It isn’t clear when this 1936 Chevrolet was transformed from its original specification to the car that you see here today, but some of the modifications and the interior trim are very reminiscent of the trends in street rodding of the 1970s and 1980s. Regardless of when the transformation occurred, it has left us with an attractive car to look at today. You will find it listed for sale here on eBay. The Chevrolet is located in Polk City, Florida, and is listed for sale with a clear title. The owner has set a BIN price of $14,999 for this Chevrolet.
The first thing that I noticed when looking through the good collection of photos that the owner has provided is the fact that this car is as solid as a rock. There are some tiny dustings of surface corrosion on some components on the frame, but the frame and floors look nearly perfect. The seller states that the car underwent a light restoration some years ago, and the body also looks solid. The body is all steel, and the white pearlescent paint also looks nice. There are a few minor bubbles in the paint, but they are quite difficult to see without performing a close inspection of the car.
The interior trim is very reminiscent of the style that was prevalent in the ’70s and ’80s. The carpet and headliner look close to perfect, but there are a few minor issues with the upholstery. There appears to be a couple of piping and seam separations on the front seat, and it also looks like there may be a small tear in the upholstery on the door trim on the front passenger side door. The seller also notes that a couple of door handles are missing.
The original 206ci 6-cylinder engine is long gone, and in its place is a 350ci V8 backed by an automatic transmission. The seller states that the engine runs strong and the transmission shifts smoothly. He also says that the exhaust, with outlets on either side of the car just below the leading edges of the rear fenders, sounds really nice. The car is fitted with drum brakes, and rolls on True Spoke wheels with good tires. The car has also been fitted with turning signals, and all of the lights operate as they should.
This 1936 Chevrolet Master Deluxe is a really nice looking car. It isn’t perfect, but it is a solid car that is ready to drive and enjoy. For those of us that are a little bit older, it invokes memories of the street rodding scene from 30 or 40 years ago. It wouldn’t take much work to make this car immaculate, but I’m not sure whether I would follow that path myself. To use it as it is would mean being less stressed about any potential wear and tear that would come with normal driving. So, would you leave it as it is, or would you transform it into a show stopper?
Nice, a lot to like here. Aside from Gerri g all the little issues taken care of the only thing I would change is the wheels. No matter how good they look I’ve had my fill of cleaning wire wheels.
Sure a new front clip will make it ride better. I like that it uses the original steering column. Also have had good luck getting drum brakes to work very well.
Price seems very good too
Good grief those wheels are heinous. Take ’em off, grind ’em up & melt ’em down. Ditch the gold door & trunk handles. And that would be one seriously good looking car to drive as is. Years ago had an Arnie “The Farmer” Beswick Firebird funny car model pre-finished in pearl & have been partial ever since.
That’s almost a nice car there. I would say repaint it in a more attractive solid color, I think I see it in a midnight blue nonmetallic with the engine side panels back in place, throw a Mustang II front end under it with discs and rack & pinion, and dump those awful wheels in favor of a set of chrome steelies and baby moons. Very classic rod all the way. I don’t even mind the interior even with a little wear and tear – makes it look more real. Super cool night prowler.
I think you’ve nailed it Dirk except for the colour I’d retain the pearl white on the body and do the fenders in navy blue. I think these 40’s car look way better in a 2 tone configuration. As others have said the wheels would have to go as well as the gold highlights. Lastly I think that I’d want a 4 speed back in the car too.
That could work too Mark but I think that with that 350 in there you’d definitely want to go with disc brakes and rack and pinion steering just for safety’s sake.
I totally agree with you Dirk all I’d do differant would be the paint scheme.
Good grief those wheels are heinous. Take ’em off, grind ’em up & melt ’em down. I’m thinking color matching steel with baby moons. Ditch the gold door handles & trunk handle & it’d be a seriously good looking car. Years ago had an Arnie “The Farmer” Beswick Firebird funny car model pre-finished in pearl & have been partial ever since.
I’ve seen this car a few times at our local
car shows here in Winter Haven and as
Adam noted, it presents very well. It may
not be a trailer queen, but it was built in
a time when cars like this one were made
to be driven daily Monday through Friday
and shown on weekends. Many street
rodders today have lost this concept and
are terrified to drive their cars any great
distance at all. To me, it’s a huge waste
of time, money, and talent to build a car
and not drive it. I was there in Peoria
for the 1st ever Street Rod Nationals in
1970 and saw row upon row of cars just
like this one whose owners built them
from scratch and then drove them
hundreds of miles to make the big event
in Peoria. It would be safe to say that this
car was built somewhere around 1971 or
’72 judging by the fact that it has the
original solid axle with drum brakes up
front and not an IFS. Back then, IFS
conversions were very expensive and were very complicated to install. As a
result, many backyard builders retained
whatever front suspension their car had
and upgraded that. IFS conversions were
only used on rods from California whose
owners liked nothing more than to show off. Whoever built this car left us with as it is
a solid machine that just begs to be driven. If I had deep pockets, Sis would
be driving this one to work as picking this
car up would not be a problem–it’s only
30 minutes from my house!
With some minor changes this would be a nice car to take on a road trip towing a Bowlus Road Chief
Are these referred to as “Bustle-backs?”
Yes Dean, they sre. This was an easy way
to make the trunk psrt of the car’s body.
The style itself lasted until 1940 when
carmakers finally integrated the trunk
by way of the fastback. Even after I
slept on it, I still like this car and would
buy it as daily transport if the finances
were right. Hope that clears things up
for you.
The BIN is now down to $12,500.
The market for these is shrinking. Even Barrett-Jackson (masters of overpriced sales) has good deals on the early hotrods when they run through. Already dropped $2k. Nice car and I hope they get what they’re asking but I fear they won’t.