Vehicle Description
1957 Chevrolet 150 Handyman
Back in the day, if an individual desired a wagon for the family,
they arguably turned to Detroit's bowtie. Today, things are a bit
different as General Motors holds a strong presence in the
crossover segment. However, if you follow the thinking of GM,
there's little difference between the golden era of station wagons
and today's crossover and SUV boom.
On consignment here at Classic Auto Mall, the veritable hen's tooth
of the Tri-Five era the 2-door working man's wagon, with completely
folding down seats for cargo, and rare because so many were used so
hard that there are not just that many left. The 150 Handyman, all
dressed up and ready to go to work.
Exterior
With paint from the early '80's in a Light Blue respray, the car
has faded to a nice patina. There are numerous areas of chipping,
former repairs with amateur bodywork, and dents and dings
throughout. Some invasive rust on panels will have to be fixed
sooner rather than later. All stainless steel brite-work is in good
condition, and currently on this car. Cragar SS wheels are on all 4
corners. Chrome areas show some pitting and rusting.
Interior
With the original interior we note the sky blue metal dash with dry
rotted coring trim, rusted gauge bezels, and it's just overall
dirty and paint rubbed off. Brown faded carpet covers the floors, a
Hurst shifter is present in the hump. The seats are covered with
saggy coverings and have little padding left underneath them. The
original bench seat in the back has lots of paint drips on it, but
it does fold down and a rubbed rubber cargo compartment mat with
oil stains is noted. This same material can be seen on the door
panels as well. A water stained and a bit droopy headliner in white
is seen above the seats and cargo area.
Drivetrain
With the 1980's respray came a 283ci V8 engine (T0209D, 1958/1960
283ci), Carter 4-barrel carburetor and a Muncie 4-speed manual
transmission of unknown origin.
Undercarriage
With the original boxed frame having no corrosion or rust, and the
lack of undercoating one can see exactly what they're up against.
If you are to restore this car, you will need the typical floor
pans, some rocker work to remedy the original amateur patchwork
that was done in the early 1970's. If you strip this car be
prepared to find some areas of filler, and areas that may need
filler.
Drive-Ability
Since this car has not been on the road since the early 1980's we
just took it around our lot, and it ran fine, steering was slightly
loose, and brakes pulled to the right and required lots of pressure
to actuate them.
With a good cleaning this car could be markedly improved. With some
rust remediation, and body work it could be awesome. And with a
restored interior you would have a rare bird (150) Handyman from
1957. Here is your chance to add your touch and remember the
"Handyman mixes it with love and makes the world look good...or
something along those lines. Cover it with siding and make the
world look good...
VIN Decode
A57B137743
A-1500 Series 150 Model
57-1957
B-Baltimore, MD Assy Plant
137743-Sequential Unit Number
Trim Tag
STYLE 57 1263F-1957 150 2dr Wagon
BODY CL 1472-Cleveland Body #
TRIM 653-Green & Gray
PAINT 797A-Surf Green
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 450 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,
Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia
on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is
www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914.
Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the
vehicle in person.