From the late 1950s to the mid-1970s, the Biscayne was Chevrolet’s bargain-basement full-size automobile. The lack of frills has made the car attractive to hot rodders who are looking for speed in a larger package. This 1962 Biscayne is a pillared coupe, rather than the more desirable “bubbletop” hardtop that was in its last year. A lot of work has been done to make this Chevy a powerhouse (like installing a 454-cubic-inch V8), but more work remains (most of it cosmetic). Located in a garage in Arlington, Washington, this Bow-Tie project is available for the attractive price of $5,495 here on craigslist.
A lot of these Biscaynes were built with an inline-6 and a manual transmission. Options were few and far between. We don’t know how this Chevy was powered on Day 1, but a robust (horsepower has not been measured) 454 motor and a TH-400 automatic transmission populate the cavity below the hood. Both the engine and tranny work just fine, but the car should be towed home rather than driven.
There are issues in the body (for example, a large hole in a rocker panel), and the floorboards are rusty, with some cut out. The paint’s not bad, but if you’re going to fix all the body issues, you might as well redo the paint. We’re told all the trim pieces are there, and parts of the interior have survived or have been replaced (such as a pair of bucket seats).
This car is a stalled project because the seller’s health doesn’t permit completion of the rest of the work. The odometer is approaching 100,000 miles, but does that matter, as many of the mechanical goodies have been upgraded or replaced? This initiative may have been underway for more than 10 years, as that’s how long the car has been garaged (per the seller). Thanks for another interesting tip, “Curvette”!
Reasonably priced project.