Vehicle Description
1949 Chevrolet Fleetline Deluxe
Chevrolet's new post-war line of 1949, "The Most Beautiful Buy of
All," included, at its peak, the Fleetline DeLuxe, a continuation
of the 1942-1948 Fleetline that included two upmarket body styles,
a two-door and four-door sedan, both with a streamlined fastback
roofline. Buyers responded to the Fleetline DeLuxe's gorgeous,
flowing styling by buying nearly 312,000 of them. It is amazing,
then, that they are so rarely seen today - where did they all
go?
For consignment a 1949 example of the Chevrolet Fleetline 4 door
sedan. Like the Yucca Moth Pupae, this car has just emerged from
long term storage, and had the once over to fix any issues that
arise with said storage. Now all buttoned up showing nicely in its
pontoon styling, and an all original un-modified or rodded look
(which is very popular with these cars), a fine example with low
low mileage (78K) and looking fabulous to round out the
forties.
Exterior
Mayland Black paint which was an earlier respray has some of the
issues of long term storage in the form of some chipping, dimpling
and just a few dents, but remains shiny overall. A nice patina
which surely will pass for an older restoration but retains its
original charm. One of the points of this car that can be dealt
with or left alone and either would be a good decision. Chrome is
all looking very nice, mirror-like with no dimples or signs of any
rust. There is definitely not a straight line on this car, and all
the trimmings are closely adhered to the original steel body, that
shows no real rust. From its toothless front grille wrapped in big
chrome and fashioning the 3 tiered grille with wrap around bumper
below, to the red plastic rocket styled hood ornament with
Chevrolet badge, and the ever-present trim spear that starts just
behind the headlight bezels and dies in the middle of the front
door she's really showing off that great designer's pen. In the
rear quarter a rounded bump out fender complete with a chromed mid
trimming and stainless plate in front of the bump-out, the usage of
fender skirts keeps the rocker line straight and level from front
to rear. The pontoon styled curved rear is sculpted with the
fenders and appears to have the car in motion, even when sitting
still. On the back, a large bumper protects all this
curvaceousness, small tail lighting, trunk handle and badging.
Bowtie badged dog dish style wheel covers cover a black painted
wheel with some extra edge dishes in chrome to be wrapped in thin
white sidewalls on modern radial tires on all 4 corners.
Interior
With a swing of the doors we see tan broadcloth door panels that
show some water staining. Knobs, pulls and cranks all are looking
shiny. Inside a two-tone light tan and slightly darker tan
broadcloth with a ribbed pattern covers the front and rear bench
seats. These sit within upholstered tubs which are solid tan
broadcloth and are bordered with dark piping. The metal dash
remains like original and sports a dark brown dash front, and tan
dash top, all adorned with plenty of chrome ribbed accenting, and
nicely aged bakelite knobs. An original steering wheel with 2 tone
to match the dash, along with a chrome half circle horn ring fronts
this nice dash. On the floors is some thin ribbed dark gray carpet
in front and some slightly worn tan carpet for the rear passengers.
A mohair headliner showing extensive water damage is above and
remains tight to the ceiling.
Drivetrain
Under the hood an unrestored inline 6-cylinder engine in 216ci size
is topped with a 1-barrel carburetor and has a 3-speed manual
transmission. A new radiator, water pump, fuel pump, rebuilt
carburetor and generator, and a complete tune up have this car
running nicely post storage.
Undercarriage
Plenty of surface rust, although all is structurally sound for the
frame, body hangers, floorpans and rockers, as well as the wheel
wells. Independent coil springs are upfront, and leaf springs are
on back with drum brakes all around. A new exhaust snakes its way
from front to back. New wheel cylinders and a new master cylinder
have been upgraded recently.
Drive-Ability
This car cranked right up, and on the test track performed
beautifully. It ran smoothly, shifted nicely, and had decent
braking for non powered hydraulic drums. All was functioning well,
and it was a great cruiser, able to get up to highway speed and
feel stable.
For the Chevrolet enthusiast who appreciates clean,
well-maintained, and beautifully kept originality, this example of
post-war streamlined design would be hard to beat. It would be a
surefire head-turner in the Antique Automobile Club of America's
Historic Preservation of Original Features class, and a fun driver
for this pre mid-century torpedo design car.
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 600 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.