Finding a nice 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air for sale is a rather pleasant experience, but with the weather warming up, finding a nice Bel Air Convertible would have to be even better. This particular one isn’t just nice, but until recently, it was a one-owner car that is now located in Hillsborough, New Jersey, where it is listed for sale here on eBay. The owner has set a BIN price of $49,500 for the Bel Air, but the option is available to make an offer.

Some cars just seem to be too good to be true, but this one does seem like it is a good one. It is claimed to be original, right down to the Onyx Black paint and the black soft-top. If this is true, then the car is remarkably well preserved. There doesn’t appear to be any visible rust, while what we can see of the underside of the car also looks clean. The paint has a fantastic shine to it, and there is barely a blemish on the car anywhere. You look at the top and could easily believe that it is new, not 52-years-old. The material is tight and clean, while the rear window looks to be clear of any form of clouding. The exterior chrome and trim also look pretty impressive.

The owner states that the interior is original, right down to the clear plastic covers on the seats. It looks like those clear covers extend to include a set over the sun visors, which is an interesting touch. Apart from some wrinkling of the vinyl on the door trims, it all looks to be quite clean and in fairly good condition.

When it comes to clear plastic covers, they are everywhere in the back of the Bel Air. With no seatbelts to hold you in place, you have to wonder how things would be back here if the car was being driven exuberantly on a twisting road. This photo also shows one of the very few faults that I can find with the interior, and that’s the mismatched buttons on the seat back. Otherwise, it all looks really good.

The originality of the Bel Air extends to under the hood. This is a numbers-matching car, with the original 283ci V8 and automatic transmission still in place. The only deviation from original (apart from some chrome) is the fact that some years ago the steering underwent an upgrade, and instead of the original manual steering, the Bel Air now has power steering, but it is all correct ’57 components. It is also claimed that the Bel Air has only covered a genuine 54,625 miles, but no mention is made regarding evidence to verify this claim. The car is said to run and drive nicely, so it doesn’t look like there is going to be much to do on this car.

With 47,562 Bel Air Convertibles rolling off the line in 1957, they were a pretty popular choice amongst new car buyers. Natural attrition has seen the numbers dwindle a bit over the decades, but there are still reasonable numbers out there. When it comes to values, let’s face it, this is a ’57 Bel Air with 2-doors, which makes it one of the most popular and highly sought after cars to emerge from the 1950s. If you want a straight and original car in good condition, you’d better make sure that you have a healthy wallet. Values on these continue to rise, and you will be hard pressed to find a good, original example today for under $70,000. If this one is as good and original as the owner indicates, then at the BIN price, it would appear to be quite a buy.