I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that 1959 was the year in which American automotive design once-and-for-all reached its outer limits. Rocket shapes and motifs, fins as tall as the roof, grilles as intricate as an IKEA side table missing its assembly instructions…Taillights that resemble a woman’s cat’s eye glasses? Why not! That good old-fashioned American can-do spirit might not have always resulted in the most tasteful creations, but a lot of us love them. Of all the rolling kitsch to find its way to the showrooms of our small towns and big cities in 1959, my favorite is the humble 1959 Chevy Biscayne two-door sedan. Its lack of trim contradicts its major forms, but the more substantial-looking greenhouse (compared to the hardtops) balances some of the bulk of the lower body; to me, the proportions are more pleasing. Barn Finds reader Rocco B. found this mildly customized Biscayne on craigslist in Frisco, Texas, with an asking price of $34,500.
Few 1959 Biscaynes hit the market these days, so I don’t know whether that price is out of line or not. The Biscayne was the base-level Chevy, and thus was unlikely to be saved for posterity, and this one has been treated to a refurbishment that includes some goodies to make it a better driver. The 283 small block was the step-up option in 1959, and with 185 horsepower and a two-barrel carburetor, it was a solid, efficient option for those who didn’t want a six. The seller says that this one has been freshly rebuilt and is backed by a newer Turbo 350 automatic rather than the Powerglide that would have originally come with the car. It has power brakes, a dual circuit master cylinder, and an aftermarket air conditioning system for those hot Texas summers. The seller doesn’t say what modifications were done to the engine when it was rebuilt, but we can see that it has an Edelbrock carb, an aluminum intake manifold, and a set of headers.
The interior is customized in a way that emulates how it might have been done in the early- to mid-’60s, with two-tone vinyl covering a pair of bucket seats, a hula girl on the dash, and a set of custom door panels. The dashboard already looks as if it belongs in a custom car, so there’s little to do there, but the seller did add a set of aftermarket gauges to keep track of the 283.
The seller has also included pictures of the car’s refurbishment, including some minor rust repair and new paint. The paint job is, in the seller’s words, an 8 out of 10, good enough to take home some trophies from the local car shows. The stance is right on, with lowering springs all around; while I’m not typically a “let’s see how low we can make it” kind of guy, the ’59 lends itself well to the treatment. The original springs will be sold with the car, but as the seller says…why? The advertisement is refreshingly complete and honest, just like the Biscayne it represents, so if you have an appreciation for the peak of ’50s styling craziness, when will another Biscayne such as this one come along?
Paint it black and it’s a dead ringer for Zora Arkus Duntov’s police package prototype,it too had that low stripped down stance.
Love it, even if it’s green. These cars always looked good with a medium lowering, especially the convertibles. Nice clean well done car.
It is beautiful. They nailed the stance, something that seems easy to do but rarely accomplished.
Steve R
The cover picture makes the left look like a tubbed out super car. Ready to take on the drag strip
Shes nice to look at from behind
Looks like the springs are broken!
Such a good looking examples of one of my favorite cars of the 50’s
I was only 8 years old at the time but I thought they were the coolest looking of that period.
Very nicely done which only deserves POSITIVE comments of the work done.
Thank you for displaying this car!!
Beautiful car, ruined it by dropping it.
Then don’t buy it.
Agree. Talk about trashing an otherwise beautiful car.
Yep – back in that day, the weight of cars were tough on the suspensions, and the way this ’59 Chevy’s tires are almost at the top of wheel wells, that was a sign of the car being driven too much over rough pot-holed filled roads – wreaking havoc on the suspension. So, making it look that way intentionally makes it look worn out, which is just ridiculous to someone who grew up with them. If I bought it, the very first thing would be to put the proper suspension back under it to restore it to what it looked like coming off the showroom floor.
1st photo is great 👍
Looks great very cool interior and great stance.
My grandmother had a 1959 Biscayne 4 door sedan. 6 cylinder and powerglide. It was a boat in my 12 year old opinion. But I then and still love the dashboard! The second year of the “X” frame and the 348 engine. The first year (and I think the last) of the turboglide transmission. (Good reason to be the last year) I have grown to like the ’59 body style. Particularly the wagon and El Camino. I like the color on this car.
