something about the 61 Bel Air and Biscayne that looks incredibly tough. A good friend of mine had a primer grey one back in the late 80s. His was a 327 with a T10 four speed. Had lots of fun in that one.
Depends on what cylinder heads it has the 348 3 duece intake will the smaller port 409 heads like the 340 hp the high HP heads the intake has to be machined to fit the misinformation out there is unreal
I think the 409 had the dipstick on the passenger side of engine??
The last time this was on here I was trying to figure out if it had a powerglide or a Turboglide. I would normally preffer a manual but other than that I like this one
Rick
I had one of these when I graduated from high school in 1967. It was the same color (Almond Beige) but mine was an Impala 2-door hardtop with a 283 automatic. If this body and trim is original, the trunk lid emblem indicates it was born with the 348 engine. The grille emblem would also be different if it came with the 348. I can’t see this one clearly enough to tell for certain. I sure miss that old Chevy. Lots of good times to be had with all that interior room!!
As I remember dip stick drivers side 348 dipstick passenger side 409. Still looks good…… wish I had the money and the room to put it
The color and year suggest that it might have been a Department of Interior car.
1961 Chevy 409, 360 h.p. 1 four barrel carb. 4 speed only. 1962 came with 1 four barrel 380 h.p. or 2 four barrels 409 h.p. both 4 speed only. The only 409 automatic was a 340 h.p. hydraulic lifter motor introduced in I think 1964.
Most guys wound not get a 2 speed power glide with a 409
I had a 1960 chevrolet impala with a 409 3 duce set up. It was 100 percent factory I should know I bought it new..
No dipstick on the passenger side. 348 for sure.
A 1960? That seems very strange as the 409 became an option later in the 1961 model year.
A good friends big brother had a 61 post with a 409 3 deuces setup that was factory.
The 409 Engine was introduced in the latter part of the summer of 1960 for 1961 production.In a small window the 348 3×2 335 or Special High Performance 350 HP 348 and the new 409 single 4BBL were both available though the numbers were small.The 348 3×3 intake manifold isn’t compatible with the 409 cylinder heads
The 409 was a late 1961 MY intro.Only 142 409’s in the 1961 MY.
Not to be argumentative but the 409 wasn’t offered until the end of the 1961 model year…
I’ve seen too many 1961 chevys that were original 409’s to think they came out at the end of year. It didn’t matter which variation of this engine they either ran like hell or were pretty sick.
I bought a 55 Chevy with a 327 and 4 speed brand new from Nickey Chevrolet.
It’s 348 came with 3 CARBS 409 came with dual quads also on a 409 the OIL dipstick tube was on the right side ON 348 dipstick tube was on the left this appears to be a 348
engine pictures on ebay show the dipstick is on the drivers side. that means it is a 348 , 409 had the dipstick on the passenger side. The dipstick does come out of the oil pan on these so I suppose it could be a 409 with a 348 pan but that is doubtful
If at first you don’t succeed…….Lots of reruns pass over these sites. Being a realistic, the car is a 348 3×2, which was an engine option that year. The turbo glide is crap. I had a 59 convertible with this combo and dumped it for fully loaded 283 glide one when they were 400.00 cars. Now I know the car world is stupid right now but at 15k, that to me is pushing it. If your in google eyed love maybe more but I don’t see it and if you think you can buy this and go red light race. That will be a short lived dream, but hey crazy is everywhere, the cars are nice to drive but do not drive like new things. Us geezers love them, others may be slightly less enthusiastic.
That transmission won’t last through too many red light races.
Again, I ask. Where is the outside mirror?
outside mirrors were an option and there were many really cool outer space looking aftermarket ones sold back then. It would also be nice if the car had the original air cleaner, which most were tossed for the three pots. I had a dark blue version of this car with a 283 with a 3 speed I drove briefly long ago.
408????
Pretty off-topic but not entirely…
I remember learning, 2-1/2 years ago during my first core rebuild, that my oddball engine had the same internal attributes as the 348/409. I found it very interesting that Ford and Chevrolet had both made their own separate 10° blocks and released them at the same time. What I mean by 10° blocks, for those who aren’t gearheads, is that the cylinders are not set perpendicular to the heads, but are set 10° off-perpendicular. This does, however, have the effect of setting the cylinders exactly perpendicular to the crankshaft, as well as allowing the placement of the combustion chambers in the block as opposed to the heads. Altogether, an oddball engineering variation, but impressive for a short time.
Chevy released that family in the 348 and 409 sizes. Ford put out a few more through its MEL series: 410, 430, and 462 come to mind.
I learned all of this when my 462 went comatose and needed a core rebuild, but the auto center that hosted me did not have the ability to hone out the block due to the 10° offsetting of the cylinders. Apparently, these engines require special equipment and treatment to be properly machined for rebuilding, neither of which they had on hand, which forced me to have the block carried to a third source who could machine such a block. Cost of that amounted to half the total cost of the rebuild. But, at least the option was there.
Looks like a nice car for a driver but wondering at $18,900, do the bidders think this a real 409 car? There are a lot of 348’s out there with 3×2 setups so it isn’t that rare, it could be in a 2 dr sedan. I was not aware of the 10-degree info but good to know. It does have the correct 348 flags on the grille and the trunk. As was posted before, the 409 was only offered with a 4-speed in 61 and late in the model year so no 60’s with that motor. Automatics were available in the low HP motors.
BTW, 348’s would more than likely have orange valve covers while the 409 would have silver or chrome in the early years. Having a 409 decal on the valve cover does make it so.
Most but not all 61 409’s went into the SS model. You can find a few 2 dr sedans with that motor but not very often – most went racing.
In addition, that isn’t a bubble top. As I said before, nice car but let’s get the facts straight.
Ugly car with a boat anchor dump truck engine ( 348 ) not a 409 .
You know, I received those same comments 40+ years ago when I had a 59 convertible with this same driveline in it. Frankly, it was a cantankerous gas hog that wasn’t really fast, to me. My 64 327 convertible was faster to me at the time. I didn’t miss it when I sold it and bought a 283 glide convertible that I still have. Boat anchor was another term we tossed around…lol
Did anyone notice that the valve cover tag says 409 horse power, not 409 cu. in.?
Anybody remember what this car sold for the last time it sold on eBay?
Guessing the winning bidder found more flaws in the car and auction description and backed out, maybe losing their deposit.
This car needs a thorough inspection from a reputable Chevrolet appraiser and subsequent adjustment to the seller’s description. Buyer beware.