Looks like a floor shifting gear lever…
Good write-up Aaron. The car does indeed look to be “well-sorted,” and the seller does seem honest and forthcoming. “Ed” looks like it would be a fun car to own. The 1550 miles since the work was completed (well, we all know a restoration is never really “completed”) tells me it has been making the rounds at local shows and cruises; that’s a good sign. Not cheap, but worth it?
It should say us army on the doors!
Post war America. The jet age would usher in the rocket age and we could do anything. Well almost anything. The stamping plant was fit to be tied. Those rear quarters had to be formed in two pieces and welded together. It was nobody’s intention to put that chrome molding on the rear of a lowly Biscayne but there was no other solution. That didn’t happen often to the base car.
This is nicely done. It would be a ball to drive this car.
Wow! Good info about the rear quarters being 2 piece. I never really thought about it, but now that you mention it, makes perfect sense. How else would they accomplish those lines. Reason 235 I love Barn Finds. Thanks for posting that!
When I saw this ride I thought it was going to be 409 2-4s. Well my surprise a 283 !! Great looking… love the stance and those rear tires. Black paint and red and white interior would been real cool. Otherwise good luck to the next owner. 🐻🇺🇸
I really love this look.Something I would not normally think about but lowered like this makes the greenhouse look a little out of scale to me.I think this would be amazing with a few inches chopped off the roofline.If it was mine I probably would not do it but I think it would really put this over the top (so to speak)
I have heard that the ’59 model year was Harley Earl’s last to design, and GM allowed his design to go into production as he saw fit. He was very much inspired by the jet age. As for this car 35K would not be a bad ask if the build quality were top notch. Looking at the pic’s of the waves down ether side tells me the build quality may be a tad sub-standard.
1957 was the first year for the turbo-glide
Love it ! Well sorted indeed
I had 348/250 HP and turboglide in my 61 Impala. Bought it at 67000 and it had nearly 125000 on it w/o any engine or tranny work still ran good
It would be a lot cooler with more rubber in the wheel openings they look a little lost under all that sheet metal. Other than that it’s a very sweet ride ! I’d drive it!
Agree with Stephen. Keep the steel wheels, but put wider ones and other than the color this would really be a good looking car. It’s a body style that was just before my time, and I’ve never been a fan of them, but this one has made me rethink that. It’d be hard not to make it real sleeper by putting and LS engine and a tremec 5 speed (plus the other items you’d need with real power under the hood!
$34K – wow … I bought mine in 1970 for $75 … 283, three-on-the-tree … I don’t remember the miles, but it was the druggist’s wife’s car … she didn’t drive much but the clutch was pretty much gone … $20 later, new clutch, plate, & bearing it was good as new … had legs – could get 80 in second … JC Whitney was my friend – we put baby moons, spring lifts, an ah-oohah horn, seat covers, anything that we thought dressed it up … drove it from New Orleans to Chicago where it was promptly stolen …
Back when $100 was real money.
Hmm…perhaps this was once a 4sp converted to a TH350? Certainly no evidence of a column shift (unless it was one of the “modifications”).
Definitely a sharp Biscayne.The riveted VIN plate would have me concerned. I’m building a Sedan Delivery and under NO circumstances do I remove the VIN.I don’t remove the VIN on any car! I also have a rare Biscayne Utility Sedan I want to put on the road this season.348 with PG PS FACT AC PADDED DASH 3:08 Posi.Two tone blue.And stop with the LS’s please as they have their issues!I favor a more traditional approach.I’ll take a 283 or 327 over an LS anyday.Easy to build and easy to keep and reliable!And it seems some of the biggest critics are the ones who can’t do the work themselves.
The only thing this car needs is to have the windows tinted in a dark green color to match the car itself. Possibly some air bags to drop it on the surface when it’s parked.
It got hit hard on the right side.
Still, it would be a fun ride.